Assemblyman William Colton (D – Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, and Dyker Heights) voted NO on a BIG AND UGLY Bill - A.2009-C, which included totally inadequate Education Foundation Formula School Funding. Not only did the bill accept the original proposal of the Governor, but it appears to have redirected the inadequate increase to schools the Governor considered most needy, rather than allowing the school Districts to distribute it in its discretion of needs.

“I believe that this bill is unacceptable also because it contains an incomplete proposal for Congestion Pricing in which all of the important details were left unanswered to be decided in the future by non-elected boards, including how much will be the daily tolls, where the tolling devices will be, what will the exemptions be, what will be the reforms to the MTA to ensure any monies taken will not be mismanaged, among other crucial details. Although the NYC subways and buses desperately need funding and are in terrible condition partly due to city and state failure to adequately fund them and partly due to the incompetence of the MTA, I never will support a plan leaving out all the vital answers to a future decision by a non-accountable and non-responsive board,” Colton stated.

“I will continue to fight for more funding for our schools which are still owed about $4 billion dollars under the fiscal equity decision. I will also continue to insist that there be a takeover of the MTA so that any monies it receives will not be mishandled or wasted. Approximately 57 members joined me to vote in the negative on the Bill - A.2009-C, but unfortunately this bill did pass,” said Colton.