Q&A
Addressing financial burdens on medallion owners
1:08:36
ยท
132 sec
Council Member Banks inquires about measures to address the financial burden on medallion owners due to plummeting medallion values. Commissioner Do discusses the implementation of the MRP and MRP Plus programs, which have provided over $471 million in debt relief to small medallion owners.
- The programs have helped reduce monthly payments for medallion owners from as high as $5,000 to $1,234.
- The initiative aims to protect drivers from losing their mortgages, homes, and private cars.
- The city intervenes to prevent banks from directly pursuing the medallion owners for debt.
Chris Banks
1:08:36
Thank you, madam chair and, commissioner and, to the rest of the staff members for your testimony.
1:08:43
When it comes to, medallion value and, financial, viability, with the value of taxi medallions having plummeted for for over from over 1,000,000, to a fraction of that, what measures are being taken to address the financial burden on medallion owners, many of whom were struggling with debt?
1:09:06
And, are there any plans, for Deperly, for restructuring of the program to help, subsidize this industry?
David Do
1:09:13
Yeah.
1:09:14
Thank you so much, Council Member Banks.
1:09:15
This is something that is incredibly important to the TLC.
1:09:19
And, one of my measure one of the first things that I told not only, the chair, but also the entire council was that I would get MRP and MRP plus to the finish line.
1:09:31
We got there, in, September of twenty twenty two.
1:09:35
We held a big tent event where thousands of drivers, hundreds of drivers, now thousands of drivers were able to come and get relief.
1:09:45
Small medallion owners of six or less medallions, those who needed help the most.
1:09:51
And and we provided, now, over $471,000,000 of debt relief.
1:09:56
That that that's a good thing, for New Yorkers because where they were going to be was that their mortgages, their homes, their private cars were gonna be taken away from them.
1:10:09
But through this program, and through the work with the council, we were able to say, okay.
1:10:17
You know, you're a small medallion owner.
1:10:18
You're struggling.
1:10:20
Let's get you some help.
1:10:21
Let's get your payments down to $1,234 per month instead of, in some cases, I heard $5,000.
1:10:28
Right?
1:10:29
Because a lot of our drivers still have to pay rent, a mortgage
Chris Banks
1:10:33
So true.
David Do
1:10:34
Car payment or other.
1:10:35
Sorry.
Chris Banks
1:10:36
No.
1:10:36
No.
1:10:36
No.
1:10:36
I said so true.
David Do
1:10:37
Yeah.
1:10:37
And so we wanted to make sure, that we can provide some relief and further that the bank couldn't go after them themselves, that they would come to the city instead.