NY Transp L § 18-A (2021)
2021 New York Laws TRA - Transportation Article 2 - Powers, Duties and Jurisdiction of the Department of Transportation 18-A - Statewide Mass Transportation Operating Assistance Program.

*§ 18-a. Statewide  mass  transportation operating assistance program.   1.   Within the amounts made  available  therefor  by  appropriation,  a   statewide  mass  transportation  operating  assistance program is hereby   established for the purpose of  making  payments  toward  the  operating   expenses  of  public  transportation  systems.  For the purposes of this   section, the term public transportation system  shall  mean  any  public   benefit   corporation  constituting  a  transportation  authority  which   provides  or  contracts  for  the  provision  of  (under  joint  support   arrangements)  mass transportation services, or a subsidiary thereof, or   any county or city which provides or  contracts  for  the  provision  of   (pursuant  to  section  one  hundred nineteen-r of the general municipal   law) mass transportation services.2. a. On and after  May  first,  nineteen  hundred  seventy-four,  the   commissioner  shall  pay to each public transportation system that makes   an   application   therefor,   in   quarterly   installments,   a   mass   transportation operating assistance service payment to be determined and   computed  as  follows:  the  chief executive officer of each such system   shall certify to the commissioner not more than  thirty  days  nor  less   than  fifteen  days prior to the date of commencement of any quarter for   which an installment is payable, the total  number  of  passengers  such   system  estimates  that it will carry and the total number of vehicle or   car miles such system  estimates  that  its  equipment  will  travel  in   revenue  service  during the quarter for which such installment is to be   paid. Upon receipt of any such  certification,  the  commissioner  shall   provide  to  the  public  transportation system a service payment, which   payment shall be computed by adding the sum of (i) the certified  number   of  passengers  multiplied  by  one and four-tenths cents per passenger,   (ii) the certified number of vehicle or car  miles  multiplied  by  nine   cents  per  vehicle  or  car  mile,  and  (iii)  the  amount obtained by   multiplying the total number of persons within the urban area served  by   the  public  transportation  system,  as  determined by the most current   federal decennial census, by ten cents per  capita;  provided,  however,   that  any service payment made by the commissioner to any county or city   on account of such county's or city's contracts for mass  transportation   services  (pursuant  to  section  one  hundred nineteen-r of the general   municipal law), shall not include an amount computed  under  item  (iii)   above.  Such  quarterly installments shall be payable not later than the   tenth day of each successive quarter, with the  quarters  commencing  on   the  first  day  of  May,  August,  November and February, respectively;   provided, however, that for the first quarter of May first through  July   thirty-first,  nineteen hundred seventy-four, such quarterly installment   may be made on or before June fifteenth, nineteen  hundred  seventy-four   and  the  chief  executive  officer  of any public transportation system   making application hereunder shall make the required certifications  not   more than thirty nor less than fifteen days prior to such date.b.  Each  public  transportation  system receiving a quarterly service   payment pursuant to this subdivision shall certify to the  commissioner,   within  five days of the end of each quarter for which a service payment   was received, the actual total  number  of  passengers  carried  by  the   system during such quarter and the actual total vehicle or car miles the   system's  equipment traveled in revenue service during such quarter, and   based  upon  such  actual  totals,  the  commissioner  shall  make  such   adjustments  as  may be appropriate in the amount of the service payment   for such system for the succeeding quarter.3. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision two of this  section,   the commissioner may establish with respect to any public transportation   system   a  maximum  service  payment,  limiting  the  amount  of  state   assistance for which such system may qualify, where it appears that  the    total   amount  of  money  appropriated  or  allocated  to  a  group  of   unspecified public transportation systems is less than the total  amount   of  money  for  which the entire group is eligible. Such maximum service   payments  may  be  established  on  a  quarterly or annual basis, in the   discretion of the commissioner; provided, however, that the sum  of  all   of the maximum service payments established during the period covered by   the  appropriation,  shall  equal  the  amount  of  the appropriation or   allocation.4. a. For any quarter commencing  on  or  after  May  first,  nineteen   hundred   seventy-four,   any   county   or  city  served  by  a  public   transportation system  that  receives  a  service  payment  pursuant  to   subdivision  two of this section shall, not later than the fifteenth day   following the commencement of the quarter for which the payment is  made   or the date on which the payment is made, whichever is later, pay to the   public transportation system a sum equal to such service payment, except   that  in  the  case of a service payment made to a public transportation   system on account of mass transportation services provided to more  than   one  county  (considering  the  city of New York to be one county), each   county receiving such services from such system shall pay to the  system   a  sum  equal  to  its  share of the service payment, which sum shall be   determined  in  accordance  with  the  percentage  or   dollar   amounts   established for such county by the legislature.b.  The  payment required of any county or city by paragraph a of this   subdivision shall be in addition to all other forms  of  assistance  now   provided or scheduled to be provided to any public transportation system   by  any  county  or  city,  whether  directly  or  indirectly; provided,   however, that where any county or city pays all of the operating deficit   of a public transportation system within such county or city, the amount   of  assistance  provided  by  such  county  or  city  to   such   public   transportation  system  may  be  reduced  to  the  extent of the service   payment, but in no event to an amount less than the service payment.c. In the event that a county or city shall fail to make to  a  public   transportation  system  any  of  the  payments required to be made by it   under this subdivision,  the  chief  executive  officer  of  the  public   transportation  system  or  such  other person as the commissioner shall   designate shall certify to the state comptroller  such  amount  due  and   owing  such public transportation system and the state comptroller shall   withhold an equivalent amount from state aid allocated to such county or   city from highway  aid,  the  motor  fuel  tax  and  the  motor  vehicle   registration  fee  distributed pursuant to section one hundred twelve of   the highway law, or per capita  local  assistance  pursuant  to  section   fifty-four   of   the   state  finance  law  subject  to  the  following   limitations: prior to withholding amounts allocated to carry such county   or city, the comptroller shall pay in full any amount due the  state  of   New  York municipal bond bank agency, on account of any such county's or   city's obligation to such agency; the city university construction fund,   pursuant to the provisions of the city university construction fund act;   the New York city  housing  development  corporation,  pursuant  to  the   provisions  of  the  New  York  city housing development corporation act   (article twelve of the private housing finance  law);  and  the  transit   construction fund, pursuant to the provisions of article two, title nine   of  the  public authorities law. The comptroller shall give the director   of the budget notification of any such payment. Such amount  or  amounts   so  withheld  by  the  state  comptroller  shall  be paid to such public   transportation system, which system shall use such amount or amounts for   the payment of the county or city share of  its  operating  expenses  as   determined by the legislature or by the formula or formulae developed by   the  commissioner.  When  such  amount  or  amounts are received by such    public transportation system, it shall credit such amounts  against  any   amounts due and owing such system by the county or city on whose account   such amount was withheld and paid.5.  Any  federal financial assistance granted for the specific purpose   of paying the operating expenses of any county, city or  public  benefit   corporation   eligible   to   receive   service  payments  as  a  public   transportation system pursuant to this section, received by the state or   any municipality after the effective date  of  this  section,  and  made   available  to  any  such  county, city or public benefit corporation for   application in accordance with the terms of the grant, shall be combined   with any similar federal grant made directly  to  the  county,  city  or   public  benefit  corporation  to help meet the operating expenses of any   mass transportation services provided for by any such  county,  city  or   public benefit corporation whether directly or by contract. In the event   that  the  total revenues of any public transportation system, including   subsidies from federal, state or local  governments,  exceed  the  total   operating  expenses  for  any  such system, excluding depreciation, such   excess shall be utilized by the system to reduce fares or to  extend  or   increase  mass  transportation  services.  A plan to effectuate any such   fare reduction or extension or increase in services shall  be  submitted   to the commissioner by a public transportation system within thirty days   of  receiving  notice from the commissioner to prepare and submit such a   plan.  Upon  approval  by  the  commissioner,   such   plan   with   any   modifications  made  by the commissioner shall be implemented as soon as   practical. Upon the failure of a public transportation system to  submit   a  plan in the manner provided by this subdivision, the surplus shall be   utilized by such system to reduce the proportionate shares of the  state   and the county or city required to make matching payments to the system,   or  in  the  event that no future payments are to be made to such public   transportation system, the  system  shall  proportionately  refund  such   surplus to the state and the county or city involved.6.  The  commissioner  may  prescribe  such regulations as he may deem   appropriate to effectuate the purposes of this section,  including,  but   not  limited  to,  a  uniform  system  of accounting for the purposes of   reporting pursuant to the provisions of this section.  The  commissioner   shall  also  define  by  rules  and  regulations, the terms "passenger",   "vehicle or car mile",  "the  urban  area  served  by  any  such  public   transportation  system",  "passenger-mile",  "chief  executive officer",   "mass transportation services", and "service payment",  and  such  other   terms  as  he  deems  necessary  to  carry  out  the statewide operating   assistance program.7. The commissioner shall have the power  to  audit  and  examine  the   accounts,  books,  contracts,  records,  documents  and  papers  of  any   participating public transportation system in order  to  effectuate  the   purposes and intent of this section.8.  The  commissioner  is hereby authorized to enter into contracts or   otherwise cooperate  with  the  federal  government  or  any  agency  or   instrumentality thereof for the purposes set forth in this section. Such   authorization  shall include the power to apply for, receive, distribute   or  expend  federal  money  available  or  which  may  hereafter  become   available for such purposes. The distribution of federal monies shall be   in accordance with the requirements of the federal grant, except that in   the   absence  of  any  required  distribution  the  commissioner  shall   distribute such federal monies in a manner designed to have the  maximum   effect on fare stabilization throughout the state.* NB Expired May 1, 1975