A 9238: Requires the department of transportation to study the regional fairness of state funding for local roadway paving purposes, including but not limited to the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS), State Touring Routes program, PAVE-NY, Pave Our Potholes (POP), and other existing local roadway aid programs, and to make recommendations concerning the reinstatement of the suburban highway improvement program (SHIPS) funding program.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9238 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY November 7, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. RA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to require the department of transportation to study the regional fairness of state funding for local roadway paving purposes; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature finds that communities 2 across the state experience distinct transportation and roadway infras- 3 tructure needs due to factors such as population density, traffic 4 volumes, freight movement, and overall roadway usage. The former Long 5 Island and Hudson Valley suburban highway improvement programs (SHIPS), 6 established under sections 10-f and 10-g of the highway law, provided 7 targeted funding to address these types of regional infrastructure chal- 8 lenges. Since the program was exhausted in 1997, questions have arisen 9 as to whether current funding streams, including the consolidated local 10 street and highway improvement program (CHIPS), state touring routes, 11 PAVE-NY, and other local roadway aid programs provide equitable and 12 regionally fair support to localities in all parts of New York. It is 13 therefore the intent of the legislature to direct the department of 14 transportation to study the regional equity of existing local roadway 15 aid formulas and programs, and to make recommendations as to whether 16 adjustments are needed, including consideration of whether SHIPS, or a 17 substantially similar program be reestablished and funded. 18 § 2. Study. The department of transportation is hereby directed to 19 conduct a comprehensive study on the fairness and adequacy of state aid 20 provided to municipalities for local roadway paving and maintenance 21 purposes, including, but not limited to, the consolidated local street 22 and highway improvement program (CHIPS), state touring routes program, 23 PAVE-NY, pave our potholes (POP), and other relevant programs. Such 24 study shall include: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD14032-01-5 
 A. 9238 2 1 (a) an evaluation of how current funding formulas are calculated, 2 including a breakdown of all factors used, and whether those factors are 3 transparent and understandable to local governments; 4 (b) an analysis of historical and current distributions of such fund- 5 ing by region, with a breakdown of per-lane-mile and per-capita aid, 6 including Long Island, Hudson Valley, New York city, upstate urban 7 areas, and rural regions; 8 (c) an assessment of whether the needs of regions with high traffic 9 volumes, extreme weather impacts, aging infrastructure, higher 10 construction or labor costs, or limited fiscal capacity are equitably 11 addressed under the current funding formulas and allocations; 12 (d) a comparison of local roadway usage, traffic volumes, and infras- 13 tructure costs in all major regions relative to state aid received for 14 roadway paving and maintenance; 15 (e) an identification of funding gaps, inequities, and the eligibility 16 of project types or equipment expenses covered under existing aid 17 programs; 18 (f) a consideration of annual inflationary adjustments to local road- 19 way aid programs and whether current formulas adequately account for 20 cost differentials between regions; 21 (g) a comparison to other states' funding for local road maintenance 22 programs; 23 (h) opportunities to incorporate public input, including public hear- 24 ings or stakeholder consultations in each major region of the state, and 25 consideration of such input in the final study; and 26 (i) recommendations concerning whether changes to existing formulas, 27 the creation of new funding streams, or the reinstatement of the Long 28 Island and Hudson Valley suburban highway improvement programs (SHIPS) 29 under sections 10-f and 10-g of the highway law, or a substantially 30 similar program, would provide greater fairness and adequacy in meeting 31 local roadway maintenance needs. 32 § 3. Report. The commissioner shall deliver a written report on the 33 findings of the study and recommendations to the governor, the temporary 34 president of the senate, minority leader of the senate, the speaker of 35 the assembly, minority leader of the assembly, the chair of the senate 36 transportation committee, the ranking member of the senate transporta- 37 tion committee, the chair of the assembly transportation committee, the 38 ranking member of the assembly transportation committee, the chair of 39 the senate finance committee, the ranking member of the senate finance 40 committee, the chair of the assembly ways and means committee, and the 41 ranking member of the assembly ways and means committee no later than 42 one year after the effective date of this act. Such report shall be 43 publicly posted on the department of transportation and such committees' 44 websites and shall include regional funding distribution tables, per- 45 lane-mile and per-capita comparisons, and summaries of public input 46 gathered through hearings or stakeholder consultations. 47 § 4. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall 48 have become a law and shall expire and be deemed repealed one year after 49 such effective date.