In 2014, Gov. Andrew Cuomo was looking at how to fund the
construction of a new Tappan Zee Bridge and in such a way that he could
promise minimal toll hikes. Construction had actually already begun on
the $4 billion project despite no clear funding plan in place and
pressure to detail the spending was mounting.
On June 13, 2014 Cuomo announced that the state Environmental
Facilities Corp. would loan the state up to $511 million for the
multi-billion dollar project from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. The fund,
which is actually backed by federal dollars, exists to dole out
low-interest loans for projects like local sewer repairs and wastewater
treatment plant upgrades. The state also has a similar Drinking Water
Revolving Fund that gives out loans for water main repairs and upgrades.
The move was met with immediate backlash from environmental groups
that insisted the funds were simply not meant for a transportation
project and that the move could set a bad precedent - perhaps
undermining the very purpose for the federal funding and killing funding
for clean-water infrastructure in New York and elsewhere. Budget
watchdogs also attacked the plan as a “gimmick” and “irresponsible.”
After much hand-wringing, it did not go forward as the Cuomo
administration had sought.
As the Cuomo administration struggles to divert blame for the debacle
in Hoosick Falls, where the state resisted calls to notify residents of
contaminated drinking water, environmentalists and others point to the
Tappan Zee loan episode as evidence that the administration has
repeatedly not fully recognized major clean water and water
infrastructure issues facing the state, instead concentrating on costly
transportation economic development projects that benefit developers
while localities grapple with the costs and consequences of decaying
water infrastructure. On the other hand, for some legislators and
advocates say it represents the administration’s ability to recognize a
problem and tackle it head on with an efficient solution.
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Source: Gotham Gazette (via The Empire Report)
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