Assemblywoman Scozzafava starts drive to investigate whether state illegally took $1 million in snowmobile trail funds
Friday, May 02, 2008, 4:48pm
Assemblywoman Dierdre Scozzafava?s office says she has started a petition drive for those who are opposed to what she says is the state?s mishandling of snowmobilers? funding.
She is working with colleagues to investigate the state budget?s appropriation of approximately $1 million from the Snowmobile Trail Development and Maintenance Fund.
In 2005, legislation was passed increasing snowmobile registration fees ? The Snowmobile Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2005. It was promised that the increased fees would finance the trail improvement fund, which supports the state?s 10,000 miles of public snowmobile trails, snowmobile safety education and enforcement of the state?s snowmobile laws. According to Scozzafava that promise has not been kept.
?When this fund was created,? said Scozzafava, ?we trusted the state to use this money for its stated purpose ? to improve snowmobiling across New York. That clearly has not been the case.?
Scozzafava says the snowmobile fund has been swept into the general fund of the budget, to be spent at the state?s discretion. The assemblywoman says that is a clear violation of the rights of snowmobilers who paid the increased registration fee with the expectation that the funds be used for their benefit.
?Snowmobilers are forced to pay this fee under the assumption that it will go toward improving their safety, education and trail maintenance and development,? added Scozzafava. ?Instead the money will be taken from their pockets and spent on other programs. That is unacceptable.?
In addition to circulating her own petitions, Scozzafava signed one designated for lawmakers who opposed the misuse.
For more information on obtaining a copy of the petition, call Scozzafava?s Gouverneur office at 287-2384.
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