Res 0651-2015

By Council Members Reynoso, Chin, Rosenthal and Menchaca Whereas, New York State Tax Law Article 29-A imposes a tax of fifty cents per trip ("MTA tax") on all yellow taxi and Street Hail Livery ("boro taxi") trips that originate in New York City and terminate within the 12-county Metropolitan Commuter Transportation District; and Whereas, The funds generated by this tax are used to support the Metropolitan Transportation Authority ("MTA") which operates bus, subway, commuter rail, and paratransit services in New York City and the surrounding region; and Whereas, Yellow taxis complete approximately 175 million trips per year and boro taxis complete approximately 18 million hail trips per year, generating almost $100 million annually for the MTA; and Whereas, The MTA tax does not apply to for-hire vehicles ("FHVs") such as liveries, black cars, and luxury limousines, except when liveries accept hails pursuant to a boro taxi license; and Whereas, Smartphone app-based services such as Uber and Lyft are growing at a rapid pace in New York City and typically operate as black cars under Taxi and Limousine Commission ("TLC") regulations; and Whereas, The black car sector has grown by 200 percent over the last four years, largely as a result of app-based services, which serve a transportation function similar to that of yellow and boro taxis; and Whereas, Uber alone accounts for over 34,000 trips per day, according to September 2014 data; and Whereas, According to the TLC, yellow taxi trip volume has decreased approximately 6 percent, with fares down approximately 3 percent, reflecting the many recent changes in New York's transportation network, including the rise of app-based services; and Whereas, A decrease in yellow taxi fares necessarily results in a corresponding decrease in revenue generated by yellow taxi trips for the MTA via the MTA tax; and Whereas, In order to achieve parity across all taxi and FHV sectors, ensure that all taxi and FHV passengers contribute their fair share to supporting mass transit, and to raise needed funds for the MTA as it confronts a $15 billion funding gap in its next five-year capital plan, the MTA tax should be extended to all FHV trips; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, legislation extending the MTA tax to all for-hire vehicle trips. LS# 3954 3/23/2015 JM