We take Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s demand for more control over the Metropolitan Transportation Authority with plenty of salt. But it’s still a discussion worth having.
On Monday, the gov claimed “the MTA was put together to avoid any liability for any elected official,” adding that he won’t “assume responsibility without the authority.”
Like it or not, he has the responsibility. And lots of authority, when he chooses to assert it. But perhaps he should have more.
Cuomo’s budget director, Robert Mujica, complains that the Legislature’s leaders and the city’s mayor can veto the agency’s capital plans. In the past, that’s forced the agency to spend on white elephants like the downtown “transit hub.”
Team Cuomo also gripes that this arrangement gives more power to the MTA’s 32 unions. Maybe so — but when has this governor ever gotten tough with a blue-collar union?
Mujica says the gov should control an outright majority of the MTA board. Fair enough: Even his critics admit he has effective control, so another couple of seats seem fine. Give him “authority over hiring/firing and organizational authority”? Maybe, once he says what that means.
Thing is, Cuomo has been desperately trying to dodge blame for the subways’ crisis. No surprise, then, that he’s now arguing he needs more power.
Yes, he’s showing a certain leadership in pushing hard for a “congestion pricing” system to give the MTA new revenue, which it plainly needs. But the money’s likely to vanish unless the agency sees reforms that the gov’s so far only hinting at.
As for Cuomo’s demand that the city pay half of capital costs for city transit: Perhaps. Yet even the state taxes that fund the subways are mostly paid by NYC residents and businesses. And if the city has to fork over cash, the mayor should keep his veto power over MTA capital spending, as Team Cuomo acknowledges.
While balking at the “pay half” rule, Mayor Bill de Blasio praised Cuomo “for saying he wants responsibility for the MTA.” Sounds like a reasonable starting point for a serious dialogue on reform.
