Monday, March 29, 1993

1717 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ALBANY, NEW YORK 9 March 29, 1993 10 3:08 p.m. 11 12 13 REGULAR SESSION 14 15 16 17 SENATOR HUGH T. FARLEY, Acting President 18 STEPHEN F. SLOAN, Secretary 19 20 21 22 23 1718 1 P R O C E E D I N G S 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senate 3 will come to order. Senators will find their 4 seats. 5 If you will please rise with me 6 for the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. 7 (Whereupon, the Senate joined in 8 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. ) 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Today, 10 in the absence of visiting clergy, we will bow 11 our heads for a moment of silence. 12 (Whereupon, there was a moment of 13 silence. ) 14 Secretary will begin by reading 15 the journal. 16 THE SECRETARY: In Senate, 17 Sunday, March 28. The Senate met pursuant to 18 adjournment. Senator Farley in the chair upon 19 designation of the Temporary President. The 20 Journal of Saturday, March 27, was read and 21 approved. On motion, Senate adjourned. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Hearing 23 no objection, the Journal will stand approved as 1719 1 read. 2 The order of business: 3 Presentation of petitions. 4 Messages from the Assembly. 5 Messages from the Governor. 6 Reports of standing committees. 7 Reports of select committees. 8 Communications and reports from 9 state officers. 10 Motions and resolutions. 11 Senator Present. 12 SENATOR PRESENT: Mr. President. 13 On behalf of Senator Marino, I offer up the 14 following privileged resolution and ask that it 15 be read. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 17 entire resolution, Senator? 18 SENATOR PRESENT: Please. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 20 Secretary will read Senator Marino's resolution. 21 THE SECRETARY: Legislative 22 Resolution, by Senators Marino, Hannon, Daly and 23 all members of the Senate, mourning the death of 1720 1 Thornton G. Edwards, distinguished citizen and 2 philanthropist. 3 Whereas, it is the custom of this 4 legislative body to mourn publicly the death of 5 prominent citizens of the state of New York 6 whose life work and civic endeavor served to 7 enhance the reputation of the state. 8 Thornton G. Edwards, an assistant 9 counsel to three New York State Senate Majority 10 Leaders, passed away at his retirement home in 11 Boca Raton, Florida, at the age of 66. 12 Thornton G. Edwards distinguished 13 himself by his sincere dedication and 14 substantial contribution to the well welfare of 15 his community. 16 Thornton G. Edwards was a unique 17 public servant who applied his keen intellect 18 and insight to a wide range of complex public 19 policy issues. 20 Thornton Edwards' spirit of 21 humanity, of devotion to the good of all, 22 carried over into all fields of enterprise. 23 Born in Manchester, New 1721 1 Hampshire, Thornton Edwards was an assistant 2 counsel to former Senate Majority Leader Earl 3 Brydges, when he drafted the legislation 4 creating the State of New York Mortgage Agency 5 in 1970; he was appointed by former Governor 6 Nelson Rockefeller as the agency's first 7 chairman later that year and remained in that 8 capacity until 1974. 9 Thornton Edwards also served from 10 1983 to 1992 as an assistant counsel to the 11 former Senate Majority Leader Warren M. Anderson 12 and to current Majority Leader, Ralph J. Marino. 13 A 1949 graduate of Harvard Law 14 School, Thornton Edwards graduated from Phillips 15 Exeter Academy and attended Harvard University 16 before receiving his Bachelor of Science in 17 Naval Science from Tufts College in 1945; he was 18 an officer in the United States Naval Reserve in 19 1945-46 and attended the Naval Intelligence 20 School in 1952. 21 Admitted to the bar in 1949, 22 Thornton Edwards began his legal career with 23 Root, Ballantine, Harlan, Bushby and Palmer and 1722 1 later became an associate and partner in the 2 firm of Hodgson, Russ, Andrews, Woods and 3 Goodyear in Buffalo, New York; he was a partner 4 with Sykes, Galloway and Dikeman in New York 5 City and then a partner in the firm of Willkie, 6 Farr and Gallagher from 1976 to 1983. 7 Thornton Edwards was formerly a 8 law lecturer at the University of Buffalo, a 9 member of the Governor's Judicial Nominating 10 Committee for the First Judicial Department, 11 counsel to the Erie County Republican Committee 12 from 1965 to 1970 and a counsel on taxation and 13 finance matters to the New York State 14 Constitutional Convention in 1967. 15 Thornton Edwards' wealth of 16 knowledge and experience, thoughtfulness and 17 persistent determination, made him a natural 18 leader, and people of all political persuasions 19 gravitated to him for his advice and counsel; he 20 was a mentor and a teacher to scores of people 21 in state government and in the legal 22 profession. 23 Thornton Edwards' commitment to 1723 1 excellence was renowned and he inspired 2 competence in others; work and service was his 3 passion, yet he delighted in a good story and a 4 moment of laughter; those who knew him learned 5 to look for the telltale twinkle in his eye, 6 lurking behind his understated Yankee demeanor; 7 he always made time for his friends. 8 Thornton Edwards loved his family 9 deeply and is survived by his widow, Phyllis 10 Edwards of Boca Raton; two daughters, Heather 11 Edwards and Gale Clement, both of Seattle, 12 Washington; two sons, Scott and Bret, both of 13 San Francisco; a stepson, Kurt Wittek, also of 14 San Francisco; and three grandchildren. 15 Now, therefore, be it resolved 16 that this legislative body pause in its 17 deliberations to mourn the death of Thornton G. 18 Edwards, distinguished citizen and 19 philanthropist; he will be missed by all those 20 who value intelligence, compassion, and good old 21 common sense; and 22 Be it further resolved, that a 23 copy of this resolution, suitably engrossed, be 1724 1 transmitted to the family of Thornton G. 2 Edwards. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 4 Daly on the resolution. 5 SENATOR DALY: Mr. President. I 6 had the honor of working very close with Thorn 7 Edwards for the last 12 years when I served both 8 as chairman of the Housing Committee and the 9 Corporations Committee, and Thorn represented 10 the Majority Leader in both areas. 11 Mr. President. We take as fact 12 that Thorn Edwards was an exceptionally 13 competent and knowledgeable counsel. The record 14 clearly shows that. Father of SONYMA, its first 15 chairman, his service as counsel to three 16 majority leaders, his accomplishments in private 17 life. 18 What the record does not show, 19 Mr. President, is Thorn Edwards the man. Thorn 20 was a man of no pretentions, a quiet and gentle 21 man, but firm and truthful both in principle and 22 in practice, who would not back off when he was 23 convinced he was right. 1725 1 A most enjoyable companion who 2 loved the fellowship here in Albany, a man who 3 could laugh at himself, a man who always carried 4 with him a quick and warm smile and twinkling 5 eyes. 6 It has been said, Mr. President, 7 that you judge a man best by his friends and the 8 respect and admiration that they have for him. 9 By this mark, Thorn Edwards was an exceptionally 10 successful human being, a most loved and 11 appreciated human being. 12 He is a man I will never forget, 13 and I am sure a man who will not be forgotten by 14 many, many others. To his wife, Phyllis, his 15 sons and daughters, grandchildren, my sympathy. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 17 Cook. 18 SENATOR COOK: Mr. President. I 19 was not as well acquainted with Thorn as Senator 20 Daly and others, but I simply wanted the record 21 to indicate that through the years during the 22 time that I was chairman of the Local Government 23 Committee that he, on numerous occasions, was so 1726 1 forthcoming and with cooperation and good advice 2 and counsel that much of what I have been able 3 to do through the years is really directly 4 attributable to Thorn's good help and advice and 5 counsel. And this institution and the people of 6 the state are going to miss him. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 8 Hannon and then Senator Marchi. 9 SENATOR HANNON: Mr. President. 10 Today, people in this chamber and of the 11 Legislature in this state are much poorer 12 because of Thorn's passing. 13 He was a man who was devoted to 14 public service. And he had accomplishments in 15 the private sector; but if he had remained 16 there, he would be without substantial 17 improvements in things we do for public 18 financing, things that touch the very tenor of 19 the life of so many millions of people in this 20 state -- housing, water, sewerage. 21 He was challenged by the things 22 that we do in governing this great state; and 23 through those challenges, he enriched us and he 1727 1 enriched the state by bringing to them a high 2 sense of craftsmanship, a high sense of duty, 3 and a high sense of devotion. He had a 4 determination that made him a natural leader and 5 drew to him people of all political persuasions 6 so that they could gain from him advice and 7 counsel. 8 He had a commitment to excellence 9 that was renowned and he inspired excellence in 10 others by gentle questions, by examples. 11 And he also had an ability at 12 very quiet times to have a twinkle in his eye 13 and to say with some understated words some very 14 humorous comments about the situation. 15 And so, today, I join with the 16 members of this chamber in conveying our sense 17 of loss and regrets and sorrow to his widow, 18 Phyllis, who is with us today, and to his 19 children, daughters, sons and grandchildren, 20 that we truly regret his passing. 21 And we, as representing some of 22 the people of this state, were the better for 23 his service to all of the people. 1728 1 Thank you. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 3 Marchi. 4 SENATOR MARCHI: Mr. President. 5 There is a common thread that seems to 6 underscore all of the speakers that have spoken 7 of Thorn Edwards. 8 My friendship with him goes back 9 almost a quarter of a century, and all of these 10 warm personal qualities are the ones that 11 perhaps have made their biggest impact. Here 12 was an individual with an extraordinary range of 13 command in various disciplines and was so 14 helpful in a creative way in work that we did 15 together. It was just a beneficial experience 16 to have that as a resource in the Senate. 17 And most of us who have had 18 personal contact with him over the years can 19 attest to the fact that it was a very positive 20 thing. Unprepossessing with a disarming 21 simplicity, wonderful family person, everything 22 that you could possibly associate with an 23 individual who did not evidence any pomp or any 1729 1 sense of self-aggrandizement, yet at the same 2 time he contributed so richly to the work we 3 were doing and to the whole process of 4 interaction in an institutional sense here in 5 the Senate. 6 So I join my colleagues in this 7 collective extension of condolences to his 8 family. His memory and what he has done for us 9 will survive many, many years as long as we 10 continue addressing urgent public matters; and 11 given also a deep human dimension to all of 12 them, this will be a very, very positive factor 13 and certainly inure to his own fine memory that 14 he has left us with. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 16 Gold. 17 SENATOR GOLD: Mr. President. 18 First of all, who said there wasn't such a thing 19 as a nice Republican? Of course, there were. 20 Thorn really was a lovely 21 gentleman, and I wanted to throw my two cents 22 in. I go back in this place to before the 1967 23 Constitutional Convention, but I did serve as an 1730 1 assistant counsel to the Majority Leader there. 2 And I have always believed - 3 funny, when I was in college, I used to fight. 4 And I think the worst fight I had was against a 5 farm boy who just fell all over me, and I guess 6 the best fight I had was against a fellow who 7 was a middleweight in the Army. And it was a 8 delight to deal with Thorn because he was a 9 pro. You can always work better with a pro and 10 somebody who knows what they are doing. 11 And as someone who didn't always 12 agree on every issue, I can tell you that it was 13 a pleasure having him here. He loved what he 14 was doing, and I don't mean that from an 15 egocentric point of view. He loved it because 16 he saw all the goodness that can come out of the 17 work that we do for other people. 18 And what can I tell you? It's a 19 shame that this passing came so early into the 20 retirement, but we can't always question those 21 decisions of God. All we can do is just feel 22 kind of lucky that we touched him and he touched 23 our lives in some way, and certainly we will 1731 1 miss him very much. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 3 Oppenheimer. 4 SENATOR OPPENHEIMER: I would 5 like to just speak for a moment about Thorn's 6 relationship with myself and the people in our 7 town. We came from the same town, Mamaroneck, 8 and I was friendly with him and with his wife. 9 Both very lovely people. 10 Thorn was just the ultimate 11 knowledge on the issue of housing, and we often 12 talked. Sometimes we went home together, and we 13 would talk about the problems that confront 14 Westchester with our lack of affordable housing 15 and how that has created in our county this 16 enormous problem of homelessness which I have 17 spoken about several times on the floor here, 18 having the highest per capita homeless rate in 19 the state and very possibly in the country, and 20 we would talk about how we might change that and 21 make Westchester a place that was viable for 22 people of all incomes. 23 And I'm going to miss him because 1732 1 he was a gentle and a kind man and such a 2 knowledgeable man and he was a resource to me, 3 and I just want to express my very deepest 4 sympathies to his wife and family. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 6 Stafford. 7 SENATOR STAFFORD: Mr. President. 8 I was here when Thorn came to work for the 9 Legislature. When we talk about a gentleman 10 like Thorn, you find that usually everybody says 11 about the same thing is what it all boils down 12 to. Because anyone who worked with Thorn always 13 had his cooperation. It could be some of the 14 main problems of the session to get something 15 worked out, and it was just as if nothing was 16 going on. He just gave you his time, and he was 17 just able to work with people. 18 He and I shared many things these 19 past few years. And I can only say, Mr. 20 President, that in this day and age when some of 21 us get a little frustrated with government, all 22 we have to do is think of Thorn Edwards. And 23 what he wanted to do, as I say, was cooperate, 1733 1 to help, and to be available for those he was 2 working with and for. And he is a real example 3 of the fine public servant. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 5 Marino. 6 SENATOR MARINO: Thank you, Mr. 7 President. I was deeply saddened, and we were 8 all, by the untimely death of a good friend, 9 Thorn Edwards. 10 Last time I saw Thorn was in 11 Florida with his lovely wife, and we met 12 accidentally, really, in a restaurant. And 13 although he wasn't in great health at that time, 14 he did not complain but was cheerful and looking 15 forward to relaxing in Florida and enjoying the 16 rest of his life. 17 I think he knew how sick he was 18 but never let on and just carried on and carried 19 forward, not wanting to disturb those loved ones 20 around him because he was that kind of a person, 21 never wanting to be noticed, but yet being there 22 whenever he was needed. 23 And we here in Albany have needed 1734 1 him and have used his services throughout all 2 these many years, willingly, and have accepted 3 those services with great gratitude because they 4 were given sincerely and given with the kind of 5 dedication that few public employees have, 6 dedication to their work that only Thorn Edwards 7 had. 8 He was outstanding in that he 9 could work long hours on very technical material 10 and seemed to enjoy it, things that you and I 11 might shy away from because they were too tough 12 to understand, too technical, too difficult to 13 unravel. Bonding proposal, housing proposal, 14 Thorn relished in that kind of detail and was 15 magnificent in how he could simplify the very 16 complicated and have some real meaning come 17 forth so that we could all understand it and 18 apply it to everyday life. He had that knack 19 and that ability. 20 He was a straight shooter - 21 Thorn. Didn't much care about the politics of 22 an issue. Cared more about the result and that 23 the result was fair and equitable and reasonable 1735 1 and something that all of us could live with. 2 So he was a pragmatist, and yet 3 he wanted to do what was right for the people at 4 all times, and that was important to him, and he 5 kept to that mode. And as a result, we're 6 better off for it because the legislation he 7 enacted for us or permitted us to enact was very 8 difficult but yet very fair, always. And it's 9 still in being, still helping the people of this 10 state, and it came out of a brilliant mind, a 11 very brilliant mind from a good lawyer who knew 12 what he was doing, one who was tough in 13 negotiations yet knew where the line was when he 14 had to compromise. And when he got to that 15 line, he did compromise so we could go forward 16 with our work here in Albany. 17 He was a real public servant in 18 the best sense of the word, a real public 19 servant, and so we who have taken advantage all 20 these years of his talent now miss him, and 21 we're going to miss him as a public servant, as 22 a good lawyer, as a person who served us well 23 here in Albany. 1736 1 But we're also going to miss him 2 as a person. Because he was a good person, one 3 of the best I have ever met and one that was a 4 joy to be around because he had a kind of funny 5 sense of humor that stuck through. 6 And we are, Phyllis, going to 7 miss him. We wish you well. 8 Thank you. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: On the 10 resolution, all those in favor say aye. 11 (Response of "Aye.") 12 Those opposed, nay. 13 (There was no response. ) 14 The resolution is unanimously 15 adopted by every member of this Legislature. 16 Thorn's widow is with us here 17 today. And on behalf of the New York State 18 Senate, and personally, let me just say what a 19 gentle and beautiful man your husband was. And 20 he will always be remembered by this house. He 21 will always be remembered for his remarkable 22 career. It encompassed a great deal not only in 23 the executive branch but here in the 1737 1 Legislature. We will all miss him. 2 We wish you well. 3 Senator Marino. Are there any 4 motions on the floor? 5 SENATOR MARINO: Controversial 6 bills, please. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Okay. 8 Non-controversial, I think he meant. 9 THE SECRETARY: On page 7, 10 Calendar Number 169, by Senator Goodman, Senate 11 Bill Number 1257A, an act to amend the Alcoholic 12 Beverage Control Law. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 14 the last section. 15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 16 act shall take effect immediately. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 18 the roll. 19 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 51. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 22 bill is passed. 23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 1738 1 214, by Senator Holland. 2 SENATOR HOLLAND: Lay that aside 3 for the day. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Lay it 5 aside for today. 6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 7 220, by member of the Assembly Koppell, Assembly 8 Bill Number 813A, an act to amend the Election 9 Law, in relation to information required on 10 voter registration forms. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 12 the last section. 13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 14 act shall take effect immediately. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 16 the roll. 17 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 51. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 20 bill is passed. 21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 22 264, by Senator Saland, Senate Bill Number 2377, 23 an act to amend the Family Court Act. 1739 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 2 the last section. 3 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 4 act shall take effect immediately. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 6 the roll. 7 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 51. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 10 bill is passed. 11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 12 265, by Senator Saland, Senate Bill Number 2378, 13 an act to amend the Social Services Law, in 14 relation to persons required to report cases of 15 suspected child abuse. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 17 the last section. 18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 19 act shall take effect immediately. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 21 the roll. 22 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 23 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 51. 1740 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 2 bill is passed. 3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 4 270, by Senator Padavan, Senate Bill Number 5 361A, an act to amend the Family Court Act. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 7 the last section. 8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 9 act shall take effect immediately. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 11 the roll. 12 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 13 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 50. Nays 14 1. Senator DeFrancisco recorded in the 15 negative. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 17 bill is passed. 18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 19 281, by Senator Nozzolio, Senate Bill Number 20 2507, an act to amend the Vehicle and Traffic 21 Law, in relation to authorizing the issuance of 22 distinctive license plates. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 1741 1 the last section. 2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 3 act shall take effect immediately. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 5 the roll. 6 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 51. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 9 bill is passed. 10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 11 282, by Senator Cook, Senate Bill Number 2640, 12 an act to amend the Transportation Law. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 14 the last section. 15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 16 act shall take effect immediately. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 18 the roll. 19 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 51. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 22 bill is passed. 23 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President. 1742 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 2 Libous. 3 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, Mr. 4 President. Could I have unanimous consent to be 5 recorded in the negative on Calendar Number 220. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 220, 7 Senator Libous will be in the negative without 8 objection. 9 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you. 10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 11 283, by Senator Johnson, Senate Bill Number 12 2999, Vehicle and Traffic Law, in relation to 13 vehicle inspections. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 15 the last section. 16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 17 act shall take effect immediately. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 19 the roll. 20 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 21 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 51. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 23 bill is passed. 1743 1 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 2 284, by Senator LaValle, Senate Bill Number 400, 3 an act to amend the Education Law, in relation 4 to computation of the operating aids base. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: There 6 is a local fiscal impact note here at the desk, 7 and you can read the last section. 8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 9 act shall take effect immediately. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 11 the roll. 12 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 13 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 50. Nays 14 1. Senator Velella recorded in the negative. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: That 16 bill is passed. 17 This next bill we're going to 18 have to lay aside for a moment because there's a 19 substitution coming. We laid aside 285. 20 Senator Present, is it okay? 21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 22 286, by Senator Padavan. 23 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Lay it 1744 1 aside. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Lay it 3 aside. 4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 5 289, by Senator Cook. 6 SENATOR GOLD: Lay it aside. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Lay 8 that bill aside. 9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 10 291, by Senator Padavan. 11 SENATOR GOLD: Senator Padavan 12 said we could lay it aside for the day. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Lay it 14 aside. 15 Senator Padavan? 16 SENATOR PADAVAN: Lay it aside 17 for the day. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: For the 19 day? 20 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yes. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Okay. 22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 23 292, by member of the Assembly Friedman, 1745 1 Assembly Bill Number 4523, an act to amend 2 Chapter 499 of the Laws of 1991. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 4 the last section. 5 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 6 act shall take effect immediately. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 8 the roll. 9 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 10 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 53. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 12 bill is passed. 13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 14 293, by member of the Assembly Grannis, Assembly 15 Bill Number 5733, an act to provide permanent 16 installation of outdoor fixed single-user pay 17 toilet facilities. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 19 the last section. 20 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 21 act shall take effect immediately. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 23 the roll. 1746 1 (The Secretary called the roll.) 2 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 53. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 4 bill is passed. 5 THE SECRETARY: 295, by Senator 6 Skelos, Senate Bill Number 621, General 7 Municipal Law, in relation to volunteer fire 8 fighter service award program. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 10 the last section. 11 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 12 act shall take effect immediately. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 14 the roll. 15 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 16 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 53. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 18 bill is passed. 19 THE SECRETARY: 297, by Senator 20 LaValle, Senate Bill Number 1428, an act to 21 amend the General Municipal Law, permitting 22 counties, towns, and villages to distribute fuel 23 at cost. 1747 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 2 the last section. 3 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 4 act shall take effect immediately. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 6 the roll. 7 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 53. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 10 bill is passed. 11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 12 298, by Senator LaValle, Senate Bill Number 155, 13 an act to amend the Volunteer Firefighters 14 Benefit Law. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 16 the last section. 17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 18 act shall take effect immediately. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 20 the roll. 21 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 22 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 54. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 1748 1 bill is passed. 2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 3 299, by Senator Padavan, Senate Bill Number 4 18 - 5 SENATOR PADAVAN: Senator Galiber 6 asked me to lay that bill aside for the day, 7 which I will. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Lay it 9 aside for the day. 10 Senator Present, that's the first 11 time through. 12 SENATOR PRESENT: Mr. President. 13 Can we take up the controversial calendar, 14 please. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Yes, 16 sir. Controversial. 17 Senator Present, may we lay aside 18 that first bill. We're waiting for a 19 substitution that is coming over, and it isn't 20 here as yet. So 285 will be laid aside 21 temporarily. 22 THE SECRETARY: On page 12, 23 Calendar Number 286, by Senator Padavan, Senate 1749 1 Bill Number 3248, an act to amend the Education 2 Law. 3 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Explanation. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 5 Explanation has been asked for, for 286. 6 Senator Padavan. 7 SENATOR PADAVAN: Thank you, Mr. 8 President. This bill, which passed last year 9 and is supported by the State Education 10 Department, would statutize the retirement that 11 the five big cities would be required to 12 appropriate a share of their budget to education 13 based on one of two calculations as specified on 14 page 2 of the bill. 15 In one case, the city would be 16 required to provide the city school district's 17 proportioned share of the entire city budget in 18 the three prior fiscal school years, meaning 19 that it should not vary from those percentages; 20 or the school district's prior year 21 proportionate share of the prior year's citywide 22 budget adjusted for any growth or decline in the 23 student enrollment since the prior year. 1750 1 Additionally, the bill requires 2 that these proportionate shares exclude state 3 aid to education as an add to the total. In 4 effect, it is a maintenance of effort. It 5 ensures that these big five school districts 6 will not diminish their proportionate share of 7 dollars to educate as it relates to the overall 8 budget, using the prior three years as the 9 base. 10 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Mr. 11 President. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 13 Stachowski. 14 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Will Senator 15 Padavan yield to a question? 16 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yes. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Yes, he 18 will. 19 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Senator, 20 don't most city school districts now have a 21 process where their council has the opportunity 22 to make sure that the city's contribution will 23 be maintained or increased year after year? And 1751 1 after all, we know -- at least in Buffalo, and I 2 assume it's the same in the other cities -- that 3 those very councilmen and council people at 4 large -- councilmen and -women, I should say, 5 tell the people in their districts that they are 6 fully in support of schools, and that they will 7 do everything they can for education; and, yet, 8 to this date, most of them do absolutely nothing 9 in changing the mayor's -- the amount of money 10 that he puts into education. By that I mean, in 11 case I lost you by rambling a bit, is that they 12 have the opportunity to put more money in 13 themselves, the council does; and, yet, they 14 don't do that. And so they, along with the 15 local Boards of Education, look for us to 16 mandate that by this bill in what would be a 17 major new state mandate. 18 SENATOR PADAVAN: I think the 19 answer to your question is yes. 20 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: I thought 21 so, too. That's why I asked it in that 22 fashion. 23 I don't have any other -- on the 1752 1 bill, Mr. President. On the bill. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: On the 3 bill. Senator Stachowski. 4 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: I think the 5 bill is a great bill to get money into education 6 and to make sure that the localities match the 7 money or at least continue to give the amount of 8 money that they gave previously to education. 9 And in the case for myself, as in Buffalo, where 10 it seems like the city's contribution goes down 11 year after year, this bill would be a way of 12 stopping that from happening, even as the people 13 are complaining that education doesn't get 14 enough funding, even though we in the state 15 continue to increase the funding every year that 16 we give to Buffalo. 17 However, they do have a Common 18 Council that it's their job to do something 19 about that in the budget deliberation, and they 20 choose not to do it. And between they and the 21 mayor -- and they're the local source of 22 government -- if they choose not to do it, there 23 must be a reason. 1753 1 And apparently, the people that 2 elect those local elected officials must agree 3 with what they're doing is right because they 4 continually re-elect them, even though those 5 same people come to Albany and say, "You're not 6 putting enough money into education." 7 My problem with the bill, and 8 although I admit it's a great bill, is that, 9 first of all, I don't feel that I'm here to do 10 the job of the Common Council people that are 11 elected to do that; and, secondly, at a time 12 when every local form of government is running 13 down here saying, "Please, no new mandates," we 14 come along with a bill that would be probably 15 the largest mandate we could give them, a bill 16 that would absolutely have the effect of 17 increasing local taxes, if at all possible, if 18 they haven't hit their taxing limit -- which I 19 know Buffalo hasn't, but they're close -- and a 20 bill that would be seeing nothing else -- all 21 the people when their taxes went up, the local 22 government officials would say, "Well, we didn't 23 want to raise your taxes; they, in Albany, made 1754 1 us do it." 2 And once again, it would be, 3 "You guys do what we should be doing, and you 4 people do it so we don't get the blame." And in 5 a time when we're looking to have no further 6 mandates is the main reason and the only reason 7 I can't support this bill. 8 SENATOR LEICHTER: Mr. President. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 10 Leichter. 11 SENATOR LEICHTER: Mr. 12 President. Will Senator Padavan yield? 13 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yes. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: I'm 15 sure he will. Senator Padavan, are you yielding 16 to Senator Leichter? 17 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yes. 18 SENATOR LEICHTER: Senator 19 Padavan, I apologize because I just came in and 20 I may have missed some of the debate and some 21 points that were made. But let me ask you, if 22 you will yield, please, what happens if there's 23 a precipitous decline in the number of students 1755 1 in that district? 2 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yes. As a 3 matter of fact, it is specified in here. Either 4 an increase or a decline can be factored in by 5 the provisions on the bill. It's on page 2 in 6 the middle. 7 SENATOR LEICHTER: Senator, do 8 you also take account of the fact that, for 9 whatever reason, the state aid which the cities 10 get may decline precipitously? 11 SENATOR PADAVAN: The bill 12 relates to the percentages of the total budget 13 in the prior three years, excluding state aid. 14 SENATOR LEICHTER: Well, maybe my 15 question really should be, suppose suddenly we 16 become very flush up here. We're able to 17 provide a great deal more of aid. And I think 18 Senator Stachowski made some very valid points. 19 The Common Council and the Mayor in the city of 20 Buffalo decide, well, we're getting this 21 additional amount of aid from the state of New 22 York, we don't need... 23 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 1756 1 Leichter, try to speak into your microphone. I 2 know it's difficult - 3 SENATOR LEICHTER: Yes. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: But 5 we're all having trouble hearing you. 6 SENATOR LEICHTER: I'm sorry. 7 And as a result of this very substantial 8 increase in state aid, maybe that increase comes 9 because of some of the court actions, and they 10 force the Legislature and the state to change 11 some of its educational support. Now, there is 12 more money, and the localities decide that it's 13 not necessary to maintain that same amount of 14 local spending which is mandated by your bill. 15 How do you answer that? 16 SENATOR PADAVAN: Senator, I only 17 answer it by looking back over a period of years 18 and saying to you, simply and directly, that's 19 not been the case. We are lobbied certainly by 20 parents, teachers, educators and local 21 governments year after year to increase aid to 22 education. 23 For valid reasons. Look at the 1757 1 city of New York. This past year, their student 2 population increased over 22,000; over the last 3 three years over 50,000. It's inconceivable to 4 me that even if we were -- and hopefully we will 5 be able to increase aid this year, which we have 6 not been able to do the last couple years or 7 so. Even if we were, it would not meet those 8 obvious needs in terms of not only increases of 9 numbers of children to be educated but the 10 associated costs thereto. 11 Therefore, your question is 12 somewhat academic. As a practical matter, none 13 of these five cities have been in a position 14 that we have allowed them to be, namely, giving 15 them significant sums so that they could, in 16 order to maintain an adequate level of 17 education, reduce their share. 18 SENATOR LEICHTER: Senator, 19 suppose one of these cities has an emergency. 20 Maybe it's a health emergency. Maybe it's a 21 public safety emergency. And that city decides 22 that, important as education is, to deal with 23 that emergency, maybe they have to open up some 1758 1 hospitals. Maybe they have to deal with a 2 public safety emergency, put more police 3 officers, others, out into the street. And they 4 make that determination and they want to make 5 that determination as a locality, what is more 6 important to them. 7 Now, along comes the Senate, led 8 by Senator Padavan, says, "You can't do that 9 because we decided some years ago that you are 10 going to be locked into this particular 11 system." Is that a wise thing to do, Senator? 12 SENATOR PADAVAN: Senator, first, 13 if there was something so dramatic -- so 14 dramatic would occur in one of these five cities 15 -- and you must keep in mind, and I want to say 16 this parenthetically. We're not asking local 17 governments to increase their share. We're 18 simply saying maintain the average over the last 19 three years; which, if you look at the data at 20 this point in time -- and I imagine that's why 21 we have no memos in opposition for any of the 22 five cities this year -- the impact would be 23 minimal if not at all. 1759 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Let's 2 hold our conversations down. Senator Padavan is 3 getting nervous over here. 4 SENATOR PADAVAN: With regard to 5 your question directly, if there was something 6 so dramatic, so overwhelming, that this bill 7 become an impediment in a health emergency or 8 some catastrophe that I can't possibly imagine, 9 well, I would presume we would be called to act 10 to make an adjustment, if necessary, in that 11 particular case. But that's so hypothetical 12 that it -- you know, it begs an appropriate 13 answer. 14 Senator, year after year, many 15 point to Albany and they're saying, "You are not 16 doing what you can for education." You have 17 been in that position. I have been. Year after 18 year, we respond the best we can, and all we're 19 saying to those local governments, particularly 20 our city, just keep doing what you have been 21 doing. We were not asking you for anything 22 extraordinary. Just maintain that level, and 23 we'll continue to do what we can to add to it. 1760 1 And I don't think that's asking 2 too much. 3 SENATOR LEICHTER: Mr. President. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 5 Leichter. 6 SENATOR LEICHTER: Yes, on the 7 bill. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: On the 9 bill. 10 SENATOR LEICHTER: I don't think 11 I can say it any better than Senator 12 Stachowski. I think he made excellent points. 13 I just want to, maybe, embellish it a bit if I 14 can. 15 What disturbs me here is that 16 Senator Padavan says, "Well, you know, we're not 17 doing enough for education," or "we're charged 18 with not doing enough for education. So I will 19 tell you what I will do. I will put my hand 20 into the governmental levers of the localities 21 and tell them what to do." 22 He doesn't say: "I'm going to 23 give more money for the city of New York. I'm 1761 1 going to vote against school budgets that shaft 2 my city "-- which you voted for time and time 3 and time again. "No, I'm not going to do that. 4 I will just tell the city of New York how to 5 spend their own money." 6 Senator, I don't think that's 7 doing anything for education. I'm sorry. 8 But I am concerned beyond that 9 personal thing which, frankly, expresses some 10 regret that I have that my Republican colleagues 11 from the city of New York cannot fight within 12 their conference and cannot join those of us 13 here who want to establish a fair funding 14 level. And I must say that because I think that 15 maybe it's particularly ill-suited, Senator 16 Padavan, for you to bring forth this sort of 17 bill. 18 SENATOR PADAVAN: Will the 19 Senator like to yield? 20 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 21 Leichter? 22 SENATOR LEICHTER: Yes. 23 SENATOR PADAVAN: Senator, I 1762 1 think you just made a rather broad statement 2 which, on the face of it, is not only inaccurate 3 but somewhat offensive. I strongly object to 4 any statement from you that anyone on this side 5 has failed to deal with aid to education for the 6 city of New York. All the facts point to quite 7 the opposite. 8 Now, if you want to argue 9 formula, we can stand here all day long and 10 argue formula. We can talk about 34 versus 36 11 or 33 versus whatever in terms of aid to 12 education. We can talk about federal money 13 pouring into the city of New York. I will be 14 happy to discuss that with you as long as you'd 15 like, but don't stand there and make a 16 categorical statement that our calling upon the 17 big five cities to maintain a level of effort 18 consistent with their own practices in order not 19 to point to us and look to us in every instance 20 to bail them out. 21 Now, the facts are quite to the 22 contrary in terms of your allegation, but 23 they're also, I think, in support of this bill. 1763 1 If you look at the last several years in any of 2 the big five cities, the impact of this 3 legislation would be minimal. Minimal. So we 4 are not calling upon them really to do too 5 much. 6 Now, if you talk about mandates, 7 there are mandates in our state laws in almost 8 every category that you would like to talk 9 about. 10 Let's refer to social services. 11 Do we not mandate that local governments pick up 12 a certain portion by law, in statute, of 13 Medicaid, of ADC, of whatever area of social 14 services you would like to look at? So there's 15 nothing unique about that part of our proposal 16 here. This does not stand on its own in that 17 regard. 18 Senator, while I could understand 19 that you would like to stand up on behalf of our 20 city, I think it would be more appropriate if 21 you stood up on behalf of our kids, who year 22 after year are getting shortchanged not by 23 virtue of the state aid to education escalation 1764 1 in aid. If you look at the last ten years and 2 if you plotted a curve of state aid to 3 education, it has gone up rather steeply. If 4 you look at that same curve with regard to the 5 city's share of aid to education, the curve is 6 somewhat substantially flatter. They have not 7 kept pace with what we have been able to do over 8 the past ten years. 9 Now, it is true, in the last two 10 years, we have not been able to do what we'd 11 like. The fact remains, you know what we had to 12 deal with in terms of our state budget. 13 SENATOR LEICHTER: Senator, I'm 14 happy to answer your question, or was it a 15 question? 16 But, Senator, let me just say a 17 couple of things, and I'm glad that you -- I 18 would be happy to debate this with you, and I'll 19 tell you -- I'll tell you why. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Hold 21 on. Senator Mega, why do you rise? 22 SENATOR MEGA: Would Senator 23 Leichter yield for a short question? 1765 1 SENATOR LEICHTER: Could I just 2 answer Senator Padavan's question, then I will 3 yield to you, Senator. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: He's 5 not going to yield right at the moment. 6 SENATOR LEICHTER: Yes. Senator, 7 I think there are a number of things that you 8 said that really ought to be answered. 9 First of all, let's debate the 10 New York situation. I'm not going to do it 11 here, but I will tell you what. I invite you on 12 my television show, and you and I will debate 13 this. 14 Now, the only problem with that 15 invitation is that the Republican Majority, 16 acting in their usual mature fashion, obviously 17 -- apparently have taken some offense to the 18 fact that we have put on motions to discharge 19 which ask you to have an honest budget; and, as 20 a consequence, they have canceled our use of the 21 telecommunication system. But assuming that 22 that childishness ends, I would be happy, 23 Senator Padavan, you and I -- you take my hour. 1766 1 If not, you give me some of your hour. 2 SENATOR PADAVAN: You have an 3 hour? I only have 15 minutes. 4 SENATOR LEICHTER: This was an 5 hour euphemistically. The trouble with doing it 6 on your show is it will be shown in Queens. But 7 all right. I'll tell you what. We will debate 8 it first on my 15 minutes and then on your 15 9 minutes. 10 But Senator, if you want to talk 11 about facts, the fact is that New York City gets 12 less school aid than the number of students, and 13 it's a disgrace. It's a disgrace, and it's due 14 to actions of the Majority in this house. 15 And, in fact, the city of New 16 York just recently had to go to court -- they 17 had to go to court to sue to get justice. And 18 now Senator Padavan is going to help the 19 students of the city of New York not by bringing 20 them the money they should get, not by saying 21 "I'm going to vote against this budget because 22 it's unfair to my city." No. He is going to 23 tell the city how to spend its own money. 1767 1 Senator, let me tell you. There 2 are races this year for the City Council of the 3 city of New York. And very soon will come the 4 petition time. And if you want to engage in 5 that sort of decision making, the Council would 6 be the right place to do it, and you may want to 7 consider it. I would be very sorry to lose you 8 here. 9 But don't tell the city of New 10 York or the city of Buffalo how to spend their 11 money. I just think that's wrong. And then 12 say, "What a wonderful thing I'm doing for 13 education." 14 Let me finally say, well 15 intentioned as this bill might be -- although as 16 I pointed out, I think it's mistaken -- I just 17 want to emphasize again the fact that we're 18 locking these localities into a particular 19 formula. 20 Senator Padavan says that it's 21 hypothetical that they are ever going to have 22 such a great need to spend their money 23 otherwise; and if that occurs, well, we'll come 1768 1 back and change it. 2 It may be October. It may be 3 November. We may not be able to change it. Why 4 would you want to impose this sort of a strait 5 jacket on the localities? I refer again I think 6 to the very good points that were made by 7 Senator Stachowski. It's not right for us to 8 pass this sort of a bill. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 10 Dollinger is next. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Mr. 12 President. Will Senator Padavan yield to a 13 question? 14 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: I'm 15 sure he will. Senator Padavan. 16 SENATOR DOLLINGER: Senator, as I 17 understand this bill -- and I just need a 18 clarification. As I understand it, when a 19 school district, one of the big five, comes to 20 us and says, "We have a need for additional 21 funds," and then we meet that need, what this 22 bill does is it prevents the City Council or any 23 other government in the locality from then 1769 1 saying, "There wasn't really a need," and 2 subtracting that sum from the amount that would 3 otherwise go to finance education. Is that 4 correct? 5 SENATOR PADAVAN: I'm sorry. I 6 don't quite follow. I followed you right up to 7 about the middle. 8 SENATOR DOLLINGER: Here's what 9 happens. One of the big five comes in and says, 10 we need $5 million. 11 SENATOR PADAVAN: I am so 12 overwhelmed about the possibility of joining the 13 City Council that I'm having trouble 14 understanding you. 15 SENATOR DOLLINGER: I thought it 16 was the cable TV that might have thrown you for 17 a loop. 18 SENATOR PADAVAN: That's no 19 problem. 20 SENATOR DOLLINGER: But a school 21 district, one of the big five, comes in and 22 says, "We need $5 million more." 23 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yeah. 1770 1 SENATOR DOLLINGER: We meet that 2 need. 3 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yes. 4 SENATOR DOLLINGER: And then, 5 what this bill will prevent is the locality then 6 saying, "We'll give you have $5 million less of 7 real property tax money," and, therefore, wiping 8 out the five million more that we've given them, 9 in essence. 10 SENATOR PADAVAN: Yes. The 11 answer to your question is yes in the sense that 12 we're saying to that locality that whatever the 13 proportion of your total budget was for the last 14 several years in terms of education to your 15 school district, which is the city, you will 16 maintain that level, adjusted for any decreases 17 or increases in pupil population. 18 So the answer to your question is 19 yes. 20 SENATOR DOLLINGER: Thank you. 21 SENATOR MASIELLO: Mr. President. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 23 Masiello. 1771 1 SENATOR MASIELLO: Senator 2 Masiello. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Oh, I 4 know that. I was just looking at the list that 5 we have here. I think you are next on the list. 6 SENATOR MASIELLO: Thank you. 7 Did I jump over the list? 8 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: No, I 9 don't think so. I think you are next. 10 SENATOR MASIELLO: Okay. Fine. 11 Thank you very much, Mr. 12 President. Would Senator Dollinger yield to a 13 question? 14 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 15 Dollinger, will you yield to Senator Masiello? 16 SENATOR MASIELLO: Senator, do 17 you have a maintenance of effort formula in 18 Rochester? 19 SENATOR DOLLINGER: That's a good 20 question. I don't know. 21 SENATOR MASIELLO: You don't 22 know. 23 SENATOR DOLLINGER: I don't. 1772 1 SENATOR MASIELLO: Thank you. No 2 further questions of you. 3 Because it's my understanding 4 that there was some kind of maintenance of 5 effort formula that Rochester has had for a 6 number of years. Maybe I'm using the wrong 7 term. 8 SENATOR DOLLINGER: You may be 9 correct. I just may not be aware of it or I may 10 not understand it in that - 11 SENATOR MASIELLO: Okay. Fine. 12 I can certainly understand where my colleague, 13 Senator Stachowski, is coming from and certainly 14 Senator Leichter. There is certainly a lot to 15 be said about home rule and the executive and 16 the legislative branch doing what they are 17 supposed to do in local government. 18 But I've got some of statistics 19 here that really are startling, Senator, that I 20 think really substantiates your position on this 21 bill. You take my own city, the city of 22 Buffalo. They have a per capita expenditure of 23 $5,892 per student, which is the lowest in the 1773 1 state of New York of the big five school 2 districts. However, if you look at the state 3 aid part of that per capita funding, it's 4 $4,112, which is the highest per capita funding 5 in the state of New York for the five schools - 6 five school districts, big five school 7 districts. 8 So what this tells me is that 9 while the state contributes the highest funding 10 per student per capita of the state, the city of 11 Buffalo, conversely, has the lowest funding per 12 capita of any of the big five cities at, I 13 believe 1.8 -- I'm sorry -- $1800 per student 14 the city contributes per student, which is the 15 lowest of the five cities, and 4200 which is the 16 highest that the state contributes. 17 I guess what I'm saying here is 18 that as the state contributes more, more aid to 19 the city of Buffalo for education, the city 20 contributes less. 21 Let me give you another statistic 22 which I find even more startling and more 23 disturbing. You take the '85-86 tax year of 1774 1 Buffalo, of which $90 million was produced by 2 the tax levy of the city of Buffalo, of which 3 $54 million of that $90 million went to the 4 school district of Buffalo, or 64 percent. In 5 1992, the tax levy in the city of Buffalo went 6 from $90 million to $136 million or 7 approximately $40 million increase. However, in 8 1992-93, the tax levy was $51 million or a 9 reduction of $3 million or reduction to 37 10 percent of the tax levy. 11 So in eight years, while the 12 property tax levy grew by $40 million, the 13 portion to the schools in Buffalo decreased by 14 $3 million or from 60 percent to almost 38 15 percent. So, obviously, somebody is not making 16 the best use of those revenues in the city of 17 Buffalo. 18 I don't like telling the council, 19 I don't like telling the executive, that they 20 have to do a better job in allocating those 21 monies. But, quite frankly, as we have 22 increased state aid, the city has decreased 23 their contribution to education. I think that 1775 1 is wrong. I think the students have suffered in 2 the city of Buffalo because of that. 3 I think we have to be fair. We 4 have to be consistent. We have to be, I think, 5 just in the allocation of money to our school 6 districts of the big five. I think Buffalo 7 illustrates that there is need for this, and I'm 8 going to support this legislation. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 10 Galiber, did you wish to speak? 11 SENATOR GALIBER: No. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Okay. 13 On the bill. Read the last section. 14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 15 act shall take effect on the first day of July. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 17 the roll. 18 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 19 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Mr. 20 President. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 22 Stachowski. 23 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: To explain 1776 1 my vote. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: To 3 explain his vote. 4 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Although I'm 5 against mandates, if Senator Masiello, hopefully 6 soon to be Mayor Masiello, wants to put himself 7 in this locked box, I can't be against that. 8 I'm going to vote for the bill. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 10 Stachowski is in the affirmative. Negatives 11 raise your hands again. Senator Galiber, you 12 are still in the negative? I don't know. 13 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 50. Nays 14 5. Senators Connor, DeFrancisco, Galiber, 15 Leichter and Montgomery recorded in the 16 negative. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: That 18 bill is passed. 19 Senator Present? 20 SENATOR PRESENT: Mr. President. 21 I understand that the substitute for Calendar 22 285 is at the desk. May we have the 23 substitution and call up that bill? 1777 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Yes, 2 there is, sir. 3 Secretary will read 285. 4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 5 285. Senator Larkin moves to discharge the 6 Committee on Education from Assembly Bill Number 7 3830 and substitute it for the identical 8 Calendar Number 285. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 10 Substitution is ordered. You can read the last 11 section. 12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 13 act shall take effect immediately. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Call 15 the roll. 16 (The Secretary called the roll. ) 17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 55. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 19 bill is passed. 20 Continue the controversial. 21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 22 289, by Senator Cook, Senate Bill Number 3558, 23 an act to amend the Public Health Law. 1778 1 SENATOR ONORATO: Explanation. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 3 Explanation. Senator Cook. 4 SENATOR COOK: Mr. President. 5 When the city of New York was authorized, 6 originally, to build water supply reservoirs in 7 the upstate area, they were given authority 8 under the law to impose certain regulations to 9 protect the purity of that water, which at the 10 time was very important, very necessary. 11 Today, we have a sophisticated 12 Department of Environmental Conservation, state 13 Health Department. In fact, no place else in 14 the entire state, except in the city watershed, 15 does any city of this kind have power to go out 16 and impose regulation upon the people who reside 17 in the counties who may be part of their 18 watershed. 19 This bill simply would put New 20 York City on the same ground that every other 21 city in the state is, to say that the regulation 22 of their watershed would have to be under the 23 same auspices of the state Health Department 1779 1 rather than by the city of New York. 2 We find this to be something that 3 is much preferable, frankly, to having a city 4 government over which we have no control and 5 with whom we do not always have the best rapport 6 sending inspectors out and imposing these 7 regulations. 8 We think the regulations ought to 9 be the same in the New York City watershed as 10 they are in the Buffalo watershed or the 11 Rochester watershed or any place else in the 12 state. Therefore, this bill takes from the city 13 of New York the authority which was necessary at 14 the time it was put in there, in 1905, and takes 15 that away from them to unilaterally impose land 16 use regulations upon us and, instead, says that 17 the New York City watershed shall be regulated 18 in the same manner as every other watershed. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 20 Stachowski. 21 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Mr. 22 President. I'd just like to point out that last 23 year on this bill, Senators Connor, Galiber, 1780 1 Gold, Gonzalez, Halperin, Korman, Leichter, 2 Markowitz, Masiello, Mendez, Montgomery, 3 Ohrenstein, Onorato, Oppenheimer, Stavisky, 4 Waldon, Weinstein, Goodhue, Goodman, Marchi, 5 Mega, Padavan, Spano and Velella, voted in the 6 negative. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Read 8 the last section. 9 SENATOR ONORATO: Slow roll call. 10 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 11 act shall take effect immediately. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Is 13 there five? I guess there is. There's been a 14 call for a slow roll call. Ring the bell. 15 THE SECRETARY: Senator Babbush 16 excused. Senator Bruno. 17 (There was no response. ) 18 Senator Connor. 19 SENATOR CONNOR: No. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator Cook. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 22 Cook, how do you vote? 23 SENATOR COOK: Yes. 1781 1 THE SECRETARY: Senator Daly. 2 (There was no response. ) 3 Senator DeFrancisco. 4 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Yes. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator 6 Dollinger. 7 SENATOR DOLLINGER: No. 8 THE SECRETARY: Senator Espada. 9 (There was no response. ) 10 Senator Farley. 11 SENATOR FARLEY: Aye. 12 THE SECRETARY: Senator Galiber. 13 SENATOR GALIBER: Yes. 14 THE SECRETARY: Senator Gold. 15 (There was no response. ) 16 Senator Gonzalez. 17 ((There was no response. ) 18 Senator Goodman. 19 (There was no response. ) 20 Senator Halperin. 21 SENATOR HALPERIN: No. 22 THE SECRETARY: Senator Hannon. 23 SENATOR HANNON: To explain my 1782 1 vote. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 3 Hannon to explain his vote. 4 SENATOR HANNON: Mr. President. 5 During the course of last fall, the Housing 6 Committee had a long hearing in regard to water 7 needs in New York City and the effect of changes 8 in water fees, et cetera, on housing on that 9 city. And, obviously, what's happening in the 10 watershed areas for New York City is a great 11 deal of concern to us. 12 On looking at this bill, however, 13 one realizes that what we're trying to do is 14 simply have reasonable rules apply to those 15 watershed areas and not to negate things that 16 the federal government would otherwise -- Mr. 17 President, would you put my light back on? 18 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Your 19 point is well taken, Senator Hannon. I would 20 like to ask the house to show a little 21 courtesy. We can't her the Senator explaining 22 his vote. Please take your conversations 23 outside the chamber. 1783 1 Senator Hannon. 2 SENATOR HANNON: This measure 3 would simply allow reasonable measures to be 4 imposed on those watershed areas, reasonable to 5 the people living there and reasonable with 6 regard to the environmental concerns that were 7 needed. 8 For that reason, Mr. Speaker, I 9 would support Senator Cook's bill. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 11 Hannon is in the affirmative. 12 Continue the roll. 13 THE SECRETARY: Senator Hoffmann, 14 excused. Senator Holland. 15 SENATOR HOLLAND: Yes. 16 THE SECRETARY: Senator Johnson. 17 SENATOR JOHNSON: Aye. 18 THE SECRETARY: Senator Jones. 19 SENATOR JONES: No. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator Kuhl. 21 SENATOR KUHL: Aye. 22 THE SECRETARY: Senator Lack. 23 SENATOR LACK: Aye. 1784 1 THE SECRETARY: Senator Larkin. 2 SENATOR LARKIN: Aye. 3 THE SECRETARY: Senator LaValle. 4 SENATOR LAVALLE: Aye. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator Leichter. 6 SENATOR LEICHTER: No. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator Levy. 8 SENATOR LEVY: Aye. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator Libous. 10 SENATOR LIBOUS: Aye. 11 THE SECRETARY: Senator Maltese. 12 SENATOR MALTESE: Aye. 13 THE SECRETARY: Senator Marchi. 14 SENATOR MARCHI: No. 15 THE SECRETARY: Senator Marino. 16 (Indicating "Aye." ) 17 THE SECRETARY: Aye. Senator 18 Markowitz. 19 SENATOR MARKOWITZ: No. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator 21 Masiello. 22 SENATOR MASIELLO: No. 23 THE SECRETARY: Senator Mega. 1785 1 SENATOR MEGA: No. 2 THE SECRETARY: Senator Mendez. 3 SENATOR MENDEZ: No. 4 THE SECRETARY: Senator 5 Montgomery. 6 SENATOR MONTGOMERY: No. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator Nolan. 8 SENATOR NOLAN: Yes. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator 10 Nozzolio. 11 SENATOR NOZZOLIO: Aye. 12 THE SECRETARY: Senator 13 Ohrenstein. 14 (Indicating "Nay." ) 15 THE SECRETARY: No. Senator 16 Onorato. 17 SENATOR ONORATO: No. 18 THE SECRETARY: Senator 19 Oppenheimer. 20 (There was no response. ) 21 Senator Padavan. 22 SENATOR PADAVAN: No. 23 THE SECRETARY: Senator Pataki. 1786 1 SENATOR PATAKI: Yes. 2 THE SECRETARY: Senator 3 Paterson. 4 SENATOR PATERSON: No. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator Present. 6 SENATOR PRESENT: Aye. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator Saland. 8 SENATOR SALAND: Aye. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator 10 Santiago. 11 (There was to response. ) 12 Senator Sears. 13 (There was no response. ) 14 Senator Seward. 15 SENATOR SEWARD: Yes. 16 THE SECRETARY: Senator Sheffer. 17 SENATOR SHEFFER: Yes. 18 THE SECRETARY: Senator Skelos. 19 SENATOR SKELOS: Yes. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator Smith. 21 SENATOR SMITH: No. 22 THE SECRETARY: Senator Solomon. 23 SENATOR SOLOMON: No. 1787 1 THE SECRETARY: Senator Spano. 2 SENATOR SPANO: No. 3 THE SECRETARY: Senator 4 Stachowski. 5 SENATOR STACHOWSKI: Yes. 6 THE SECRETARY: Senator 7 Stafford. 8 SENATOR STAFFORD: Aye. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator 10 Stavisky. 11 (There was no response. ) 12 Senator Trunzo. 13 SENATOR TRUNZO: Yes. 14 THE SECRETARY: Senator Tully. 15 SENATOR TULLY: Aye. 16 THE SECRETARY: Senator Velella. 17 SENATOR VELELLA: No. 18 THE SECRETARY: Senator Volker. 19 SENATOR VOLKER: Yes. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator Waldon. 21 SENATOR WALDON: No. 22 THE SECRETARY: Senator Wright. 23 SENATOR WRIGHT: Aye. 1788 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 2 Absentees. 3 THE SECRETARY: Senator Bruno. 4 SENATOR BRUNO: Yes. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator Daly. 6 SENATOR DALY: Yes. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator Espada. 8 (There was no response. ) 9 Senator Gold. 10 (There was no response. ) 11 Senator Gonzalez. 12 (There was no response. ) 13 Senator Goodman. 14 (There was no response. ) 15 Senator Oppenheimer. 16 (There was no response. ) 17 Senator Santiago. 18 (There was no response. ) 19 Senator Sears. 20 SENATOR SEARS: Yes. 21 THE SECRETARY: Senator 22 Stavisky. 23 (There was no response. ) 1789 1 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 2 Results. 3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes 32. Nays 4 20. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: That 6 bill is passed. 7 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 9 Libous for a motion. 10 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President. 11 I would like to put a sponsor star on Calendar 12 Number 317, Senate Print 2060. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 317 is 14 starred at the request of the sponsor. 15 SENATOR SMITH: Mr. President. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 17 Smith. 18 SENATOR SMITH: Mr. President. I 19 request unanimous consent to be recorded in the 20 negative on Calendar Number 286. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 286, 22 you are in the negative without objection. 23 Senator Velella. 1790 1 SENATOR VELELLA: Mr. President. 2 I request unanimous consent on Calendar 285 to 3 be recorded in the negative. I was outside the 4 chamber. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 6 Velella will be in the negative on 285. 7 SENATOR VELELLA: And, Mr. 8 President, on Calendar Number 255. On Friday, I 9 was also out of the chamber. I would like the 10 record to reflect that if I had been here I 11 would have voted in the negative. That's Senate 12 Bill 3487, Calendar 255. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 14 record will so reflect. 15 Senator Tully. 16 SENATOR TULLY: Yes, Mr. 17 President. On page 10, would you place a 18 sponsor star on Calendar 238? 19 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 238 is 20 starred at the request of the sponsor. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: Senator 22 Paterson. 23 SENATOR PATERSON: Mr. 1791 1 President. Totally unrelated to anything that 2 Senator Smith did here today, with unanimous 3 consent, I would like to be recorded in the 4 negative on Calendar Number 286. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: 286, 6 without objection. I think we can continue the 7 calendar. We don't have any more. We have 8 completed the calendar. 9 SENATOR PRESENT: Mr. President, 10 you were very efficient today. There being no 11 further business, I move we adjourn until 12 tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT FARLEY: The 14 Senate will stand adjourned until tomorrow at 15 3:00 p.m. 16 (Whereupon, at 4:22 p.m., Senate 17 adjourned. ) 18 19 20 21 22 23