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Nov 15 2019

Testimony

Letter Urging MTA Board of Directors to Appoint the Traffic Mobility Review Board and Ensure it Follow Open Meetings Law

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Dear Members of the MTA Board,

As organizations that recognize the importance of a strong, fully-funded public transportation system, we look forward to working with you as you advance and implement the Central Business District Tolling Program now that you have made the first important step of awarding the initial contract.

As such, we write to ask you to ensure the Traffic Mobility Review Board (TMRB):

  1. is promptly appointed, with sufficient time to develop recommendations for the MTA Board regarding potential Central Business District (CBD) tolling charges, including any credits or exemptions; and
  2. operates in accordance with the Open Meetings Law (Article 7 of Public Officers Law).

Public Authorities Law §553‑k says the TMRB is to be appointed by the MTA Board and must develop recommendations on CBD tolling by no earlier than November 15, 2020 ― one year from today. It is also charged with ​“reviewing” the MTA 2020 – 2024 Capital Program.

We believe the TMRB is subject to the Open Meetings Law (OML) based on our review of case law and advisory opinions from the Committee on Open Government (COOG). Specifically, the TMRB is considered a public body under section 102(2) of OML, performs a necessary step in the government decision-making process and is created by statute.

Importantly, COOG issued a December 2018 advisory opinion saying an advisory body similar to the TMRB, the MTA Sustainability Advisory Working Group, was subject to the Open Meetings Law after concerns that it was not meeting in public. That opinion is attached for your reference.

The Open Meetings Law requires that voting and deliberation by a public body be carried out only at a meeting during which a quorum has physically convened, or during a meeting which is held by videoconference. (The public is required to be able to attend in either case, with advance notice of the time and place of the meeting.)

It should also be noted that the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) applies to certain materials provided by the MTA to the TMRB, such as statistical or factual information, or final agency policy determinations, as well as materials under discussion by the TMRB at its open meetings.

In sum, we urge you to immediately appoint the TMRB, and ensure that the body follows the Open Meetings Law. The public interest is best served when the public can understand the reasoning behind government decision-making.

Thank you for your consideration. Should you wish to discuss this matter further, please contact Rachael Fauss, Senior Research Analyst, Reinvent Albany at rachael@reinventalbany.org or 518 – 859‑5307, or Lisa Daglian, Executive Director, PCAC, at ldaglian@mtahq.org or 212 – 878‑7077.

Sincerely,

John Kaehny
Executive Director, Reinvent Albany
Tom Wright
Chief Executive Officer, Regional Plan Association
Lisa Daglian
Executive Director, Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC)
Benjamin Prosky Assoc. AIA
Executive Director, American Institute of Architects New York
Joseph G. Rappaport,
Executive Director, Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled
Susan Dooha
Executive Director, Center for Independence of the Disabled New York (CIDNY)
Andrew Rein
President, Citizens Budget Commission
Peter Kostmayer
Chief Executive Officer, Citizens Committee for New York City
Susan Lerner
Executive Director, Common Cause/NY
Robert E Paaswell, PhD, D.M. ASCE,
Executive Director, CUNY Institute for Urban Systems
Peter Iwanowicz
Executive Director, Environmental Advocates of New York
Catherine Gray
Co-President, League of Women Voters of the City of New York
Laura Bierman
Executive Director, League of Women Voters of New York State
McGregor Smyth
Executive Director, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest
Jaqi Cohen
Campaign Director, NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign
John Raskin
Executive Director, Riders Alliance
Eric McClure
Executive Director, StreetsPAC
David Bragdon
Executive Director, TransitCenter
Danny Harris
Executive Director, Transportation Alternatives
Nick Sifuentes
Executive Director, Tri-State Transportation Campaign

Written by

  • Wright Tom 3 cropped

    Tom Wright

    President & CEO

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