Reports

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is facing a serious fiscal crisis.

Last summer the subprime mortgage crisis sent shockwaves through the national and local economies. Over the past year, credit has tightened; financial institutions have written off more than $200 billion in bad debt and posted record losses; home values have dipped nationally and have begun to weaken in New York City; job growth has weakened; and inflation has strengthened, particularly for energy and food prices.

Each year in New York City, more than 100,000 public and private school children between the ages of 5 and 21 are referred (by teachers or parents) to the New York City Department of Education (DOE) to be evaluated for their needs for continued or new special education services.

Over the past 12 years, the three largest operating agencies of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (i.e., New York City Transit, the Long Island Rail Road, and the Metro-North Railroad) paid out more than $1.1 billion on 86,875 claims for personal injury or property damage. The claims were filed by passengers, employees, motorists, and others.

Last June, New York City’s four-year financial plan was based on what appeared to be very conservative economic and revenue assumptions, given the economic environment at that time. During the summer, however, the subprime mortgage crisis sent shockwaves through the national and local economies. As a result, over the course of the current fiscal year the City revised its economic and revenue outlook to keep ahead of adverse economic developments.

On February 27, 2008, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) released a proposed capital program for 2008-2013.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) operates the largest and most diverse transportation system in the nation, and keeping it secure entails significant challenges.

Average Wall Street bonuses in 2007 declined 4.7 percent from record levels in the prior year to $180,420 even though the credit crunch and market turmoil battered profits.