Albany Reform
Streetsblog Basics
Victims’ Families Optimistic About Change After Meeting Albany Lawmakers
During yesterday's trip to Albany, members of Families for Safe Streets not only won over a key new backer of legislation to set the city's default speed limit at 20 mph, they met with more than 30 legislators to ask for lower speed limits and more automated enforcement.
March 19, 2014
Victims’ Families Head to Albany, Calling on Legislators to Save Lives
The State Senate budget released late last week includes a plan to expand New York City's school zone speed enforcement program from 20 cameras to 180 cameras. As the Senate, Assembly and Governor Cuomo enter budget negotiations, families of traffic violence victims are in Albany today to meet with legislators and push for policies that would do more to reduce traffic violence: lowering the citywide speed limit and giving NYC control of automated enforcement.
March 18, 2014
Assembly Members: We Have to Stop Cuomo’s $40 Million Transit Raid
Yesterday, a group of Assembly members and advocates took Governor Cuomo to task for the $40 million transit raid in his budget proposal. The legislators unveiled a letter [PDF] urging Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver to restore the funds in the legislative budget, due for a vote on March 12.
March 3, 2014
Who, Me? Cuomo Vetoes Lockbox Bill, Denies Raiding Transit
Hours after the MTA announced that it would be scaling back planned fare hikes in part because of better-than-expected tax receipts, Governor Cuomo vetoed two transparency bills designed to discourage Albany from siphoning away those very same dedicated transit funds. The governor capped his veto with a brazen denial: Despite getting caught raiding the MTA's budget earlier this year, Cuomo insisted that he's done no such thing.
November 14, 2013
As Deadline Approaches, Will Cuomo Sign or Veto Transit Lockbox Bill?
This afternoon, a coalition of more than 200 groups sent a letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo [PDF] asking him to sign the transit lockbox bill, which would help safeguard dedicated transit funds by requiring the state to disclose the impact of any raids on transit agency budgets. The pressure is on: The governor has until the middle of next week to sign or veto the legislation.
November 4, 2013
Pressure Builds Upstate for Cuomo to Sign Transit Lockbox Bill
The transit lockbox bill, which would help safeguard dedicated transportation funds by requiring the state to disclose the impact of transit raids, still awaits a signature from Governor Cuomo following unanimous Senate and Assembly votes earlier this year. Now, two upstate newspapers are calling on the governor to sign the bill.
August 30, 2013
Cuomo’s Office Opens Up Transpo Data, But Not Crash Locations
On Wednesday, Governor Cuomo announced a new raft of publicly-accessible data on the state's data transparency website, data.NY.gov. Some of the data sets include information that was already accessible in different forms, while other sets are newly available to the public. The release also includes detailed information about individual crashes from the Department of Motor Vehicles, but it falls short by failing to say where crashes occur.
July 26, 2013
Will Cuomo Sign the Transit Lockbox Bill?
The transit lockbox bill, which would require Albany to disclose the impacts of any raid of dedicated transit funds, passed both the Senate and Assembly unanimously in the final days of the legislative session, reports the Tri-State Transportation Campaign. It now heads to Governor Andrew Cuomo's desk. A nearly identical bill reached Cuomo in 2011, but the governor gutted the disclosure provision and signed a toothless bill. This time around, will Cuomo put pen to paper and protect transit riders?
June 20, 2013
After Unanimous Senate Vote, Transit Lockbox Bill Heads to Assembly
Albany has long used the MTA as a piggy bank, raiding dedicated transit funds on a regular basis to cover gaps in the state budget. As a result, straphangers are squeezed as transit agencies resort to fare hikes and service cuts to make up the difference.
June 13, 2013
State DOT “Multi-Modal Funds” Have Starring Role in Malcolm Smith Scandal
In the wake of a scandal-soaked week in Albany, Governor Cuomo held a press conference this afternoon with district attorneys from across the state to announce a new anti-corruption law. As he seeks to tighten the rules in Albany, Cuomo could take immediate steps to make sure a transportation funding mechanism that featured prominently in last week's scandals is fortified against abuse by lawmakers.
April 9, 2013