Six months after Manhattan’s congestion pricing tolls switched on, drivers are spending less time in traffic — both within the toll zone and in the surrounding area, according to multiple data sources. At the same time, recent polls show opposition has dropped significantly in suburban areas like Long Island, from 72% a year ago to 48% in May, though more residents oppose it than support it outside New York City.

Peter Gill reports in NEWSDAY that commute times through the Queens-Midtown Tunnel, including the last three miles of the Long Island Expressway are down 22%, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Another report, using data from the Waze driving app, found jams reduced not only in Manhattan, but also in the outer boroughs and parts of New Jersey during the first 16 weeks of the program. Commute times for Long Islanders who drive or take the bus into the tolling zone were down as much as 13 minutes during the first two months of the program, according to another analysis using MTA bus data.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority imposed congestion pricing earlier this year to bust stubborn traffic in Manhattan and to generate a new stream of money for public transportation projects, including for subways, buses and the Long Island Rail Road. The measure has endured a vow from President Donald Trump to kill the program and blistering criticism from some suburban drivers, who say it would hurt the city’s economy and further burden overtaxed New Yorkers. The first-in-the nation program, which charges $9 for most vehicles driving below 60th Street, began Jan. 5 and is on track to raise $500 million from drivers this year, including $61 million in May alone.

The toll is scheduled to stay at $9 until 2028, when it will increase to $12; then it will go up to $15 in 2031.

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Stephen J. Kotz reports on 27east.com that WLIW-FM of Southampton has joined in a suit challenging President Donald Trump’s recent executive order, “Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Biased Media,” that the president signed in May.

Earlier this month, the local NPR station, which is owned by the WNET Group of New York City, filed a friend of the court brief supporting the effort by other NPR stations to overturn the president’s executive order.

But it may not matter if the suit is successful, as the Republican majority in Congress is already weighing two other options to cut off federal funding, and thus cripple public broadcasting in this country.

“It’s a distressing time — it’s really an inflection point,” said Bob Feinberg, the chief counsel for the WNET Group. “This is an existential threat to a very important, independent voice in our media landscape.”

Besides the president’s executive order, which is being challenged on grounds that the president does not have authority to eliminate funding that has been approved by Congress, as well as a free speech argument, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting faces a threat from a rescission bill, which, Feinberg said, is attempting “to claw back” $550 million in funding for each of 2026 and 2027.

That measure has already been approved by the House and is currently before the Senate, which has until July 18 to act.

Funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting has also been eliminated in the massive tax cut and spending bill, “the One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” for which a final vote is still needed to approve the legislation…although approval appears imminent.

The Corporation for...

A private citizen’s novel plan to develop individual condominiums as affordable housing took its first step when the East Hampton Town Planning Board met the pitch favorably but cautiously at its most recent meeting. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that if approved, the plan, pitched by Kirby Marcantonio, the publisher of Montauk Life and Hamptons Life magazines and a workforce housing proponent, would be to develop 47 affordable housing units spread across seven two-story buildings on a vacant 4-acre lot on Pantigo Road in East Hampton. Once built, the idea is for local employers to purchase individual units for employees to lease under terms agreed upon by the landlord and renter. In contrast, almost all other affordable developments in East Hampton Town are owned and operated by a single, certified housing corporation. To live there, tenants would have to qualify for affordable housing by maintaining a salary within 130 percent of area median income. The developers would cap the rent at half the market rate. Marcantonio said the starting price of a house in East Hampton today is $1.2 million to $1.3 million, which is far out of reach for any local resident or local worker. With that in mind, he began casting around for affordable housing ideas, as informed by his real estate background. Marcantonio will now have to submit formal plans once ready, which will take two or three months, and he hopes to get approval sometime early next year, so he can break ground on the development.

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A new $40,000 limit on state and local tax deductions, known as SALT, would be a win for many New Yorkers, tax analysts told Newsday, but provisions in the bill the Senate passed yesterday could limit the number of people who benefit. The bill passed by the Senate sets an income threshold, so only those earning $500,000 annually or less could take advantage of the full $40,000 cap. The cap would remain at $10,000 for those earning $600,000 or more. The bill also raises the “standard deduction,” allowing more people to take advantage of the higher deduction and reducing the number of people itemizing and taking advantage of the increased SALT cap, tax analysts said.

Keshia Clukey reports in NEWSDAY that the SALT deduction allows filers who itemize to subtract some of their state and local taxes from their taxable income.

The bill also increases the standard deduction, which currently is set for $15,000 for single filers and $30,000 for married filers for the 2025 tax year, according to the Internal Revenue Service. The vast majority of taxpayers take advantage of the standard deduction instead of itemizing.

The U.S. Senate passed its version of the bill in a 51-50 vote on Tuesday, largely along party lines, and the House narrowly passed its version in a 215-214 vote on May 22. The bill now goes back to the House for final approval — though lawmakers must agree on the final language. President Trump has been pushing for Congress to pass the measure before the Fourth of July.

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Peak season for political fundraising on the east end is underway as New York City Mayor Eric Adams will be feted at a power Hamptons fundraiser on Saturday as he gains momentum following former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s stunning defeat in the NYC Democratic Mayoral Primary. Ian Mohr reports in THE NY POST that power couple Maria and Kenneth Fishel will host an Adams reelection event at their Bridgehampton estate, according to an invitation seen by Page Six, along with John and Margo...