On December 8, 2020, the Waterfront Commission attorneys filed their petition for a Writ of Certiorari in the Supreme Court. Noting that most of the port activities are now based in New Jersey, they claimed the Waterfront Commission had also hurt the states economic interests. The letter said New Jerseys move cannot go unchecked.. The commission regulates hiring and licensing on the waterfront, and continues in its efforts to make made guys scarce on the docks. Chris Christie signed a law to pull the state out of the commission. But 70 years have passed, and the New Jersey Legislature has concluded that the commission now engages in overregulation of business and is ill-equipped to handle 21st century security challenges, Feigenbaum told the justices. Elena Kagan, who also grew up in New York, was similarly skeptical of the state's argument as was the court's only member from New Jersey, Justice Samuel Alito. Soon after, New Jersey went back to the drawing board to determine how it could pull out of the compact, primarily looking to shift policing of the port and background checks to the state police, which already reportedly plays a similar role in the states waste management and casino industries. Paulin said the same logic New Jersey is using to try to wipe away the Waterfront Commission could be used to make things happen that New Jersey might not like for instance, New Yorks unliteral exit from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The commission is authorized to deny or revoke the registration or licenses of those who involve themselves in criminal activity. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. State officials have also not even suggested such a move might be under consideration, despite New Jerseys self-imposed deadline for withdrawal now three weeks away. New Jersey, the justices questioned counsel for New York on whether New Jersey could be held to the 1953 Waterfront Commission Compact indefinitely. But during Wednesday's arguments, there was little reference made to mafia crime families and whether they would make inroads back to the ports should the Waterfront Commission be dissolved. Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. The Waterfront Commission declined comment on Monday. The commission has long outlived its original mission and, today, only stands as a roadblock to hiring and operations at our ports. Acting Solicitor General Brian H. Fletcher, whose office argues the governments position for the Justice Department in cases before the Supreme Court, acknowledged in his brief last month that New York could still sue New Jersey state officials in federal court over the Waterfront Commission and seek an injunction. Justice Amy Coney Barrett said it seems very odd that New York wants to keep the commission even though most of the ports business is now conducted on the New Jersey side of the harbor. That case has been winding through courts ever since and the U.S. Supreme Court decision not to hear the case essentially rested on procedural matters about who could sue whom. That fight, if it comes, will almost certainly put more focus on the role of organized crime on the New York and New Jersey waterfront, which was the reason the commission was created in the first place. Its formation in 1953 came in the wake of series newspaper stories that exposed the racketeering and labor abuses then widespread on the piers which led to major reforms inspiring the Marlon Brando film classic On the Waterfront.. Following release of the report, the large majority of the commission's executive staff were fired, including the New Jersey Commissioner Michael J. Madonna (the New York Commissioner's seat was vacant at the time of the report's release, although the report faulted the actions of the former New York Commissioner, Michael C. Cargo ships docked in Port Newark in December 2021.Ted Sherman | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. WebThe Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor (WCNYH) is a regulatory agency in Port of New York and New Jersey in the United States. The agencys two commissioners and executive staff members were swept out and new leadership has since been installed. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Protecting the safety of New Yorkers and our vital industries is my top priority, and we cannot afford to lose the Waterfront Commissions unique authority and expertise in combating crime at our port, said New York Governor Kathy Hochul on March 14, 2022, when New York filed legal action in the Supreme Court to block New Jersey from terminating the Waterfront Commission. New Jersey set in motion its intent to end its agreement with New York after legislators amid political pressure from the New York Shipping Association and the International Longshoremans Association voted in 2018 to withdraw from the commission. We know here that the parties never intended for this to be perpetual, said Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who grew up in New York. The Police Division operates in Manhattan and Brooklyn and has three offices, two in NY: The Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor cooperates with various state, federal, and local law enforcement authorities in pursuing investigations into waterfront-related crimes. filed to the Supreme Court through November, A look inside the negotiations to split federal transit funds, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. After being in limbo for nine months, New York v. New Jerseyalso known as the New York-New Jersey Waterfront Commission casewill soon be litigated in the U.S. Supreme Court, with oral arguments being made beginning February 27, 2023. The Waterfront Commission is staffed by commission attorneys who are trained in various law enforcement and police investigative techniques. Ted Sherman | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. The Southern District said the commission provided invaluable support in investigations of La Cosa Nostra families and racketeering cases involving labor unions. Kathy Hochul that New Jersey cannot simply decide on its own to end a nearly 70-year-old compact that led to the joint formation by the two states of the Waterfront Commission in 1953. The U.S. The Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor was created to address of racketeering and unfair hiring practices at the jointly-run Port of New York and New The Waterfront Commission participated in the investigation of criminal activities by the leaders and members of the Gambino crime family and union leaders. New Jersey obviously thinks it can, New York obviously doesnt think it should be able to. [12], On August 11, 2009, the New York State Inspector General Joseph Fisch issued a report of his two-year investigation of the Waterfront Commission. Hochul to bring a new case last year before the Supreme Court. The Waterfront Commission had sued to stop New Jersey from abandoning the agreement that established it decades ago, a move that would have effectively killed it. New Jersey officials, continuing to press forward on a unilateral withdrawal from the watchdog agency that oversees the regions major ports, suggested there could be job offers on the table for those currently working for the bi-state commission. It argued that New Jersey could not simply decide for itself that it no longer wanted to honor its obligations under a bilateral compact ratified by Congress. The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed New Jersey a victory in its effort to abolish the 70-year-old Waterfront Commission, declining to intervene for now in whether the state can leave the bi-state agency tasked with keeping the ports around New York Harbor free of organized crime. The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals decision, which now stands, found that the commission doesnt have standing to sue New Jersey. Now, all eyes are turning to New York and to the merits of the commission itself and whether organized crime is still a major threat. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. The Gov. New Jersey has the support of the Biden administration, which has told the court that the compact's text suggests either state can withdraw on its own. Make descriptions so clear that persons unfamiliar with the work can understand exactly what is done.. The commission, which was created by New York and New Jersey in response to the deep-rooted corruption once prevalent on the docks, has jurisdiction over all the regions piers and terminals. Following World War II, national attention was primarily drawn towards the existence of organized crime and its influence down at the docks thanks to The New York Suns Macolm Johnson and his 24-article series, Crime on the Waterfront (which was published in 1948, won a Pulitzer Prize for local reporting in 1949, and inspired the film adaptation, On the Waterfront, that was released in 1954). The courts decision Monday was not unexpected. When New York and New Jersey formed the Waterfront Commission Compact in 1953, they intended to prohibit unilateral termination, argued Vale in her opening statement. That sets up a three-month transfer period where some of the duties of the commission are assumed by the state. New Jersey politicians say the commission has outlived its usefulness, and in 2018 then-Gov. Hochuls counsel has added that the commission remains a major player in the ongoing battle against organized crime and corruption in the ports shared by the two states. Vale made a last attempt during her rebuttal to convince the justices of the commission's essential role in the region, saying that as recently as 2006 the compact governing the commission was amended by both states to strengthen the organization's work and therefore the two states should work together to determine the commission's future. The Waterfront Commission which includes one member from each state appointed by its governor has jurisdiction over all the regions piers and Despite having once vetoed the measure as unconstitutional, then-Gov. The Supreme Court docket has recorded the arguments being filed by both the defendant and plaintiff since March 2022. Several justices leaned back in their chairs as they listened to Vale's final arguments, but none followed up with questions. Chris Christie signed a law withdrawing from the commission and handing over law enforcement operations on the New Jersey side of the port to the New Jersey State Police. 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