Session is in full swing. There are many pressing items that need to be addressed. Here are my legislative priorities for 2014. We need to clean up Albany and pass ethics reforms. I’m tired of the misconduct and unethical behavior.
This past week, Governor Cuomo presented his 2014 State of the State address. For the first thirty minutes of the approximately one-and-a-half hour speech, the Governor reviewed what he saw as successes during his first three years in office. During this part of his speech, his main point was that state government, which has often been labeled by the media as dysfunctional, is now working again thanks namely to his leadership.
The Governor recently signed a number of bills into law. I wanted to take some time this week to make you aware of a few new ones that will or have recently become effective.
The Tax Relief Commission issued its final report this month. The commission was established by the Governor and was charged with providing recommendations to cut $2 billion in state taxes over three years. Included in its final report were property tax relief recommendations that the Governor will consider.
This past election, voters were asked to authorize that our State Constitution be amended to allow for the construction of up to seven casinos in New York State. Voters approved the measure by a 57% to 43% margin. It was one of the most controversial referendums in recent history. Not only was the measure itself controversial, but the language explaining the referendum was also controversial.
On any given week, tens of thousands of unsolicited checks end up in New York residents’ mailboxes, making these checks easy targets for criminals looking to capitalize on someone else’s line of credit. Last month, the Governor signed a bill into law that will put the onus on those issuing checks if they are lost or get into the wrong hands.
It is hardly surprising then that the Governor, being the politician that he is, has appointed not one, but two, commissions to examine how to reform New York’s tax system. The first commission he appointed, with the Orwellian name, “New York State Tax Reform and Fairness Commission” released its report last month. Notwithstanding its name, the report contains some good ideas on how New York should reform its tax structure.
It wasn’t too long ago that New York was ranked close to the bottom in terms of organ harvesting and donation rates. In 2010, a little over 2.7 million New Yorkers were registered organ donors. While that may sound like a high number, it was only about 18 percent of potential donors and is dramatically lower than the national average.
Common Core – the new academic standards adopted by 46 states intended to make students ready for college and careers – was put into motion for grades K-12 this school year. The State Board of Regents adopted Common Core in 2010 in part to secure more federal aid for education.Beginning in September, teachers in most public school districts across New York were required to teach this brand new curriculum.
This year, New York State enacted a law that requires birthing facilities across the state to test newborns for congenital heart defects through the use of pulse oximetry. Pulse oximetry is an inexpensive and non-invasive test that measures a baby’s blood oxygenation levels. This law will help ensure that infants are screened before they leave the hospital. I was pleased be a sponsor of this bill in the Assembly.
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