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COUNCIL MEMBERS DARLENE MEALY AND TISH JAMES SLAM MTA AT PUBLIC HEARING IN BROOKLYN
Don’t ever say that some of the female members of Brooklyn’s city council delegation are soft: they aren’t. There was a raucous public hearing last Wednesday evening at the Brooklyn Museum (near Grand Army Plaza), that was aimed at getting the general view on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s proposed service cuts in the next fiscal year; at this event, NYC council members Darlene Mealy and Tish James -both from Brooklyn- made outstanding oral presentations which captivated the loud crowd of attendees. Throughout the procedures scores of teenagers outnumbered the elderly, in openly expressing their disenchantment with the proposed cuts by the MTA’s board members. Eventually four arrests were made amongst the spirited -but at times rowdy- youngsters; as police officers had to be called in to help maintain order. The evening started out with a detailed speech by Brooklyn’s boro-prez Marty Markowitz, in which he vehemently spoke out against the proposed cuts. Marty’s speech was the longest of the night, but he made his point quite clear: he is totally opposed to the MTAs proposals in current form. Marty stirred up the crowd with his typically energetic speaking style, and seemed to have set the tone for the rest of the evening. Speaker after speaker spoke out against the proposed cuts. Council member Tish James also spoke early and was powerful in her presentation. She suggested that we shut down the MTA Board and create another entity to supervise our public transportation needs, if the Board continues to be as dysfunctional as it has been over the years. She lamented the fact that the board’s racial and ethnic composition (only one black member there) didn’t reflect the reality of this city’s demographics. She also railed against their bogus dual- accounting system(s). Councilmember Mealy seemed to suggest that the Board was sado-masochistic in its psychology. She said that they appear to go through this ritual every year or so, wherein these public hearings get out of hand because of the heavy-handed draconian cuts being proposed. She wondered aloud whether or not board members were gluttons for this type punishment: meaning of course, the regular public scolding they generally receive. Ms. Mealy also entered a written submission to the hearing (for its public records, and for posterity). She slammed the proposed cuts in student metro card services, and also the proposed cuts to the para-transit rides, which will mostly affect seniors and those who are physically challenged. She also spoke of the dual accounts (books) that the MTA board seems to play games with. She wondered aloud as to which figures they used this time in coming up with these proposed cuts in services during the next fiscal year. She said that in this society we have to be particular in how we treat the most vulnerable (children and seniors) among us. She is totally against any cuts in these programs. In her written submission Ms. Mealy suggested that the MTA seek monies from the funds made available through President Obama’s stimulus package. She also suggested some other new funding streams/sources for the MTA board. Ironically, Ms. Mealy once worked as an employee of the MTA, prior to seeking public office. Her successful candidacy was backed by other employees of the MTA and through the transit union. Stay tuned-in folks. Rock, Actually I thought you were one of the more lucid speakers at the MTA hearing. I heard the whole show from beginning to end and came away with a much different read than you. First, the political speakers insisted on professional courtesy and the MTA let them go to the front of the speaker's line. They returned that courtesy by blaming the MTA for the dedicated taxes coming up short as a function of the recession and because the politicians in Albany, almost all Democrats, took other MTA dedicated money and spent it on other things forcing the MTA to cut service to make budget. It didn't really matter to most of the students anyway since they were simply enraged that the politicians got to go first. The students who got arrested refused to follow the order of speakers. Anarchism has its place in the hallowed halls of dissent but I'm not sure their approach was particularly effective though they did rule the news cycle for a day or so. (Turned out on of the arestees had an outstanding warrant upstate so he got a free trip after a night in the House of D) Only three speakers in the six hour demonstration of civic ill-will even mentioned how to raise new revenues or how to restructure the revenue stream to protect against cyclical budget crises. It was entirely disengenuous and self-serving of the politicians (who really expected anything different) to completely avoid the subject of increasing revenues to the system. Everyone hates the service cuts, even the Board, but almost no one wants to fund the MTA. Just one of the politicians even mentioned bridge tolls, congestion pricing or any other form of funding the system. Your presentation was one of the best, but still Rock, how would you fund all these things the riders need? You were a spokeman for one of the politicians, I wanted better and I don't think I was alone.
budget solution made simple; we have as much money as we had in 1986, we use the 1986 budget. end of story.
NM: Thanks for your comments. In the written submission I entered into the record for Ms. Mealy we did make some suggestions as to new funding streams/sources. I felt that she gave an impassioned presentation albeit short. I also felt Ms. James made a fine presentation. The issues you raised should be dealt with in a more formal setting without all the budgetary pressures and political drama. Tish James also made a fine presentation in my estimation. I know these things should be handled in the various committees (fed, state and city) of the legislative branches of government. And yes, I do agreee with your implication that the public hearings would be better served without all the political posturing. Take care bro.
Its time for someone in NYC politics to step up to the plate and be a champion for congestion pricing and/or bridge tolls. The state legislature and Gov. Patterson teamed up to raid the MTA budget severely compounding the MTA budget crisis. Ms. James and Ms. Mealy's constituents were particularly hard hit. Recessions are horrible times to create new taxes. Congestion pricing/bridge tolls however are unique among other revenue enhancements/taxes in that they pay the public back in lower congestion, less automobile violence and higher bus driver productivity. The MTA riders need a champion and whether or not Ms. James' and Ms. Mealy's written comments carried a reference to some sort of revenue raising what is really needed is someone to get out in front of this issue particularly with regard to congestion pricing/bridge tolls. When someone does, they can leave Marty Markowitz huddled in a corner with Weprin et. al., while they become the champion of people who need to get to work (there are lots of them, do the math).
The issue with creating new streams of funding is that the MTA gets the same amount cut out of their general fund budget. So, the MTA would not get a funding increase. It simply alters how the money gets there.
I hate to throw cold water on Cold Water but the MTA doesn't really have a general fund budget to cut. This piece pretty much covers it http://www.streetsblog.org/2010/03/12/fare-hike-2010-your-chance-to-prop-up-albany/ Now, exactly how and why that makes bridge tolls a bad idea is your responsibility to explain. You don't solve the problem of Albany playing a shell game with MTA dedicated taxes by cutting all possible funding to the MTA. Rather you do it by legislating away the ability of the legislature to shift MTA present and future dedicated money to other uses. Wow, superb blog layout! How lengthy have you ever been running a blog for? you made running a blog look easy. The full glance of your web site is great, let alone the content!
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The student MetroCards are gone because the city and state don't want to pay for them. Under state law, the school district pays for transportation for students. The MTA should have NEVER kicked in any money. Bus operators have stated that they are not going to charge kids to go to school because they are not getting their faces bashed in over politics.
The reality is that the stimulus money is being asked for in order to bail out politicians who don't understand basic math. They expect the same services to be provided with a budget that cannot support it by stealing money allocated to other projects that can "wait". If the feds allocated 80% of the money to fix specific things and we flex 10% of that money to the operating budget as well as part of the local match, then we have created a major budget shortfall in the capital budget. This budget is there to prevent large, important, and expensive things from breaking and failing.
The only thing left to see is if the budget situation gets worse. I am almost certain that it will.