Tuesday, March 1, 2011

1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE 2 3 4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD 5 6 7 8 9 ALBANY, NEW YORK 10 March 1, 2011 11 3:19 p.m. 12 13 14 REGULAR SESSION 15 16 17 18 SENATOR JOSEPH A. GRIFFO, Acting President 19 FRANCIS W. PATIENCE, Secretary 20 21 22 23 24 25

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 2 Senate will come to order. 3 I ask all present to please rise 4 and join with me as we recite the Pledge of 5 Allegiance to our Flag. 6 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited 7 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.) 8 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: In the 9 absence of clergy, I ask that we all bow our 10 heads in a moment of silent reflection. 11 (Whereupon, the assemblage 12 respected a moment of silence.) 13 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 14 reading of the Journal. 15 THE SECRETARY: In Senate, 16 Monday, February 28, the Senate met pursuant 17 to adjournment. The Journal of Sunday, 18 February 27, was read and approved. On 19 motion, Senate adjourned. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Without 21 objection, the Journal stands approved as 22 read. 23 Presentation of petitions. 24 Messages from the Assembly. 25 Messages from the Governor.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Reports of standing committees. 2 We have a report. The Secretary 3 will read. 4 THE SECRETARY: Senator 5 DeFrancisco, from the Committee on Finance, 6 reports the following nomination. 7 As commissioner of the Office of 8 Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, 9 Arlene Gonzalez-Sanchez, of Fresh Meadows. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 11 Klein. 12 SENATOR KLEIN: Thank you, 13 Mr. President. It's my distinct pleasure to 14 nominate Arlene Gonzalez-Sanchez as 15 commissioner of the State Office of Alcoholism 16 and Substance Abuse Services. 17 I have the privilege of knowing 18 Arlene and her husband, who is an active 19 member of my district. He was once the head 20 of Bronx Psychiatric Center, Lincoln Hospital, 21 among others. 22 And Arlene is truly someone who has 23 dedicated her life to public service. She 24 serves as commissioner and director of 25 community services at the Nassau County

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Department of Mental Health, Chemical 2 Dependency and Developmental Disabilities 3 Services, after working as deputy commissioner 4 for two years. She's also the cochair of the 5 Nassau County Health Disparity Task Force. 6 Prior to working for Nassau County, 7 Ms. Gonzalez-Sanchez served in the New York 8 City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene 9 for a decade. She also served as director of 10 the Bronx Health Corps. 11 You know, in this time when we all 12 want to make sure that people who are fighting 13 alcohol and drug dependency have an advocate, 14 someone who can truly be there on their side, 15 I can't think of anyone better than our future 16 commissioner, Arlene Gonzalez-Sanchez. I 17 wholeheartedly nominate her, Mr. President. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 19 you, Senator Klein. 20 Is there any other member wishing 21 to be speak on the nomination? 22 The nomination has been moved. The 23 question, therefore, is on the nomination of 24 Arlene Gonzalez-Sanchez as commissioner of the 25 Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Services. All in favor signify by saying aye. 2 (Response of "Aye.") 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 4 Opposed? 5 (No response.) 6 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Arlene 7 Gonzalez-Sanchez is hereby confirmed as 8 commissioner of the Office of Alcoholism and 9 Substance Abuse Services. 10 Congratulations, Commissioner. And 11 to you and your family, we welcome you. 12 (Applause.) 13 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Reports 14 of select committees. 15 Communications and reports from 16 state officers. 17 Motions and resolutions. 18 Senator Libous. 19 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 20 Mr. President. 21 May we please adopt the Resolution 22 Calendar except for the following resolutions 23 please: 591, 669, 675, and 676. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: All in 25 favor of adopting the Resolution Calendar as

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 identified signify by saying aye. 2 (Response of "Aye.") 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 4 Opposed? 5 (No response.) 6 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 7 Resolution Calendar as identified is adopted. 8 Senator Libous. 9 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 10 Mr. President. 11 At this time, Mr. President, I 12 believe that Senator Nozzolio has Resolution 13 Number 669 at the desk. I ask that you would 14 read it in its entirety and call on Senator 15 Nozzolio, please. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 17 Secretary will read. 18 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 19 Nozzolio, Legislative Resolution Number 669, 20 commending the South Seneca Elementary School 21 Fifth Grade Swing Chorus upon the occasion of 22 its participation in Music in Our Schools 23 Month 2011. 24 "WHEREAS, The administrators of 25 South Seneca Elementary School in Seneca

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 County's South Seneca Central School District 2 are committed to actively promoting and 3 nurturing a comprehensive music program for 4 all the students in the district; and 5 "WHEREAS, Those same administrators 6 have been supportive, actively encouraging 7 music program staff to devote their time and 8 energy to developing the talents of their 9 students; and 10 "WHEREAS, The Fifth Grade Swing 11 Chorus of South Seneca Elementary School, 12 Interlaken, New York, comprised of students of 13 the highest musical and academic caliber, will 14 be performing on March 1, 2011, at the South 15 Concourse of the Empire State Plaza in Albany, 16 in celebration of the 39th Annual Music in Our 17 Schools Month; and 18 "WHEREAS, The New York State School 19 Music Association sponsors this event and has 20 helped it to evolve from a New York State Day 21 into a month-long national observance, the 22 theme of which is, this year, "Music Lasts a 23 Lifetime"; and 24 "WHEREAS, Talent, dedication and 25 countless hours of practice have made the

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Fifth Grade Swing Chorus of South Seneca 2 Elementary School the outstanding ensemble it 3 is today; and 4 "WHEREAS, The talented members of 5 the Fifth Grade Swing Chorus include: Cole 6 Acker, Tyler Acker, Catie Adams-Compton, Jesse 7 Bower, Justin Carmona, Cameron Cupp, Julia 8 Diamond, Jeffery Elliott, Dominiq Kio, 9 Annabelle MacIntosh, Haleigh Mills, Benjamin 10 Pollack, Amber Relyea, Alexandria Rought, 11 Skylar Shaulis, Dylan Stiles, Tessa Taylor and 12 John Zajac; and 13 "WHEREAS, Ably led by choral music 14 teacher Diane W. Dersch, the members of the 15 South Seneca Elementary School Fifth Grade 16 Swing Chorus work hard at their music 17 rehearsals, classroom assignments, and 18 practice sessions, fully aware that the amount 19 of time and energy they are willing to expend 20 directly affects the quality of their music; 21 and 22 "WHEREAS, The South Seneca 23 Elementary School Fifth Grade Swing Chorus 24 members, along with their parents and 25 teachers, can be justifiably proud of their

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 musical achievements and their participation 2 in Music in Our Schools Month; now, therefore, 3 be it 4 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative 5 Body extend a warm welcome to the staff, 6 students, and parents of South Seneca 7 Elementary School as they visit Albany for the 8 performance at the Empire State Plaza; and be 9 it further 10 "RESOLVED, That copies of this 11 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted 12 to the South Seneca Elementary School Fifth 13 Grade Swing Chorus and to Diane W. Dersch, 14 director." 15 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 16 Nozzolio. 17 SENATOR NOZZOLIO: Thank you, 18 Mr. President. 19 And thank you, Clerk Testo, for 20 your excellent reading of that resolution, as 21 always. 22 Ladies and gentlemen, my 23 colleagues, that on this very busy day in the 24 State Capitol it's exciting to see a group of 25 enthusiastic young people from the South

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Seneca Central School District who are here to 2 add joy to the proceedings of the New York 3 State Legislature as well as adorn the Capitol 4 Building. 5 I wish you all could have been with 6 me on the Million Dollar Staircase when I just 7 heard such a wonderful rendition of the 8 beautiful song "God Bless America" by this 9 wonderfully talented chorus. 10 The resolution speaks to their 11 unity and how well they've come together. And 12 we certainly need to give thanks to Diane 13 Dersch for her leadership, her great teaching 14 and instructing a group of enthusiastic, 15 wonderful young people on the beautiful art of 16 singing. Their music, their chorus was 17 stellar. 18 I want to list, on the potential of 19 missing out of someone, excluding someone from 20 the list I have, but I have a list of those 21 teachers who traveled with the chorus today, 22 along with Instructor Dersch: Lynda Diamond, 23 Todd Kurzweil, Kevin Webster, Jennifer 24 Worrell, and Ray Zajac, Jr., along with a 25 number of parents who took time out of their

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 schedules to be with their young children in 2 helping provide the Capitol Building with such 3 wonderful sounds: Scott and Emily Diamond, 4 Jessica Elliott, Deanna and Kevin Mills, 5 Jennifer Taylor, Elizabeth Stiles, Jodi Zajac, 6 Allan Pollack, Joan Shaulis, Ron, Connie and 7 Dylan Carmona, Michael Rought, Kelley 8 MacIntosh, Todd and Tammy Acker, and Chip 9 Adams-Compton. 10 And if I've left your name out who 11 made the trip, I apologize. 12 But I want to thank you all, 13 members of the South Seneca community. Not 14 with the largest school budget, not with the 15 largest number of children in school, not from 16 anywhere near the wealthiest community on the 17 other side of the aisle, but one of the most 18 challenged communities that we have in the 19 Central Finger Lakes, a community that's come 20 together and shown that it can produce 21 excellent young students who contribute to our 22 world. 23 Mr. President, I want to thank all 24 those parents, instructors and, last but not 25 least, the wonderful members of the South

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Seneca Elementary School Chorus for being here 2 today, for doing such a wonderful job, and for 3 brightening up our day in the New York State 4 Capitol. 5 Thank you, Mr. President. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 7 you, Senator Nozzolio. 8 Is there any other Senator wishing 9 to speak on the resolution? 10 Hearing none, the question is on 11 the resolution. All in favor signify by 12 saying aye. 13 (Response of "Aye.") 14 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 15 Opposed? 16 (No response.) 17 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 18 resolution is carried. 19 And the house would like to extend 20 a warm welcome and congratulations to the 21 South Seneca Fifth Grade Swing Chorus. 22 Congratulations and welcome. 23 (Applause.) 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 25 Libous.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 2 Senator Nozzolio. Thank you, Mr. President. 3 Mr. President, I believe that 4 Senator Stewart-Cousins has a privileged 5 resolution at the desk. Would you please read 6 it in its entirety and then call on Senator 7 Stewart-Cousins, please. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 9 Secretary will read. 10 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 11 Stewart-Cousins, Legislative Resolution Number 12 510, honoring Yonkers Public School 13 Superintendent Bernard P. Pierorazio upon the 14 occasion of being named the New York State 15 School Superintendent of the Year by the 16 New York State Council of School 17 Superintendents. 18 "WHEREAS, It is the sense of this 19 Legislative Body to recognize and commend 20 those illustrious individuals of distinguished 21 purpose whose lives have been committed to the 22 pursuit of excellence in education of the 23 youth of the Empire State; and 24 "WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is 25 justly proud to honor Yonkers Public School

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Superintendent Bernard P. Pierorazio upon the 2 occasion of being named the New York State 3 School Superintendent of the Year by the 4 New York State Council of School 5 Superintendents; and 6 "WHEREAS, Currently serving as 7 superintendent of the Yonkers Public Schools, 8 the fourth largest district in New York State, 9 Bernard Pierorazio formerly served as deputy 10 superintendent, assistant superintendent, and 11 principal of Saunders Trades and Technical 12 High School, which under his leadership became 13 a United States Department of Education Blue 14 Ribbon School of Excellence as well as a New 15 American High School; and 16 "WHEREAS, Bernard Pierorazio, a 17 graduate of the Yonkers Public Schools 18 District, continued his studies at Central 19 Connecticut State University, the College of 20 New Rochelle, and Iona College, earning 21 degrees in history, special education, and 22 administration and supervision. With strong 23 community loyalty and dedication to education, 24 he returned to his native Yonkers, working as 25 a teacher, dean, and administrator; and

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 "WHEREAS, Bernard Pierorazio has 2 received numerous prestigious awards and 3 recognitions that highlight his educational 4 career and are testimony to his community 5 commitment. Some of these include the Rotary 6 Club of Yonkers Leadership in Education Award, 7 the Boy Scouts of America Excellence in 8 Education Award, the American Congress of 9 Italian Migration Educator of the Year Award, 10 the Westchester Association of Hispanic 11 Professionals Award; Eastchester Tuckahoe 12 Lions' Club Man of the Year Award, and the 13 New York Association for Continuing Community 14 Education Lawrence Levin Professional Award; 15 and 16 "WHEREAS, As a result of Bernard 17 Pierorazio's leadership and action as 18 superintendent of the Yonkers School District, 19 the children's quality of education has 20 dramatically improved. He is responsible for 21 the development of the district's five-year 22 plan leading to unitary status and ending 23 court-ordered desegregation; restructuring of 24 middle schools resulting in increased Regents 25 scores and graduation rates; increasing the

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 number of high schools from five to nine; and 2 increased parent involvement with student 3 learning through Blackboard and mass telephone 4 communication; and 5 "WHEREAS, Bernard Pierorazio has 6 served as the keynote speaker at many local, 7 state and national conferences. He has also 8 hosted and participated in numerous 9 school-related programs for television 10 stations, including Yonkers' public education 11 station, WDMC, and Cablevision News 12; and 12 "WHEREAS, Educators like Bernard 13 Pierorazio provide a tremendous service to the 14 future of our state and nation, inspiring 15 generations of young people in their 16 educational journeys and ensuring their 17 success in their future years; and 18 "WHEREAS, Bernard Pierorazio has 19 had an enduring impact on the youth of the 20 Yonkers Public School District, as well as on 21 the community at large, and accordingly merits 22 recognition and applause for his impressive 23 dedication to others; and 24 "WHEREAS, With him throughout have 25 been his wife, Tina, his sons, Phillip and

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Michael, as well as his parents, Joseph and 2 Lillian, all of whom feel privileged to be 3 part of his life and rejoice in his 4 achievements; and 5 "WHEREAS, It is the sense of this 6 Legislative Body to commend efforts of those 7 individuals who work to support our proud 8 tradition of public education by providing 9 their skills and talents to our schools; now, 10 therefore, be it 11 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative 12 Body pause in its deliberations to honor 13 Yonkers Public School Superintendent Bernard 14 P. Pierorazio upon the occasion of being named 15 the New York State School Superintendent of 16 the Year by the New York State Council of 17 School Superintendents, and be it further 18 "RESOLVED, That copies of this 19 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted 20 to Bernard P. Pierorazio, Yonkers Public 21 School Superintendent." 22 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 23 Stewart-Cousins on the resolution. 24 SENATOR STEWART-COUSINS: Thank 25 you, Mr. President.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 It is really an honor to stand 2 before this body and recognize my Yonkers 3 school superintendent as the School 4 Superintendent of the Year. Obviously, 5 New York State picks a superintendent each 6 year, and I hope that each of you have an 7 opportunity to rise and congratulate your 8 superintendent. 9 My superintendent, as you've heard, 10 is quite extraordinary. And I speak from 11 firsthand experience, because I first met 12 Bernard Pierorazio when he was, I guess, an 13 assistant principal and then principal of one 14 of my three children who went to Saunders. 15 Saunders is an extraordinary place. 16 And what Mr. Pierorazio brought to Saunders 17 created the atmosphere of excellence that 18 continued despite very difficult times in 19 Yonkers. 20 I have watched Mr. Pierorazio grow 21 in every role that he has been given. I have 22 watched him continue to include the parents. 23 I have watched him make sure that excellence 24 is the watchword of every school in Yonkers. 25 He has helped us during, again, very difficult

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 times to find ways creatively and innovatively 2 to bridge the gap. 3 He is someone who is exceptional. 4 And this year -- I'm sorry to bring him 5 forward this year, because this year is an 6 extremely difficult year. But I thought that 7 you should see him to know, as we request even 8 more -- as we usually do, because we need so 9 much more. Yonkers is one of the Big Five. 10 Yonkers is the only one of the Big Five cities 11 that is in good standing. And yet Yonkers is, 12 again, operating with less than what it needs. 13 We have done creative things. We 14 have a superintendent that does creative 15 things. But together we can make Yonkers as 16 exceptional as it can be under the leadership 17 of a very, very great state superintendent. 18 So I want to congratulate you and 19 thank you for really raising the bar for 20 everyone in New York State. Enjoy this year. 21 We are very privileged and proud to have you. 22 Thank you. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 24 you, Senator Stewart-Cousins. 25 Is there any other Senator wishing

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 to speak? 2 The question, therefore, is on the 3 resolution. All in favor signify by saying 4 aye. 5 (Response of "Aye.") 6 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 7 Opposed, if any. 8 (No response.) 9 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 10 resolution is carried. 11 Our congratulations and best wishes 12 to Superintendent Bernard Pierorazio, who is 13 with us today. Congratulations, 14 Mr. Superintendent. 15 (Applause.) 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 17 Libous. 18 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 19 Mr. President. 20 I believe there's another 21 resolution at the desk that was previously 22 adopted by Senator DeFrancisco. I ask that 23 you read the resolution in its entirety and 24 call on Senator DeFrancisco. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Secretary will read. 2 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 3 DeFrancisco, Legislative Resolution Number 4 187, congratulating the North Syracuse 5 All-Star Baseball Team on their 2010 Babe Ruth 6 World Series Championship. 7 "WHEREAS, Excellence and success in 8 competitive sports can be achieved only 9 through strenuous practice, team play and team 10 spirit that is nurtured by dedicated coaching 11 and strategic planning; and 12 "WHEREAS, Athletic competition 13 enhances the moral and physical development of 14 the young people of this state, preparing them 15 for the future by instilling in them the value 16 of teamwork, encouraging a standard of healthy 17 living, imparting a desire for success, and 18 developing a sense of fair play, teamwork, and 19 competition; and 20 "WHEREAS, It is the sense of this 21 Legislative Body to recognize and pay tribute 22 to those young people within the State of 23 New York who, achieving outstanding success in 24 athletic competition, have inspired and 25 brought pride to their community; and

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 "WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is 2 justly proud to congratulate the North 3 Syracuse All-Star Baseball Team on their 4 13-to-15-year-old 2010 Babe Ruth World Series 5 Championship; and 6 "WHEREAS, To bring home a World 7 Series Championship, as did the 2010 North 8 Syracuse All-Star Baseball Team, is a 9 wonderful achievement. The team defeated 10 Saginaw Valley, Michigan, 7 to 4, to capture 11 their first World Series Championship after 12 competing in three consecutive World Series; 13 and 14 "WHEREAS, In addition to the North 15 Syracuse team's success, 2010 was a year for 16 individual milestones as well. Bishop 17 Ludden's Ryan O'Kane was named the 18 tournament's Most Valuable Player, and 19 Baldwinsville's Gabe Levanti and Liverpool's 20 Pat Wright were named to the All-Tournament 21 Team along with O'Kane; and 22 "WHEREAS, No team, no matter how 23 gifted one or a handful of its members may be, 24 can succeed without outstanding talent 25 throughout its entire roster. Such was the

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 case for the 2010 North Syracuse All-Star 2 Baseball Team, whose players included Tyler 3 Bliss, Joe Bodnar, Dan Brower, Alex Caruso, 4 Brett Charbonneau, Matt DiPaulo, Eric 5 Hamilton, Brandon Kapcinski, Gabe Levanti, 6 Ryan O'Kane, Nick Pilotti, Pat Wright, and Dan 7 Zimmerman; and 8 "WHEREAS, The success of the North 9 Syracuse All-Star Baseball Team is due in 10 great part to the efforts of Manager Dom 11 Caruso and his outstanding assistant coaches, 12 Tom Medicis and John Levanti. The team was 13 also assisted by the never-ending 14 encouragement and support of friends, family, 15 and the community; and 16 "WHEREAS, The 2010 North Syracuse 17 All-Star Baseball Team shared noteworthy 18 attributes off the field as well as in 19 competition. Individually and collectively, 20 they constantly exhibited good sportsmanship, 21 thereby demonstrating to themselves and to 22 others that they have been an enviable 23 combination of talent and character which 24 reflects favorably upon their community; now, 25 therefore, be it

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative 2 Body pause in its deliberations to 3 congratulate the 2010 North Syracuse All-Star 4 Baseball Team on their Babe Ruth World Series 5 Championship; and be it further 6 "RESOLVED, That copies of this 7 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted 8 to the members of the 2010 North Syracuse 9 All-Star Baseball Team and its coaches." 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 11 DeFrancisco on the resolution. 12 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Thank you. 13 We're pleased to have the North 14 Syracuse All-Star Baseball Team, the Babe Ruth 15 World Championship Team, in the gallery. 16 It's not an unusual situation where 17 we bring championship teams from Onondaga 18 County here to the Senate. I'm a little 19 embarrassed for all the other Senators who 20 don't get that opportunity very often. 21 But we have some very talented 22 people in our community. And can you imagine 23 this fact, that they won the Babe Ruth World 24 Series Championship by beating Saginaw Valley, 25 Michigan -- they won it, won the championship

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 after competing in three consecutive World 2 Series. I mean, that is real consistency. 3 And it's an amazing thing for the players as 4 well as the coaches to have that kind of 5 record in a World Series event. 6 The other important point of this 7 resolution I think is the other attributes 8 that are mentioned at the end. Good 9 sportsmanship, which shows not only the talent 10 they have, but the great character they have. 11 And let me explain something to 12 you, that you're going to remember the people 13 you're with now for the rest of your life. My 14 friends when I played sports are my friends to 15 this very day. And the lessons you learn on 16 the field are going to bode well for you 17 throughout your life -- the good 18 sportsmanship, the hard competition, and to be 19 the best you can possibly be. 20 So congratulations on this great 21 achievement. And more importantly, 22 congratulations because you're going to be the 23 leaders of tomorrow. 24 Thank you for coming. 25 (Applause.)

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 2 you, Senator DeFrancisco. 3 Senator Valesky, on the resolution. 4 SENATOR VALESKY: Thank you, 5 Mr. President. 6 I want to join Senator DeFrancisco 7 in congratulating our young baseball stars 8 from North Syracuse and welcoming them to the 9 State Capitol. 10 I would just add one other point 11 from the resolution which was just read a few 12 moments ago. But in addition to the athletic 13 achievements that you have achieved for 14 yourselves, note that what you have done -- 15 and what we say here in this resolution -- 16 that you have inspired and brought pride to 17 their community. Inspired and brought pride 18 to your community. That means your village, 19 that means your town, that means your school 20 district, that means Onondaga County, it means 21 all of Central New York. 22 So you did more than just win a 23 series of baseball games, including one in 24 Michigan, to allow us to call you World Series 25 champions; you inspired and brought pride to

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 all of us who are proud to represent you. So 2 thank you very much, and congratulations. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 4 you, Senator Valesky. 5 Is there any other Senator wishing 6 to speak on the resolution? 7 Seeing none, the question is on the 8 resolution. All in favor signify by saying 9 aye. 10 (Response of "Aye.") 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 12 Opposed? 13 (No response.) 14 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 15 resolution is adopted. 16 And we want to extend our 17 congratulations again to the North Syracuse 18 All-Star Baseball Team World Series Champions 19 of the Babe Ruth League. 20 Congratulations. It's good to know 21 that spring training is here and the season is 22 at hand. 23 (Applause.) 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 25 Libous.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 2 Mr. President. 3 I believe there is a resolution at 4 the desk by Senator Rivera. He would ask that 5 we read its title only, and then please call 6 on Senator Rivera. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 8 Secretary will read. 9 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 10 Rivera, Legislative Resolution Number 675, 11 congratulating the Celia Cruz Bronx High 12 School of Music Show Choir upon the occasion 13 of being named the "Best Choir in New York 14 City" at the Bronx Zoo's Inaugural SING! for 15 Wildlife competition on December 30, 2010. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 17 Rivera. 18 SENATOR RIVERA: Thank you, 19 Mr. President. 20 I stand today to congratulate the 21 students from the Celia Cruz High School for 22 their "Best Choir in New York City" win just a 23 couple of weeks ago. 24 And I was hoping that Senator 25 Nozzolio would be here, since he was thanking

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 the South Seneca Elementary School choir. 2 This is obviously -- we're kind of in the same 3 field here. 4 They actually won the first 5 competition that was held by the Bronx Zoo, by 6 the SING! for Wildlife competition. And it 7 was -- I saw them perform at the Hard Rock 8 Cafe just a couple of weeks ago. They started 9 with "Route 66," so kind of a jazzy number, 10 then moving on to some classical choral 11 performances, and finishing off with a 12 "Phantom of the Opera" rendition. 13 And these kids are an inspiration. 14 The Celia Cruz High School is only a couple of 15 blocks from my home. And I got to see them 16 and hear them for the first time only a couple 17 of weeks ago. 18 And I think that is a testament to 19 the importance of arts education in our 20 schools. The way that they became this very 21 tight choral organization, how they used arts 22 to not only learn how to perform but also to 23 perform better at school. They're actually 24 almost all of them honor students. 25 These are kids that unfortunately

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 could not be here with us today, but I wanted 2 to make sure that I stood up and I said that I 3 congratulate them, that I wish them nothing 4 but success, and to remind everyone that it is 5 for programs like this that we are fighting 6 for. Not only do they get to sing and 7 perform, but they get to use the arts as one 8 of the tools to become better students and 9 better people. 10 I also want to make sure that I 11 congratulate their parents and the teachers 12 there, particularly the choir director, Lisa 13 Gwasda. And she is an amazing performer as 14 well. 15 So I would ask my colleagues to 16 join me in celebrating this victory for them 17 and a victory for New York City. 18 Thank you so much, Mr. President. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 20 you, Senator Rivera. 21 Any other Senator wishing to be 22 heard? 23 The question therefore is on the 24 resolution. All in favor signify by saying 25 aye.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 (Response of "Aye.") 2 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 3 Opposed? 4 (No response.) 5 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 6 resolution is adopted. 7 Senator Libous. 8 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 9 Mr. President. 10 I believe there is a resolution at 11 the desk by Senator Fuschillo, Number 591. He 12 would ask that you read it, please, in its 13 entirety, and then call on Senator Fuschillo. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 15 Secretary will read. 16 I'd ask that we have order in the 17 chamber, please. Order in the chamber, 18 please. 19 The Secretary will read. 20 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 21 Fuschillo, Legislative Resolution Number 591, 22 mourning the untimely death of Nassau County 23 Police Officer Michael J. Califano on 24 February 4, 2011. 25 "WHEREAS, It is the sense of this

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Legislative Body to convey its grateful 2 appreciation and heartfelt regret in 3 recognition of the loss of a courageous police 4 officer who dedicated his purposeful life and 5 career in faithful service to his family and 6 to the residents of Nassau County; and 7 "WHEREAS, It is with profound 8 sadness that this Legislative Body records the 9 passing of Nassau County Police Officer 10 Michael J. Califano, who made the ultimate 11 sacrifice on February 4, 2011, while 12 faithfully executing his responsibilities, 13 serving with dedication, loyalty, and 14 compassion, and who devoted his purposeful 15 life and career to serve and protect; and 16 "WHEREAS, Nassau County Police 17 Officer Michael J. Califano exemplified what 18 it truly means to give of himself in providing 19 vital police services in keeping with the 20 noble mission of the Nassau County Police 21 Department; and 22 "WHEREAS, Officer Michael Califano, 23 a 44-year-old respondent of Wantagh and a 24 12-year veteran of the department, died in the 25 line of duty on February 4, 2011. He was a

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 highway patrolman and the first Nassau County 2 police officer to die in the line of duty 3 since 1993; and 4 "WHEREAS, Growing up in North 5 Massapequa, and graduating from St. John the 6 Baptist High School in West Islip, Michael 7 Califano earned his associate degree in 8 criminal justice from Nassau Community 9 College; and 10 "WHEREAS, Joining the Nassau County 11 Correction Department in 1988, Officer Michael 12 Califano worked at the county jail in East 13 Meadow, then joined the police department in 14 1998 and was appointed to the First Precinct. 15 He moved to the Highway Patrol squad in 2008; 16 and 17 "WHEREAS, A great family man who 18 was well-loved, Officer Michael Califano is 19 survived by his wife, Jacqueline, and their 20 three children, Michael, Christopher and 21 Andrew; parents, Catherine and Michael; 22 brothers, Edward and Charles; and sisters, 23 Karen and Donna; and 24 "WHEREAS, Armed with a humanistic 25 spirit, imbued with a sense of compassion, and

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 comforted by a loving family, Nassau County 2 Police Officer Michael J. Califano leaves 3 behind a legacy which will long endure the 4 passage of time and will remain as a 5 comforting memory to all he served and 6 befriended. He will be deeply missed and 7 truly merits the grateful tribute of this 8 Legislative Body; now, therefore, be it 9 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative 10 Body pause in its deliberations to mourn the 11 untimely death of Nassau County Police Officer 12 Michael J. Califano, noting the significance 13 of his contributions on behalf of the citizens 14 of this noble Empire State, and expressing its 15 deepest condolences to his family; and be it 16 further 17 "RESOLVED, That copies of this 18 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted 19 to the family of Officer Michael J. Califano." 20 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: I would 21 ask the chamber to come to silence, please, 22 out of respect for the slain police officer. 23 And I call upon Senator Fuschillo 24 to speak. 25 May I have silence in the chamber,

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 please. 2 SENATOR FUSCHILLO: Thank you 3 very much, Mr. President. 4 And unlike the previous resolutions 5 where we were celebrating individuals' 6 accomplishments, this is certainly a 7 resolution that is extremely sad. 8 On February 4th of this year, 9 nearly a month ago, Police Officer Michael 10 Califano lost his life while on duty on the 11 Long Island Expressway, pulling over a box 12 truck. A sleepy driver in another truck that 13 was carrying cars, the gentleman fell asleep, 14 crashed right into his car, and Michael 15 Califano was killed instantly. 16 He leaves behind a wife who he 17 loved dearly, Jackie; his son Michael, 18 13 years old; his son Chris, 11; and a younger 19 boy named Andrew. 20 I grew up working with his father, 21 Michael Califano, and he always boasted about 22 his children. And his son was really the 23 apple of the eye of so many not only in his 24 family but throughout the community. 25 I attended the funeral, and this is

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 the first police officer that died in Nassau 2 County since 1993. And I have to tell you 3 something, it was one of the saddest moments 4 of my life to see thousands and thousands of 5 police officers and individuals in law 6 enforcement throughout New York, throughout 7 New Jersey and Connecticut and from other 8 states that came to really celebrate the life 9 of Michael Califano. 10 The resolution says it all. He was 11 a great individual. He comes from a great 12 family. And we lost somebody that really this 13 community loves. And his loss is not only to 14 his family in Nassau County, but to the entire 15 State of New York. 16 And thank you very much, 17 Mr. President, for having the resolution read 18 on the floor. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 20 you, Senator Fuschillo. 21 The question is on the resolution. 22 All in favor signify by saying aye. 23 (Response of "Aye.") 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 25 Opposed?

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 (No response.) 2 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 3 resolution is adopted. 4 Senator Libous. 5 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President, 6 could I ask the members to please stand in a 7 moment of silence in honor of Officer 8 Califano, please. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: All 10 members please rise in a moment of silent 11 reflection in honor of Officer Michael 12 Califano. 13 (Whereupon, the assemblage 14 respected a moment of silence.) 15 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 16 Libous. 17 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 18 Mr. President. 19 I believe Senator Fuschillo has 20 another resolution at the desk. But he's only 21 requiring that we read its title and go to its 22 immediate adoption. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 24 Secretary will read. 25 THE SECRETARY: By Senator

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Fuschillo, legislative resolution 2 commemorating the 114th Birthday of the 3 Chatterton PTA, to be observed at its 2011 4 Founders Day Celebration. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 6 question is on the resolution. All in favor 7 signify by saying aye. 8 (Response of "Aye.") 9 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 10 Opposed? 11 (No response.) 12 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 13 resolution is adopted. 14 Senator Libous. 15 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President, 16 thank you. 17 At this time I now hand up the 18 following committee assignments and ask that 19 such assignments be filed in the Journal. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: So 21 ordered. The assignments will be so filed in 22 the Journal. 23 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 24 Mr. President. 25 At this time there will be an

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 immediate meeting of the Finance Committee, 2 followed by an immediate meeting of the Rules 3 Committee in Room 332. 4 So at this time, Mr. President, I 5 ask that the Senate stand at ease. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: There 7 will be an immediate meeting of the Senate 8 Finance Committee, followed by an immediate 9 meeting of the Senate Rules Committee in 10 Room 332. 11 And the Senate will stand at ease. 12 (Whereupon, the Senate stood at 13 ease at 3:56 p.m.) 14 (Whereupon, the Senate reconvened 15 at 4:36 p.m.) 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 17 Senate will come to order. 18 Senator Libous. 19 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 20 Mr. President. 21 May we please return to reports of 22 standing committees. I believe there is a 23 report of the Rules Committee at the desk, and 24 may we please have it read. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Secretary will read. 2 THE SECRETARY: Senator Skelos, 3 from the Committee on Rules, reports the 4 following bills: 5 Senate Print 3143A, by Senator 6 Grisanti, an act to amend the Education Law; 7 And Senate Print 3501B, by Senator 8 Flanagan, an act to amend the Education Law. 9 Both bills ordered direct to third 10 reading. 11 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President, I 12 move to accept the report of the Rules 13 Committee. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: All in 15 favor of accepting the report of the Rules 16 Committee signify by saying aye. 17 (Response of "Aye.") 18 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 19 Opposed, nay. 20 (No response.) 21 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 22 report is accepted. 23 Senator Libous. 24 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 25 Mr. President.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 At this time may we please have the 2 reading of the noncontroversial calendar. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 4 Secretary will read. 5 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 6 6, by Senator Dilan, Senate Print 1369, an act 7 to amend the Highway Law. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 9 the last section. 10 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This 11 act shall take effect immediately. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 13 the roll. 14 (The Secretary called the roll.) 15 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 60. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 17 bill is passed. 18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 19 7, by Senator Diaz, Senate Print 331, an act 20 to amend the Elder Law. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 22 the last section. 23 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This 24 act shall take effect immediately. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 the roll. 2 (The Secretary called the roll.) 3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 60. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 5 bill is passed. 6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 7 95, by Senator Lanza -- 8 SENATOR BRESLIN: Lay it aside. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Lay it 10 aside. 11 Senator Libous, that completes the 12 reading of the noncontroversial calendar. 13 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 14 Mr. President. 15 Can we please take up the reading 16 of the noncontroversial supplemental calendar. 17 It will be Calendar Number 145, please, by 18 Senator Flanagan. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 20 Secretary will read. 21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 22 145, by Senator Flanagan, Senate Print 3501B, 23 an act to amend the Education Law. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 25 the last section.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 THE SECRETARY: Section 7. This 2 act shall take effect immediately. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 4 the roll. 5 (The Secretary called the roll.) 6 SENATOR BRESLIN: Lay it aside. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Lay it 8 aside. 9 Senator Libous. 10 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President, 11 we're going to go back to the regular calendar 12 and we're going to read the controversial 13 calendar, please. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 15 Secretary will ring the bell. 16 The Secretary will read the 17 controversial calendar. 18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 19 95, by Senator Lanza, Senate Print 3090, an 20 act to amend the Real Property Tax Law. 21 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: 22 Explanation. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 24 Explanation requested by Senator Krueger. 25 Senator Lanza.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 SENATOR LANZA: This extends the 2 deadline for application for tax abatements 3 for the industrial and commercial construction 4 work in New York City. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 6 you, Senator Lanza. 7 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you, 8 Mr. President. If the sponsor would please 9 yield. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 11 Lanza, do you yield? 12 SENATOR LANZA: Of course. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 14 Krueger. 15 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you. 16 What is the cost of this program, 17 the ICAP program? 18 SENATOR LANZA: Well, it depends 19 on your point of view. This is a tax 20 abatement that would assist in construction 21 that would arguably contribute to the tax base 22 of the City of New York. 23 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: If, through 24 you, the sponsor would continue to yield, 25 Mr. President.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 2 Lanza, do you continue to yield? 3 SENATOR LANZA: Yes. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 5 Krueger. 6 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you. 7 Well, when we passed in 2008, which 8 sunsetted the ICIP program and made it the 9 ICAP program and made some changes, there was 10 an estimated cost of $625 million. And now 11 this bill would extend time periods within 12 this program and make some other change. 13 So do you agree or disagree that it 14 would cost more or less than the original 2008 15 bill? 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Again, 17 Senator, it would depend upon your point of 18 view. You and I have a difference of opinion 19 from that perspective. 20 I believe that the City of New York 21 would see a significant gain in tax revenue as 22 a result of the passage of this bill into law. 23 So from my perspective, there would not only 24 be no cost here, but there would be revenue 25 provided to the City of New York.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Mr. 2 President, on the bill. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 4 Krueger on the bill. 5 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you. 6 I want to thank the sponsor for his 7 explanation. 8 And I want to say that he's 9 correct, that there is sometimes a difference 10 of opinion about whether a bill that exempts 11 people from paying taxes is a cost or not a 12 cost. 13 For this record, this does not cost 14 the State of New York any money, this would 15 only be the giving up of collection of taxes 16 by the City of New York. 17 But in fact this program does have 18 a history of actually costing the City of 19 New York quite a bit. The last time there was 20 a serious look at this program was when we 21 were moving to sunset ICIP in 2008. And I 22 voted against creating a new program, but it 23 was created. 24 But at that time studies were done 25 that showed that the City of New York over the

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 25-year term of the ICIP subsidy program lost 2 $1.1 billion in tax revenue, and it found that 3 the vast majority of the tax incentives had 4 gone to projects in the city that the city 5 itself determined would have happened anyway. 6 So again, the question of whether a 7 tax subsidy or a tax exemption creates new 8 activity with new revenues or doesn't is 9 really in the details of whether that program 10 has proven successful or not. 11 So in fact, based on the old 12 model -- which is different, ICIP versus 13 ICAP -- of the $3.4 billion awarded through 14 the ICIP program during the period of time 15 studied, 25 years, $2.8 billion of the 16 $3.4 billion was lost in revenue and I don't 17 believe was justified. 18 At the time I argued that this was 19 not a good economic development model and that 20 the City of New York, even though it's their 21 right to ask us to allow them to exempt some 22 people from paying taxes, that the City of 23 New York wasn't in a position to continue a 24 program that lost it taxpayer dollars that 25 then they didn't have for other programs.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 I think it's particularly relevant 2 to ask that same question today. We are 3 talking about cutting a large number of 4 programs out of the state budget. The City of 5 New York has submitted their proposed 6 executive budget. They're talking about 7 closing daycare centers, closing senior 8 centers, ending fundamental social services 9 programs. In fact, they're talking about 10 laying off teachers. 11 I would argue that at this moment 12 in time, even if the mayor of the City of 13 New York has said "Let me continue this 14 program," this isn't the right time for him to 15 ask us to expand and continue a program that 16 loses the city tax money when they are telling 17 us they don't have enough money to run crucial 18 fundamental programs. And in fact, they are 19 both saying they're laying off teachers, 20 closing senior centers, closing daycare 21 centers, but they are coming to us for 22 additional money because they don't have 23 enough tax revenue to pay for their programs. 24 I have to say it again. You have 25 to make decisions about what you cut, what you

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 collect revenue on, and when you decide some 2 people don't have to pay their taxes. And at 3 this point in history, given the history and 4 the record of not-success of these programs 5 such as ICIP, this is the wrong time for the 6 State of New York actually give permission to 7 the City of New York to give up tax revenue, 8 forcing them into a situation where, yes, they 9 might have to close senior centers, daycare 10 centers, and lay off teachers. 11 I would urge that we not vote to 12 continue or expand upon this program today. I 13 would argue that everyone should vote no. 14 Thank you, Mr. President. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 16 Lanza. 17 SENATOR LANZA: Thank you, 18 Mr. President. On the bill. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 20 Lanza on the bill. 21 SENATOR LANZA: You know, I 22 listened to my good friend Senator Krueger, 23 and I think her discussion here really points 24 out the difference between our two 25 perspectives and our two philosophies.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Let me point out that this would 2 not be a new tax incentive. This is a program 3 that is currently in effect. 4 The suggestion by my colleague's 5 discussion would mean that creating a new tax 6 would somehow become a cost to the state. We 7 could say that about any imagined new tax that 8 someone might offer to put into place. 9 This is a program that exists 10 today. We're saying rather than allow it to 11 sunset, we should continue it. So first, from 12 that perspective, there is no cost to the 13 state because there is no revenue being 14 collected right now. 15 If we let this sunset, there will 16 be a brand-new tax imposed on the people of 17 the City of New York. That's what would 18 happen. From my perspective, this is the 19 absolute wrong time to enact new taxes. 20 Over the last two years, we were 21 told that enacting -- and this is another 22 point where we differ -- we were told that 23 enacting $14 billion in new taxes would mean 24 that we would never see the day where we would 25 have to be threatened by teacher layoffs and

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 civil service layoffs and service cuts across 2 the board. This day was not to come, we were 3 told, as long as we enacted all these new 4 taxes. 5 Well, a funny thing happened on the 6 way to the forum, which is that by enacting 7 those new taxes, both statewide and in the 8 city, a big chunk of our tax base left the 9 state. 10 So yes, we have a difference of 11 opinion here. I believe that this is the 12 wrong time to impose new taxes on the people 13 of this state, and that's why I support this 14 bill. I encourage everyone to vote in the 15 affirmative. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Is 17 there any other Senator wishing to be heard? 18 Seeing none, debate is closed and 19 the Secretary will ring the bell. 20 Read the last section. 21 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This 22 act shall take effect immediately. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 24 the roll. 25 (The Secretary called the roll.)

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 2 Parker. 3 SENATOR PARKER: Mr. President, 4 to explain my vote. 5 One, I want to thank Senator Lanza 6 for his leadership, particularly on these kind 7 of bread-and-butter issues. It's really 8 important and critical that we deal with this 9 crisis. We're not in a budget crisis, folks, 10 we're in a jobs crisis. We need to create 11 full-time jobs at a living wage with benefits, 12 and we need to do that by spurring our 13 economy. 14 But this is not the right way, and 15 so I'm voting no on the bill. 16 You know, Senator Lanza, you know, 17 we're entitled to our own opinions but not our 18 own facts. The last budget cuts did not lead 19 to anybody leaving the state. You know, we 20 may not have done everything that we needed to 21 to get all the funds in, but that's a 22 technical problem. It's not as simple as 23 people leaving the state, which we can't prove 24 scientifically or mathematically. 25 So I'm voting no because the City

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 of New York ought to be looking at its 2 corporate welfare programs and drawing some of 3 that money back in and do the things that we 4 need to do to invest in things like education 5 and maintain the fair-share millionaire's tax 6 so that we can have the funds to have programs 7 for people who just need it in this economy. 8 People are looking for jobs and need housing 9 and need healthcare. 10 So I vote no on this bill. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 12 Parker to be recorded in the negative. 13 Senator Montgomery. 14 SENATOR MONTGOMERY: Yes, 15 Mr. President, thank you. To explain my vote. 16 I'm also going to oppose the 17 extension of these tax abatements. There are 18 a number of buildings in my district. These 19 are wonderful buildings. They have, you know, 20 beautiful height, 40 and 50 stories and 21 whatever have you. One of them has -- the 22 co-investor in one of them is Magic Johnson. 23 Another one is Jay-Z. 24 And I don't think that Jay-Z nor 25 Magic Johnson nor any of the people who live

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 in those buildings receiving tax abatements at 2 our expense are asking for more welfare. They 3 don't need it. So we can cut this off; they 4 will be fine. 5 We need that money for services. 6 We need money for affordable housing. For all 7 the people who came to talk to me today who 8 are in desperate need of housing, supportive 9 housing, affordable housing, those are the 10 people that we should be looking to help. Not 11 Jay-Z, not Magic Johnson, not all of those 12 millionaires who have recently moved into 13 those beautiful buildings, some of them in my 14 own district. 15 So I'm voting no on this bill. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 17 Montgomery to be recorded in the negative. 18 Announce the results. 19 THE SECRETARY: Those recorded in 20 the negative on Calendar Number 95 are 21 Senators Hassell-Thompson, Huntley, 22 L. Krueger, Montgomery, Parker, Rivera and 23 Serrano. Also Senator Perkins. 24 Ayes, 52. Nays, 8. 25 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 bill is passed. 2 THE SECRETARY: Senator Libous, 3 that completes the controversial reading of 4 the calendar. 5 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 6 Mr. President. 7 We are now going to go to the 8 controversial reading of the supplemental 9 calendar, Calendar Number 145, please. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 11 Secretary will ring the bell. 12 The Secretary will read. 13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 14 145, by Senator Flanagan, Senate Print 3501B, 15 an act to amend the Education Law. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Read 17 the last section. 18 Senator Oppenheimer, do you rise? 19 SENATOR OPPENHEIMER: 20 Explanation, please, Mr. President. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 22 Oppenheimer asked for an explanation. 23 Senator Flanagan. 24 SENATOR FLANAGAN: Thank you, 25 Mr. President. Thank you, Senator

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Oppenheimer. 2 I will endeavor to be as succinct 3 as possible. I don't think this comes as a 4 surprise to anybody what bill that we have 5 before us and what the basic contents of it 6 are. I'm going to speak to it in some detail, 7 and I'm sure there are going to be other 8 people who have comments and thoughts on the 9 subject. 10 This has to do with education in 11 the City of New York, but frankly I think it 12 has to do with education in the entire State 13 of New York. Because one of the things that's 14 happened -- and I've heard this, and everybody 15 hears this: Well, if you're from the North 16 Country, you can't understand Long Island. If 17 you're from Long Island, you can't understand 18 New York City. If you're from New York City, 19 you can't understand other parts of the state. 20 I've never believed that. I don't 21 subscribe to that theory. So when we act on 22 legislation that affects various parts of the 23 state, I do so on this bill in my capacity of 24 chairing the Senate Education Committee. 25 That's why I introduced it.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 And some of this discussion came up 2 earlier this morning. I didn't think it would 3 be appropriate to have this entered as a Rules 4 bill. It's too serious a subject. It's too 5 important to students and children in the City 6 of New York, it's too important to teachers in 7 the City of New York, and it's too important 8 to the City of New York. 9 I think it needs a full airing, 10 fair debate, vigorous debate, healthy debate. 11 There will probably be a number of 12 disagreements along the way. But I don't 13 think we don't meet our obligation if we don't 14 start by discussing some of that, whether it 15 be in committee or on the floor. 16 Having said that, largely what this 17 bill does is what I consider to be a 18 relatively straightforward change in the law. 19 This subject has been commonly referred to as 20 LIFO -- last in, first out. You're the last 21 one hired, you're the first one out if there's 22 a citywide layoff. 23 We changed the bill, instituted a 24 number of standards and procedures. And we 25 basically say that the paradigm has changed.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Now the basic standard is you cannot simply 2 use seniority as the sole criterion. You can 3 use it, it just can't be the sole criterion. 4 So for those people that say this is repealing 5 seniority as part of the determinations that 6 are made, that's inaccurate. 7 The first portion of the bill 8 speaks to language that I think is 9 extraordinarily important, because I've 10 listened to all the comments about what this 11 bill is and what it isn't. Section 3 of the 12 bill -- and this is probably the most 13 important language in the entire bill -- "the 14 city school district and its employees' 15 collective bargaining agents shall establish a 16 procedure governing the abolishment or 17 reduction of teaching or supervisory positions 18 citywide" pursuant to this article. 19 And it goes on to say that 20 seniority cannot be the sole criterion. And 21 it goes on to say beyond that that a person's 22 salary cannot be a factor in the determination 23 as to whether or not a layoff for that 24 individual is going to occur. And it goes on 25 beyond that to say that if you are going to

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 consider seniority, that it can only be done 2 in a fashion that is the most positive to the 3 employee, not to the employer. If it's going 4 to be viewed, it's got to be done in a 5 positive way. 6 So there is seniority. There is 7 collective bargaining. There are guarantees 8 that someone will not be thrown out because of 9 salary. And it sets up a process so that 10 everything else that I tell you right after 11 this, if the city and the UFT sit down and 12 negotiate an agreement, that's it. All the 13 other provisions of this bill do not apply. 14 And it gives them time to do that. 15 And why are we doing this? I think 16 it's important to perhaps recognize some of 17 the issues. I've met a number of times with 18 the mayor's staff, spoken to the mayor, spoken 19 to the chancellor at some length. The City of 20 New York, like all of our school districts and 21 the State of New York, is facing a very 22 difficult budget scenario. Budget deficit, 23 budget crisis, however one may want to 24 describe it. Personally, I think it's a 25 budget crisis not only for the city but for

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 the State of New York. 2 Budget crisis for the city because 3 they're talking about the potential loss of 4 6,000 teaching positions. Now, I've heard all 5 kinds of numbers, as has everybody else. I 6 look at this way. Six thousand positions, 7 1500 of those purportedly are going to go away 8 through attrition. Okay, I think I can 9 understand that; I think everyone else can 10 basically understand that. 11 That leaves about 4500 potential 12 layoffs pursuant to a scenario that has been 13 laid out by the mayor and the Department of 14 Education in the mayor's budget that 15 details -- by license area, by community, by 16 school district, by Assembly district, by 17 Senate district -- where exactly this is going 18 to happen. 19 If you put that on the table for 20 the moment, what the bill goes on to say is if 21 there is not an agreement reached between the 22 city and the UFT -- and I repeat, "if." It 23 says they shall negotiate. But if that 24 negotiation does not bear fruit, we establish 25 nine different categories of people who would

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 be considered first for layoffs and then 2 establish another layer within that as well. 3 Those nine categories have to do 4 with a variety of different factors. And I'll 5 use loose descriptions but recite them and 6 then perhaps explain a few in some more 7 detail: An unsatisfactory rating, a 3020-a 8 proceeding, the teacher reserve pool, criminal 9 charges, lateness or absenteeism, 10 investigations, certification, value-added and 11 tenure extension. 12 Now, I've listened very carefully 13 not only in committee but to my colleagues 14 outside of committee, and have read as many 15 things probably as anyone in this chamber has 16 about some of these categories. There seems 17 to be a fair amount of agreement that if our 18 goal is to make sure that we have the best 19 teachers in the classroom that we have to 20 start to look at issues like this, given the 21 realities that we're facing from a budgetary 22 standpoint. 23 And I think this type of discussion 24 is a healthy one even if we were flush with 25 cash. Because a lot of people seem to have

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 talked about this, but the can has not been 2 kicked down the road, or it hasn't moved in a 3 positive way down the road on issues like 4 this. 5 I understand -- I don't have to 6 agree, but I understand that there are those 7 who will say "I am philosophically opposed to 8 anything that would modify the seniority 9 system." People are going to be entitled to 10 their opinion, and I'm sure they will be 11 strongly held, and I'm not going to quibble 12 with that. 13 But if you look at these 14 categories, what the structure says is if you 15 can't come to an agreement between the city 16 and the UFT, then you go first to these nine 17 different categories. And then beyond that, 18 if you haven't reached the appropriate layoff 19 number, then you go to the State of New York. 20 You go to the State Department of Education 21 and the Regents, and they have a time frame 22 under which they are supposed to act. So you 23 have city/UFT; if that doesn't work, nine 24 categories; and the Regents. 25 If the Regents should fail to act,

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 then it gets kicked back to the City of 2 New York through the Department of Education 3 and the chancellor, and that system will be 4 administered in conjunction with guidelines 5 proposed by the chancellor and administered by 6 principals at the school level. 7 Now, there are a number of other 8 protections in this bill. And again, I'm 9 going to probably -- if I sound repetitive, 10 it's for a reason. All of these become a moot 11 point if there is an agreement reached between 12 the UFT and the city. And for those -- and 13 I've read some of these memos myself -- this 14 does not get rid of collective bargaining. A 15 simple reading of this bill would underscore 16 that. It says mandatory, "shall bargain." It 17 fosters, it enhances, it promotes. It 18 mandates -- yes, bad word up here, but it 19 mandates collective bargaining. 20 Now, in some of these categories 21 there are people saying there's no due 22 process, these people are going to be unfairly 23 treated, that this is grossly unfair and it 24 should be a different system. The reality is 25 we're speaking and debating about the bill

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 that is before us. 2 Number one category, unsatisfactory 3 rating. There are approximately 2700 people 4 in this category, and over the last five years 5 that number as a percentage basis, even with 6 changes and even with improvements, roughly 7 2.3 percent of all teachers in the City of 8 New York fall within this category. Meaning 9 over 97 percent fall outside. So while every 10 one of us would like to see every teacher not 11 get a rating like this, the reality is that 12 there are people who get this. 13 This process was collectively 14 bargained. So I don't buy the concept that 15 it's unfair. If people want to change it, 16 they can collectively bargain it away. But 17 it's not unfair. It was negotiated by the 18 city and the UFT. 19 And, ladies and gentlemen, I've 20 spent a lot of time reading this stuff; it's 21 exhaustive. You just don't get stamped with a 22 "U" rating. There's a whole procedure that 23 has to be adhered to by principals, by 24 schools, by superintendents, and by the 25 chancellor.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 There are 23 different criteria 2 that are part of that review that occurs over 3 the course of a year. So I don't think it's a 4 fair assessment to say that somehow we're just 5 going after a group like this and they're 6 disadvantaged or at an unfair disadvantage. 7 They've been through a process which includes, 8 by the way, a right of appeal. 9 And in this category we do 10 differentiate, saying that if you've had a "U" 11 rating in the last five years, here's how we 12 would make a qualitative difference. If 13 you've had more than one in the last five 14 years, you're getting considered first. If 15 you've had one that's of more recent vintage, 16 you're going to get considered second. 17 So if someone says to me, "Well, in 18 the last five years, Year One I got a "U" 19 rating, for the following four years I got a 20 better rating" -- bear in mind, that "U" 21 rating could have been initially been 22 appealed. And again, that was a process that 23 was collectively bargained for. 24 Number two, 3020-a proceedings. 25 These are people who have been found to have

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 engaged in improper conduct and there's been a 2 determination made. Not an accusation, not a 3 charge, people who have gone through the 4 process. I think if you went to the average 5 person on the street and you say, "Well, 6 there's roughly 300 people in this 7 category" -- but we say 3020-a. That's the 8 process that you go through to see if someone 9 should be keeping their job, and if they're 10 found guilty one of the sanctions can include 11 removal. Nothing has happened to these folks 12 in terms of interim removal from their 13 positions. 14 The teacher reserve pool. 15 Fascinating to learn about the teacher reserve 16 pool, because I think of the average taxpayer 17 in terms of what they think and how they would 18 act on this. 19 Right now the category that would 20 fit in under this bill -- and by the way, 21 these numbers that I'm speaking to are numbers 22 that have been provided by the City of 23 New York. I can attest to their accuracy and 24 to the extent they've been given in good faith 25 by the city laying out who are in these

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 various categories. 2 ATR. About 4,000 to 4,500 teachers 3 go through the process every year and get what 4 I would loosely describe as being excessed. 5 Around 3,000 to 3,500 of them tend to get 6 picked up within a relatively short period of 7 time. The people we're talking about here, 8 they've been in the pool longer than six 9 months. 10 And here's the nifty thing -- I 11 don't like this, and I didn't bargain for it, 12 but it's in there -- they can stay in that 13 pool, they don't have to do anything. They 14 don't even have to apply for a job. They 15 don't have to do anything. They can stay in 16 that pool, they don't even have to apply for a 17 job. 18 Now, in that group I told you, of 19 the general population it's roughly 20 2.3 percent of all teachers get an 21 unsatisfactory rating. Well, in this group 22 it's about 10 times higher. So there's about 23 30 percent of the people in this pool have 24 been rated unsatisfactory. 25 Criminal charges. Now, these are,

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 again, determinations made by independent 2 people. This is not me, it's not you, it's 3 not the City Board of Education. And I'm not 4 going to go into detail, but trust me when I 5 tell you that if I read off the list of what 6 these criminal charges are, any one of us, no 7 matter where you live or what your political 8 pedigree, would have a hard time justifying to 9 our constituents and parents why these people 10 continue to hold employment in the public 11 school system where they're dealing directly 12 with children, because it's things like sexual 13 assault, burglary, forgery, all kinds of bad 14 things that the average person would say that 15 person should not be involved. 16 Lateness or absenteeism. Here's 17 another thing I learned. By the time you get 18 in this pool, somebody has been on you 19 incessantly. You don't get put in this 20 category -- and there's about 200 people; I 21 realize it's not a huge thing -- but you don't 22 get put in that pool unless you have been 23 notified, notified, notified again. 24 And if you have that kind of 25 problem, frankly I don't want you teaching in

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 my school either. I don't think it's too much 2 to ask a teacher to get to class on time. If 3 there's a legitimate explanation, you don't 4 end up in this pool. 5 Certification -- let me go to 6 value-added. That's probably the most 7 significant one. 8 There is a lot of consternation 9 about how you make determinations on the 10 qualitative value of a teacher and to a degree 11 the quantitative value of their work. And 12 there are those who say we shouldn't be doing 13 this because the State Ed Department, through 14 the Regents, they're going to get that done. 15 Commissioner Steiner says, "We don't need 16 this, we're putting together the system, all 17 of this is going to be moot." 18 The language in this bill speaks to 19 a value-added model. Okay, what's a 20 value-added model? Well, one thing I can tell 21 you a value-added model is is something that 22 everybody in this house voted for and 23 supported unanimously in last year's Race to 24 the Top legislation. It's the same language. 25 So do I think the implementation of

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 that is important? Absolutely. But for any 2 anyone who has concerns, not every member here 3 was here last year, but everybody who was here 4 last year voted for a bill that called for a 5 value-added assessment. 6 And then the last category is 7 tenure extension. I guess my general point is 8 I, like everybody in this room, I take this 9 work very seriously. I fundamentally believe 10 that there is nothing more important in 11 education than having a good teacher. I said 12 it this morning in the committee. Give me -- 13 if the window's broken, the heat's not working 14 the right way, that is completely secondary to 15 having someone in the front of that classroom 16 who is a craftsman in their trade. 17 That's what I think we all want, 18 and this is an attempt to try and move that 19 issue in a positive direction in light of the 20 fact that there are serious fiscal constraints 21 facing all entities of government, including 22 the City of New York. 23 There are repetitious parts of this 24 legislation that keep speaking to salary 25 cannot be the only determination. You can't

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 be let go because you happen to make a good 2 salary. And if your seniority is going to be 3 part of that determination, it can only be 4 viewed in a favorable light. 5 There is a bill in the Assembly, 6 Assemblyman Bing has introduced the bill. I 7 can't tell you -- and I'm sure all of you 8 probably know this just as well -- where it's 9 going to go in the Assembly. I daresay it's 10 going to have a little bit more of a challenge 11 than in our house here today. 12 But this is a very important step 13 forward not only for education in the City of 14 New York, but I think for education in the 15 State of New York. 16 And I heard it described this 17 morning, this was being described as a 18 political bill. Personally, as the sponsor of 19 the bill, I don't view it that way. I 20 listened to Senator Addabbo, Senator 21 Montgomery, Senator Oppenheimer, a number of 22 my colleagues. We've already made changes in 23 the bill based on concerns and comments raised 24 by a number of different parties, which 25 include the people that we work with on our

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 side of the aisle. 2 So when people talked about 3 value-added, we tried to define that more 4 clearly. When people said it shouldn't just 5 be for any criminal charge, we made 6 clarifications in the law so it could be a lot 7 easier to ascertain, to find and identify. 8 I believe that this is a good bill, 9 and I would ask that everyone, respectfully, 10 support it. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 12 Oppenheimer. 13 SENATOR OPPENHEIMER: I believe 14 that Senator Flanagan believes that this is a 15 good bill. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 17 Oppenheimer, are you on the bill? 18 SENATOR OPPENHEIMER: Yes. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 20 Oppenheimer on the bill. 21 SENATOR OPPENHEIMER: I just will 22 speak on the bill. 23 Though I did have some questions, 24 such as couldn't the City of New York and the 25 unions achieve their goals just as well

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 without this bill. But let me just speak on 2 the bill, take two minutes to speak on the 3 bill. 4 Now, there are many people who 5 believe that LIFO is unfair and not based on 6 ability nor effectiveness of teaching. 7 However, seniority and experience are not the 8 culprit. And we had some humorous examples in 9 Education Committee today of would you rather 10 have a one-year surgeon operate on you or a 11 30-year surgeon, would you rather have a 12 one-year airplane pilot or a 30-year airline 13 pilot serve you. 14 So I do not think that seniority is 15 the culprit here. And our seniority rules 16 have a very long, century-old tradition. And 17 we did that because teachers should not be 18 fired merely because the principal at the 19 school does not like them, doesn't like their 20 color or their religion or whatever. 21 But we do need to develop further 22 evaluation criteria. And this bill is 23 appropriate to be on the table. Also, as I 24 mentioned earlier, I agree with many of the 25 nine categories in the bill. I disagree

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 strongly with the first one. You know, the 2 thought of dismissing a teacher because 3 there's been one poor evaluation in five 4 years, and particularly if it was in the 5 beginning of the evaluation, where the teacher 6 got assistance to improve, that would seem to 7 be grossly unfair. 8 But I think the most important 9 thing here is process. And process is 10 important and dialogue is important and 11 partnership is important. For example, last 12 year we changed the teacher evaluation system 13 using value-added, with union consent. The 14 first time that they had gone along with that. 15 And we created four categories for 16 evaluation in a move to support teachers and 17 principals while removing the ineffective 18 ones. And how was that done? It was done 19 through negotiations with teachers, the 20 education community, the SED and Commissioner 21 Steiner. 22 And by the way, the commissioner 23 will be promulgating rules and regulations 24 around this evaluation, and those rules and 25 regs will come out, we feel, in early June.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 So it might be wise to wait until we see what 2 comes out of his study. 3 I think we should revisit and build 4 on last year's success, because there really 5 is a larger issue. And namely, what if budget 6 constraints require more than just the 7 dismissal of ineffective teachers? So we need 8 to develop fair criteria and negotiate with 9 the teachers, the supervisors, the SED, the 10 Regents, all parties that are a part of this 11 on our way to achieving reform. 12 We cannot wipe out our civil 13 service protections and rights. We are, as I 14 said earlier, not Wisconsin. I think in 15 New York State we don't want to destroy 16 collective bargaining. I think in our state 17 we should not legislate what we think 18 appropriately should be negotiated with all 19 the concerned parties. 20 So at this time I will be voting in 21 the negative, but I know we have many more 22 bills to go through before we reach the end. 23 Thank you. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Thank 25 you, Senator Oppenheimer.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Is there any other Senator wishing 2 to be heard? 3 Hearing none, debate is closed and 4 the Secretary will ring the bell. 5 Read the last section. 6 THE SECRETARY: Section 7. This 7 act shall take effect immediately. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Call 9 the roll. 10 SENATOR BRESLIN: Slow roll call, 11 Mr. President. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Seeing 13 five Senators stand, I ask the Secretary to 14 call the roll slowly. 15 THE SECRETARY: Senator Adams. 16 SENATOR ADAMS: No. 17 THE SECRETARY: Senator Addabbo. 18 SENATOR ADDABBO: No. 19 THE SECRETARY: Senator Alesi. 20 SENATOR ALESI: Yes. 21 THE SECRETARY: Senator Avella. 22 SENATOR AVELLA: No. 23 THE SECRETARY: Senator Ball. 24 SENATOR BALL: Yes. 25 THE SECRETARY: Senator Bonacic.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 SENATOR BONACIC: Yes. 2 THE SECRETARY: Senator Breslin. 3 SENATOR BRESLIN: No. 4 THE SECRETARY: Senator Carlucci. 5 SENATOR CARLUCCI: No. 6 THE SECRETARY: Senator 7 DeFrancisco. 8 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Yes. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator Diaz. 10 SENATOR DIAZ: No. 11 THE SECRETARY: Senator Dilan. 12 SENATOR DILAN: No. 13 THE SECRETARY: Senator Duane, 14 excused. 15 Senator Espaillat. 16 SENATOR ESPAILLAT: No. 17 THE SECRETARY: Senator Farley. 18 SENATOR FARLEY: Aye. 19 THE SECRETARY: Senator Flanagan. 20 SENATOR FLANAGAN: Yes. 21 THE SECRETARY: Senator 22 Fuschillo. 23 SENATOR FUSCHILLO: Yes. 24 THE SECRETARY: Senator Gallivan. 25 SENATOR GALLIVAN: Yes.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 THE SECRETARY: Senator Gianaris. 2 SENATOR GIANARIS: No. 3 THE SECRETARY: Senator Golden. 4 SENATOR GOLDEN: Yes. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator Griffo. 6 SENATOR GRIFFO: Yes. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator Grisanti. 8 SENATOR GRISANTI: Yes. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator Hannon. 10 SENATOR HANNON: Yes. 11 THE SECRETARY: Senator 12 Hassell-Thompson. 13 SENATOR HASSELL-THOMPSON: No. 14 THE SECRETARY: Senator Huntley. 15 SENATOR HUNTLEY: No. 16 THE SECRETARY: Senator Johnson, 17 excused. 18 Senator Kennedy. 19 SENATOR KENNEDY: No. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator Klein. 21 SENATOR KLEIN: Yes. 22 THE SECRETARY: Senator 23 L. Krueger. 24 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: No. 25 THE SECRETARY: Senator C.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 Kruger. 2 SENATOR CARL KRUGER: No. 3 THE SECRETARY: Senator Lanza. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 5 Lanza, to explain his vote. 6 SENATOR LANZA: Thank you, 7 Mr. President. 8 You know, the fiscal crisis we find 9 ourselves in is not the fault of teachers, nor 10 is it the fault of police officers, nor is it 11 the fault of firefighters, nor is it the fault 12 of any of our good civil servants across this 13 state. 14 That being said, none of us should 15 stand by a system that protects bad teachers 16 or bad civil servants. To the extent that 17 LIFO has done that, we need to fix it. 18 It would be easy for all of us in 19 this current climate -- which I find to be 20 breathtaking. Once upon a time many of the 21 people that I watched from back home on Staten 22 Island who worked up here in Albany gave the 23 unions more than they ever asked for, and now 24 some of the same people complain that it was a 25 bad deal. We can't -- as we went too far in

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 one direction, we should not go too far in the 2 other direction. 3 Let me now talk about where we are 4 today and why we're here. Initially, the 5 request was to get rid of LIFO, period, so 6 that the mayor or the chancellor could fire 7 and lay off whomever they wanted based on 8 whatever reason they decided. 9 We have a vastly different bill 10 that was described by the chairman of 11 Education here, my good friend Senator 12 Flanagan. We're here because of his efforts 13 and others in this room. And I want to 14 commend him for bringing us to this point. 15 This is not the end. I believe 16 that we should do precisely what the mayor is 17 asking for, which is to eliminate LIFO to the 18 extent that it protects bad teachers. I think 19 eight of those categories get us there. I 20 believe we should go no further. 21 Because once we end up with a 22 workforce, a group of teacher who it has been 23 decided are good teachers, then yes, seniority 24 matters. It does make a difference. A good 25 teacher who has been teaching for 10 years is

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 probably better than the good teacher who has 2 been teaching for 10 minutes. 3 And so I believe that LIFO does 4 have a place in public service when it comes 5 to our teachers, but not inasmuch as it 6 protects bad teachers. So let's fix it. This 7 does it. 8 I do want to say and bring up 9 something that I brought up to highlight the 10 fact that seniority matters in the Education 11 Committee. 12 A piece of paper was put on my desk 13 last night at about 11 o'clock. It pointed 14 out all the projected layoffs in my district 15 in my schools if we did not fix LIFO. And 16 what it said was in all the schools where we 17 have seniority, there would be no layoffs. 18 And in all the schools where there was less 19 seniority, there would be layoffs. And that 20 was supposed to tell me that seniority was not 21 a good thing. 22 Well, let me tell you that 23 according to that list, all the schools in my 24 district which have the most seniority 25 according to the mayor's standards are the

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 best schools in my district. Now, that's an 2 oversimplification of why those facts came out 3 that way on that paper. But seniority 4 matters. 5 So I'm going to vote yes to 6 continue this process down the line. And I've 7 looked into my crystal ball, and it tells me 8 that this is not going to be the bill that 9 becomes law. And we're going to have, we are 10 going to have a law that will make sure that 11 we no longer protect bad teachers -- which, as 12 Senator Flanagan aptly pointed out, represents 13 the very small minority of all the teachers. 14 And in talking to the many people 15 I've talked to over the month, you know who 16 most wants to do something about bad teachers? 17 Good teachers. Good teachers more than anyone 18 else -- perhaps even more than parents -- want 19 something done about it. 20 So we must do something. This bill 21 gets us almost there. We've got to continue 22 to work the process. And we all know how 23 Albany works. It is my belief that unless we 24 pass this bill today here in the Senate, we'll 25 never get to the promised land, so I vote aye.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 2 Lanza to be recorded in the affirmative. 3 The Secretary will continue to call 4 the role slowly. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator Larkin. 6 SENATOR LARKIN: Yes. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator LaValle. 8 SENATOR LaVALLE: Yes. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator Libous. 10 SENATOR LIBOUS: Aye. 11 THE SECRETARY: Senator Little. 12 SENATOR LITTLE: Yes. 13 THE SECRETARY: Senator 14 Marcellino. 15 SENATOR MARCELLINO: Yes. 16 THE SECRETARY: Senator Martins. 17 SENATOR MARTINS: Yes. 18 THE SECRETARY: Senator Maziarz. 19 SENATOR MAZIARZ: Yes. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator McDonald. 21 SENATOR McDONALD: Yes. 22 THE SECRETARY: Senator 23 Montgomery. 24 SENATOR MONTGOMERY: No. 25 THE SECRETARY: Senator Nozzolio.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 SENATOR NOZZOLIO: Aye. 2 THE SECRETARY: Senator O'Mara. 3 SENATOR O'MARA: Aye. 4 THE SECRETARY: Senator 5 Oppenheimer. 6 SENATOR OPPENHEIMER: No. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator Parker. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 9 Parker, to explain his vote. 10 SENATOR PARKER: To explain my 11 vote, Mr. President. 12 I admire the sentiment behind this 13 bill and I want to congratulate Senator 14 Flanagan for being a leader on educational 15 issues and wanting to see this be done for our 16 kids. 17 But my rhetorical question is if 18 this was so good, how come we're not looking 19 at it for the entire state? If this was such 20 a good policy to do, then Senator Flanagan 21 should be proposing a bill that actually does 22 this in his district in Long Island and not 23 just in my district in Brooklyn. 24 But in addition to that -- because 25 I think that the kids in Long Island deserve

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 as good an education as the kids in Brooklyn. 2 And I think, you know, from Brookhaven to 3 Buffalo, from Bath, New York, right, you know 4 to Harlem, we ought to make sure that all the 5 kids have an opportunity to have the best 6 teachers. 7 And I want to associate myself with 8 Senator Lanza's comments. That he's right, 9 the teachers do want the bad teachers out. I 10 think we ought to find a way to get there. I 11 don't think that this bill actually gets us 12 there, Mr. President, so I'm going to vote no. 13 Because I really think that we're in a place 14 now where the mayor has created a subjective 15 standard for getting rid of teachers and not 16 really something that we ought to be doing 17 vis-a-vis negotiation. 18 Last point. We actually addressed 19 this issue last year, ladies and gentlemen. 20 Right? We did this last year in Race to the 21 Top. So there is actually already existing a 22 process to get rid of bad teachers that the 23 union has agreed to. So why we're going back 24 and redoing something we've done again to me 25 is questionable. I'm going to vote no.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 But if there's other things that we 2 can come together and agree upon, I'd be happy 3 to vote yes on that the way I voted yes on 4 Race to the Top. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 6 Parker to be recorded in the negative. 7 The Secretary will continue to call 8 the roll slowly. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator Peralta. 10 SENATOR PERALTA: No. 11 THE SECRETARY: Senator Perkins. 12 SENATOR PERKINS: No. 13 THE SECRETARY: Senator 14 Ranzenhofer. 15 SENATOR RANZENHOFER: Yes. 16 THE SECRETARY: Senator Ritchie. 17 SENATOR RITCHIE: Yes. 18 THE SECRETARY: Senator Rivera. 19 SENATOR RIVERA: Nay. 20 THE SECRETARY: Senator Robach. 21 SENATOR ROBACH: Yes. 22 THE SECRETARY: Senator Saland. 23 SENATOR SALAND: Yes. 24 THE SECRETARY: Senator Sampson. 25 SENATOR SAMPSON: No.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 THE SECRETARY: Senator Savino. 2 SENATOR SAVINO: No. 3 THE SECRETARY: Senator Serrano. 4 SENATOR SERRANO: No. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator Seward. 6 SENATOR SEWARD: Yes. 7 THE SECRETARY: Senator Skelos. 8 SENATOR SKELOS: Yes. 9 THE SECRETARY: Senator Smith. 10 SENATOR SMITH: No. 11 THE SECRETARY: Senator Squadron. 12 SENATOR SQUADRON: No. 13 THE SECRETARY: Senator Stavisky. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 15 Stavisky, to explain her vote. 16 SENATOR STAVISKY: Very simple, 17 Mr. President. I am one of two teachers in 18 this chamber. I've had the observation 19 reports. 20 But I know how subjective this 21 grading system is. And I'm not sure that you 22 want to leave it to a principal to give a "U" 23 rating and determine who is going to be fired 24 and who is going to be retained. 25 I vote no.

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: Senator 2 Stavisky to be recorded in the negative. 3 The Secretary will continue to call 4 the roll slowly. 5 THE SECRETARY: Senator 6 Stewart-Cousins. 7 SENATOR STEWART-COUSINS: No. 8 THE SECRETARY: Senator Valesky. 9 SENATOR VALESKY: Yes. 10 THE SECRETARY: Senator Young. 11 SENATOR YOUNG: Yes. 12 THE SECRETARY: Senator Zeldin. 13 SENATOR ZELDIN: Yes. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: 15 Announce the results. 16 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 33. Nays, 17 27. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 19 bill is passed. 20 Senator Libous. 21 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President, 22 could you lay aside the remainder of the 23 supplemental calendar for the day. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: The 25 remainder of the supplemental calendar is laid

Candyco Transcription Service, Inc. 1 aside for the day, which completes the 2 controversial reading of the supplemental 3 calendar, Senator Libous. 4 SENATOR LIBOUS: Mr. President, 5 is there any further business at the desk? 6 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: There 7 is no further business before the desk. 8 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 9 Mr. President. 10 There being no further business, I 11 move that the Senate adjourn until Wednesday, 12 March 2nd, at 3:00 p.m. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT GRIFFO: On 14 motion, the Senate stands adjourned until 15 Wednesday, March 2nd, at 3:00 p.m. 16 (Whereupon, at 5:32 p.m., the 17 Senate adjourned.) 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

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