Comments on: Paterson spars with GOP as deadline nears

By: An A-Rod-inspired anti-tabloid rant | River Avenue Blues

An A-Rod-inspired anti-tabloid rant | River Avenue Blues — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 19:30:37 +0000

[...] a time when New York City’s mass transit is in the midst of a financial crisis, as the nation’s economy founders, a gossip column’s story about a baseball [...]

By: Marc Shepherd

Marc Shepherd — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 15:16:17 +0000

Actually, the Ravitch plan did propose expense cuts. Read it again.

On top of that, AW’s argument ignores a fundamental truth. The MTA is a creation of the state. If it is mismanaged, then it’s the state’s own fault, and no one but the state can fix it.

Now, the MTA has announced that it has a problem, and if the state does not provide any other solution, it will solve the problem by drastically hiking fares and slashing service. If the state doesn’t like that answer, then it needs to offer a different one. Otherwise, the state (i.e., all of us) will get the MTA’s solution.

By: Scott E

Scott E — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 15:03:25 +0000

That’s what I first thought. But just like the “me too” that inevitably followed the whole idea of “economic stimulus” funding, pretty soon every elected official, judge, bus driver, sanitation worker, police officer, and any other public employee’s employer will ask for the same exemption. Then comes the second tier — the private companies who provide services for the public ones (school lunch providers, cleaning staff, copy/printing services, etc). Once you open up an exemption, it’s hard to draw the line where the exemption ends.

By: Benjamin Kabak

Benjamin Kabak — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:38:51 +0000

That’s easy. Just exempt schools from the payroll tax.

By: Benjamin Kabak

Benjamin Kabak — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:38:22 +0000

Can we please stop with the dual books thing? As Errol Louis pointed out over the weekend, the MTA was exonerated in court of the dual books, and then Alan Hevesi resigned in disgrace from his comptroller position. That's a red herring argument that people use to unjustly slam the MTA. Look, I don't think the MTA is particularly well organized or efficient, but this is a problem that started at the top with Pataki. It's his responsibility through and through and the politicians today are simply making the same mistakes they made 10-15 years ago.

By: Gary Reilly

Gary Reilly — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 13:43:35 +0000

“Just remember that the politicians — and not the MTA heads — are the ones responsible for this mess.”

Truer words were never spoken. It’s true, as AW states, that this was set in motion long ago . . . but again by politicians, not the MTA. If you wanted to put a face on this disaster it would be the grimace/smile of George Pataki.

The MTA has been systematically underfunded for far too long, piling up the debt that is choking the current budget. I’ve been beating that drum for a while. But only the current politicians can get us out of this mess. What Ben said is absolutely fair. The Senate needs to get it’s act together immediately.

By: AW

AW — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 13:17:06 +0000

Precisely, just as debt service on capital expenditures of the MTA come out of operating expenses, this issue is far from simple

By: Scott E

Scott E — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 12:48:50 +0000

I’ve been seeing some Letters-to-the-Editor in Newsday which seems to put another interesting, and slightly twisted (although accurate) reason to oppose the payroll tax. The letters suggest that the money to save the MTA is coming at the expense of school funding. Since the schools are required to pay the same payroll tax as private employees, the money to help the MTA effectively comes out of the school budgets.

I’m not quite sure what the political response is (or should be) to this one.

By: AW

AW — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 11:44:05 +0000

“Just remember that the politicians — and not the MTA heads — are the ones responsible for this mess.”

Oh Benjamin that is so not fair and you know it. The politicians have alot to be blamed for, but you know that the MTA is not an organization with alot of credibility, going back to the dual books but also to numerous cost overruns for offices and capital projects. That politicians are not falling over to support the plan – in the worst recessions/depression many of us will see in our lifetimes – is hardly surprising.

This is the disaster that was set in motion many many years ago. And surely our leadership deserves some scorn – but there is alot of blame to go around, and I would suggest in a time where governments and companies are scaling back and making material cuts, the Ravitch plan lost support because it proposed only revenue increases – and not material expense cuts. Hard in this day and age to be surprised how that didnt gather support.