BILL NUMBER: S5552A
SPONSOR: SALAZAR
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation to establishing
the green accessible transition authority; to amend the tax law, in
relation to establishing a for-hire vehicle improvement surcharge; and
making an appropriation therefor
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To create a $1 surcharge on all rideshare trips, which would fund the
Green Accessible Transition Authority. This new authority would aid
rideshare drivers and paratransit agencies in purchasing electric and/or
wheelchair accessible vehicles and help underemployed drivers transition
from rideshare driving to green jobs. Once those main purposes are
complete, the Authority is allowed to aid in any other ways to move the
State towards its CLCPA goals.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 establishes this act to be known as the "Green Accessible
Transition Act."
Section 2 sets out legislative findings, including that the for-hire
vehicle industry is at the center of three interlinked issues - for-hire
vehicle driver poverty, climate change, and a lack of wheelchair acces-
sibility. In response to this, Section 2 declares that the state must
create the Green Accessible Transition Authority, which will have the
power to combat these crises.
Section 3 amends Article 8 of the public authorities law by adding a new
title 7.
§ 1750 of the new title prescribes definitions.
§ 1751 of the new title creates the green accessible transition authori-
ty.
§ 1752 of the new title lays out the membership of the authority and how
they shall be appointed.
§ 1753 of the new title describes the purposes, powers, and duties of
the new authority. Among its duties is that the authority shall not
give, grant, loan, or gift money to any initiative that furthers depend-
ence on fossil fuels.
§ 1754 of the new title delineates further powers of the authority,
including administering a co-investment program to aid for-hire vehicle
drivers in purchasing vehicles that are both zero-emission and wheel-
chair accessible, funding the development of infrastructure to support
electric and wheelchair accessible vehicles, and helping for-hire vehi-
cle drivers transition into public service or green jobs once zero-emis-
sion and wheelchair-accessible vehicle transition goals are met. Addi-
tionally, the authority will have the power to collect data from
for-hire vehicle companies on the number of wheelchair accessible and
electric vehicles operating in each county/region and the number of
trips they are taking, which they can use to publish studies to set
goals and standards to transition the industry to zero-emissions and
wheelchair-accessible vehicles. Furthermore, they can convene a task-
force to assess the availability of zero-emissions and wheelchair-acces-
sible vehicles and work with government authorities, automakers, and
retrofitters to rapidly develop and manufacture such vehicles. Lastly,
the authority will have the power to fund programs to increase paratran-
sit reliability and access across the state.
§ 1755 of the new title establishes the green accessible transition
fund, which will be money received by the authority pursuant to the
provisions of section twelve hundred ninety-nine-ff of the tax law in
accordance with the provisions thereof. This money shall be used for
programs administered by the authority.
§ 1756 of the new title outlines accounts and funding of the authority.
§ 1757 of the new title exempts the authority from taxes, assessments,
and certain fees.
§ 1758 of the new title requires the authority to be subject to an annu-
al audit and report by the state comptroller.
§ 1759 of the new title describes the labor and procurement stands of
the authority. These requirements include that any project done by the
authority must be a public work project and use materials produced in
whole or substantial part in the US. Workers must be paid prevailing
wages consistent with article nine of the labor law for building
services work. No project should result in the partial or full displace-
ment of workers or loss of current positions or the transfer of existing
duties to contractors. For procurement, the authority must use a system
that includes a best-value contracting framework that requires offerors
to include aspects such as an employment plan and a commitment to create
high-quality jobs for disadvantaged or underrepresented individuals to
the greatest extent possible.
§ 1760 of the new title gives the authority power to issue bonds and
notes.
§ 1761 of the new title allows the authority to establish reserve funds.
§ 1762 of the new title exempts the authority from paying taxes on its
bonds and notes.
§ 1763 of the new title makes the authority's bonds and notes legal
investments for fiduciaries.
§ 1764 of the new title allows the state to require the redemption of
bonds.
§ 1765 of the new title determines the rights and remedies of bondhold-
ers and noteholders.
§ 1766 of the new title absolves the state of liability on the authori-
ty's bonds and notes.
Section 4 amends the tax law to add a new article 29-E.
§ 1299-aa of the new article determines definitions.
§ 1299-bb of the new article imposes a surcharge of $1 on all for-hire
vehicle transportation trips.
§ 1299-cc of the new article explains who has the liability for this
surcharge. The for-hire vehicle company is liable, but the surcharge
shall be passed on to the passenger.
§ 1299-dd of the new article provides for the returns and payment of
said surcharge, from those liable for the surcharge to the commissioner
§ 1299-ee of the new article sets forth which records must be kept by
those liable for the surcharge.
§ 1299-ff of the new article requires the deposit and disposition of all
revenue collected from the surcharge daily with such responsible banks,
banking houses, or trust companies.
Section 5 appropriates $10,000,000 to the green accessible transition
authority from the general fund.
Section 6 provides that the act shall take effect immediately.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
The Green Accessible Transition Authority would create programs to help
for-hire vehicle (FHV) drivers buy zero-emission and wheelchair-accessi-
ble vehicles and to expand paratransit access across the state, as well
as to create more electric vehicle charging stations. Furthermore, once
the zero-emission and wheelchair-accessible vehicle transition goals are
met, the Authority will have the power to invest in other projects, such
as helping FHV drivers transition into green jobs. The Authority would
utilize a Jobs Plan to encourage electric vehicle manufacturers to
commit to good wages, benefits and training as part of its evaluation
process for eligible vendors. All of this will be done without raising
the income tax; funding will instead come from a $1 surcharge on all FHV
trips, mirroring the already existing surcharges on taxis and FHVs, like
the Black Car Fund. We can help New York State's rideshare driver work-
force, which is predominantly immigrants and people of color, escape
poverty; create unprecedented mobility for New Yorkers who use wheel-
chairs; clean our air; and meet climate goals through a just, green
transition for New York State.
Rideshare driver earnings are in the lowest 10% of all occupations in
the United States. This led the City of New York to establish the first-
ever pay regulations for app-based drivers, but long hours and low pay
remains the norm for most of the for-hire vehicle industry's 90% immi-
grant, predominantly people of color workforce of over 84,000 active
drivers in NYC. The situation is even worse outside across the rest of
the state, where driver pay is entirely unregulated.
In addition to these issues with workers' rights, New York's fleet of
rideshare vehicles is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions that
drive climate change. In New York City alone, a fleet of 81,000 gaso-
line-fueled rideshare vehicles puts 1.4 million tons of C02 into the
atmosphere every year, a 62% increase from 2013 to 2018 as the FHV fleet
ballooned.
Lastly, as of 2023, there were only around 3,400 wheelchair-accessible
vehicles (WAVs) out of 94,000 FHVs in NYC, and in regions other than
NYC, New York does not collect or publish data on accessible FHVs. The
result is that those who need these vehicles often have long wait times
or cannot find a wheelchair accessible ride at all. Meanwhile, the para-
transit systems in NYC and across the state are limited and dysfunction-
al, with no elevators in over 70% of MTA stations as of 2022 and a scar-
city of reliable and accessible mass transit systems outside the city.
However, they remain necessary as mass transit. All of this means that
wheelchair users and New Yorkers with mobility impairments have a much
harder time getting anywhere on public transit and paratransit, cannot
rely on accessible FHVs, and face major barriers to employment, educa-
tion, healthcare, and civic participation.
These intersecting crises - climate change, workers' rights, and disa-
bility access - mean that we must act now. The State, along with many
municipalities throughout, have long promised to uphold the goals of the
CLCPA, expand paratransit services, and protect workers. All these
promises continue to go unmet. None of these issues will go away on
their own, and it is on the State to combat these worsening issues.
 
AMENDED BILL:
The "A" print of this bill makes slight changes to make clear that the
Green Accessible Transition Authority should first focus on transition-
ing New York State to 100% zero-emission wheelchair accessible vehicles.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
SENATE
2024: S9528 (Salazar) - Referred to Finance
ASSEMBLY
2024: A10454 (Gonzalez-Rojas) - Referred to Corporations, Authorities,
and Commissions
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
This bill would cost the state $10,000,000 as an appropriation to the
green transition authority from the general fund, but it is expected to
generate over $260 million from NYC-based trips alone for the authority
to use. This bill would reduce the costly burden of climate change by
transitioning for-hire vehicles to electric ones, and would also give
for-hire vehicle drivers the option to transition to jobs that are high-
er paying and better for the environment, all of which would save the
state money on things like health insurance and social assistance
programs.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.