This week, the New York State Assembly and Senate finally showed their cards, making public their one-house budget resolutions in response to Governor Cuomo’s Executive Budget. The next few weeks will be a flurry of negotiations and deals, and there are several issues TSTC is keeping on the radar.

Diversion of Transit Funds: Removed

The 2014-2015 Executive Budget proposes to divert $40 million in dedicated transit funds to pay off State Service Contract Bonds. The Assembly and Senate have responded in unison by standing up for transit riders and removing the proposal.

The saga began in 2002 when the State signed a contract with the MTA that obligated the State to pay the debt service on these bonds. Last year the governor backtracked on that obligation, and proposed to use $20 million in funds dedicated to transit to pay off the bonds, instead of using funds from the General Fund. Unfortunately, last year’s diversion slipped through in the budget process. The governor upped the ante in January, proposing a diversion twice the size of last year’s, while also revealing that he intended to pay down the entire $345 million in outstanding State-obligated bond debt by diverting chunks of transit funds every year over the course of the next 17 years.

As Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli points out, these are funds that could otherwise have gone to the MTA, and as the Straphangers Campaign’s Gene Russianoff told Capital New York, “We suffered through the bad times… Now with the economy improving, the MTA is being treated like a cash cow by the governor’s office.”

Nassau and Suffolk Speed Cameras: In Senate One-House, More for NYC Added

In the 30-day amendments to the Executive Budget, Governor Cuomo added authorization for speed cameras in school zones in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. This move follows last year’s big win for street safety, when Albany authorized New York City to launch a 20-camera pilot program.

Unfortunately, the Assembly did not follow suit, but the Senate did — and even stepped it up a notch by adding 160 more cameras for New York City’s pilot program. Given the enthusiasm surrounding New York City’s Vision Zero policy, and the push to expand street safety efforts elsewhere in the region, this is likely to be a hot topic for both the budget and legislative seasons.

Dedicated Funding for Bicycle and Pedestrian Infrastructure: Nada

The call for more dedicated funding for bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure has been growing louder and louder over the last couple of years. The momentum started in earnest with the passage of the New York’s Complete Streets law in 2011 and the subsequent formation of New Yorkers for Active Transportation (NY4AT) in 2013. This year advocates and legislators set a goal for the State to dedicate $20 million in the budget to make up for the 30 percent reduction in dedicated federal dollars.

The governor’s office has not been deaf to the request, nor to the fact that New York has the worst record in the nation when it comes to bike-ped fatalities on our roads. One day after NY4AT delivered over 1,300 postcards, the governor announced $67 million in federal funds that would go to bicycle and pedestrian projects—50 percent more than anticipated from this particular funding program. But as a letter from NYS Senators points out, this one-time infusion “came after four years of drought in which there were no solicitations for this funding program.” In other words, while the $67 million helps, a steadier funding stream is needed to meet the growing demand for safer streets.

The dedicated funding did not show up in the Executive Budget nor in either of the one-house bills, but the New York State Department of Transportation will be negotiating a new five-year Capital Plan next year with the legislature, so you can rest assured that this issue is not going away.

Improved Operating Funds for Non-MTA Systems: Senate Steps Up for Upstate

The Executive Budget was a disappointment for suburban and upstate transit systems, proposing a bare-bones increase in operating funds (1.3 percent for upstate, 2 percent for downstate suburban transit) that would hardly keep up with escalating costs, let alone increases in ridership. The New York Public Transit Association (NYPTA) proposed changing the dedicated funding formula for upstate transit so that revenue streams would be more stable and predictable. The proposal was revenue neutral, swapping out the petroleum business tax for a portion of the state sales tax. Unfortunately, once again, the Assembly did not include this proposal in their one-house resolution, but the Senate did. The Senate added an additional $3 million to support upstate transit, $1 million for Buffalo’s Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, and (still forthcoming) language to fix the upstate funding formula. Neither bill addressed the need for funding increases in the downstate suburban counties, particularly Suffolk County on Long Island, where County Executive Steve Bellone requested an additional $10 million in State Transportation Operating Assistance funding.

Environmental Review for Sheridan Expressway: Senate Calls for Next Steps

Because there is no direct way to access the Bronx’s Hunts Point peninsula from the Bruckner Expressway, tens of thousands of trucks make the two-mile connection using local residential streets. This contributes to air pollution and safety issues for South Bronx residents. The construction of ramps are one of two key recommendations released by New York City last December on how to improve access to the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center, a $2 billion-a-year economic engine. Constructing the ramps would make it easier for customers and businesses to access the Hunts Point markets, while getting trucks off local streets and improving air quality and safety throughout the community. Environmental review for this next step has been stalled due to lack of funding, but the Senate’s budget resolution specifically directs the NYS Department of Transportation to allocate the money to commence the needed environmental review.