Statewide Transportation Building Coalition Calls on Gov. Hochul for More Funding of Road and Bridge Repairs

TARRYTOWN, N.Y., March 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- A coalition representing thousands of members and employees of transportation building trades and organized labor across New York State is calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul to allocate more funding in the five-year Department of Transportation (DOT) capital plan to repair failing roads and bridges. The capital plan is to be enacted as part of the state budget due April 1.

The Construction Industry Council of Westchester & Hudson Valley, Inc. (CIC) and the broad-based coalition Rebuild New York Now are pointing to nearly $5 billion earmarked for New York under the $1.2 trillion bipartisan federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) they say should be used toward repairing deteriorating state bridges and highways.

In a March 17, 2022, letter to Gov. Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Andrew Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, CIC and Rebuild acknowledge the Executive Budget proposal includes "a record high" $32.8 billion five-year spending plan for the DOT and local road system. However, they noted, "NYSDOT's core highway construction program declines under the Executive Budget proposal. Funding for the 'State/Local Construction' category in the 2020/21-2021/22 two-year funding program averaged $3.675 million. The proposed five-year (fiscal year) 2023-2027 plan's average is $3.474 million. This amounts to an approximate $200 million decline, or a $1 billion five-year decline."

New York has 1,700 deficient bridges and more than 7,000 miles of highway in poor condition, which will increase as a result of reduced funding, said John Cooney, Jr., the CIC's executive director: "If New York makes the judicious decision to harness this additional federal aid, it will result in safer bridges and overpasses, create thousands of jobs, generate hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues, and provide resources for local and county municipalities to make our transportation safer and more reliable."

The letter comes on the heels of a rally Feb. 28 in Westchester County, where CIC and Rebuild met with local, state and federal representatives – including U.S. Rep. Mondaire Jones (NY-17) and state Sens. Shelley B. Mayer, Sue Serino and Mike Martucci – who voiced support for investing in local infrastructure by using federal funds allocated under the IIJA.

About Rebuild New York Now
Rebuild New York Now is a broad-based coalition of construction, organized labor and business enterprises, representing more than 30,000 workers and their families with the common goal of investing in infrastructure to ensure the safety and economic health of New York State. The Construction Industry Council of Westchester & Hudson Valley, Inc., is the leading voice for transportation construction and environmental infrastructure, as well as utilities and commercial development in the mid-Hudson region of New York State. CIC is aligned with the Building Contractors Association of Westchester & The Mid-Hudson Region, Inc., and more than 30 labor unions of the Building & Construction Trades Councils. Visit cicbca.org.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
George Drapeau
914-924-4740
CIC

Caryn McBride
917-533-9715
Co-Communications Inc.

SOURCE Construction Industry Council of Westchester and Hudson Valley