NY State Fin L § 88-A (2021)
2021 New York Laws STF - State Finance Article 6 - Funds of the State 88-A - Mass Transportation Operating Assistance Fund.

§  88-a.  Mass  transportation  operating assistance fund. 1. There is hereby established in the joint custody of the commissioner of  taxation and  finance and the state comptroller a special fund to be known as the "mass transportation operating assistance fund".   2. Moneys in the mass transportation operating assistance  fund  shall be  kept  separately  from  and  shall  not be commingled with any other moneys in the joint or sole custody of  the  state  comptroller  or  the commissioner of taxation and finance.   3.  Except for moneys in the account established by subdivision six of this section,  moneys  of  the  fund,  following  appropriation  by  the legislature,  shall  be  allocated  upon  a  certificate  of approval of availability by the director of the budget solely for the transportation assistance purposes set forth within  the  specific  accounts  contained within the fund established by this section.   4.  The mass transportation operating assistance fund shall consist of three separate and distinct accounts:  (a)  the  "public  transportation systems  operating  assistance  account",  (b)  the  "urban mass transit operating  assistance  account",  and   (c)   the   "metropolitan   mass transportation  operating  assistance  account".  Moneys  in each of the accounts shall be kept separately from and not commingled with any other moneys in the mass transportation operating assistance fund.   5.  (a)  The  "public  transportation  systems  operating   assistance account"  shall  consist  of  revenues  required to be deposited therein pursuant to the provisions of section one hundred  eighty-two-a  of  the tax  law  and  all other moneys credited or transferred thereto from any other fund or source pursuant to law.  (b) Moneys in the public transportation systems  operating  assistance account  shall  be  paid  on  a quarterly basis beginning October first, nineteen hundred eighty-one. However, if there is  a  demonstrated  cash shortfall  in  any  eligible  system,  payments  to  such  system may be accelerated. Such payments shall be made in accordance with  a  schedule as  specified  by  appropriation  for  the payment of operating costs of public mass transportation systems  outside  the  metropolitan  commuter transportation  district  as defined by section twelve hundred sixty-two of the public authorities law, eligible to receive operating  assistance pursuant to section eighteen-b of the transportation law.  (c) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the comptroller is hereby authorized  and  directed  to transfer from the general fund for deposit into the public transportation system operating assistance account, upon request of the director of the budget, on or before  March  31  of  each year, an amount equal to the following:  (i) For the state fiscal year ending March 31, 2015, two million eight hundred eight thousand ninety-six dollars;  (ii)  In  each  succeeding state fiscal year, the transfer shall equal the product of the dollar amount in (i)  and  one  plus  the  sales  tax growth  factor.  For  the  purposes  of this subparagraph, the sales tax growth factor is the percentage, if any, by which the  aggregate  amount of sales and compensating use taxes imposed pursuant to the authority of subpart  B  of  part  I of article twenty-nine of the tax law, excluding such sales and compensating use taxes collected in the  twelve  counties that  comprise the metropolitan transportation commuter district created and established pursuant to section  twelve  hundred  sixty-two  of  the public  authorities  law, for the twelve month period ending on December thirty-first of the immediately  preceding  calendar  year  exceeds  the aggregate amount of such sales and compensating use taxes for the twelve month  period ending on December thirty-first, two thousand thirteen. In no year will the amount of the deposit authorized under this section  be less than the amount made in the prior year.    6.  (a)  The  "urban  mass transit operating assistance account" shall consist of the revenues required to be deposited therein pursuant to the provisions of article thirty-one-a of the tax law, and all other  moneys credited  or  transferred thereto from any other fund or source pursuant to law.  (b)  Moneys  in  the  urban  mass transit operating assistance account shall be available only for payment by the comptroller  of  refunds  of, and  of  judgments  awarded  for  claims for refund of, taxes paid on or after  October  first,  nineten  hundred  eighty-one  but  before  April thirteenth,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-two pursuant to the provisions of article thirty-one-A of the tax law, provided that, in  the  case  of  a refund,  application  for  such  refund has been made to the comptroller prior to April first, nineteen hundred eighty-six. Interest at the  rate authorized  by section sixteen of the state finance law shall be payable with such refunds and shall be computed from  February  first,  nineteen hundred  eighty-two  or the date on which the tax was paid, whichever is later.  (c) When the comptroller determines that moneys  of  the  account  are insufficient  for the payment of any such refunds or judgments, he shall certify to the commissioner of finance of  the  city  of  New  York  the amount  of such insufficiency and, from moneys in the special account or accounts established by and pursuant to sections W46-2.0 and II46-4.0 of the administrative code of the city of New York,  such  commissioner  of finance  shall,  within twelve days of such certification, pay over such amount to  the  comptroller  for  deposit  in  the  urban  mass  transit operating  assistance  account  of  the  mass  transportation  operating assistance fund to meet such insufficiency.   7. (a) The  "metropolitan  mass  transportation  operating  assistance account"  shall  consist  of the revenues derived from the taxes for the metropolitan transportation district imposed by section  eleven  hundred nine  of  the  tax  law  and  that  proportion  of the receipts received pursuant to the tax imposed by article nine-a of such law  as  specified in section one hundred seventy-one-a of such law, and that proportion of the  receipts  received  pursuant  to the tax imposed by article nine of such law as specified in section two hundred five of such law,  and  the receipts  required to be deposited pursuant to the provisions of section one hundred eighty-two-a, and all other moneys credited  or  transferred thereto from any other fund or source pursuant to law.  (b)   Moneys   in   the  metropolitan  mass  transportation  operating assistance account shall be paid on a quarterly basis beginning  October first,  nineteen  hundred eight-one. However, if there is a demonstrated cash shortfall in any eligible system, payments to such  system  may  be accelerated.  Such  moneys shall be paid in accordance with schedules as specified by appropriations for payment of  operating  costs  of  public transportation  systems  in  the  metropolitan  transportation  commuter district in order to  meet  the  operating  expenses  of  such  systems, provided,  however,  with  respect  to  the  metropolitan transportation authority, its affiliates  and  subsidiaries,  and  notwithstanding  any general  or  special  law  to  the contrary, other than such a law which makes specific reference to this section, and subject to the  provisions of  section  twelve  hundred seventy-c of the public authorities law, so long as the metropolitan transportation  authority  dedicated  tax  fund established   by   section   twelve  hundred  seventy-c  of  the  public authorities law shall exist, any such appropriation to the  metropolitan transportation  authority,  its  affiliates or its subsidiaries shall be deemed  to  be  an  appropriation  to  the  metropolitan  transportation authority  and  the  total amount paid pursuant to such appropriation or appropriations shall be deposited to  such  metropolitan  transportation  authority  dedicated  tax  fund  and  distributed in accordance with the provisions of section twelve hundred seventy-c of the public authorities law. Nothing contained in this subdivision shall be deemed  to  restrict the  right  of  the  state  to  amend, repeal, modify or otherwise alter statutes imposing or  relating  to  the  taxes  producing  revenues  for deposit  in  the  metropolitan  mass transportation operating assistance account  or  the  appropriations  relating  thereto.  The   metropolitan transportation  authority  shall  not  include  within  any  resolution, contract or agreement with holders of the bonds or  notes  issued  under section  twelve  hundred  sixty-nine  of  the public authorities law any provision which provides that a default occurs as a result of the  state exercising  its  right  to amend, repeal, modify or otherwise alter such taxes or appropriations.   9. Any moneys in the mass transportation operating assistance fund and in any of the accounts in such fund may, at the discretion of the  state comptroller,  be  invested  in  securities and obligations as defined by section ninety-eight-a  of  this  chapter.  Any  income  earned  by  the investment  of moneys in any of the accounts in such fund shall be added to and become a part of, and shall be used  for  the  purposes  of  such account.