Trump admin must restore $3B in CTA funding for Red Line, other projects, judge rules

Judge: Trump administration must release CTA funding

A favorable court ruling for the CTA against the Trump administration. A federal judge ordered the Department of Transportation to release $3 billion that the CTA had coming to them.

CHICAGO - A federal judge ruled that the Trump administration improperly withheld about $2 billion from the Chicago Transit Authority for its Red Line extension and modernization projects.

The backstory:

On Tuesday, Judge Thomas Durkin ordered the Federal Transit Authority and U.S. Department of Transportation to release the funding designated to modernize and extend the CTA’s train system.

The CTA said if the funding was not released by the end of this week, the projects would face delays and "deprive the citizens of [Chicago] of much-needed improvements to their public transportation system."

The Trump administration said last October it would freeze the funding after a review to see if any "federal dollars go towards discriminatory, illegal, and wasteful contracting practices," according to court documents. The federal government also sought information from the CTA, which the agency said it complied with.

"Today, the CTA secured a major victory for the Red Line Extension and the residents of Chicago’s Far South Side. CTA promised the community that it would fight for RLE, and this ruling is a massive step toward restoration of funding for this historic project. RLE will provide transit access and opportunity for generations to come, and we are fully committed to seeing it move forward," said CTA Acting President Nora Leerhsen, in a statement.

On Thursday, Fox Chicago spoke with Congressman Mike Quigley, D-Chicago, about the court ruling. Quigley felt the Trump Administration withholding federal grant money was political.  

"It's apparent they're just going after blue cities," said Quigley. "This was a vindictive, petty, frankly illegal move, and I think that's why the court's ruling makes sense."

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also felt the Trump Administration's move to freeze money was politically motivated.

"I've said from the very beginning, that this president has worked overtime to create distractions in this country in order to go after, I believe, the people that he ultimately wants to squash and suppress and that's the base of working class movement," said Johnson.

In response to the ruling, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Transportation said in a statement: "The Department remains committed to ensuring that taxpayer dollars are spent wisely and in accord with the laws and Constitution."

What's next:

The CTA said that unless the federal government seeks a reversal of the judge’s ruling, the funding payments should resume by Friday.

U.S. DOT did not say if they plan on appealing the ruling.