Tuesday, March 4, 2008

1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE 2 3 4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD 5 6 7 8 9 ALBANY, NEW YORK 10 March 4, 2008 11 3:28 p.m. 12 13 14 REGULAR SESSION 15 16 17 18 SENATOR JOSEPH A. GRIFFO, Acting President 19 STEVEN M. BOGGESS, Secretary 20 21 22 23 24 25

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(518) 371-8910 1 P R O C E E D I N G S 2 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 3 Senate will come to order. 4 I ask everyone present to please 5 rise and repeat with me the Pledge of 6 Allegiance to our Flag. 7 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited 8 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.) 9 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Today's 10 invocation will be given by Bishop Hector Luis 11 Bonano, senior pastor, Missionary Church of 12 Christ in the Bronx. 13 Bishop. 14 BISHOP BONANO: Let us please bow 15 our heads and pray. 16 Oh, Lord, we come before Thee in 17 these halls to ask Your blessing upon these 18 men and women who have responsibilities of 19 creating and deciding concerning the laws that 20 govern our state. 21 We ask for extraordinary blessings 22 upon them. We ask for strength, strength to 23 carry the burden of their responsibilities. 24 We ask for wisdom, wisdom to decide 25 not just right from wrong, but wisdom to

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(518) 371-8910 1 decide between what's best and better. 2 We ask for discernment, that they 3 may know what is in the hearts of others and 4 what moves them in their daily interaction. 5 We ask for peace, peace that 6 surpasses all understanding, peace in the 7 midst of trials, peace in the midst of chaos, 8 peace in the midst of the many storms that 9 will be curtailed in these rooms. 10 We ask for Your heavenly peace, 11 peace for our communities, peace for our city, 12 peace in our nation, and, above all, peace in 13 the world. 14 We ask for unity, that we may all 15 come together, regardless of our diversity, to 16 help meet the needs that are before us and 17 that are eve rpresent. 18 Yes, Lord, we ask for extraordinary 19 blessings upon those who acknowledge You, that 20 they may be aware that You are there in the 21 midst of them. 22 And upon those who do not 23 acknowledge You, them, above all, give them 24 extraordinary blessings too, so that they may 25 know that it was Your hand at work and nothing

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(518) 371-8910 1 they could have done in and of their own 2 strength and knowledge to receive it. 3 And as we receive these 4 extraordinary blessings, let our voice rise 5 and give You and You alone the honor and the 6 glory, now, hence and forevermore. In Jesus' 7 name, Amen. 8 God bless you, and God bless 9 America. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 11 you, Bishop. 12 The reading of the Journal. 13 THE SECRETARY: In Senate, 14 Monday, March 3, the Senate met pursuant to 15 adjournment. The Journal of Friday, 16 February 29, was read and approved. On 17 motion, Senate adjourned. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Without 19 objection, the Journal stands approved as 20 read. 21 Presentation of petitions. 22 Messages from the Assembly. 23 Messages from the Governor. 24 Reports of standing committees. 25 Reports of select committees.

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(518) 371-8910 1 Communications and reports from 2 state officers. 3 Motions and resolutions. 4 Senator Fuschillo. 5 SENATOR FUSCHILLO: Thank you, 6 Mr. President. 7 On behalf of Senator Flanagan, on 8 page number 20 I offer the following 9 amendments to Calendar Number 304, Senate 10 Print Number 690A, and ask that said bill 11 retain its place on Third Reading Calendar. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 13 amendments are received and adopted, and the 14 bill will retain its place on the Third 15 Reading Calendar. 16 Senator Skelos. 17 SENATOR SKELOS: Mr. President, 18 if we could adopt the Resolution Calendar, 19 with the exception of Resolutions 4512, 4513, 20 and 4514. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: All in 22 favor of adopting the Resolution Calendar, 23 with the exception of Resolutions 4512, 4513, 24 and 4514, signify by saying aye. 25 (Response of "Aye.")

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(518) 371-8910 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 2 Opposed, nay. 3 (No response.) 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 5 Resolution Calendar is adopted. 6 Senator Skelos. 7 SENATOR SKELOS: Mr. President, 8 if we could take up Resolution 4512, by 9 Senator Maltese, have the title read and move 10 for its immediate adoption. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 12 Secretary will read. 13 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 14 Maltese, Legislative Resolution Number 4512, 15 mourning the death of William F. Buckley, Jr., 16 conservative columnist, commentator and talk 17 show host, and celebrating this renowned 18 orator's charismatic life and many 19 accomplishments. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 21 Maltese. 22 SENATOR MALTESE: Yes, 23 Mr. President. I rise in support of the 24 resolution mourning the death of William F. 25 Buckley, Jr.

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(518) 371-8910 1 I'd just like to say a few things 2 about William F. Buckley, Jr. 3 He was the godfather of modern 4 conservatism. He was born on November 24, 5 1925, the sixth of ten children. His parents 6 had intended to name him after his father, 7 Frank, but were told by a priest that Frank 8 was not a saint and therefore he should be 9 called Francis. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 11 Senator, excuse me. 12 May we have order in the house, 13 please. 14 SENATOR MALTESE: I think he 15 showed what was going to happen in the future 16 when, at the age of 6, he convinced his father 17 to change his name back to Frank and became, 18 for the rest of his life, William Frank 19 Buckley, Jr. 20 Young William absorbed his parents' 21 conservativism and its deep Roman Catholicism. 22 At the age of 6, he wrote the King of England 23 demanding that they pay England's war debt 24 from the First World War. 25 He served -- most people don't

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(518) 371-8910 1 realize it, but he did serve two years in the 2 service, from 1944 to '46, and emerged as a 3 second lieutenant. 4 He enrolled at Yale -- he came from 5 a family of privilege -- and he studied 6 political science, economics and history. But 7 he was a fearsome debater. He ran the Yale 8 Daily News, joined the Skull and Bones, the -- 9 vilified by some -- most prestigious society 10 at Yale. 11 As a senior, at the age of 26 he 12 was given the honor of delivering the speech 13 for Yale Alumni Day. He promptly attacked his 14 alma mater, Yale University, and as a result 15 was forced to step aside for some other, more 16 compliant person. And that speech became the 17 basis of his famous book God and Man at Yale. 18 The book received wide acclaim. 19 And in 1954, together with his brother-in-law 20 Brent Bozell, he published a book in defense 21 of McCarthy called McCarthy and His Enemies. 22 That's the second book he published. 23 And what I want to point out is 24 that was the second book of 55 books that he 25 published during his entire lifetime, 55

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(518) 371-8910 1 books. In addition, he wrote his column for 2 National Review that, if published, would have 3 composed easily another 55 books. 4 He had an approach that was 5 agreeable. Even his enemies ended up being 6 very friendly with him and most respectful of 7 him. 8 In '55, he founded the magazine 9 National Review, which at the present time 10 still exists, with a circulation of 11 approximately 166,000. 12 And to my knowledge, despite his 13 feelings about pay-as-you-go and 14 conservativism, to my knowledge the magazine 15 never made a profit. But it certainly made a 16 difference in the life of people not only in 17 New York but across the country. 18 He was television's longest running 19 commentator, with his program, with a single 20 host, 33 years. Thirty-three years. 21 He wrote 5600 columns, "On The 22 Right." He gave his collected papers to Yale 23 University. And at the time -- I don't know 24 why the heck they weighed them, but apparently 25 they weighed them, and it was seven tons of

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(518) 371-8910 1 collected papers that he gave to Yale 2 University. 3 Many say he wove the tapestry of 4 American conservativism. But, more practical 5 for us, he founded a group called Young 6 Americans for Freedom, which was my first 7 contact with William F. Buckley, Jr. 8 Shortly after that, he assisted in 9 the formation of the New York State 10 Conservative Party and was one of the founding 11 fathers, together with J. Daniel Mahoney, 12 Kieran O'Doherty, Charlie Rice, Rosemary 13 Gunning, Henry Paolucci, and others. 14 In '65, we in the Conservative 15 Party managed to convince him to run for mayor 16 against a rising star, a liberal Democrat, a 17 gentleman who they said was destined to be 18 President of the United States, John V. 19 Lindsay. Buckley agreed only on the promise 20 from many of us that he had absolutely no 21 chance of winning and emerging as the mayor. 22 Toward the end of his campaign, he 23 got so worried by the adoring crowds and the 24 people around him that he began to feel that 25 there was a slight chance that he might be

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(518) 371-8910 1 elected and went on a TV show and, when he was 2 asked by the commentator what was the first 3 thing he would do on the day after election if 4 he woke up and he had been elected mayor, he 5 said: "Demand a recount." 6 That removed a lot of the 7 credibility from his campaign; I believe he 8 got some 13.5 percent of the vote. 9 But he made a tremendous difference 10 in the politics of New York. I ran on his 11 ticket that year, in 1965, as state senator 12 against Sy Thaler, and I emerged with just 13 about the same percentage of votes as Bill 14 Buckley. But I enjoyed the fact that I ran on 15 his ticket because I'm now able to say I ran 16 for state senator in 1965 and, 23 years later, 17 I was elected. Kind of an overnight success. 18 He is survived by his wife, 19 Patricia, many, many relatives -- his son, 20 Christopher -- and a lot of adoring fans 21 throughout the years. 22 He was genial, he was agreeable, he 23 was one of the brightest people in politics, 24 in literature. He knew his history, he knew 25 his philosophy. He was conversant in Spanish

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(518) 371-8910 1 and certainly knew his Latin, those of us that 2 tried to make our way through his many, many 3 columns. He was a commentator. He was a very 4 staunch Catholic and defended his faith. And 5 he was the classic person who could disagree 6 with you without being disagreeable. 7 Written yesterday, George Will, I 8 think, who was an admirer and a close friend 9 of Buckley's, summed it up by saying he had an 10 aptitude for love -- and I'll add of his wife, 11 Pat, who he called "Ducky" -- of his son, his 12 church, his harpsichord, language, wine, 13 skiing and sailing. 14 He touched the lives of many, many 15 of us. He made a big difference in politics. 16 He was the forerunner of not only his brother 17 Jim, who became the United States Senator in 18 1970, but certainly of Ronald Reagan in 1980, 19 acknowledged by such in 1984. 20 He set a pace that has never been 21 matched. His kind will not come again. He 22 will be sorely missed by all of us. He made a 23 difference in our lives that will last, I 24 hope, for a very, very long time. 25 Mr. President, I support the

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(518) 371-8910 1 resolution in memory of William F. Buckley, 2 Jr., and ask anyone that wishes to join in 3 that resolution. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 5 you, Senator Maltese. 6 The question is on the resolution. 7 All in favor signify by saying aye. 8 (Response of "Aye.") 9 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 10 Opposed, nay. 11 (No response.) 12 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 13 resolution is carried. 14 Senator Marcellino. 15 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Yes, 16 Mr. President, we'd just like to comment that 17 that prior resolution will be open for 18 cosponsorship. If anyone does not wish to be 19 on it, just let us know. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 21 resolution is open for cosponsorship. If you 22 choose not to be a cosponsor, please notify 23 the desk. 24 Senator Marcellino. 25 SENATOR MARCELLINO: We have a

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(518) 371-8910 1 resolution, Number 4513, by Senator Sampson. 2 Can we have the title read and open that also 3 for cosponsorship. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 5 Secretary will read. 6 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 7 Sampson, Legislative Resolution Number 4513, 8 honoring Bishop Eric R. Figueroa, Sr., upon 9 the occasion of his 25th Anniversary as Pastor 10 of New Life Tabernacle, Brooklyn, New York, to 11 be celebrated on March 17, 2008. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 13 question is on the resolution. All in favor 14 signify by saying aye. 15 (Response of "Aye.") 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 17 Opposed, nay. 18 (No response.) 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 20 resolution is carried. 21 The resolution also will be open 22 for cosponsorship. If you choose not to, 23 please notify the desk. 24 Senator Marcellino. 25 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Yes,

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(518) 371-8910 1 Mr. President. May we now take up Resolution 2 Number 4514, by Senator Diaz, and have it read 3 in its entirety. It also, Mr. President, will 4 be open for cosponsorship. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 6 you, Senator Marcellino. 7 The Secretary will read. 8 THE SECRETARY: By Senator Diaz, 9 Legislative Resolution Number 4514, commending 10 CONLICO upon the occasion of its designation 11 for special recognition. 12 "WHEREAS, The character and 13 richness of religious and community life in 14 this noble Empire State is nourished and 15 fulfilled through the faithful concern and 16 selfless devotion of those who would commit 17 their energy and purpose to the ministry of 18 others; and 19 "WHEREAS, It is the sense of this 20 Legislative Body to bring full recognition and 21 just tribute to those individuals and 22 organizations which distinguish themselves and 23 the ministry through their unremitting 24 commitment and preeminence of service; and 25 "WHEREAS, Attendant to such

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(518) 371-8910 1 concern, and in full accord with its 2 long-standing traditions, this Legislative 3 Body is justly proud to commend CONLICO upon 4 the occasion of its designation for special 5 recognition on Tuesday, March 4, 2008; and 6 "WHEREAS, In 2003, Bishop Hector 7 Luis Bonano took on the coordinating role of 8 CONLICO, also known as the Fellowship of 9 Council Leaders. CONLICO had begun in 1998 as 10 the result of the vision of Dr. Kittim 11 Silva-Bermudez and Radio Vision Cristiana. As 12 the Hispanic church community rapidly grew, 13 both the radio station and CONLICO were seen 14 as vehicles to unit and mobilize the diverse 15 Hispanic population; and 16 "WHEREAS, CONLICO exists to support 17 the Pentecostal churches in many capacities, 18 such as partnering with agencies to address 19 the needs of the poor; partnering with civic 20 leaders on behalf of the needs of Hispanics; 21 partnering with the business community to 22 address the economic realities of the Hispanic 23 community; praying and speaking with one voice 24 on the moral and ethical issues facing the 25 culture of the community; and building the

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(518) 371-8910 1 Kingdom of God by partnering across ethnic and 2 language lines with the broader body of 3 Christ; and 4 "WHEREAS, Executive Director of 5 CONLICO, Bishop Bonano has sought to mobilize 6 the churches and build partnerships which span 7 the language, organizational, and 8 denominational spectrum. His own church, the 9 Missionary Church of Christ, has partnered 10 with World Vision to feed 1,000 families per 11 month; and 12 "WHEREAS, Bishop Bonano has ably 13 led CONLICO to the great organization it has 14 become today. It is a true asset to society; 15 and 16 "WHEREAS, CONLICO's distinguished 17 record merits the recognition and respectful 18 tribute of this Legislative Body; now, 19 therefore, be it 20 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative 21 Body pause in its deliberations to commend 22 CONLICO upon the occasion of its designation 23 for special recognition; and be it further 24 "RESOLVED, That copies of this 25 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted

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(518) 371-8910 1 to CONLICO, and to Bishop Hector Luis Bonano, 2 Executive Director." 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 4 Diaz. 5 SENATOR DIAZ: Thank you, 6 Mr. President. 7 Today is one of those days where I 8 stand here in front of my colleagues and in 9 front of my fellow ministers. Today we are 10 being visited by Reverend Hector Luis Bonano, 11 who is the president of CONLICO, or the 12 Fellowship of Council Leaders. 13 And we also are visited by Obispo 14 Miguel Alvarez, from the Church of God of the 15 Northeast; Bishop Erik Salgado, from the 16 Council of Pentecostal, Evangelical, 17 Missionary Churches, and also the president of 18 Radio Cantico Nuevo. 19 Radio Cantico Nuevo means "new song 20 radio," Cantico Nuevo. So get it right, 21 please. 22 (Laughter.) 23 SENATOR DIAZ: And also by 24 Reverend Luciano Vargas; Reverend Andy Torres, 25 who happens to be the president of the

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(518) 371-8910 1 Association of Hispanic Ministers of Queens; 2 Reverend David Infante, who is the president 3 of the Association of Ministers UNITY 98; 4 Reverend Michael Lopez, Pentecostal Church of 5 God M.I., Reverend Manuel Castillo, from the 6 Council of Churches Coat of the Almighty; 7 Reverend Ronald Grant, from the Empire Baptist 8 Convention; Dr. Joseph Matera, from the Christ 9 Covenant Coalition; Reverend Dr. Norman 10 Macklin, Empire Baptist Convention; Reverend 11 Michel Faulkner, from the New Horizon Church 12 of Harlem; Reverend Duane Motley, from 13 New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedom; and 14 Reverend John L. Scott, from St. John's 15 Baptist Church. 16 What is the purpose of this or 17 makes me so happy today? Because in the 18 Hispanic community, ladies and gentlemen, we 19 have many different council of churches, many 20 different groups: Church of God, Assembly of 21 God, Assembly of Pentecostal Churches. So all 22 of them have one leader. 23 CONLICO, or the Fellowship of 24 Council Leaders, is an organization in the 25 Hispanic community that has joined together

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(518) 371-8910 1 all the leaders of every evangelical group to 2 form the group of all the leaders. And today 3 they're here, the leaders. They represent 4 many churches, many individuals in our 5 community. 6 By the way, the leader of the 7 council of which I am an ordained minister, 8 the Church of God, Reverend Miguel Alvarez, is 9 here today. He is my boss when it comes to 10 church matters. 11 So today they're here, and I'm glad 12 and honored to have them here, because this is 13 the first time that they -- maybe in a long 14 time, they have not been here for a long time. 15 But they are to continue coming, organizing 16 and fighting and giving the community support. 17 See, in our community, in our 18 community, all of it, we have many different 19 programs, drug addiction programs, programs 20 without -- without, ladies and gentlemen -- 21 without government money. Without any penny 22 from the government. So when they come here, 23 they don't come here lobbying to get money for 24 programs. 25 Because what they do in their

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(518) 371-8910 1 respective communities in our boroughs, in our 2 city, they create programs, church-funded 3 programs without government money. They 4 create homes to take ladies out of 5 prostitution, to take drug addicts out of the 6 street, to open the door for the homeless, 7 without -- without -- government money. 8 So if in any occasion we talk about 9 when crime comes down and the mayor of the 10 City of New York, he brags about the crimes 11 coming down, and we have to be glad and we 12 have to give honor to the New York City Police 13 Department because they have brought the crime 14 down. But they never speak, they never talk 15 about what men and women like those ones over 16 there are doing for the community. 17 Because when the crime comes down, 18 go to the South Bronx, go to Harlem, go to 19 Brooklyn, go to different boroughs and you're 20 going to see how many programs for drug 21 addicts, people that come from the street, 22 from out of the crime to become good citizens, 23 out of crime. 24 Go to the city, find out how many 25 programs and homes for prostitution, for

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(518) 371-8910 1 ex-prostitutes. Go to the city and find out 2 and see how many programs for the homeless, 3 without government money. 4 So when we talk about contributing 5 to the city, when we're talking about 6 contributing to the well-being of the 7 community, we have to include the churches. 8 The Catholic Church has been doing 9 this all their life, and we don't talk about 10 that because it is well-known what they do. 11 But the Hispanic and the Afro-American 12 evangelical churches, they have been doing a 13 job as good or equal as the Catholic Church, 14 but nobody talks about it. 15 So we praise everyone that 16 contributes to the well-being of the 17 community, but those men over there, I am so 18 proud of them. 19 And they're here today, and I'm 20 glad that they're here so they can see what is 21 it what I do. And when they go back today, 22 they will know what is happening here and 23 what's going on in this premises in Albany. 24 So, ladies and gentlemen, 25 Mr. President -- Mr. President, thank you very

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(518) 371-8910 1 much for this opportunity. 2 And by the way, before I forget, 3 those men, they came from the City of New York 4 to Albany. I have to thank the leader of this 5 chamber and the Minority Leader of this 6 chamber, because out of their busy schedule, 7 Senator Bruno -- out of his busy schedule, 8 Senator Bruno took time himself to receive 9 them and to greet them. And Senator Malcolm 10 Smith, out of his busy schedule, also took 11 time to greet them. 12 It is a shame, if I could say that, 13 that in the other chamber the leader of the 14 chamber had no time to receive them. But when 15 campaigns come and people come, they want 16 people to be there. 17 But I again praise and thank 18 Senator Bruno, the leader of this chamber, and 19 the Minority Leader of this chamber for the 20 courtesy, the honor to take time out of their 21 busy schedules -- I'm repeating myself, but I 22 have to repeat myself. I want everyone to 23 know that out of their busy schedule, they 24 took time to receive those men that work so 25 hard for our community today in their

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(518) 371-8910 1 chambers, and to greet them. 2 And the other chamber had no time. 3 But the day could come, ladies and gentlemen, 4 when I'm pretty sure that the other chamber is 5 going to have time too, to take a little space 6 in their time to receive people like those 7 men. 8 So thank you, gentlemen, for being 9 here today. 10 Thank you, Mr. President. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 12 you, Senator Diaz. 13 The question is on the resolution. 14 All in favor signify by saying aye. 15 (Response of "Aye.") 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 17 Opposed, nay. 18 (No response.) 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 20 resolution is adopted. 21 And the resolution is open for 22 cosponsorship. If you do not wish to be a 23 cosponsor, please notify the desk. 24 Senator Marcellino. 25 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Mr.

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(518) 371-8910 1 President, I understand there's a substitution 2 at the desk. Can we do that now? 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 4 Secretary will read. 5 THE SECRETARY: On page 12, 6 Senator Robach moves to discharge, from the 7 Committee on Finance, Assembly Bill Number 8 9387A and substitute it for the identical 9 Senate Bill Number 6779, Third Reading 10 Calendar 198. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 12 substitution is so ordered. 13 Senator Marcellino. 14 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Thank you, 15 Mr. President. 16 And with respect to Resolution 17 4514, anyone wishing to cosponsor that 18 resolution should notify the desk. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: So 20 noted. 21 Senator Marcellino. 22 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Mr. 23 President, may we have the noncontroversial 24 reading of the calendar. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The

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(518) 371-8910 1 Secretary will read. 2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 3 69, by Senator Farley, Senate Print 6650, an 4 act to amend Chapter 729 of the Laws of 1994 5 relating to affecting the health insurance 6 benefits. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 8 the last section. 9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 10 act shall take effect May 15, 2008. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 12 the roll. 13 (The Secretary called the roll.) 14 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 57. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 16 bill is passed. 17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 18 78, by Senator Golden, Senate Print 6706, an 19 act to amend the Workers' Compensation Law, in 20 relation to certain workers. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 22 the last section. 23 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 24 act shall take effect immediately. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call

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(518) 371-8910 1 the roll. 2 (The Secretary called the roll.) 3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 57. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 5 bill is passed. 6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 7 198, substituted earlier by Member of the 8 Assembly Destito, Assembly Print Number 9387A, 9 an act to amend the Executive Law, in relation 10 to increasing. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 12 the last section. 13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 14 act shall take effect immediately. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 16 the roll. 17 (The Secretary called the roll.) 18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 57. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 20 bill is passed. 21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 22 215, by Senator Trunzo, Senate Print 889, an 23 act to amend the Labor Law, in relation to 24 requiring. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read

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(518) 371-8910 1 the last section. 2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 3 act shall take effect on the 180th day. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 5 the roll. 6 (The Secretary called the roll.) 7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 56. Nays, 8 1. Senator DeFrancisco recorded in the 9 negative. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 11 bill is passed. 12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 13 276, by Senator LaValle, Senate Print 1527, an 14 act to amend the Education Law, in relation to 15 the unlawful sale. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 17 the last section. 18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 19 act shall take effect immediately. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 21 the roll. 22 (The Secretary called the roll.) 23 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 58. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 25 bill is passed.

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(518) 371-8910 1 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 2 278, by Member of the Assembly Gunther, 3 Assembly Print Number 9401, an act to amend 4 the Education Law, in relation to security 5 plans. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 7 the last section. 8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 9 act shall take effect on the same date and in 10 the same manner as Chapter 510 of the Laws of 11 2007. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 13 the roll. 14 (The Secretary called the roll.) 15 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 58. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 17 bill is passed. 18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 19 285, by Senator Larkin, Senate Print 1047A, an 20 act to amend the Racing, Pari-Mutuel Wagering 21 and Breeding Law, in relation to expenditure. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 23 the last section. 24 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 25 act shall take effect immediately.

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(518) 371-8910 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 2 the roll. 3 (The Secretary called the roll.) 4 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 58. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 6 bill is passed. 7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 8 324, by Senator Volker -- 9 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Lay it aside 10 for the day, please. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 12 bill is laid aside for the day. 13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 14 327, by Senator Lanza, Senate Print 6825A, an 15 act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law and 16 the Executive Law, in relation to requiring. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 18 the last section. 19 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This 20 act shall take effect on the first of 21 November. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 23 the roll. 24 (The Secretary called the roll.) 25 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 58.

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(518) 371-8910 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 2 bill is passed. 3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 4 390, by Senator Morahan, Senate Print 243, an 5 act to amend the Executive Law, in relation to 6 requiring. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 8 the last section. 9 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This 10 act shall take effect immediately. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 12 the roll. 13 (The Secretary called the roll.) 14 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 58. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 16 bill is passed. 17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 18 392, by Senator Young, Senate Print 385, an 19 act to amend the Correction Law, in relation 20 to authorizing. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 22 the last section. 23 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This 24 act shall take effect immediately. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call

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(518) 371-8910 1 the roll. 2 (The Secretary called the roll.) 3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 58. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 5 bill is passed. 6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 7 399, by Senator Nozzolio -- 8 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Lay it aside 9 for the day. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 11 bill is laid aside for the day. 12 Senator Marcellino, that completes 13 the reading of the noncontroversial calendar. 14 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Mr. 15 President, in consultation with the Minority 16 Leader, I hand up the following Minority 17 committee assignments and ask that they be 18 filed in the Journal. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 20 Received and filed. 21 Senator Marcellino. 22 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Is there any 23 further business at the desk? 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: There 25 is no further business at the desk, Senator

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(518) 371-8910 1 Marcellino. 2 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Mr. 3 President, would you recognize Senator 4 Valesky, please. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 6 Valesky. 7 SENATOR VALESKY: Thank you. 8 Mr. President, I believe there's a 9 motion at the desk. I'd like to have it 10 called up at this time. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 12 Secretary will read. 13 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 14 Valesky, Concurrent Resolution of the Senate 15 and Assembly proposing amendments to Article 9 16 of the Constitution, in relation to 17 prohibiting unfunded mandates. 18 SENATOR VALESKY: Thank you, 19 Mr. President. 20 I'm sure many members here in the 21 chamber hear on a regular basis from local 22 government officials, school district 23 officials about the impact that unfunded 24 mandates have on their ability to carry out 25 services and how it hampers their ability to

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(518) 371-8910 1 carry out services without often the need to 2 raise property taxes and/or sales taxes. 3 So the motion that we have before 4 us this afternoon would move Senate Bill 2201 5 to the floor for discussion and vote. 6 Relatively simple in concept, it would amend 7 the Constitution or provide first passage of a 8 constitutional amendment that would amend the 9 Constitution to prohibit unfunded mandates. 10 We have crafted it in a careful way 11 to build in safeguards where that would be 12 necessary. But I think as we continue, and we 13 know that under the leadership of Chairman 14 Suozzi and the Property Tax Cap Commission 15 that is going about their work -- and we look 16 forward to their recommendations in another 17 month or two -- that this particular bill at 18 this particular time is extremely important 19 for us to consider. 20 We have an opportunity today to do 21 something significant about the problem of 22 unfunded mandates on our local governments and 23 on our school districts, and therefore, by 24 extension, on our property tax payers. So I 25 would ask all of the members here today to

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(518) 371-8910 1 support this motion. 2 Mr. President, thank you for the 3 opportunity. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 5 you, Senator Valesky. 6 All those Senators in favor of the 7 petition out of committee please signify by 8 raising your hand. 9 THE SECRETARY: Those recorded in 10 agreement are Senators Adams, Aubertine, 11 Breslin, Connor, Diaz, Duane, Gonzalez, 12 Hassell-Thompson, Huntley, C. Johnson, Klein, 13 L. Krueger, Montgomery, Parker, Perkins, 14 Sabini, Sampson, Savino, Schneiderman, 15 Serrano, Smith, Stachowski, Stewart-Cousins, 16 Thompson and Valesky. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 18 petition is not agreed to. 19 Senator Marcellino. 20 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Mr. 21 President, would you recognize Senator Klein, 22 please. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 24 Klein. 25 SENATOR KLEIN: Thank you,

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(518) 371-8910 1 Mr. President. 2 I have a motion at the desk, and I 3 would like to have it called up at this time. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 5 Secretary will read. 6 THE SECRETARY: By Senator Klein, 7 Senate Bill Number 2257, an act to amend the 8 Elder Law, in relation to eligibility levels. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 10 Klein. 11 SENATOR KLEIN: Thank you, 12 Mr. President. 13 This motion would raise the income 14 eligibility for the EPIC program to $50,000 15 for an individual, from $35,000, and to 16 $75,000 for a married couple, an increase from 17 $50,000. 18 I think we all know that sometimes 19 in government we do get it right, and the EPIC 20 program is one of those programs, where senior 21 citizens can save up to 80 percent on the 22 price of prescription drugs. 23 I think everyone also knows that 24 time and time again, senior citizens are 25 really shouldering the burden for the high

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(518) 371-8910 1 price of prescription drugs. According to an 2 analysis that I saw recently, most of the 3 high-priced prescription drugs are paid by 4 senior citizens, who disproportionately use 5 prescription drugs 75 percent of the time. 6 One of the things we need to do is, 7 I think, expand this program to enable more 8 senior citizens to take part in the EPIC 9 program. I was around in the Assembly when we 10 raised the threshold for the EPIC program from 11 $16,500 for an individual to the present 12 level. That was a great thing. But I think 13 we really have to keep up with the times. 14 Senior citizens, who actually pay a 15 large share of their income in prescription 16 drugs -- even if they're making $50,000 a year 17 as an individual, even if they're making 18 $75,000 a year with a married couple, if 19 they're paying a large share of their income 20 in prescription drugs, that's a tremendous 21 burden for them to have to shoulder. 22 I did a quick analysis of what the 23 impact of expanding the EPIC program, the 24 eligibility, would be. And in the State of 25 New York we would be able to have another

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(518) 371-8910 1 22,700 individuals now eligible for the EPIC 2 program, which they would not be under the 3 present system. 4 In my district, if you just look at 5 Westchester County as a whole and Bronx County 6 as a whole, in the Bronx we would enable 7 another 600 individuals to be able to take 8 part in the EPIC program, and in Westchester 9 County we would have another 2,600 senior 10 citizens eligible for the EPIC program. 11 Again, with all the talk of the 12 high price of prescription drugs and our 13 senior citizens not able to afford these 14 increases, I think the time is now to increase 15 the eligibility requirements, the financial 16 requirements, and enable more and more senior 17 citizens to save on prescription drug costs. 18 I thank you, Mr. President. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 20 you, Senator Klein. 21 All those Senators in favor of the 22 petition out of committee please signify by 23 raising your hands. 24 THE SECRETARY: Those Senators in 25 agreement are Senators Adams, Aubertine,

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(518) 371-8910 1 Breslin, Connor, Diaz, Duane, Gonzalez, 2 Hassell-Thompson, Huntley, C. Johnson, Klein, 3 L. Krueger, Montgomery, Parker, Perkins, 4 Sabini, Sampson, Savino, Schneiderman, 5 Serrano, Smith, Stachowski, Stavisky, 6 Stewart-Cousins, Thompson and Valesky. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 8 petition is not agreed to. 9 Senator Marcellino. 10 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Mr. 11 President, again, is there any further 12 business at the desk? 13 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: There 14 is no further business. 15 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Immediately 16 following the session there will be a meeting 17 of the Senate Majority in the Majority 18 Conference Room, Room 332. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 20 Immediately following session there will be a 21 meeting of the Majority conference in 22 Room 332. 23 Senator Marcellino. 24 SENATOR MARCELLINO: And I move 25 the Senate stand adjourned until Wednesday,

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(518) 371-8910 1 March 5th, at 11:00 a.m. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: On 3 motion, the Senate stands adjourned until 4 Wednesday, March 5th, at 11:00 a.m. 5 (Whereupon, at 4:10 p.m., the 6 Senate adjourned.) 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

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