NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — New York City has begun doling out debt relief to struggling taxi medallion owners, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Saturday.
The first three medallion owners have received $700,000 in debt relief as part of the city’s $65 million Medallion Relief Program (MRP), which was implemented earlier this year following reports in the New York Times and elsewhere detailing how medallion owners were suckered into predatory loans that greatly benefitted the city.
A press release from de Blasio’s office didn’t offer details on the three medallion owners who initially benefitted from the program; owners can be individual, self-employed drivers or those who own a fleet of taxis they rent out to others.
“Medallion owners have worked tirelessly to keep New York City moving, and they deserve economic justice to make manageable payments and retire with dignity,” de Blasio said in a statement. “This program is an innovative, powerful tool to connect debt forgiveness to New Yorkers who need it, and I’m excited to celebrate even more successes in the weeks and months to come.”
City officials were compelled to craft the MRP after a string of high-profile taxi driver suicides in 2018, which advocates attributed to crippling financial stresses from the loans and the collapse of the industry after the proliferation of e-hailing apps like Uber and Lyft.
Nearly 800 medallion owners are in debt renegotiations through the program, which the city expects the program to generate $500 million in debt forgiveness for the industry, according to de Blasio’s office.
The Taxi and Limousine Commission expected to close deals with another 13 owners by the end of the month, the mayor said.
“Today, the Medallion Relief Program is delivering real debt forgiveness to economically distressed medallion owners,” TLC Commissioner Aloysee Heredia Jarmoszuk said in a statement.
“Taxis provide essential transportation for both New Yorkers and the tens of millions of people who visit each year,” she added. “The money provided by the MRP is critical to help medallion owners achieve significant debt reduction and to ensure a thriving taxi industry.”