Assemblyman says jet-fuel tax could solve MTA’s woes
-
- April
- 22
  As the Legislature and governor continue to negotiate on a bailout of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Assemblyman Peter Rivera, D-Bronx, is pushing a proposal to raise $2 billion a year by taxing jet-fuel sales. His plan would raise the state levy on jet fuel by $2 per gallon.
  The MTA, which serves New York City and seven surrounding counties, including Westchester, Putnam and Rockland, is facing a budget gap of at least $1.2 billion. MTA leaders have said they will have to cut services dramatically and raise fares by 25 percent or more if they don’t get help from the state.
  A number of proposals for helping the MTA have been discussed by Gov. David Paterson and leaders of the Assembly and Senate. They have included recommendations like a tax of up to 34 cents for every $100 of payroll in MTA service area (slightly less for counties that are farther away from New York City); new tolls on the bridges across the Harlem and East rivers; and a $1 per-ride taxi surcharge.
  Rivera said his plan would generate millions of dollars a year for the MTA and upstate communities with airports. Jet-fuel consumption is more than 20 million barrels a year in New York. A $2-per-gallon tax would raise $1.7 billion. The tax could sunset when the economy records and mass-transit riders are more able to absorb a modest fare hike, he said.
  “There are over 86 million boardings of airlines in New York State airports yearly. The heavy passenger traffic at New York airports requires the maintenance of road, bridge and rail infrastructure to transport all those passengers,” Rivera said in a statement. “It is only fair to ask for a modest increase in the cost of jet fuel, which will have a negligible impact on the prices of airline tickets and on the operations of airlines.”
  Earlier this week, Senate Democrats pitched a plan that includes a payroll tax, a $25 fee on motor vehicle registration, a 25 percent hike in the driver’s license fee; an increase in the auto-rental tax; and the taxi surcharge. Half of the $95 million collected would be used to leverage $1.2 billion in bonds for upstate and Long Island roads and bridges.
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009 at 10:44 am by Cara Matthews.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
| 
Email This
Rivera’s eureka moment would cost an airline for one jet flight from NY to LA an additional $8000, and $8000 back. I suppose Rivera surmises that each airline is going to eat this sixteen grand per roundtrip flight. Newark, anyone? Where do we get these lamebrains? It is truly beyond belief that, in the year 2009, we allow ourselves to be governed by pea-brains. Maybe if they taxed handgun manufacturers an additional $8000 per pistol we could have a higher class of muggers.
ed.what if the airlines passed it on to the passengers
in part….so on a 300 passenger flight to LA 15 dollars
would cover 4500…and then the pilot could save the
rest by coasting once he is airborne!!!
I like it! Next they should tax every commercial or private pilot who flies into or out of any NY airport an extra $500 each per flight to rebuild the Tappan Zee Bridge.
All good suggestions! As Rahm Emanuel said, “never let a serious crisis go to waste.” Tax every passenger who wants to sit down $150, or let them stand. There’s nothing in the Constitution that guarantees you a seat. Use that money to re-furnish the Governor’s Mansion so that we can have something to be proud of.
one really good way to raise the revenue is to sell
hanging on rights on both wings…for say a50$ a pop
you could get at least 10 people on both sides
and a couple more on the tail
These are prime viewing areas and should be taxed as such. Those leaving or arriving in NY who wish to enjoy wing-viewing and cooling summer breezes should pay their fair share. Furthermore, people who are crazy enough to ride on wings and tail sections of jets are the very same people who, through their recklessness in other areas, drive up all of our health insurance costs. They should be tatoo-ed with a bar code that will charge them a healthy value-added tax to any ride they take, whether by auto, motorcycle, plane, bicycle, hot-air balloon, or amusement park.
Oh, I have an idea! I know it’s a bit too revolutionary for Mr. Rivera, but here goes- let’s charge all users of public roads and bridges, not just those going to the airport! Wouldn’t that be a bit more fair? I know that words like “fair”, “equitable”, or “pay for use” are not in the vocabulary of highway socialism proponents like Mr. Rivera, including his fellow socialists in the State Senate, but maybe if we use these words enough they will ultimately understand their meaning.
Tax all sports equipment $2500 per item! Why should we allow people to knock tennis balls around with racquets while the rest of us work? Golf, tennis, and pong balls should be taxed at $1500 per dozen. Any peaked cap with a logo that says something other than “I Love NY” should carry a $500 tax. These taxes will have a negligible impact on most New Yorkers. Fifty percent of the money collected could be allocated to subways, and the other seventy percent could be used to plant trees in the Adirondacks, further greening our upstate region while also creating meaningful state planting jobs for country folk. P. Rivera, D -Bronx.