City to Cover Half of Subway Action Plan Expense

[Lance]

I'm surprised this hasn't been posted yet.

Courtesy: NY Post

Quote

The city is ponying up $418 million more for the subway, despite months of Mayor de Blasio insisting the state should pick up the whole tab.

The $168.3 billion budget Gov. Cuomo announced Friday night included money for the MTA’s $836 million subway-rescue effort — by giving the state power to take funding from the city if it doesn’t willingly cough up half the cost.

For months de Blasio said the city wouldn’t provide additional cash without a guarantee the money would be used for the subways and no other MTA projects.

The feuding pols both took victory laps on Saturday.

“We finally got the city to pay half the Subway Action Plan, hurray,” Cuomo said at an Easter open house at the governor’s mansion.

A de Blasio spokesman crowed, “This budget appears to respond to the mayor’s demands on behalf of the city’s straphangers. There are no excuses left for the governor to hide behind. He must do his job and fix the subways.”

A senior Cuomo administration official shot back, “They’re trying to put their spin on it . . . [de Blasio is] trying to claim victory when he was wholly defeated,” adding the mayor has ignored his “obligation” to fund half the plan.

But de Blasio’s office said the state budget appeared to include the subway “lockbox” he’s pushed.

“When it comes to the subways, Mayor de Blasio has always demanded two things: significant movement by the state toward a real plan, and a dedicated lockbox so city riders’ money goes toward fixing city subways,” City Hall spokesman Eric Phillips said.

Other budget items were a body blow to de Blasio, including a new mandate that the city get state approval for its homeless outreach efforts before getting state funds.

NYC schools will get $334 million more from the state, but the budget requires the city disclose spending per school. Cuomo officials say the city’s current reporting only shows $9 billion of the $26 billion spent on education.

The budget also allows the state to use eminent domain to develop the area near Penn Station — which the de Blasio administration has opposed — and allows the easement the city tried to block to complete the AirTran from LaGuardia Airport to the Long Island Railroad.

“We definitely know there’s not any love lost between the mayor and the governor and any budget item obviously reflects your morals,” Fordham University political scientist Dr. Christina Greer said.

The spending plan also includes an income tax cut for middle-class New Yorkers, saving taxpayers an average of $250 each in 2018. By 2025, the savings would reach an average of $700 for joint filers making between $26,000 and $300,000.

Now there's no excuse.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

1 hour ago, Lance said:

I'm surprised this hasn't been posted yet.

Courtesy: NY Post

Now there's no excuse.

The only excuse now is that it won't be enough and the  will be asking for even more money before you can blink your eye. In addition to this, the State just agreed to add surcharges of $2.50 and $2.75 respectively for yellow taxi rides and Uber and Lyft rides.  They estimate that to give the  an addition $400+ million a year annually to work with, so for all of the people that have been bitching that the  isn't funded enough, hopefully they can now see how they use or waste that money and demand accountability.

NY state budget passes: A look at key items in $168.3 billion spending plan

Updated Mar 31; Posted Mar 31

Members of the New York Assembly work on passing budget bills at the state Capitol Friday, March 30, 2018, in Albany, N.Y. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink)(Hans Pennink)

Quote

NYC TOLLS: In an effort to address traffic congestion and raise money for mass transit, the state will impose surcharges of $2.50 on taxi rides south of 96th Street in Manhattan. Rides on Uber, Lyft and other ride-hailing services in the same zone would come with a $2.75 surcharge. Supporters see the surcharges as just the first phase of a plan to roll out new congestion tolls on private vehicles in future years.

The surcharges will raise an estimated $415 million annually for repairs and upgrades to New York City subways.

Source: http://www.syracuse.com/state/index.ssf/2018/03/ny_state_budget_passes_a_look_at_key_items_in_1683_billion_spending_plan.html

[RR503]

It's really just disgusting the way the two use policy to strike at each other. There are literally millions of livelihoods at stake, yet their biggest concern seems to be mudslinging and arm wrestling. It's really time they left the playground.

What really saddens me more than all the arm twisting is the fact that despite both DeBlasio's and Cuomo's ambitions for higher office, neither seems to be able to stop squabbling and lead. Unless they think they can pull a Trump, leaders will have to runs on records of past leadership. So far neither (especially Cuomo) is showing any. 

 

[Deucey]

2 hours ago, RR503 said:

It's really just disgusting the way the two use policy to strike at each other.

That’s politics. At least it’s politics over policy and not over birth certificates and pornstars.

But DeBlasio clearly lost this one. So no governorship or trip to Congress for him.

Does make me wonder if any NYC mayor ever became governor since unification in 1898.

[kosciusko]

4 hours ago, Lance said:

The budget also allows the state to use eminent domain to develop the area near Penn Station

The  summed up in a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OoJLJF5aMQ

 

[CenSin]

4 hours ago, Lance said:

Quote

The budget also allows the state to use eminent domain to develop the area near Penn Station

 

Well, somebody can use eminent domain to ram a project through. Why couldn’t this be used for other necessary subway work or construction?

[Around the Horn]

Alright Cuomo, the ball is entirely in your court... This thing better work.

[CDTA]

6 hours ago, Lance said:

A senior Cuomo administration official shot back, “They’re trying to put their spin on it . . . [de Blasio is] trying to claim victory when he was wholly defeated,”

Oh my god, who gives a shit? This is literally a goddamn game to them.

[Deucey]

4 minutes ago, CDTA said:

Oh my god, who gives a shit? This is literally a goddamn game to them.

Someone once said Politics is the bloodiest sport there is.

[bobtehpanda]

2 hours ago, CenSin said:

Well, somebody can use eminent domain to ram a project through. Why couldn’t this be used for other necessary subway work or construction?

We've been through this rodeo before. World Trade Center. Atlantic Yards. Willets Point.

[Coney Island Av]

Andy C at it once again...wouldn't be surprised if he published a study to extend the  to Reeds Lane, because that's totally important! 

(sarcasm)

 

[Deucey]

14 hours ago, Deucey said:

That’s politics. At least it’s politics over policy and not over birth certificates and pornstars.

But DeBlasio clearly lost this one. So no governorship or trip to Congress for him.

Does make me wonder if any NYC mayor ever became governor since unification in 1898.

John T Hoffman, last mayor of NYC to become Governor of New York. And he did it when NYC was just New York County and the Bronx.

So it's true, being NYC mayor is a dead end for political careers.