The 30-member Senate Republican conference is poised to vote en masse against the bill that would keep state parks open and also has issues with a measure that would boost the charter cap from 200 to 460, GOP sources confirm.

The Republicans are still discussing their strategy behind closed doors, but one legislative source said he “wouldn’t be surprised” if they all emerge to vote “no” on the parks bill – at the very least – due to concerns about increased taxes and fees.

This could be a major problem for the Senate Democrats, as all 32 members of their conference are not currently at the Capitol and – assuming they make it at all – will only be in house for a very short time today.

Apparently, two senators – Eric Schneiderman and Tom Duane – are en route to the Capitol, and a third senator needs to leave early for a prior personal commitment.

Senate Democratic spokesman Austin Shafran rejected the GOP claim that the parks/e-waste recycling bill includes new taxes, noting the proposed increases in civil and criminal fines for environmental conservation law violations are for crimes that already exist (estimated revenue generation: $1 million), and the same goes for the restructuring of fees for hazardous waste generation (estimated revenue generation: $2 million).

An estimated $1 million will be generated through the new e-waste recycling requirement, which is indeed a new fee for businesses.

Shafran said Senate staffers and Democratic Conference Leader John Sampson worked “through the night” on the charter legislation (passed very early this morning without GOP support by the Assembly, which also pulled an all-nighter).

He also noted the Senate has already passed a one-house charter bill once before and hopes to do so again, adding:

“We hope to follow our own lead and pass a comprehensive charter bill and educational reform package to give New York the points we need to win and our children the education they need to compete.”

The first Senate charter bill passed 45-15 with GOP support, but this time there appears to be a sticking point who should have chartering authority – SUNY or the Regents Board. Some last-minute changes are being made in an attempt to address this.

UPDATE: A source says the issue with SUNY and the Regents is “resolved,” with each retaining their own chartering authority. NY1′s Erin Billups confirms this.

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