Reports & Analysis

A Report from the New York Building Congress and New York Building Foundation

How to Save New York City's Infrastructure: Dedicate Revenues


Conclusion


Great cities cannot afford to stand still. New York's elected officials deserve credit for undertaking more than $18 billion of public capital spending in 2011 alone. But as this report demonstrates, there is inadequate revenue to service the City's, the MTA's, and the rest of the public sector's growing debt burdens and also meet future needs.

In order to maintain, expand, and adapt critical networks for the future, government must finally embrace the types of user-related charges that have proven effective in other cities and with the City's own water and sewer system.

  • Elected leadership should approve a uniform toll policy to fund the City's aging transportation network.
  • Elected officials should embrace the creative project delivery and financing opportunities offered by public-private partnerships.
  • New revenues should be protected through the use of transparent public entities like the Water Finance Authority to receive revenues directly and use them to issue debt responsibly for new infrastructure.
  • Additional revenues to support transportation infrastructure investment should be developed from parking and VMT fees.
  • Household waste could be priced. The City could use PAYT fees and income from WTE sales to fund environmental infrastructure improvements.

In order to implement these recommendations, the Building Congress reiterates its long-standing call for a Deputy Mayor for Infrastructure with the responsibility to coordinate the City's massive infrastructure program, and to provide leadership to ensure that permanent, dedicated revenues are put in place to meet the City's growing capital needs.

The Building Congress has offered a number of options to support continued investment in New York City's essential infrastructure. The City's elected and civic leaders should discuss these and consider other viable revenue generating alternatives. There is no more pressing policy issue for New York City.

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