Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

News of synthetic drugs is making headlines again. The Governor recently signed legislation which expands the chemical ban of 2012. This new ban targets drugs used to make bath salts and psychedelic drugs and adds them to the Schedule 1 controlled substance list.

A discussion about tax reform has started in Albany which I am glad to see take shape.  Members of the State Senate Finance Committee have been holding hearings and asking the question – how do we improve our state’s tax policy? They have begun to gather testimony from business groups and other experts in tax policy in reaction to rankings that consistently rank New York’s tax burden as one of the highest in the country. The fact that New York state has high taxes is hardly a surprise to anyone living in the state.

In 2012, New York’s first Youth Firearms Deer Hunt was held on Columbus Day weekend. This has since become an annual event, thanks in part to legislation that passed in 2008 to expand big game hunting for junior hunters, those who are 14-15 years old.  The annual event is set to take place  on Columbus Day weekend again this year, October 12-14, and is organized by the State Department of Environmental Conservation.

Invasive species have been around since people began to travel. Some species have been around for over a hundred years and we’ve largely learned to live with them. Others pose a more serious threat and have eradicated crops or species of domestic trees or pose health risks. In some cases, however, we’ve had success containing or eliminating them.

In this year’s enacted state budget, changes were made to the STAR program that requires Basic STAR recipients to re-register. It became clear that the state needed to make changes to the program after a Comptroller’s audit found some property owners were abusing the system. By requiring people to reapply, the state can weed out any duplicate applications and stop people from trying to double dip.

There is a new water level plan proposed for Lake Ontario that will threaten shoreline property, recreational activity, and damage public infrastructure. Plan 2014 has been proposed by the International Joint Commission. The IJC is comprised of six members from Canada and the U.S. It was created to help handle issues in shared waters, such as the Great Lakes. Proponents of the plan say Plan 2014 will return the lake levels to a more natural state, and therefore, create higher highs and lower lows, depending on the time of year.

College orientations are under way this time of year. Many of you may have children, grandchildren or relatives who are embarking on higher education in the coming weeks, or even in the coming years. In April the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 66% of 2012 high school graduates were enrolled in colleges or universities. Paying for tuition and college costs is on the minds of many students and parents of all ages.

Typically, a lot of bills pass the state legislature at the end of session.  Once the legislature adjourns for the year, the Governor reviews the bills and determines which ones he wants to sign into law.  In this column, I highlight a few bills of interest that I was pleased to see signed into law.

Earlier this summer, the Governor, using power granted to him pursuant to the Moreland Act, empaneled a commission to investigate public corruption. The Moreland Act grants the governor broad powers to investigate the affairs of a government agency. The act was initially enacted in the early 1900s at the behest of then Governor Charles Evans Hughes who sought the power to investigate the State Insurance Department.