Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) joined his Minority Conference colleagues to announce his bill mandating a comprehensive forensic audit of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). The legislation was conceived following numerous high-profile incidents involving wasteful spending, fraud and abuse as well as the recent introduction of the highly controversial congestion pricing program amid calls for infrastructure financing.

For years, MTA payroll costs, most notably overtime expenditures, have been allowed to skyrocket and provided an environment for fraud and abuse to thrive. Recent, high-profile convictions of MTA employees shined a light on the fraudulent schemes. While the MTA has attempted to introduce reforms, the results have been inadequate at best. In 2024, the MTA still spent $1.4 billion in overtime. Other notable shortfalls and inefficiencies include: 

• From 2021 to 2024, it lost more than $5 billion in unpaid tolls;
• In 2022, it lost more than $700 million due to fare evasion;
• An audit of the emergency intercom system called “Help Point” revealed that 50% of calls were pranks after a $250 million investment;
• Plan to spend $1 million to study psychology of fare evaders; and
• Spent nearly $8 billion on flood-resilience projects following Superstorm Sandy and an audit revealed 3 out of 12 flood door gaskets were broken.

“The MTA is failing taxpayers. It seems like every few months, New York taxpayers are met with a story about a new scandal involving fraud and mismanagement of the agency, while every few years the agency comes to Albany looking for new dedicated revenues and funding,” said Ra, the Ranking Minority Member on the Assembly Ways & Means Committee. “The agency has even failed to collect billions lost to uncollected fares and tolls. Clearly, the MTA cannot police itself. A forensic audit is long overdue—there are simply too many documented instances of misconduct to ignore. Turning a blind eye to these failures would be a betrayal of every New Yorker who depends on the system and expects accountability.”

“We’ve heard a lot of talk about affordability and addressing the cost of living in Albany this year. On the other hand, we have also seen proposed spending proposals reach jaw-dropping record highs and a wildly unpopular congestion tolling plan enacted. A plan instituted, in part, because of the MTA’s failure to collect more than $5 billion in unpaid tolls and violations the past four years. Hardworking New Yorkers are being penalized for the inept leadership at the MTA which has allowed waste and fraud to become the norm. An independent, comprehensive forensic audit is the only way to restore accountability and efficiency to this bloated agency,” said Minority Leader Will Barclay (R,C-Pulaski).

The MTA was statutorily required to create a transformation plan in 2019 to improve operations and services, increase efficiencies and reduce costs. But, in a recent audit conducted by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, it was noted that the MTA had “not demonstrated that it achieved the objectives of improved service levels for the customer, process efficiencies, and cost reductions.”

“The MTA’s continued mismanagement and failure to address fraud is taking a toll on New Yorkers. For years, billions have been lost due to unpaid fares and toll evasion, with little to no accountability from the agency. It’s clear that the MTA cannot effectively oversee itself. A comprehensive forensic audit is essential to bringing accountability and restoring the efficiency and transparency that taxpayers deserve. New Yorkers deserve better than the ongoing negligence that has plagued this system,” said Assemblyman Karl Brabenec (R,C-Deerpark).

“The MTA’s reckless spending and outright negligence have been a burden on hardworking New Yorkers for far too long. Billions of dollars lost to waste, fraud, and mismanagement, while commuters are left footing the bill through higher fares and congestion pricing.A forensic audit isn’t just necessary, it’s long overdue. The MTA needs to be held accountable, and we need real solutions to fix this mess before Albany even considers handing them another dime,” said Assemblyman Mike Reilly (R,C-Staten Island).

The proposed legislation (A.6088), introduced by Assemblyman Ra, would require the MTA to contract with a certified independent accounting firm to perform a comprehensive, forensic audit of the Authority, compile a report on redundancies and inefficiencies with analysis, suggestions and recommendations, and compile a report on at least six governance action-plan proposals for alternative governance structures.

During the recent Joint Budget Hearing on Transportation, MTA Chairman Janno Lieber painted a dire fiscal situation while seeking more than $33 billion to assist funding the Authority’s $68.4 billion Capital Plan. Notably, according to recent reports, the MTA has lost more than $5 billion in unpaid tolls from 2021 to 2024. The Authority lost an additional $700 million from fare evasion in 2022 alone, with Chairman Lieber estimating that total may be closer to $800 million in 2024. Further, the MTA’s payroll has jumped 9% from 2023, with overtime spending reaching record highs. Shockingly, hundreds of employees have earned more in overtime than in regular pay.