Don't cut the LIRR's $5.7B share of capital funding

Next stop for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's proposed $51.5 billion capital plan: the Capital Program Review Board.

We wouldn't blame you if you've never heard of it.

But even though it sounds like a meaningless mouthful, the CPRB is key for the Long Island Rail Road's modernization. The board has four members — one each appointed by the governor, the New York City mayor, the State Assembly speaker and the State Senate majority leader. Each has veto power over the capital plan, though the mayor's appointee can veto only New York City Transit's piece.

Too often, the board's work is an obscure, backroom process. That has to change, and at a critical and sometimes contentious time for the MTA, the LIRR's needs must be well-represented. 

The review board was established in the 1980s as a check on the capital plan's financing. But it has morphed into another arena for political battles.l  

What's more, the board lacks accountability and a public presence. And too often, its representation is skewed.

That's the case now. It's unfortunate that Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins picked a Queens state senator, John Liu, as her representative on the board at the same time that Mayor Bill de Blasio and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie chose city-based representatives, too. Long Island, or at least the suburbs in general, should have a seat at the table. While Liu says he understands the LIRR's needs, and correctly recognizes public transit as a regional issue, a state senator from Long Island would be preferable.

But if Stewart-Cousins won't nominate a suburban representative to the CPRB, then Cuomo's idea — to have the elected officials themselves  serve on the board — may be the way to go. That along with open meeting law requirements, would bring the board's discussions and decisions into the open and add accountability to a nebulous, opaque process.  Cuomo, Heastie, Stewart-Cousins and de Blasio would be directly accountable for re-routing dollars, and Heastie and Stewart-Cousins would have to answer  to the Long Island delegation's interests.

That's particularly important because this year, there has been concern over a $1 billion capital-funding discrepancy between the LIRR and Metro-North. But the LIRR is getting that extra money to finish its third-track project and the East Side Access connection to Grand Central Terminal, which will benefit Metro-North, too. Stewart-Cousins says she doesn't want to take from the LIRR to give to Metro-North but she is under pressure to do so. We're counting on her, not only during the CPRB approvals, but also when the plan comes before the State Legislature for funding, too. 

Beyond that, in the next session, state lawmakers should revisit the CPRB itself to better identify  its goals and process and to reevaluate whether members should be regionally selected. 

But first, the next capital plan must become a reality, starting with CPRB approval by Dec. 30.Then, the State Legislature must do its part. Throughout, Long Island lawmakers must make sure the LIRR keeps its $5.7 billion share. Riders are counting on them. — The editorial board