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Archive for May, 2010
A Man Of Few Words
May 28th - 4:07 pm
AG Andrew Cuomo, who said during his acceptance speech yesterday that it would be a “tragedy” if the Legislature didn’t pass a bill to lift the charter school cap and improve the state’s chances at landing “Race to the Top” funding, just released a (very) brief statement in response to the news that his wish had come true.
Here’s what he said, via his gubernatorial campaign:
“Amen.”
Charters Passes Senate With 14 GOP ‘No’ Votes
May 28th - 3:42 pm
Crisis averted. The Senate has now passed both the parks/e-waste bill and the charter schools bill and can head home for the long Memorial Day holiday weekend.
The charter school vote was 45-14. The no votes were as follows:
Farley, Flanagan, Golden, Griffo, O. Johnson, Larkin, Lavalle, Libous, Maziarz, McDonald, Nozzolio, Padavan, Saland, Young.
That Padavan vote is somewhat surprising, since the veteran Queens lawmakeris a longtime ally of Mayor Bloomberg, whose top aides, Howard Wolfson and Micah Lasher, were instrumental in cobbling together this deal.
UPDATE: The Senate GOP press office notes Padavan voted “no” on the one-house Senate charter schools bill, too.
Also, that means some of the staunchest charter opponents, including Sen. Bill Perkins, who is facing a primary challenge from pro-charter Democrat (and former Bloomberg campaign aide) Basil Smikle; and Shirley Huntley, who also has a pro-charter primary opponent, voted “yes.”
Moving On Cox?
May 28th - 3:15 pm
Disgruntled Republicans are quietly making calls in advance of their party’s nominating convention next week to discuss the possibility of a “no confidence” vote on state GOP Chairman Ed Cox.
“He really hasn’t done anything other than make it the most disorganized and confused event that you’re going to see,” an anti-Cox source griped. “It’s going to be absolute confusion and bedlam.”
A group of malcontents is likely to meet in New York City before the convention gets underway at the Sheraton next Tuesday, the source said. Those calling around include, but are not limited to, allies of gubernatorial contender Rick Lazio, who has been at odds with Cox for some time.
Discontent with Cox’s leadership has been brewing since he abandoned Lazio, the party’s gubernatorial frontrunner (in polls and the weighted convention vote, although not fundraising), to convince Democratic Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy to switch parties and run.
It was widely speculated at the time that Cox’s interest in Levy was largely born of a desire to curry favor with Suffolk County GOP Chairman John Jay LaValle in connection with the congressional bid of Cox’s son, Chris, in NY-1 against Democratic Rep. Tim Bishop.
More >
Parks Bill Passes In Party-Line Vote
May 28th - 2:48 pm
After finally managing to get all 32 members into the chamber, the Senate Democrats just passed the bill that will re-open state parks without a single GOP vote.
The finally tally: 32-27.
Earlier today, Sen. Tom Libous, of Binghamton, defended the Republicans’ plan to vote “no” in a bloc to Capital Tonight’s Kaitlyn Ross, saying:
“Even their own nominee, Andrew Cuomo, made it very clear yesterday that this state and people of this state cannot take higher taxes.”
“So, our Republican conference is voting against higher taxes today. Certainly the parks can open. There’s money to open the parks, but the governor is using this as a political ploy. So what the Democrats are voting for is higher taxes. We’re voting no on higher taxes, but think the parks should still open.”
Schneiderman For Espaillat, UFCW Local 1500 For Levine
May 28th - 1:51 pm
The race for the Manhattan seat Sen. Eric Schneiderman will vacate to pursue his quest for statewide office (attorney general) is heating up, with the senator himself and the first labor union choosing up sides.
It should come as no surprise that Schneiderman has thrown his support behind Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat.
The duo co-hosted a reception (along with Sen. Jose Peralta) at Somos el Futuro at the Crowne Plaza in April at which there was much joking about Schneiderman, who loves to display his Spanish speaking skills at the slightest provocation, being an honorary Latino legislator.
“I am proud to endorse Adriano Espaillat for my seat in the New York State Senate. No one has worked harder for our communities – our schools, our seniors, our neighborhoods – than Adriano. He shares our values, knows how to get the job done and will keep leading the fight to reform Albany,” Schneiderman said in a press release.
Also today, UFCW Local 1500 continued its early endorsement streak by becoming the first labor union to endorse in the 31st SD race, throwing its weight behind District Leader Mark Levine.
Silver On Charters Bill: ‘Not About Support From Teachers Unions’
May 28th - 1:12 pm
In an interview with NY1′s Erin Billups earlier today, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver called the charter schools legislation passed by his house in the wee hours of the morning a “good bill” that will enable the state to make a strong application for Round II of “Race to the Top” funding by June 1.
Silver noted the measure has support from Mayor Bloomberg, the SUNY chancellor and the governor, who said today he would sign it “10 minutes after it passes” if both houses of the Legislature play ball. (The Senate has yet to do so, but hope springs eternal on that side of the Capitol).
When Billups noted the bill isn’t universally supported by the teachers unions, Silver, who is a close ally of NYSUT and the UFT, replied:
“This is not about support from teachers unions. Some unions are in support. Some are opposed. This was done for children in the classrooms of New York to make that environment better.
The Senate Remembers Jay Gallagher
May 28th - 12:49 pm
The Senate today passed a resolution honoring veteran Gannett Albany Bureau Chief Jay Gallagher, who died Monday at the age of 63 after a nearly yearlong battle with pancreatic cancer.
At about the 5:40-minute mark in this video, Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Westchester Democrat, thanks Gallagher’s family, who were in the balcony along with many of his friends and LCA colleagues, for “sharing this moment with us and experience, very much, what Jay experienced: The timing of the Legislature.”
“We told them to be here at 9 a.m. when we were to begin,” Stewart-Cousins said. “And now, only a short almost three hours later, we are pausing to honor his memory.”
“You are living his life. You are able to have a taste of what it meant to do what he did. And not only did he do this, but he coordinated the schedules of so many others, because indeed, that was his role.”
Stewart-Cousins also noted that today would have been an important day for Gallagher because the Senate is poised to pass a bill (they hope) to make sure the parks that he enjoyed so much remain open.
Gov: ‘We’ll Abide’ By Furlough Decision, Ask For Pay Lag
May 28th - 12:40 pm
Gov. David Paterson said his administration will not appeal US District Court Judge Lawrence Kahn’s decision granting a preliminary injunction to block his furlough plan, and said he will again ask public employee unions to accept a pay lag instead of moving straight to layoffs.
“We will abide by the decision, but it’s interesting that the judge did not go along with public employees who tried to tell the court there is no financial crisis,” the governor told reporters (including NY1′s Grace Rauh) after delivering the commencement speech at Bronx Community College.
“It’s hard to impose furloughs if Legislature wasn’t with us. Yet the Legislature put the savings we would have gotten from furloughs in their budget. So let the Legislature now figure out how to come up with that money.”
Asked about the possibility of layoffs, Paterson said his administration is “still looking for $250 million in workforce reductions” and “will go back to the drawing board” to try to find it.
Charter And Parks Bills In Trouble In Senate? (Updated)
May 28th - 11:57 am
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.
More >
Judge Sides With Unions On Furloughs, Raises (Updated)
May 28th - 11:13 am
US District Court Judge Lawrence Kahn has reportedly come down on the side of the public employee unions in the furlough lawsuit, ruling that Gov. David Paterson cannot insert his day-without-pay language into budget extender bills.
Kahn also rejected the Paterson administration’s argument that there would be no long-lasting harm to state workers’ 4 percent raises now because they would eventually get the money back, saying to do so would “constitute substantial contractual impairments.”
In addition, the judge cited the Senate resolution that deemed the furloughs unconstitutional even as they were passed, writing:
“In the absence of any showing of legislative consideration or tailoring, it is unreasonable to impose such an impairment through emergency appropriation bills, particularly when there is a unified legislative voice denying the very reasonableness and necessity of the enactment.”
“…ORDERED, that each and every Defendant, pursuant to Federal Rule of Procedure 65, is enjoined from submitting, enacting, or implementing emergency appropriations bills containing the furlough and wage provisions challenged in these actions.”
Here’s the decision:
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