The first auction of an airport takeoff and landing slot, an idea that has pitted the Bush administration against the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, has been delayed.

The Department of Transportation planned to hold an auction today for one takeoff and landing slot at Newark airport to test the waters for the idea, but the Federal Aviation Administration’s dispute resolution office instructed it to hold off on the auction to allow for further deliberation.

“Our general sense is that before the end of the month the paperwork part of it will be done,” the lead counsel for the transportation department, D.J. Gribbin, said. Mr. Gribbin said he considered the decision a setback, though he predicted that the auction would take place in the coming weeks.

“We would have preferred for it to go forward, but our goal is not to auction one round-trip slot at Newark,” he said.

The transportation department last week threatened to withhold $27 million in grants to the Port Authority if the agency continued its resistance to the slot auction plan.

The Port Authority says the proposed slot auctions would result in higher costs for airlines, increased ticket prices for passengers, and fewer flights to smaller destination cities.