Just Another MTA Rescue Plan?
May 1st, 2009
“I think there is a good chance they will resolve this issue next week,” said Gene Russianoff of the New York State Public Interest Research Group’s Straphangers Campaign. “I know when they have been posturing in the past, and my feeling is there is a good shot this will be resolved next week.”
Russianoff’’s optimism comes despite the fact that Gov. David Paterson’s not-so-secret plan to rescue the MTA does not seem to have been much of a game changer. Paterson’s proposal, which is said to give school districts state money to reimburse them for the cost of a payroll tax, is expected to be added to Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith’s MTA rescue plan, which is currently pending before the Senate. But Paterson’s proposal does not seem to have swayed enough Democratic senators to make much of a difference.
Two senators who opposed any payroll tax now say Paterson’s proposal has changed their minds. Sens. Suzi Oppenheimer and Andrea Stewart-Cousins have said that Paterson’s proposal makes Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith’s MTA rescue plan more palatable. However, a spokesperson for Sen. Brian Foley told the New York Times that the Senator was still “studying the proposals.” And a spokesperson for Sen. Craig Johnson told the Times that Johnson’s opinion “remains unchanged.”
Critics, including Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, say the plan may set a precedent for other worthy groups to be reimbursed for the tax.
And transit advocates say the entire process of coming up with a plan that the Senate can actually find the votes to pass has been a slippery slope. With each new plan a new group of senators or interests is catered to, and the plans become more watered down.
Not everyone is convinced that Smith’s plan will provide the MTA with enough money to keep it financially solvent for very long. But Russianoff said he was confident that any deal that might be reached would address both concerns. Russianoff said, “The Senate’s plan and the Ravitch plan are not that far apart.” He added that while the revenue from bridge tolls proposed in the Ravitch plan probably wouldn’t start rolling in until over a year after the plan was passed, the fees proposed in the Senate plan would begin in June.
Russianoff sees two scenarios playing out in an attempt to come to a deal to pass a rescue plan. The first involves negotiations between Smith’s office and representatives of Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Smith hopes that if Bloomberg endorses his plan he may be able to sway enough Republican Senators to vote for the bill. Meanwhile, Paterson is trying to win the support of suburban democrats with his proposal to reimburse school districts.A vote on the Smith’s bill is supposed to occur early next week.
When asked again if he was truly confident that we are only days away from a deal, Russianoff hesitated, and said that it might just be the fear of the late hour and exactly how dire the MTA’s situation is that is making him so optimistic. “We are approaching the point of no return,” he said, chuckling in what seemed like disbelief.
By David King on May 1, 2009, 5:14 pmIn category: Albany, Eye on Albany, Transportation | No Comments »

