2 Port Authority Retirees Sue Over EZ-Pass Perks

They say their toll and parking perks were revoked without due process

Two retired Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police officers who are now attorneys have filed lawsuits against the agency for revoking their lifetime toll and parking passes.

Thomas Westfield, a retired Port Authority detective sergeant, filed suit on behalf of himself and is seeking class-action status on behalf of more than 400 fellow Port Authority retirees.

Michael Shuhala, a retired police detective for the agency, who is an attorney and a municipal court judge in Cliffside Park, filed suit Dec. 30 on behalf of himself, claiming the privileges were revoked without due process.

The Port Authority eliminated free toll privileges in 2010 after New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie criticized toll-payer funded perks.

The agency issued a statement in defense of its position, saying it was looking at other compensation and benefits that could be cut.

"The Port Authority eliminated this benefit that was unavailable to the toll-paying public and stands by its decision," the statement read.

Shuhala told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he earned the EZ-Pass benefit after more than 26 years serving the public, responding to the attacks of 9/11 and protecting citizens.

"As a retired employee, I believe I was entitled to the right I was promised, and it was unilaterally taken away," he said.

Westfield said when he started working in 1971 that the passes were a lifetime benefit.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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