Rep. Josh Gottheimer says he wants to know exactly how the MTA is really spending its money.

“The MTA is a bureaucratic, mismanaged swamp,” Gottheimer says.

The Democratic congressman says that he wants to take federal action to investigate the MTA, and he is calling on his colleagues to help him.

“To require testimony from the CEO and chair of the MTA and demand answers, under oath, for how $15 billion of COVID relief taxpayer dollars were squandered away,” says Gottheimer.

The congressman formally called for a congressional hearing into MTA leadership, how the agency spends federal funding and how the agency is facing a massive budget deficit. Gottheimer says this deficit is the reason behind the congestion pricing plan.

“The MTA’s years of mismanagement and corruption have finally caught up with them and now they need the cash,” Gottheimer says. “And they see New Jersey commuters and families as their giant ATM.”

Gottheimer recently spoke to News 12 New Jersey to express his concerns about a New York plan to charge New Jersey drivers a $50 fee to enter Manhattan. He says all these fees won’t solve the MTA’s budget problems and that they only hurt hardworking commuters.

"We know it doesn't help with congestion, doesn't help with pollution and hurts lower income families. So, why are they doing it? For one simple reason: the MTA desperately needs money,” Gottheimer says.

The congressman says he would like the hearing to happen by the end of this year.

The MTA did not wish to comment on this story.