16 Watchdog Groups Ask Cuomo to Send de Blasio MTA Board Picks to Senate for Rapid Approval
MTA Board Nominees for State Senate Confirmation
State Senate Session Slated to End in Less Than A Week
Sixteen groups today sent a letter to Governor Cuomo asking him to please send Mayor de Blasio’s nominees for the MTA Board to the Senate for a rapid confirmation vote. The nominees, Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez and Victor Calise, were named in February. With these two appointments, New York City’s transit riders and elected leaders will have a stronger voice on the MTA Board.
The letter is available here and below.
May 28, 2020
VIA EMAIL
Governor Andrew Cuomo
RE: Please Promptly Send MTA Board Nominees to Senate for Confirmation
Dear Governor Cuomo,
We write to ask that you promptly send Mayor Bill de Blasio’s nominations for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Board to the State Senate for a rapid vote.
Mayor de Blasio named the two nominees, Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez and Victor Calise, in February, which has provided ample time for your consideration. With these two appointments, New York City’s transit riders and elected leaders will have a stronger voice on the MTA Board.
The State Senate is currently back in session until early June. It is crucial that these seats be filled while the Legislature is still in session and prior to the next meeting of the MTA Board, which is expected for late June.
We thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
John Kaehny
Executive Director
Reinvent Albany
Benjamin Prosky
Executive Director
American Institute of Architects New York
Joe Rappoport
Executive Director
Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled (BCID)
Susan Dooha
Executive Director
Center for Independence of the Disabled NY (CIDNY)
Betsy Gotbaum
Executive Director
Citizens Union of the City of New York
Susan Lerner
Executive Director
Common Cause NY
Peter Iwanowicz
Executive Director
Environmental Advocates of NY
Catherine T Gray
Co-President
League of Women Voters of the City of New York
Laura Ladd Bierman
Executive Director
League of Women Voters of NYS
Jaqi Cohen
Campaign Director
NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign
Lisa Daglian
Executive Director
Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC)
Betsy Plum
Executive Director
Riders Alliance
Eric McClure
Executive Director
StreetsPAC
David Bragdon
Executive Director
TransitCenter
Danny Harris
Executive Director
Transportation Alternatives
Nick Sifuentes
Executive Director
Tri-State Transportation Campaign
Cc. Mayor Bill de Blasio
Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins
Senator Leroy Comrie, Chair, Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee
Senator Tim Kennedy, Chair, Transportation Committee
Senator Liz Krueger, Chair, Finance Committee
MTA Board