Passenger Trains > Gateway Tunnel impediment removed

The Wall Street Journal reports that a controversial Trump administration legal opinion blocking funding has been reversed, clearing away another obstacle to the Hudson River Amtrak + NJ Transit tunnel.

The paper says that, in an effort to gain leverage over Senator Chuck Schumer, President Trump ordered an opinion which prevented federal loans from being counted as a state's share of a joint state and federal project. The loans were to be repaid over time by user fees and the Port of New York and New Jersey tolls.  NJ has already raised about $600 mn in bonds as its share of the project.  Environmental reviews and a classification of the project's value are next.

Paywall likely:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-reverses-guidance-that-impeded-funding-for-hudson-rail-tunnel-11613514110?cx_testId=3&cx_testVariant=cx_16&cx_artPos=3#cxrecs_s
 

Another venal move by Trump to punish people from the Northeast.  We have it bad enough with creeps like Cuomo wasting money all over and imagining that he's a dictator without having a President pursuing a vendetta that hurts people. A pox on both of them.

Where's Senators Booker and Menendez on this, while Schumer gets all the glory ? The tunnels are primarily for NJT's use. 

New Jersey and New York need skin in this game. What will the Federal government do when NJ and/or NY renege, repo the tunnel?

Traditionally the Feds fund 20-30% of these projects, and the local jurisdictions fund the rest, based on their revenue sources. Why should the rest of us subside NJ’ers working in NY at four to five times the rate we generally subsidize citizens elsewhere? This is a most heinous form of corporate subsidy.

TL

Posted from iPhone

How do you know they are going to renege ? The matter has been settled. Federal loan is deemed state funding. 

50% FTA share is quite common. 

Federal share of highway projects is 80 - 90%, even though most travel on them is either local or commuters. Perimeter highway around Atlanta is not 12 lanes because of interstate travel nor tourists going to Stone Mountain. It is for suburban sprawl commuting. 

Will they finally get the ball moving now?

Posted from Android

Torchlake2 Wrote:
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> New Jersey and New York need skin in this game. What will the Federal government do when NJ and/or  NY renege, repo the tunnel?
>
> Traditionally the Feds fund 20-30% of these projects, and the local jurisdictions fund the rest, based on their revenue sources. Why should the rest of us subside NJ’ers working in NY at four to five times the rate we generally subsidize citizens elsewhere? This is a most heinous form of corporate subsidy.

For the Billionth Time!  New Jersey, New York and Connecticut are Donor States and send FAR more money to the Federal Government than they get back.

Perhaps they should keep their donations to Welfare States like yours and build / repair Infrastructure for their own citizens.

Brian

choodude Wrote:
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> For the Billionth Time!  New Jersey, New York and
> Connecticut are Donor States and send FAR more
> money to the Federal Government than they get
> back.

Is that because they have a lot of corporate headquarters and as a result those states get credit for economic activity which takes place elsewhere?
 

ts1457 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> choodude Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > For the Billionth Time!  New Jersey, New York
> and
> > Connecticut are Donor States and send FAR more
> > money to the Federal Government than they get
> > back.
>
> Is that because they have a lot of corporate
> headquarters and as a result those states get
> credit for economic activity which takes place
> elsewhere?
>  

New York state population  --  19.4 million
New Jersey state population  --  8.95 million
Connecticut state population  --  3.56 million

so that's 31.91 million folks subsidizing you.

Brian

Capping the SALT deduction to $10,000 cost New Jersey $3.1 billion a year in more federal taxes since 2018.
The full SALT deduction had been in place since 1913. 

https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2018/08/15/analysis-tax-lawsuit-would-benefit-new-jerseys-richest/878358002/
https://www.amny.com/new-york/cuomo-murphy-urge-congress-cut-salt-deduction/

choodude Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ts1457 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------

> > choodude Wrote:
> > --------------------------------------------------

> > > For the Billionth Time!  New Jersey, New York and
> > > Connecticut are Donor States and send FAR more
> > > money to the Federal Government than they get
> > > back.
> >
> > Is that because they have a lot of corporate
> > headquarters and as a result those states get
> > credit for economic activity which takes place
> > elsewhere?
> >  
>
> New York state population  --  19.4 million
> New Jersey state population  --  8.95 million
> Connecticut state population  --  3.56 million
>
> so that's 31.91 million folks subsidizing you.
>
> Brian

That doesn't answer the question.  Say a New York headquartered company pays a $100 million in Federal income taxes, but all of its manufacturing takes place in other states. Does New York get credited with all of the $100 million?

I don't know, but I would like to.

Why do they need this in NY and Jersey? That's why Atlanta has 12 lanes, they've all moved down here.

steamloco Wrote:
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> Why do they need this in NY and Jersey? That's why Atlanta has 12 lanes, they've all moved down here.

They have, heh ? 

ts1457 Wrote:

> Is that because they have a lot of corporate headquarters and as a result those states get credit for economic activity which takes place elsewhere?

Delaware is the state famous for having lots of corporate headquarters due to all the tax avoidance laws.  Why don't you ask them?

Brian 

choodude Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Delaware is the state famous for having lots of
> corporate headquarters due to all the tax
> avoidance laws.  Why don't you ask them?
>
> Brian 

Thanks. I need to find the list and see how Delaware ranks. That might give a clue about the answer.

wtsherman100 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Another venal move by Trump to punish people from
> the Northeast.  We have it bad enough with creeps
> like Cuomo wasting money all over and imagining
> that he's a dictator without having a President
> pursuing a vendetta that hurts people. A pox on
> both of them.

If you can cast poxes on both sides, I can congatulate you as level headed.......not totally in agreement I am sure...but level headed. 

One of the advantages of incorporating your business in Delaware is the minimal corporate tax and registration expense.  Delaware delivers an adequate level of services to its residents with corporate taxes plus the extortionate fees on its few miles of I-95 and the Delaware 1 tollway.  It's a very cheap place to live.

But, even if your company is incorporated in Delaware, it is likely located someplace else. Like NYC, Chicago, or Los Angeles, or Houston etc.  And your employees are paying federal income taxes, fees, etc   The individual federal income taxes are a big number, even after the Trump-era trillion dollar giveaway to rich folks.

wtsherman100 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Another venal move by Trump to punish people from
> the Northeast.  We have it bad enough with creeps
> like Cuomo wasting money all over and imagining
> that he's a dictator without having a President
> pursuing a vendetta that hurts people.

The requirement for a local match was that the local governments actually had to match the money being granted.  NY/NJ proposed that the Federal Government "loan" them the match, and they'd "repay" it sometime down the line.

I think we wll know how this works.

Other areas that actually put up a local match are more deserving of the funds being granted.

choodude Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> For the Billionth Time!  New Jersey, New York and
> Connecticut are Donor States and send FAR more
> money to the Federal Government than they get
> back.

This is a very pernicious myth that keeps being stated.  I don't know under what conditions you think this holds true, but under the way its usually calculated, it goes as follows:

1) NY/NJ/CT have a very high cost of living, so salaries paid are higher resulting in higher tax payments.
2) NYNJ/CT then shed many retirees to other states, along with their social security, medicare, medicaid, VA hospital, and federal pension payments.
3) NY/NJ/CT claim credit for taxes paid on worldwide earnings of corporations that happen to be headquartered in those states, as if business activity that mostly occurs elsewhere is really attributable to them.
4) NY/NJ/CT do not have sufficient local college systems and donate enormous numbers of college students elsewhere int he country, taking all federal payments on those college seats with them.
5) NYNJ/CT lack major military installations or military contractors (other than Electric Boat).

(1) and (3) inflate the tax payments from these states and (2), (4), and (5) donates the corresponding costs to other states, making them look relatively worse.

ts1457 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> That doesn't answer the question.  Say a New York
> headquartered company pays a $100 million in
> Federal income taxes, but all of its manufacturing
> takes place in other states. Does New York get
> credited with all of the $100 million?
>
> I don't know, but I would like to.

General Electric is headquartered in Boston and makes (well, made) locomotives in Pennsylvania and Texas.  The profits are attributed to the corporation in MA, not the factories in PA and TX.

Same situation with Boeing in Chicago, IL, where the major factories are in Washington, Missori, and South Carolina.  Profits and taxes are attributed to IL even though no productive activity occurs there.

Many other such cases.