For Immediate Release: July 10, 2012 Contact: (518) 458-9696 T oll Hike Leaves New Y ork Anything but “Open for Business” Twenty business groups have joined together to oppose the New York State Thruway Authority’s prop osed 45% toll increase on comm ercial vehicles. The groups represent ov er 13,000 companies of all sizes, ranging from farms and grocery stores, to fuel suppliers, lumber mills and manufacturers, who expect to see a significant negative impact on their business as a result of the proposed toll increase. This toll increase is expected to have a drastic impact on agriculture and the food supply. “Many farmers will be paying hundreds if not thousands of dollars more per year just to get their food to market if these toll hikes are approved,” said Dean Norton, New York Farm Bureau President. “Hard working farm families cannot easily absorb those risi ng transportation costs, and neither can New York families who will see their grocery bills r ise because of it.” “The Thruway Authority appears to have no regard for the impact their actions will have on all consumers who rely on the goods delivered by truck,” said Brian Sampson, Executive Director of Unsh ackle Upstate. “Every time a truck toll is raised, it increases the cost to the consumer. Everything y ou use, consume or touch will cost more. This does no t just hurt the trucking indu stry. It hurts every manufacturing business and every farmer. As a result, this new increased tax will be absorbed by every taxpayer in New York." Nearly 90% of New York’s communities rely e xclusively on trucks to deliver their goods. Transportation cost s factor into the price of any commodity. “Trucks are used in nearly e very part of the manufacturing process,” said Randy Wolken, President of MACNY- The Manufacturers Association and The Ma nufacturers Alliance of New York . “Raw materials are transported by truck , so the cost of manufacturing will increase as the tolls o n trucks increase. Consumers won’t just see th eir ‘shipping and handling’ charges increase, they’ll see the cost of every product increase.” The Thruway Authority has proposed a 45% toll increase on commercial vehicles with 3 axles or more, to support their 2012-15 capitol plan, which does not include the planned $5 billion replacement of the Tappan Zee Bridge, spanning the Hudson River between Rockland and Westchester counties. The Thruway Authority was unable to complete the projects in their budget with the revenue from toll hikes for their 2005-2011 capital program, leaving many concerned about the mismanagement of toll revenue. The Thruway Authority ’s questionable financial decisions are well-documented. In 2008, the New York State Comptroller found the authority’s planned (and subsequently implemented) toll increases were not justified and that the authority needed to undertake a -more- PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE