Taxes, oil prices, Gateway and COVID: No easy answers at Sherrill town hall – Morristown Green

By Marion Filler

The bi-partisan federal infrastructure bill has been passed by the House of Representatives, COVID-19 infections are on the rise, the SALT tax fix is not a done deal, and oil prices are surging again. Is there an end in sight?

We’re inching closer, according to a virtual town hall meeting hosted Tuesday by Rep. Mikie Sherrill  (D-11th Dist.)

Sherrill was accompanied by two professionals on the inside track: Amit Bose from the Federal Railroad Administration of the Department of Transportation, and Dr. Meg Fisher, pediatric infectious disease expert and special advisor to the New Jersey health commissioner.

Bose explained how the plans for the Gateway tunnel project are the culmination of years of work. The players are Amtrak, the Port Authority, NJ Transit, the MTA of New York, and the state of New Jersey.

At last, they have been joined by the federal government — always the missing, and most important, link.

“President Biden really charged us to focus on the tunnel,” said Bose. “We knew we had to position it in a good place when the infrastructure bill came together.”

As a result, environmental studies and grant applications were completed in “record time” and ready to go when the bill was put forward.

The aim is to have “shovels in the ground by 2023,” Bose said, estimating the project would take between eight and 10 years to complete.

In the meantime, the plan is to keep the existing rail tunnel functional and reliable. It’s no small task, considering the number of breakdowns and delays that have plagued NJ Transit in recent decades. An additional part of the project involves expanding Penn Station, to handle the expected doubling of passengers when the tunnel is complete.

Despite the abundance of vaccines, we still are struggling with COVID. Fisher reviewed the current federal Centers for Disease Control guidelines, noting increases in the number of cases statewide, led by Bergen and Essex counties.

“What we’d really like is to get more people boosted and to get our children vaccinated,” said Fisher, adding that children account for 25 to 35 percent of new cases. As of Oct. 29, 2021, the FDA approved a vaccine for youngsters ages 5 and up. It is one-third the dose given to adults, and has 90 percent efficacy after two weeks.

Children do not need boosters, but adults over 18 absolutely do. Fisher advised recipients of the Johnson and Johnson shot to get a booster two months after their last shot, and for persons receiving Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, six months after their second shot.

J & J and Pfizer boosters are exactly the same as the original shot, said Fisher, but Moderna is half the dose of the original. Reactions are likely to be similar to the first and second injection, and disappear after 24 to 48 hours.

All we hear about are vaccines, said a caller, but what about treatments? Breakthrough cases are far milder and early treatment is optimal, said Fisher, who mentioned oral antivirals and monoclonal antibodies. She suggested calling the COVID hotline at (855) 568-0545 with questions.

Another caller asked about recourse if the SALT fix–removing caps on federal income tax reductions for steep local property taxes– is excised from the bill.

“The Senate has tried to strip SALT from the measure,” said Sherrill.

“We have said we’re simply not voting for legislation that does not include a SALT fix. If the Senate changes our bill, and we have every reason to believe they will, in order for it to pass, we need to vote on it again in the House of Representatives. They simply do not have the votes to pass legislation with the SALT fix. Whatever they do in the Senate, they can’t get back to the House unless they address it.”

High fuel prices were another concern, despite the release of federal oil reserves by President Biden.

“It’s a global issue,” Sherrill said. “OPEC has intentionally held up supply.”

Biden’s countermeasure has been to negotiate with five other oil producing nations outside of OPEC, to put more supply into the market. That, plus the doubling of domestic production, should provide some relief, according to the White House.