Message from Liz...
The legislative session concluded in June, with more of a whimper than a bang. I think the Albany Times Union got it right when it reported: "the 2012 session continued the hype, while the substance faded." There were some modest accomplishments, but most of the more substantial issues facing us this year went unaddressed. I was disappointed that the Senate did not build on the momentum of the 2011 legislative session in 2012.
Perhaps the most significant end-of-year accomplishment was passage of legislation improving oversight of residences for developmentally disabled individuals. This legislation is discussed in greater detail in the Spotlight on Policy below. But the session adjourned without resolution on a number of critical issues. Among the issues the legislature failed to address:
Campaign Finance Reform - Despite Governor Cuomo's repeated calls for reform since taking office, the legislature failed to act on any campaign finance reform legislation this session. In May, I joined advocates and many of my Senate minority colleagues in calling for the passage of legislation I cosponsor, S. 3584-B, which would enact comprehensive campaign finance reform. The new system would reduce the influence of special interest money on the legislative process by establishing a system of public matching funds to enhance the influence of lawmakers' constituents, rather than lobbyists and trade groups. In addition, the legislation would lower New York's sky-high maximum contribution limits, and require donations by lobbyists to be identified as such. It would also significantly strengthen penalties for violating campaign finance laws -penalties are so minimal in the current system that there is little incentive to follow even the weak laws we already have. The failure to act on this legislation leaves us with yet another election season where the voice of the voter can be drowned out by special interest dollars.
Minimum Wage - I was extremely disappointed that the legislative session ended without the Senate acting to increase the minimum wage. The minimum wage in New York is the minimum set by the federal government, $7.25 an hour. While eighteen other states have a higher minimum wage, in New York it is the same as in West Virginia and Arkansas. Someone working full-time at minimum wage earns $290 a week, or just $15,080 a year without any time off. It's impossible to pay for rent, food, transportation, health care, and everything else on such a meager salary. It's indefensible and, to be frank, shameful that someone who works 40 hours a week in our state should be unable to feed his or her family. The Assembly passed legislation raising the minimum wage to $8.50, but the Senate Majority refused even to consider the bill.
Co-op/Condo Tax Abatement - Another major outstanding issue left unresolved during the legislative session was renewal of the co-op/condo tax abatement. Because New York City treats co-ops and condos less favorably than private homes in determining tax rates, the state has consistently passed an abatement to create more equity in property taxes. This year legislation extending the abatement passed the Senate with my support, but was not acted on in the Assembly. While an agreement was supposedly reached on the final day of session, the legislation could not be voted on so soon after its introduction without a "Message of Necessity" from the governor, which he did not provide. The governor and legislative leaders have indicated that they have reached agreement on a bill to resolve this issue in a special legislative session later this year. New York City is also operating under the assumption that the abatement will be extended, and has sent out tax bills reflecting the reduced rate. I will continue to work with all parties to ensure that the abatement is extended.
Rent Regulation - The Senate also failed to move any legislation further protecting the rights of rent-stabilized or rent-controlled tenants. After last year's passage of rent law renewal with very modest improvements, there were still many issues facing tenants that had yet to be addressed, from restructuring the Rent Guidelines Board, to reforming the Major Capital Improvements (MCI) system, to creating a more equitable system of determining rents for rent-controlled tenants. Unfortunately, while many rent reforms passed the Assembly, in the Senate the majority refused to consider them. Instead, I and many of my colleagues spent the session beating back a number of proposals that would have further eroded tenants' rights. While I am pleased that these proposals were derailed, the status quo is not good enough - we need to be moving forward in our efforts to reform the rent laws and improve access to affordable housing.
Medical Marijuana - While the passage of the I-STOP prescription drug abuse legislation was one of the session's successes, the Senate Republicans failed to allow a vote on legislation (S. 7283) I co-sponsored that would allow a licensed health care professional who is authorized to prescribe controlled substances to "certify the patient's need for marijuana for treatment of a serious debilitating or life-threatening condition." This would allow the patient to purchase marijuana from a specially registered and regulated hospital or pharmacy. Marijuana has proven effective at addressing pain and appetite issues for patients with cancer, HIV and other conditions. Similar legislation passed the Assembly, and I was disappointed that the Senate majority was unwilling to bring this humane proposal to the floor for a vote.
Marijuana Arrests - The Senate Republicans also refused to consider the governor's proposal to treat possession of small amounts of marijuana as a violation rather than a more serious offense, regardless of whether it was "in public view." Current law treats marijuana in public view as a misdemeanor, but only as a violation if it is not visible. This has led to situations where subjects of "stop-and-frisks" face greater penalties for complying with police officers' orders to empty their pockets. From 1997 through 2010 the NYPD made 536,000 arrests for marijuana possession, costing taxpayers at least $500 million. In 2010, New York City spent $75 million on arrests and incarceration of individuals for the possession of small amounts of marijuana. This is not an effective use of increasingly scarce police resources. These arrests also resulted in large numbers of young people receiving criminal records, impacting their college and job prospects and their ability to become contributing members of society. And because the subjects of stop and frisks are overwhelmingly African American and Latino, enforcement of this law worsens the racial disparities already so prevalent in our criminal justice system.
Women in the Workforce - The Senate Republicans refused to take action on a number of important bills that I carry to address issues of equity and equality for women in the workforce. In New York City, a female full-time worker in the for-profit sector earns only 71.5 cents for every dollar her male counterpart earns. For this reason, I carry S. 2200, the New York State Fair Pay Act, which would prohibit wage discrimination on the basis of sex, race and/or national origin. Despite existing federal and state anti-discrimination laws, unfair wage gaps remain between jobs that are the same or involve the same skills, effort, responsibility and working conditions. The Wage Transparency Act (S. 5674-A) would prohibit employers from retaliating against employees who discuss their salaries, since the ability to find out whether one is being paid less than colleagues for similar work is critical to challenging pay differentials. This session I also introduced legislation that would require employers to provide reasonable accommodation for pregnant women (S. 6273). As detailed in a great New York Times op-ed earlier this year, commonsense legislation like this would help women enter and remain in the workplace and enable them to provide for themselves and their families.
Reproductive Health - The Senate also failed to take action on any measures ensuring access to reproductive health and education. As a co-chair of the Bipartisan Pro-Choice Legislative Caucus, I have been working to secure passage of the Reproductive Health Act (S. 2844), which modernizes New York's law by regulating abortion through the health code and ensuring that a woman can make her own personal, private health care decisions, especially when her health is endangered. At a time when reproductive rights are under attack across the country, New York should be fighting that trend. In 2011, 1,100 provisions to restrict or ban reproductive health care services--including basic contraception--were introduced across the country. Thus far, anti-choice leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives have lined up five separate bills with anti-abortion provisions for floor action this session. The Reproductive Health Act would protect women in New York from attacks on access to contraception as it affirms New Yorkers' right to use (or refuse) contraception, regardless of what politicians in Congress decide. However, the Republican Majority in our state Senate rejected the Reproductive Health Act, refusing even to discuss the legislation before unanimously voting against an attempt to have it considered on the Senate floor.
So, after so much progress in 2011, it seems as if the legislature has slipped back into a rut. The New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) produced an analysis of the 2012 legislative session finding that this year's legislature passed fewer bills through both houses than in any year since at least 1914. I would argue that the number of bills doesn't matter nearly as much as the substance, but as the list of unfinished business above indicates, there wasn't nearly enough substance this year either. I am hopeful that Governor Cuomo will call us back into session later in the year to address at least some of these critical issues.