Provides that the triborough bridge and tunnel authority shall transfer in its entirety its annual operating surplus to the metropolitan transportation authority; provides that the metropolitan transportation authority shall, pursuant to resolution, transfer a portion of such surplus to the New York city transit authority (solely for application to the payment of its operating expenses) and retain a portion for application to the payment of its operating expenses and the operating expenses of commuter railroads operated by it, its subsidiary corporations or by others pursuant to joint service arrangements; repeals provisions relating to formula for proportional allocation of the operating surplus of the TBTA between the NYCTA and MTA.

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S3377-2013 Actions

• Feb 1, 2013: REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION

S3377-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S3377

TITLE  OF BILL:  An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation
to the allocation of the triborough bridge and tunnel authority  operat-
ing surplus and to repeal certain provisions of such law relating there-
to

PURPOSE  OF  BILL:    To allow the metropolitan transportation authority
board to distribute the TBTA surplus as it deems appropriate.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends section 1219-a(2) (b) of the Public Authorities Law to
direct the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (the "TBTA") to trans-
fer its operating surplus to the Metropolitan  Transportation  Authority
("MTA"),  which would then determine the appropriate distribution of the
surplus between the New York city Transit Authority  ("NYCTA")  and  the
MTA's commuter railroads.

Section  2:  Repeals  section  1219-a(3)  of the Public Authorities Law,
which establishes the current formula  for  calculating  the  shares  of
operating surplus to be distributed.

Section  3: Amends section 553-d of the Public Authorities Law to create
special obligations bonds and notes for TBTA.

Section 4: Effective date of bill.

JUSTIFICATION:  Current law requires that the TBTA distribute its annual
operating surplus to NYCTA, for the benefit of the city's  mass  transit
system, and to the MTA, for the benefit of the commuter railroads. Prior
to  1972, the entire TBTA surplus was distributed to NYCTA. In 1972, the
Public Authorities Law was amended to provide that the first $24 million
go to NYCTA and the remaining portion be evenly  divided  between  NYCTA
and the commuter railroads. Under this formula, a significant proportion
of the TBTA surplus was directed to NYCTA.

In  1981,  the formula was revised to take into account (in dividing the
surplus) debt service incurred by TBTA  for  capital  projects  for  the
benefit  of  NYCTA and the commuter railroads. As a result of the steady
increase in the TBTA surplus and the effects of inflation, NYCTA,  which
received all the TBTA surplus prior to 1972, received barely half of the
surplus  in 1996. In addition, because of the capital-intensive needs of
the City's subway and bus system, which must be  financed  through  debt
service,  a  steadily  decreasing  level of the NYCTA share goes towards
operating assistance, in comparison with the commuter  railroads,  as  a
result of the 1981 statutory change.

While  reliable  origin  and  destination  data indicates that over two-
thirds of TBTA tolls are paid by city residents, the  current  statutory
formula provides for an inequitable distribution of the surplus revenues

that  results  in  a shortfall for NYCTA of almost $86 million annually.
Over the years, since 1972, the cumulative amount  of  surplus  revenues
that were not assigned to NYCTA totals over $850 million.

The  MTA  is  the  parent of both NYCTA and the commuter railroads. This
legislation would give  the  MTA  Board  flexibility  to  determine  the
amount,  timing  and level of operating relief of each agency to provide
for a more equitable distribution of the surplus.

By giving the MTA Board the power to determine how  the  TBTA  operating
surplus  should  be  distributed,  the  Legislature will provide the MTA
Board with an important tool to enable it  to  fulfill  its  legislative
mandate  of  implementing  a  unified mass transportation policy for the
metropolitan region.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:  2011-2012: S.5279 - Referred to Transportation

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None.

EFFECTIVE DATE: Immediately.

S3377-2013 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    3377

                         2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                              February 1, 2013
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen. ADDABBO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
    printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation

  AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in  relation  to  the  allo-
    cation of the triborough bridge and tunnel authority operating surplus
    and to repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto

    THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 2 of  section  1219-a  of  the
  public authorities law, as amended by section 19 of part O of chapter 61
  of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:

    (b)  Promptly  upon  the  making of the certification of its operating
  surplus, if any, for its fiscal year ending December thirty-first, nine-
  teen hundred seventy-two and for each of its  subsequent  fiscal  years,
  triborough  bridge  and tunnel authority[, at the direction of metropol-
  itan transportation authority,] shall  transfer  IN  ITS  ENTIRETY  such
  operating surplus [(1)] to the metropolitan transportation authority for
  deposit into one or more funds or accounts to be used as contemplated by
  section  twelve  hundred  seventy-d  of  this  article,  or [(2)] to the
  authority and the metropolitan transportation authority WHICH,  PURSUANT
  TO  RESOLUTION,  SHALL  (1) TRANSFER A PORTION OF SUCH AMOUNT TO THE NEW
  YORK CITY TRANSIT AUTHORITY solely for application  to  the  payment  of
  [the]  ITS  expenses  of  operation  [.  For purposes of determining the
  proportional allocation of the operating surplus as between the authori-
  ty and the metropolitan transportation authority, the following  formula
  shall apply: (i) twenty-four million dollars plus fifty percentum of the
  balance  of  such operating surplus shall be allocable to the authority,
  and (ii) the remainder shall be allocable to metropolitan transportation
  authority on behalf], AND (2) RETAIN A PORTION OF SUCH AMOUNT FOR APPLI-
  CATION TO THE PAYMENT of the commuter railroads operated by it,  by  its
  subsidiary corporations or by others under joint arrangements.

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD08334-01-3

 S. 3377                             2

    S  2. Subdivision 3 of section 1219-a of the public authorities law is
  REPEALED.
    S  3.  Section  553-d  of  the  public  authorities law, as amended by
  section 6 of part O of chapter 61 of the laws of  2000,  is  amended  to
  read as follows:

    S  553-d. Special Triborough bridge and tunnel authority special obli-
  gation bonds and notes. In addition to the powers contained elsewhere in
  this title with respect to the projects authorized  by  paragraphs  (m),
  (n),  (o),  (p)  and  (r)  of  subdivision  nine of section five hundred
  fifty-three of this title, and subject to the application of the  reven-
  ues  and  other  monies  and assets of the authority pursuant to section
  twelve hundred seventy-d of this chapter, the authority  may  issue  its
  bonds and notes to finance such projects payable from and secured by all
  or  any  part of the moneys received by the authority from the metropol-
  itan transportation authority special assistance fund established  under
  section  twelve hundred seventy-a of this chapter, provided however that
  such bonds and notes may also be payable from and secured by  any  other
  moneys,  securities  and funds designated by the authority as additional
  security therefor. [Debt service  on  bonds  and  notes  issued  by  the
  authority  pursuant  to  this  section  which is paid or reimbursed from
  moneys received by the authority from  the  metropolitan  transportation
  authority special assistance fund shall not be deemed to constitute debt
  service  incurred  by the authority for purposes of subdivision three of
  section twelve hundred nineteen-a of this chapter.] Such bonds or  notes
  shall be issued in the manner provided in section five hundred sixty-one
  of this title.
    S 4. This act shall take effect immediately.