Lhota just ‘per diem’ guy at MTA

ALBANY – MTA boss Joe Lhota’s ability to hold lucrative outside jobs was almost short-circuited by the state’s top ethics watchdog.

Two months after Lhota was confirmed as chairman of the transit agency in June of 2017, Joint Commission on Public Ethics Executive Director Seth Agata alerted him that he was a state “agency head” and governed by the provisions of New York’s public officers law – including a requirement that he receive prior approval for any outside employment worth more than $5,000 a year, according to letters made public Thursday.