Gotham Gazette

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Open Government

Political Agendas, 2006


All in the same week, Governor George Pataki delivered his final State of the State address; Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver issued a scathing response a few minutes later; New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg gave his inaugural address; and Christine Quinn spoke after she was elected the new Speaker of the City Council. The re-elected public advocate and city comptroller also presented their inaugural addresses. What’s more, eight new council members were sworn into office -- four of whom (so far) have written essays specifically for Gotham Gazette.

Speeches and Essays

• Governor George Pataki's State of the State Address
•Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's Response To Pataki's Speech

• Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Inaugural Address
• Comptroller Bill Thompson's Inaugural Address
• Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum's Inaugural Address

• District 2: Planning for a Better - And Quieter - Community by Rosie Mendez
• District 4: Creating Open Space and Solving Transportation Woes on the East Side by Dan Garodnick
• District 5: Garbage Stations, Water Tunnel Shaft, and Affordable Housing by Jessica Lappin
• District 13: Improving Education and Reforming the Department of
Buildings by James Vacca

 

The political convergence gave elected officials at all levels of government an opportunity to put forth at least initial agendas for 2006 (both Bloomberg and Quinn plan more detailed State of the City addresses soon) -- and a chance for their constituents to discern both common concerns and differing approaches:

CRIME

With the shooting deaths of two New York City police officers coming within two weeks of one another at the end of last year, crime seems to have been put back as topic number one for New York's elected officials. It was the subject on which Bloomberg spoke at the most length in his inaugural address, focusing on guns: “Our most urgent challenge is ending the threat of guns and the violence they do," he said. "Now we have a duty…, one that rises above all partisan politics and one we will pursue relentlessly. And that is to rid our streets of guns and punish those who possess and traffic in these instruments of death.”

“We will take our message to Albany, to Washington, and to every capital of every state that permits guns to flow freely across its borders,” he said. Demanding tougher gun laws in states other than the one in which he serves has already earned the mayor new critics across the country.

But at home, there seems near unanimity in favor of a tough stance against gun trafficking. “Mr. Mayor,” said newly elected Speaker Quinn in her speech, “I will go anywhere you need to stop the flow of illegal guns into this city.”

The state assembly is on board, too, and Silver called on his partners in state government to do more: “When it comes to halting gun violence, the governor and the legislature have much more work to do. We must remove illegal guns from our neighborhoods. We must prohibit the sale of assault weapons. And we must ban armor-piercing bullets once and for all."

Even Pataki seemed to approve the effort against guns, with a passing reference to state laws just passed.

Pataki's primary focus on crime, however, involved tough talk about sex offenders. He promised to push for longer sentences, a stronger Megan’s Law and the elimination of the statute of limitations for sexual assault. He also proposed to re-introduce legislation to keep some sex offenders confined after they’ve served their prison sentences.

Despite Silver’s criticisms of Pataki on other issues, he backed the governor’s move to crack down on sex offenders, as he has in the past.

EDUCATION

Education remains a subject on which all office-holders express concern, though here there is less consensus. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's harshest attack on Pataki's tenure involved the governor’s handling of education, specifically his treatment of the lawsuit by the nonprofit group Campaign for Fiscal Equity, which claimed the state was shortchanging kids in New York City schools. The courts agreed, ordering the state to increase funding for the city's schools, but the Pataki administration is appealing the rulings.

For his part, Pataki's only reference to the lawsuit or the court decision was indirect: "Let's start out by renewing our commitment to providing additional funding to high-needs schools -- in New York City and across the state."

Then again, Mayor Bloomberg did not mention the lawsuit either.

Instead, Bloomberg touted arts education and otherwise promised to stay the course of his controversial school reform. For her part, Quinn hinted that middle schools need to show the same improvement that grade schools have seen since the overhaul of the system.

One of the new council members addressed the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case in his essay. James Vacca calls on the city council to monitor how funding from the lawsuit is distributed. That’s because council member involvement can help ensure accountability, he writes. What’s more, he says, “I intend to visit all the schools in my district and use my knowledge to assess school tone and learning environment.” He also stressed a need to restore adult and continuing education programs.

HOUSING

Not much gets a New York City politician more fired up than the need for affordable housing. “We face a housing crisis that is pricing too many tenants and homeowners out of their neighborhoods,” said Chris Quinn in her acceptance speech. Bloomberg promised to push forward on “the most ambitious affordable housing initiative in New York’s history.”

All of the new council members mention affordable housing as a need in their districts. Councilmember Jessica Lappin says that as two middle-income developments on Roosevelt Island prepare to exit the Mitchell-Lama program, and as other buildings consider privatization, residents on the island face a housing crisis and “are questioning the future and fate of the place they call home.”

“[C]onversions, buyouts, and gradual elimination of rent regulations” threaten affordable housing for residents in Rosie Mendez’s district, which includes parts of the Lower East Side and Gramercy. She says neighborhoods “must develop community-planning guidelines that balance development pressures with the rights of existing residents and the need to preserve economic diversity.”

City Comptroller William Thompson weighed in, too: “We will ensure that the innovative Battery Park City Housing Trust Fund we established with Mayor Bloomberg and housing advocates honors the decades old commitment to create affordable housing units."

The topic seemed off the radar of the much wider constituencies of Pataki and Silver, despite affordable housing needs throughout the state. Pataki didn’t mention it at all, and Silver made only a passing reference to it when he blamed Pataki for providing inadequate funding for housing.

LOCAL ISSUES

Pataki's address, packed as it was with specifics, included several promises for New York City, such as the creation of an Empire Zone in Lower Manhattan, and "an unprecedented bio-tech research challenge grant initiative that will leverage $600 million in public/private matching funds" for the city's medical research institutions.

But it was the city council members who largely focused on specific economic development and land use issues in their communities.

“One of the biggest challenges facing the area is the future of a plot of land where the Con Edison Waterside Plant currently sits,” writes Dan Garodnick, new council member for Manhattan’s District 4, which includes parts of mid-town along the East River and the Upper East Side at the edge of Central Park.

Lappin is concerned about a plan from the city’s Department of Environmental Protection to dig a new water supply shaft in her district, which runs along the waterfront of Upper East Side. The proposed Shaft 33B would link the area with the city’s No. 3 water tunnel, the biggest capital construction project in the history of the city.

James Vacca, who represents Pelham Bay, Throgs Neck and other parts of northeastern Bronx, proposes a big-picture fix for problems he says stem from land use processes. He lays out tactics to reform and professionalize the city’s Department of Buildings in order to ease overdevelopment in his and other neighborhoods.

Speeches and Essays On The 2006 Agenda

•Governor George Pataki's State of the State Address
•Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's Response To Pataki's Speech

• Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Inaugural Address
• Comptroller Bill Thompson's Inaugural Address
• Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum's Inaugural Address

• District 2: Planning for a Better - And Quieter - Community by Rosie Mendez
• District 4: Creating Open Space and Solving Transportation Woes on the East Side by Dan Garodnick
• District 5: Garbage Stations, Water Tunnel Shaft, and Affordable Housing by Jessica Lappin
• District 13: Improving Education and Reforming the Department of
Buildings by James Vacca

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

State of the State Governor George Pataki January 4, 2006


Chief Judge Kaye, honorable members of the Court of Appeals, Lieutenant Governor Donohue, Attorney General Spitzer, Comptroller Hevesi, Majority Leader Bruno, Speaker Silver, Leader Tedisco, Leader Paterson, distinguished members of the Senate and Assembly, and special guests...

Thank you for another opportunity to report to you on the state of our great State of New York, to impart to you my vision for New York and to outline what I see as our shared priorities for the upcoming year.

As always, and especially this year, I would like to begin by thanking my family for the steadfast support and sacrifice that have made my tenure as governor possible.

Libby, thank you for always being there for me, for your love, reassurance, and understanding, and for being the best wife and mom a family could hope for.

And speaking of moms -- my mother, who last month celebrated her 90th birthday, is here for the twelfth straight year.

Mom, whatever I have achieved to this point in my life and whatever I may achieve in the future, is due to the values you and Dad instilled within me through both your words and your deeds.

Thank you for giving me reason to always be proud of where I come from, for teaching me to meet life's challenges head-on and to appreciate and savor all of life's blessings with grace and humility.

And to Emily, Alison, Ted and Owen -- thank you kids, for making me the proudest father in the world and for providing me with a daily reminder of why I do what I do.

And I would be remiss if I didn't say one more thank you -- to a man we all admire and respect: a trusted friend, a man who loves the people of this state like they were his own family -- thank you Governor Carey for your support, your friendship and for once again dignifying this great chamber with your presence.

And in addition to thanks, there are congratulations in order.

First, to the great Mayor of New York, Mayor Mike Bloomberg.

Mayor, congratulations on a truly great win and thanks for the tremendous job you continue to do for the City of New York and its people.

And lastly, although he is certainly no stranger to this chamber, I'd like to formally welcome and wish all the best to the new leader of the Assembly Republican Conference, my good friend Jim Tedisco.

What Inspired Pataki Into Public Service

Each January for the past 11 years I have had the honor of addressing this joint session of the New York State Legislature in this great chamber.

Stepping to this podium, contemplating the splendor of the People's Chamber, and gazing upon all 212 members of New York's legislative branch, is an experience I wish all of you could know first-hand. The array of faces reflects the source of New York's distinctive greatness -- men and women from every corner of our geographically diverse state; Americans whose families came from every corner of the globe; individuals whose respective ethnic traditions, cultures and religions combine to form the most vibrant, glorious people in the world.

In marveling at the entirety of this esteemed body, I am reminded of what makes our work here so important.

I am reminded of our great responsibility to the people of New York; and of the thousands of respected legislators and scores of governors before us whose historic contributions within these hallowed halls bettered lives all across this great state.

Standing here, preparing to address this joint session for the twelfth and final time, I am reminded in the most compelling way, of the principles that led me to choose a career in public service, the principles that continue to guide me to this very day.

I was 15 years old when I heard President John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address, and like so many Americans of my generation, I was inspired by the energy, optimism, and patriotism of his message.

When JFK urged us to consider what we as Americans could contribute to our nation, rather than what we could expect from it, that resonated with me, as I am sure it did with many of you.

We all bring something unique to this chamber -- the products of our own individual backgrounds and experience: our own outlook, our own value system, our own inspirations that led us here.

My governing philosophy has been shaped by many forces -- my proudly American working class family, my small-town Hudson Valley upbringing, the tumultuous period during which I went to school, my appreciation of history and my experience in government have all played a role in shaping the principles that continue to guide my actions as your governor.

What Pataki Believes In

I believe in active but limited government -- a government that is engaged and effective, but never intrusive or over-reaching: a government that works vigorously and diligently to identify problems and then creates opportunities for people to solve them; a government that staunchly protects its citizens' freedom to work, live and raise their families yet never dictates how they should do so.

I believe that government's fundamental purpose should be to empower the people we serve -- to enact the policies that create opportunity and unleash the enormous creativity, industry and entrepreneurial spirit that characterize New Yorkers.

I believe a government has no greater responsibility than the safety and security of its citizens and that people must be held accountable for their actions.

I believe that we have a moral responsibility to help those who truly need our help, and also to leave our next generation a natural environment that is cleaner and better protected than we found it.

I believe that government should not simply hand people a living, but it must ensure that they have every opportunity to earn one for themselves.

I believe in a government that works tirelessly to preserve and uphold the freedom of its citizens and takes great care in ensuring it never impinges upon it.

These are the precepts that have guided me for the past 11 years -- they are the essence of the policies and initiatives I have advocated and advanced throughout my tenure as New York's Chief Executive.

On The Passing Of Colleagues

Over these years, together with you and so many other great public servants, we have been able to make a difference, to transform our state in a variety of ways, to change New Yorkers' lives for the better.

Each of us has fond memories of departed colleagues who helped make this state a better place.

Last year, we lost a dear friend, an extraordinary public servant whose vision, leadership and dedication continue to echo through the halls of this great Capitol.

Senator Ron Stafford didn't just win people's votes, he won their hearts.

Through Ron I gained a profound appreciation of the North Country, its beauty, its promise and the promise of its hard working people.

To Ron, the people of the North Country weren't constituents, they were family, friends and neighbors.

The personal, humble, human way Ron Stafford served the people of his district, the wisdom and leadership with which he served all the people of New York, stand as an example to us all -- he will be sorely missed.

Kay, we wish you and your family all the best and pledge to continue Ron's great legacy of service to this great state.

We also mark the passing of our friends and colleagues, Pat McGee and Audrey Hochberg, who, like Ron, each made a lasting positive impact on the Empire State -- their contributions were an indispensable part of the record of achievement we've realized together.

On Senator Marchi

And whether you were elected in 1956 like Senator John Marchi, or just last year like Assemblyman Joe Giglio, every person in this chamber has been part of that record of achievement, and on behalf of the people of New York, I would like to personally thank each and every one of you for your commitment, your hard work and your partnership.

And speaking of Senator Marchi, this year he will celebrate the 50th anniversary of his election to the New York State Senate. Senator, congratulations on that truly remarkable milestone and thank you for all you continue to do for the citizens of Staten Island and the State of New York.

"We Have Achieved Much" In The Past 11 Years

When I took office back in 1995, New York was at a low point.

But what I saw was the limitless potential that the future held -- I saw a New York that was cleaner, safer, and more prosperous than ever before.

I saw our next generation of New Yorkers enjoying a wealth of wondrous natural treasures -preserved, protected, and enhanced for future generations to cherish. I saw New Yorkers walking safer streets and raising their children in safer neighborhoods all across the State of New York.

I saw New Yorkers empowered with economic freedom, jobs returning, businesses flourishing, and more and more New Yorkers moving from dependency to opportunity.

And together, we went to work to achieve that vision.

We recognized and embraced a new mandate and began to raise both the quality of life New Yorkers enjoy, and their expectations of what State government is capable of achieving.

And together, we have achieved much for our state and its people.

Together, we've re-tooled our criminal justice system from top to bottom and turned New York from one of the nation's most dangerous states into the safest large state in America.

Together, we've led the nation in cutting taxes, and put the money back into the pockets of working families, because after all, they know how to spend it best.

Together, we've slashed job-killing regulations and strengthened our businesses' freedom to compete nationally and globally.

Together, we've raised educational standards, made record investments in our children's schools and enacted the STAR program to help provide school property tax relief to homeowners across New York State.

Together, we've sown the seeds for tomorrow's economic prosperity by establishing Centers of Excellence to spur the innovations and investments that will make New York a powerhouse in the emerging global high-tech economy.

Together, we've transformed the welfare system and in turn empowered more than one million New Yorkers to break out of the tragic cycle of dependency.

Together, we've provided quality comprehensive healthcare to nearly one million more New Yorkers, granted prescription drug coverage to more seniors than ever before and increased the number of children covered by Child Health Plus five-fold.

Together, we've secured an inheritance of nearly one million acres of protected open space for the next generation of New Yorkers and a Hudson River that is far cleaner and more vital than when we found it.

And yes, together, with unshakable resolve, we've led New York and New Yorkers through and past one of our history's greatest atrocities, and helped both emerge stronger, and more vibrant than ever.

You and I, working together, helped make those dreams real for millions of people who call New York home.

The totality of our achievements over the past 11 years, the new course for New York that we charted back in 1995, has made New York a stronger, safer, cleaner, more prosperous state than it's been in generations.

So today, January 4th, 2006, I am pleased to report to you the state of our State is strong and getting stronger every day.

Yes, we've accomplished much together, but we all know that where the well-being, prosperity and freedom of New Yorkers are concerned, no amount of progress is ever enough.

Together, we have overcome some of the most daunting challenges imaginable -- we've dared to persevere, to transcend, to thrive in the face of adversity.

We Should Aim High In The Challenges Ahead >But every triumph is a gateway to another trial -- there are plenty of challenges that still lie ahead. And together, if we continue to aim high, to keep our sights fixed on all the future can hold, we can achieve even greater things for the people of New York.

What makes our actions noteworthy this year has nothing to do with one particular person, it has everything to do with the 19 million people relying on us to chart the course toward a bright, prosperous future for this generation and the next.

And the only way to chart an effective course is to have a clear understanding of where we want to go. Every strategy begins with a specific goal -- every worthy pursuit is born of a dream.

The great American architect and native New Yorker Daniel H. Burnham once said: "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir [people's] blood and probably themselves will not be realized.

"Make big plans; aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will never die, but long after we are gone will be a living thing, asserting itself with ever-growing insistency.

"Remember that our [children] and [grandchildren] are going to do things that would stagger us..." Let's aim high. Let's have the courage and foresight to envision the ideal that should shape our actions here in Albany.

Let's consider our highest hopes and ambitions for this great state and her people.

Let's envision the New York State the next generation will inherit from us -- let's consider the limitless potential the future holds for the great State of New York. Let's envision and work toward a New York that is nothing less than the cleanest, safest, most

prosperous state in America. Our mandate, our obligation and responsibility as the elected representatives of our fellow New Yorkers, is the relentless pursuit of that dream.

My work, our work, on behalf of the citizens of this great state is far from done -- indeed, so long as opportunities exist to better the lives of New Yorkers, our work is never done.

And as we proved so well last year, when we work together there is virtually nothing we cannot achieve.

Achievements Last Year

We enacted the first on-time budget in over two decades and scores of important new initiatives including landmark government reforms, Medicaid reform, Vasean's Law, tax incentives for businesses in Lower Manhattan, and we expanded Operation Impact and Empire Zones, to name just a few.

We could have simply rested on those accomplishments.

Instead, we came together just three weeks ago to enact two crucial new laws -- one that will keep illegal guns off our streets and one that will provide greater protections to the brave men and women sworn to protect the citizens of our state.

Congratulations to you all.

Sexual Predators

Now, let's build on that momentum.

I've said it many times, and it bears repeating -- government has no greater responsibility than the safety and security of its citizens.

And there is no case where this rings truer than when we are talking about our most vulnerable citizens -- our children, our future, our most precious gifts.

There isn't a single person among us who would disagree with the notion that the intentional harm of a child is among the most monstrous and repugnant acts a human being can commit.

When that harm involves the sexual predation, exploitation and abuse of children, that is unconscionable -- the physical and emotional damage inflicted by such crimes robs children of their innocence, and often their physical and emotional well-being.

As a parent, as a father, I ask you: when we know of a way to protect our children and families from known perpetrators of such crimes, how can we in good conscience fail to act on it?

Sexual predators are rarely cured -- the rate of recidivism among these individuals is among the highest of any category of criminals.

When those who stalk and rape a child can be out on the streets in two or three years, when 5,000 sexually violent predators are currently awaiting release from our state prisons, it is clear that our work is not finished.

I have endeavored to do everything possible within my scope of authority as governor to keep dangerous predators away from our children and families.

Our goal must be nothing less than to provide our children and families with every possible protection from sexually violent predators.

This year I will again send you a bill aimed at preventing the release of these predators into our neighborhoods.

Please, for the sake of our children, pass it now!

In addition, I will send you legislation that creates longer sentences for those convicted of these crimes, ends the statute of limitations for rape and other sexual assaults, makes our Megan's Law statute even stronger and requires every criminal who commits a crime to give a DNA sample.

On behalf of families all across New York State, let's waste no time in our efforts to keep violent predators off our streets and away from our children -- let's take up and pass these important measures as quickly as possible.

Terrorism And Our Brave Soldiers

Yes, it is clear that we must continue to do all we can to protect our citizens from the threat of crime, but this is only part of our solemn obligation to protect the people of this state.

As we New Yorkers understand better than anyone, in today's world, the threat of terror is all too real, and over the last five years, no state has done more to ensure the security of its citizens than New York.

And while we in government continue to do all we can to protect New Yorkers from terror, the success of our efforts depends ultimately on the brave men and women in uniform who stand in harm's way to protect and defend their fellow citizens.

We owe our utmost gratitude, respect and admiration to all of our courageous soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines - the men and women who serve so bravely and well in the global war on terror.

As the governor and a citizen of this great state, I could not be prouder of the outstanding job our National Guard soldiers and airmen have done defending freedom overseas and ensuring our security here at home.

Thousands of soldiers from the National Guard's 42nd Infantry Division, the renowned Rainbow Division headquartered across the river in Troy, recently returned from an historic deployment to Iraq.

Just as their forebears have for over two centuries, these heroic citizen soldiers left their families and careers behind to heed their nation's call to duty. They served in some of the most volatile areas in Iraq as they endeavored daily to seek out and destroy the terrorist insurgency, so that democracy could take root and thrive in that embattled nation.

Some of these recently returned heroes have joined us today, together with their fellow combat veterans from the 108th Infantry, the 53rd Troop Command and Manhattan's famous Fighting 69th.

Brave soldiers, as your governor and as the proud father of a Marine Corps Second Lieutenant; on behalf of the people of New York and everyone in this chamber, I would like to extend to you our profound thanks and infinite gratitude.

But we owe these brave returning soldiers more than our gratitude.

We owe them, and all New Yorkers, nothing less than the opportunity to succeed, to provide for their families, to live, thrive and achieve their own American dream right here in the state they call home.

That is what I've endeavored to do for the last eleven years, and that is exactly what I intend to keep doing for the next twelve months.

Let me be clear on that -- I swore an oath to serve New Yorkers until my very last day in office and I intend to fulfill that oath in its entirety.

The 2006 Legislative Session represents another indispensable opportunity to build on the great foundation of progress we've engineered together -- an opportunity we must seize in earnest.

Let's get to work.

2006 Agenda For Emerging Global Economy

Today we find ourselves at the dawn of an emerging global economy -- one characterized more and more by international competition, one in which companies on six continents are able to compete with our own on an increasingly level playing field.

In today's rapidly changing world, it is clear that we need to continue to hone New York's competitive edge and leverage the great ingenuity, industry and spirit of our people.

This year, I propose to you an agenda with straightforward, achievable objectives that will empower New York State to excel in the emerging global economy.

Objectives based on the same principles and priorities behind some of our greatest successes -- cutting taxes, improving our children's education, creating jobs, and protecting our natural environment.

It is an agenda aimed squarely at some of the most significant challenges we face in 2006:

It continues to cut taxes on working families and their employers to provide New Yorkers with greater opportunity and financial freedom; It accelerates our commitment to educational excellence to better prepare our students for global competition;

It invests in and helps build the intellectual capital and research infrastructure we need to succeed in the high-tech economy of tomorrow; and It takes decisive action to cut New Yorkers' fuel bills and protect our environment by reducing our dependency on foreign oil.

Cutting Taxes

First, let's strengthen families and create jobs by lowering the burden taxes place on New Yorkers. We've proven time and again how tax cuts create the financial freedom that yields even greater opportunities for New York's citizens.

We've led the nation in cutting taxes -- 81 cuts to 19 different state taxes that have pumped more than $140 billion back into New York's economy and led to the creation of over 600,000 new jobs. Tax cuts work. And when we cut taxes, New Yorkers work.

If our goal is to position New York State to thrive in the face of evolving global competition, our fight to cut taxes must continue. This year, I will send to you a pro-family tax cut program -- a series of measures that will reduce the tax burden on working families, stimulate the economy and foster the competitiveness that will attract even more investment and jobs to New York. Let's completely eliminate the marriage penalty to encourage rather than penalize marriage in New York State.

Let's provide a $500 heating fuel tax credit to thousands of seniors across New York to give them the ability to meet soaring home heating costs.

Let's help family farms and small businesses, and allow our seniors to spend their golden years in New York with their families and friends by eliminating the estate tax. Let's cut the income tax rate that most New York families pay, and grant even greater financial freedom to families all across New York State.

And let's cut taxes on businesses once again and give New York's employers even greater freedom to grow and create jobs.

But we all know that income and business taxes are only part of the problem -- property taxes represent the fastest growing segment of the tax burden New Yorkers face.

That's why we created the STAR program that has cut New Yorkers' school property tax bills by almost $18 billion since 1998. That's why last year, we took square aim at property taxes once again, by capping counties' Medicaid costs so that those costs would not be passed on to county property taxpayers. Now, it is time to take the next step.

My pro-family tax cut strategy includes two new enhancements to STAR. Seniors must not be forced from their homes because of escalating school property taxes -- let's provide them with an increased STAR benefit, and give them the economic freedom to continue living in the homes they have built, paid for and earned. And second, let's help families across the state, from Long Island to Grand Island, by putting a direct school property tax rebate check in their pockets.

If we are to compete and excel, if our families are to thrive in the global economy of tomorrow, we must not allow high taxes to place us at a competitive disadvantage. Let's continue to cut taxes at the state and local level and bring even greater economic freedom to New York's hardworking taxpayers and their families.

Realigning Educational Priorities

Cutting the tax burden will surely strengthen our competitiveness on a national level. But in tomorrow's economy, our stiffest competition for jobs, investment and opportunity will not come from places like South Carolina or Indiana; it will come from places like South Korea and India.

This summer I embarked on a trade mission to China to explore opportunities for partnership and investment and to see first hand the dynamics behind the world's fastest growing economy.

China has recognized that tomorrow's economic power will be driven by innovation.

Accordingly, they are making huge advancements in education -- particularly in the areas that will be most in demand in tomorrow's economy -- math and science.

In his best seller, "The World is Flat," Thomas Friedman illustrated this point by noting that in 2004, 6 million Chinese students competed for a spot in the worldwide Intel Science and Engineering Fair.

Here in the United States, just 65,000 students competed.

Six million aspiring scientists versus 65,000.

Today, opportunity follows the brain power, and companies will travel to the end of the earth to find it, invest in it and harness it. As Friedman said, "It's not follow the money, it's follow the brains."

It is clearly time to realign our educational priorities to meet the ever-changing demands of the 21st century.

Yes, we've made great strides in education over the past eleven years -- record investments in our schools, tougher standards and testing, innovative initiatives like Charter Schools, Teachers of Tomorrow, and school report cards, but it is not enough.

Let's set a goal today -- let's not only renew our commitment to improving educational opportunities for all students in New York State, let's make New York the nation's leader in preparing our students for careers in math, science and engineering.

This year, I will send to you a comprehensive package of education reforms and enhancements to provide new opportunities for our students and empower parents to ensure their children are able to realize their full potential.

Let's start out by renewing our commitment to providing additional funding to high-needs schools -- in New York City and across the state.

Next, let's give parents of students in under-achieving schools the power to maximize their children's potential. Let's give parents the chance to give their kids the tutoring, after-school programs and other educational opportunities they need to succeed.

Our Charter Schools have been a great success -- competition works.

Now, let's build on that success by dramatically expanding charter schools throughout the entire state.

Let's give middle school students an academic boost -- let's provide them with new math and science summer programs at our community colleges all across the Empire State.

Let's create more math and science high schools like the Tech Valley Science High School in the Capital Region-- schools focused specifically on teaching the skills our students will need to succeed in the high-tech economy of tomorrow.

And finally, let's invest in our future by providing free SUNY or CUNY tuition to students who pursue math and science degrees and commit to teaching right here in New York State.

Together, let's make a New York education an invaluable competitive advantage for our next generation.

Let's empower our children to be the eminent achievers, innovators and creators of tomorrow.

Empire Innovation And Centers Of Excellence

Today is clearly the dawn of a new economic paradigm -- where brains rather than brawn, research rather than resources, will be the determining factors in the increasingly global competition for growth, investment and jobs.

Over the last two centuries, the economic strength and stability of a state or a nation was determined largely by its ability to out-produce the competition.

And with our abundant natural resources, outstanding workforce, and through historic innovations like the Erie Canal, New York has led the way in commerce and industry since the earliest days of our nation.

Over the next decade, our ability to compete in the emerging global marketplace will depend more and more on our ability to innovate -- to break new ground -- to develop, apply and produce the technologies of tomorrow.

Working with our vastly improved SUNY and CUNY schools, we'll create a new Empire Innovation program that will attract even more top-flight researchers and the federal grant dollars they bring with them, to public colleges and universities throughout New York.

And let's go even farther. Our Centers of Excellence are the envy of states from coast to coast -- I'd like to thank you for your strong partnership in establishing and supporting them.

Our Centers have already attracted over $8.5 billion in new investment, and are propelling New York toward a future as a global leader in university-based research, high-tech business creation, and job development.

Last year the federal government and the nation's semi-conductor industry announced a collaborative initiative that will result in two new state-of-the-art research facilities to drive the computer chip breakthroughs of the future -- one of these facilities will be located in California's Silicon Valley.

Yesterday, we announced that the other facility, a brand new $435 million center is coming to Albany -- right here in New York's Tech Valley.

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This newest addition to New York's high-tech boom is just the latest example of how our Centers of Excellence continue to act as magnets and catalysts for investment and opportunity.

Now, it is time to take the next steps -- to propel New York and New Yorkers to the forefront of the worldwide race toward high-tech supremacy.

This year I will propose even greater capital investments in our Centers of Excellence, but that is only the beginning.

New Empire Zones

The Empire Zones we have launched together have led to new investment, opportunity and jobs all across this great state.

Last year, we authorized the creation of 12 new Empire Zones over the next four years. Yesterday, we announced the location of three new zones in Lower Manhattan, Nassau County and Livingston County.

This year I will send you legislation that ensures that every county without an Empire Zone gets one by the end of the year.

Tech Zones

The Empire Zones program and our Centers of Excellence have given rise to important new opportunities all across our state -- Why not combine the proven power of these two great initiatives?

This year, I will propose new Tech Zones that will be affiliated with our Centers of Excellence, and provide Empire Zone-like benefits that will ultimately turn research and ideas into jobs and opportunity.

By combining our Centers of Excellence and new Tech Zones with our new math and science high schools, we'll create five hubs of high-tech education, innovation and manufacturing across the state.

In Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Albany, and Long Island, we'll train tomorrow's high-tech innovators, facilitate tomorrow's greatest technological advances, and create jobs in modern production facilities where those advancements will come to life.

Bio Research in NYC

And in New York City, home to some of the best research hospitals in the world, let's expand our efforts to keep New York at the forefront of the current revolution in bio-med and bio-tech research.

Last year, we committed $1 billion to technology improvements and upgrades for New York's hospitals to improve healthcare for every New Yorker across this great state.

This year, I will propose an unprecedented bio-tech research challenge grant initiative -- that will leverage $600 million in public/private matching funds and capitalize on the strength of great institutions like Sloan Kettering, Mt. Sinai, Cornell, NYU and Columbia to fuel even more research, jobs and opportunity in the Empire State.

Let's have the foresight and vision to position the people of New York to soar to new heights of success and prosperity.

Let's act today to ensure that New York has what it takes to compete and thrive in the emerging age of technological innovation.

Reducing Dependence On Imported Energy

For more than a decade, we in New York have been aggressively pursuing the solutions to one of our generation's greatest challenges -- reducing our dependence on expensive, polluting, terror- promoting foreign oil.

We don't have to look far for evidence that the time to transition away from foreign oil is now -- it is right there on the gas pumps and in our home heating bills.

Not just here in New York, but across the nation, our reliance on foreign oil is hampering the financial freedom of our working families and their employers; it is hurting our economy, damaging our environment and enriching regimes that support, harbor and encourage the terrorists who threaten our national security.

Since 1995, we've established New York as a national leader in environmental protection -- we've preserved nearly one million acres of open space, cleaned up rivers and revitalized waterfronts across the state.

We have made great strides to reduce pollution from power plants by implementing the toughest acid rain regulations in the nation. We enacted the nation's first green building tax credit.

Most recently we led the way as seven Northeast states put in place the first regional market-based program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in American history.

Let's continue to build on that record of accomplishment by making New York State the leader in reducing dependence on imported energy.

The entire world is now grappling with the question "where will we get the energy to power the global economy of the 21st century without causing irreparable damage to our natural environment?"

Let's make New York the place where that defining question is answered. Let's make New York the worldwide center for clean, renewable energy research, product development and job creation.

Let's attract companies from around the world that are developing the clean, renewable energy sources of the future -- let's make the entire state a tax free zone for this growing industry.

We cannot address the issue of oil dependency without talking about transportation. Because of the investments we have made in mass transit, we already have the most efficient transportation system in America, but we can do more - much more.

Our transportation system is still over 90 percent dependent on petroleum products. The huge price increases we have seen at the pump are likely to get worse as developing countries like China and India consume an increasing amount of oil.

Later this session, I will propose a plan to jumpstart a new era of statewide availability and use of renewable fuels -- ensuring that more of our energy dollars stay right here in New York. It begins with an initiative to make renewable fuels available at service stations all across the state, starting with the New York State Thruway.

And then, it goes a step further, by making that renewable fuel tax-free throughout the entire State of New York. This plan will also provide for the establishment of refineries that make ethanol out of agricultural products from our farms and wood products from our northern forests.

It will create shovel-ready sites and help finance advanced clean coal power plants that will burn our most abundant fuel without the pollution of yesterday's dirty plants. It will spur the development of efficient hybrid vehicles that can actually be plugged in at home or alternatively run on renewable bio-fuels.

This comprehensive strategy to reduce dependence on foreign oil, will allow us to seize the future today and create the clean energy technologies that can be exported around the world tomorrow. The time to prepare for a future powered by clean energy sources is now -- not just here in New York, but across our entire nation.

We've shown time and again that when New York leads, others follow.

Let's act this year to make New York State the energy independence capital of America, and set the stage for a cleaner environment and an even stronger, more prosperous New York for the next generation.

****

The agenda I propose today is a clear-cut, forward-looking approach to meeting some of our greatest challenges.

Greater economic freedom for our families and competitiveness for our state by renewing our commitment to cutting taxes;

New educational opportunities to produce the innovators of tomorrow;

High-tech research and jobs that position New York as a leader in the emerging global economy; and

An energy independence plan that sets the standard for our country.

While there are other critical issues and initiatives that we must and will address this year, achieving this agenda would establish a solid foundation for a successful 2006.

I believe it is a worthy and worthwhile challenge.

And like we've done so many times before, let's rise to meet this challenge and fulfill our promise to the people of this great State -- right now, this year, in this chamber, for this generation, and for generations to come.

9/11 And Lower Manhattan

If there's one thing we New Yorkers have proven over the last decade, it is that we refuse to be defined by the challenges we face. Rather, we define ourselves by the courage and optimism with which we confront and overcome those challenges.

Four years ago, we were struck by one of history's most heinous and heartbreaking attacks and with it some of the most significant challenges we have ever faced as a people.

And like true New Yorkers, we dared to transcend the challenges before us -- we established and met an aggressive timetable and series of objectives for the revitalization and rebuilding of Lower Manhattan.

Today, Lower Manhattan is experiencing an unprecedented wave of investment and construction activity -- this year, $10 billion worth of new construction involving over a dozen major projects is moving forward, 75 large companies and thousands of small firms have committed to Lower Manhattan -- all within blocks of the World Trade Center site.

Lower Manhattan is and will remain the financial capital of the world. World Trade Center 7 is ready to open its doors, PATH service is fully operational, and both the Calatrava-designed transportation hub and the new Fulton Transit Station are being built as we speak. And this spring, the crowning achievements of this noble undertaking, the Freedom Tower and the World Trade Center Memorial, will begin to take form -- to remind, to inspire, to reflect the power, promise and pride of New York. The Memorial will be an inspiring and worthy tribute to the heroes we lost on Sept. 11th, and will enable future generations to learn about their sacrifice and courage on that terrible day.

The Freedom Tower will rise 1776 feet, above Manhattan's bustling streets, invoking a pivotal moment, 230 years ago, when New Yorkers joined others who dared to dream, to embrace freedom and to transcend great challenges.

Even from under the thumb of a great global empire, they dreamt of a future of limitless hope, opportunity and freedom. Their cause was just, but the odds were long. By holding tightly to their dream, they won their freedom and gave rise to a nation.

But that was just the beginning. Who among them would have thought that two centuries later, the nation they founded would span the seas and emerge as the world's freest, greatest, most prosperous nation?

Who would have thought that their fledgling nation would give rise to the greatest upsurge of freedom the world has ever known? By relentlessly pursuing their dream the heroes of 1776 changed the very course of history. They clearly made the most of their opportunity. Let's make the most of ours. Let's heed destiny's clarion call. Let's promote freedom and opportunity at every turn.

Let's dare to dream of all our great state can be. Let's pursue that dream relentlessly, in partnership and unity. Let's fulfill New York's limitless promise.

****

Thank you for your partnership over the past 11 years. Thank you for your continued partnership over the next 12 months. God Bless you, the great State of New York, and all of its people. Thank You.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Assembly Majority Response to the State of the State Address


Delivered by
Sheldon Silver Speaker of the NYS Assembly
Wednesday, January 4, 2006

The New York State Assembly congratulates the Governor on the occasion of this, his 12th and final State of the State Address.

As he concludes his tenure in elected office, we commend the Governor for his efforts on behalf of the State of New York.

We look forward to receiving the Executive Budget and we look forward to working with the Governor and with our colleagues in the Senate to enact an on-time state budget, to address the needs of the state, and to further the government reforms that were achieved in bipartisan fashion last year.

Two weeks ago, the Assembly acted on a series of bills that will make our state safer by stiffening penalties for gun traffickers and more effectively protecting our brave law enforcement officers.

When it comes to halting gun violence, the Governor and the Legislature have much more work to do.

We must remove illegal guns from our neighborhoods.

We must prohibit the sale of assault weapons.

And we must ban armor-piercing bullets once and for all.

To give police officers bullet-proof vests and allow criminals to legally purchase bullets that can penetrate those vests is foolishness, plain and simple.

This month, the Assembly will again advance its comprehensive legislation to curb gun violence.

We urge the Governor and the Senate to join us in closing down illegal gun dealers.

In the next few weeks, the Assembly will again pass legislation to better safeguard New Yorkers from sexual predators.

Our new agenda will be the toughest and most comprehensive in the history of New York State.

We are making penalties more severe.

We are providing for civil confinement.

We are enhancing victim assistance.

We are improving community notification and the monitoring of sex offenders.

Once again, I call upon the Governor and the Senate to join us in making the safest big state - New York - even safer.

As we commence our work in this legislative session, the Assembly is also preparing for the future.

We foresee a new era of optimism and opportunity;

A new era of courage and collegiality;

A new era of vision and vitality;

A new era of responsiveness and gubernatorial leadership.

We are preparing for an administration that will demand integrity, accountability, and transparency from every level of government.

We are working for a future where the health, education and welfare of the people are the moral obligation of government, and not the fodder for wasteful television ads.

We are working for the day when New York's job-creation efforts reflect each region's unique assets;

The day when economic opportunity begins in the classroom;

Extends to skills improvement and job training at our excellent community colleges;

And reaches its pinnacle in the myriad research and development projects taking place in our world-class colleges and universities.

Realizing this vision requires that we keep our promises to the future.

Like all of the mothers and fathers in our court rooms who are demanding that this state honor its constitutional obligation to educate our children, we look forward to the fast-approaching day when the school funding issue is settled once and for all.

This new era of government was defined by the distinguished historian, Barbara Tuchman, in this way:

If we can be open enough to perceive that a given policy is harming rather than serving public-interest, if we can be confident enough to acknowledge it and wise enough to reverse it, then we will reach the summit in the art of government.

Right now, that summit is still a long way off.

To the families of Corn Hill in Utica;

To the families of Dunkirk and Niagara Falls;

To those residing on the South Side of Syracuse and in Rochester's 14621 Neighborhood;

To the families in Riverhead, in Monticello, and in Newburgh City;

To those working families struggling to pay your bills in cities, towns and villages across this state, I ask you:

Have twelve years of Republican leadership improved your lives? Your schools? Your communities?

Is your faith in government stronger today? Are you hopeful for the future?

Remember the early years of the Pataki Administration?

New Yorkers were reaping the dividends of that extraordinary and history-making Clinton economy.

The state's coffers were filled to the brim.

The ability to strengthen the core elements of New York State's economy was never better.

Yet, the Pataki Administration purposefully under funded education and higher education;

Under invested in mass transit, roads and bridges;

Under financed health and mental health care;

And under capitalized housing and the other essential aspects of our infrastructure.

Then came September 11th, 2001.

New Yorkers were the target of the single most devastating act of mass murder and economic destruction ever perpetrated by a terrorist entity in this country.

Today, four-and-a-third years after the towers thundered to earth, Ground Zero remains a sad and empty space, and the Lower Manhattan economy continues to sink in a swamp of competing visions and misguided priorities.

For eleven years, through the highs and the lows, New Yorkers have endured an administration that has been defined by a reluctance to lead; an administration unable to back up its rhetoric with action, and unwilling to conduct its business in the sunlight of public scrutiny.

For eleven years, New Yorkers have watched their governor raise millions of dollars for a national political party that is shortchanging our state billions of dollars in federal aid.

For eleven years, we have endured an administration that has defined health-care reform as cuts in Medicaid funding for the elderly and disabled.

And now, after an economically crippling transit workers strike, the Governor's absence from the negotiating table proves yet again that he is reluctant to lead.

In refusing to work with the Legislature, this Administration has consistently acted in opposition to the best interests of New Yorkers.

Yes, a school-funding agreement could have been reached, but only if the Legislature sold out our school children.

We could not act so callously. We would not!

Instead, the Legislature stood together and chose to lead. The budgets we crafted are directly responsible for the recent upgrade in the state's credit rating.

I assure you that we will continue to lead this state in the direction that is best for New Yorkers and for our future.

This is the commitment of your State Assembly.

We will pass an on-time budget.

We will strengthen our education system in every part of this state.

We will target real property tax relief to our hard-pressed communities, our working families and our senior citizens.

We will strive to expand job growth in every city, county and town.

We will keep the dream of a college degree alive for every New Yorker who needs and is prepared for the challenges of higher education.

We will do all that we can to ensure that affordable, quality health care is accessible to every New Yorker.

We will work even harder to make energy less costly to businesses, homes, and especially to those New Yorkers on fixed incomes.

We will strive to make New York State a place our children want to stay, where they can afford to own a home, where they can find good jobs and build a secure career, where our schools are the finest in the nation, where our communities are free from violence, where the environment is clean, and their government is responsive to their needs.

The Governor has the opportunity in this, his final year in office, to establish this kind of legacy; a legacy of leadership, of bipartisanship, of dedication to working families and to helping them address the challenges they face every day.

This Governor has the opportunity to guide this State to that brighter future all New Yorkers are hoping for.

In a spirit of optimism, the Assembly stands ready to work with the Governor and with the Senate to help him craft the legacy New Yorkers deserve.

We are eager to begin our work. We are eager to prepare for the future. We are eager to restore the people's faith in their government.

I am Sheldon Silver, Speaker of the New York State Assembly urging all New Yorkers to get ready, brighter days are coming.

 

Old Industrial Buildings on the East River


It has happened in many of the great old cities of the world. In London, a power station along the Thames River became the Tate Modern Museum. In Paris, a train station on the Seine became the Musee d’Orsay. In San Francisco, an old chocolate factory became Ghirardelli Square, an essential tourist stop.

Finding new uses for old industrial buildings along the waterfront has a tradition in New York City as well. One success story is the transformation of the vast old National Biscuit Company plant (manufacturers of Saltines, Oreos, and Fig Newtons) on Ninth Avenue that became Chelsea Market, the bustling home to (appropriately) the Food TV Network and many food shops, as well as NY1, flower merchants and other businesses employing nearly 5,000 people.

“It can work in New York,” says Irwin Cohen, the brains behind Chelsea Market, which, he says, also revitalized the surrounding area. “You can save buildings and benefit all of us who live here.”

But current controversies dog the old industrial waterfront of the East River, pitting preservationists against developers, who don’t see the point.

Some 1,000 waterfront acres have been rezoned on the Brooklyn side, part of a building boom all over the city, which in Brooklyn is producing high-rise apartments with magnificent views of Manhattan. Schaefer Landing, on the site of the old Schaefer Brewery in Williamsburg, was the first to go up, and apartments in the first building have already sold out. Several other waterfront residential high-rise projects are in the works.

Preservationists worry. The Municipal Art Society has an exhibition Preservation on the Edge: Our Threatened East River Heritage. Kent Barwick, president of the society, says the industrial buildings along the East River preserve the river's character. "It's not like all other rivers. It's a gritty, workingman's river. That's where the energy is. That's where the action is."

Three buildings along the East River waterfront in particular are the focus of conflict.

Austin, Nichols Warehouse

If plans for the Austin, Nichols warehouse are any indication, the developers of high-end residential properties are gaining ground. The giant old building in Williamsburg is part of a hot real estate market. A developer, Moishe Kestenbaum, plans to gut the building, change the window style, add four stories, and turn the place into luxury condos.

Preservationists, including the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission, thought the 1913 building designed by Cass Gilbert (best known as the architect of the Woolworth building), should stay the same, on the outside at least. But City Councilmember David Yassky sided with the developer, and recently the council voted against landmark status. The mayor went to the unusual step of vetoing the council’s vote – and then the council overrode his veto.

"This is simply not a landmarkable building," says Yassky's chief of staff Evan Thies, who points out that the building is not listed in the city's "architectural bible," The AIA Guide to New York City. The book lists 75 significant buildings in the Greenpoint/Williamsburg area and 13 other buildings around the city by Cass Gilbert, but Austin, Nichols is not among them.

"Landmarking isn't about pretty buildings," replies Ward Dennis of the Waterfront Preservation Alliance of Greenpoint & Williamsburg. It's about the juxtaposition of old and new "Residential development should work hand in hand with preservation of host sites." Preservationists would prefer maintaining the building as it is with the current tenants of artists and young professionals whose rent generally runs less than a $1,000 month.

But Thies argues that the development of the property along with the rezoning of Greenpoint and Williamsburg will lead to the creation of 3,000 affordable apartments. "There's no way we could afford to build affordable housing unless we build significant amount of market-rate housing," he says. And the deal along with others in the neighborhood "enabled us to build a beautiful waterfront park (In PDF Format) that would have never been built if developers weren't allowed to redevelop property along that waterfront," says Thies. "Landmarking at that site would have been bad for the community."

Preservationists see a neighborhood in danger of losing its history and its soul. Despite the promise of parks and affordable housing, most of what's planned is luxury housing, and the modest businesses and industries—and the blue collar jobs they offer—are likely to be displaced along with the industrial buildings.

Domino Sugar Factory

Residential developers are snapping up other obsolete industrial buildings along the waterfront. The Domino Sugar plant north of the Williamsburg Bridge in Brooklyn was the largest sugar refinery in the world for almost 150 years. It closed in 2004 and developers bought it. They have not announced what they are planning for the building. (See "Developers Known for Residential Work Buy Domino Sugar Plant")

They may at least keep some of the building including the giant yellow sign that faces the river. Preservationists fear they will dismantle distinctive sections that no longer serve any practical use. Industrial archeologist Mary Habstritt is especially enamored of the giant angled chute that extends hundreds of feet from one building to another. It used to transport sugar to giant silos. She was allowed to see it from the inside the day before the plant closed. She climbed up the inside of the ramp, and when she came to the top and looked down into the brightly lit silos, she saw "a fairyland of sugar." No one will have that Willy Wonka moment again, and Habstritt knows the plant will have to be put to a new use. But she has hopes that the history will remain visible. "We need to preserve enough of it to tell the story to those who come after us."

Con Edison Power Plant

Another building industrial preservationists love and developers might demolish is the Con Ed power plant by the United Nations. At the turn of the 20th century, utilities put great care into the designs of their purposeful buildings, and the results are often magnificent. They also added interesting decorative elements, though later modifications, designed for function not form, take away some of the charm and often leave disheveled relics. But industrial buildings such as the Con Ed plant, even after years of changes, retain a rough grandeur.

The Con Ed plant is a worthy candidate for some cultural, residential and/or commercial use, says Frank Sanchis of the Municipal Art Society. Inside is fantastic, "a cathedral of industry." It should be preserved, even the smokestacks. The Tate Modern in London is not embarrassed about their smokestacks, says Sanchis.

The Con Ed plant could lose more than its stacks. Developers might tear it down for high-rise apartments. While it is more trouble to design around the relics of an earlier age, there should be good returns on the investment. The "gorgeous Con Ed building" could become a desirable place to live, says Sanchis. "I can't believe that people wouldn't want to live there instead of some stupid cookie-cutter high-rise building."

 

Speaker Christine Quinn's Address to the City Council


Good afternoon. Public Advocate Gotbaum, Congressmen Nadler and Rangel, Borough Presidents Carrion, Markowitz,and Stringer, Senator Duane, Assemblymen Lopez and Rivera, Congressman Manton, former Speaker Vallone, Public Advocate Green and Controller Holtzman. Former members of the Council and other distinguished guests.

Let me say thank you first to all of my colleagues. I am honored to have your support and promise that I will work as hard as I can every day to prove worthy of your trust.

Leroy, Melinda, David, Joel, Bill, and Lew, we had an honorable and spirited race, you are all a credit to your districts and to the City Council and I look forward to working closely with you in the years to come.

Let me also thank my entire family - all of the Quinns, Catullos, and Dellermos here today. To my father Lawrence and my partner Kim, your patience and unwavering support mean so much... I love you both more than words can say.

It would take too long for me to thank everyone else who played a role in making today possible but you know who you are and I will never forget your help.

Finally, I want to take a moment to thank my great friend and a great Speaker of the City Council, Gifford Miller. When Gifford took office four years ago, the scars of 9/11 were still raw, there were thirty-five new members of the City Council and everyone questioned whether this 30-something kid could do the job...whether he could fill the big shoes of the remarkable speaker before him, Peter Vallone - a man who served this City with distinction and integrity and whose presence we are honored with today. Well, for four years Gifford Miller led the Council with strength, courage and thoughtfulness... He leaves a City stronger that he found it. For that we are all grateful.

As one enters this wonderful building and sits in this remarkable chamber, you can’t help but feel awed by the responsibility that our constituents have given us.

Whether it's oversight of the Mayor's policies, passing budgets that protect vital services, or laws that protect the health of New Yorkers or helping constituents with important everyday problems, we have the power and the responsibility to improve the lives of millions of people. And we get to do this in the most vibrant, diverse and the greatest city in the world. It is truly an honor....and it's an honor that is worth reminding ourselves of, and each other of, everyday.

As Speaker I will be guided by principles that will make our government even more responsive to people's needs and more effective for all New Yorkers.

I am committed to being a five-borough Speaker. Whether you speak Spanish in the South Bronx, Chinese in Flushing, Yiddish in Borough Park, Creole in Flatbush, Bassa in Park Hill or English in Chelsea, we work for you...we serve you...our job is to make your life better.

It doesn't matter where you live, this Council and I are here to answer your needs. I know that I will only be as good a Speaker as I am a listener. So my message to my colleagues, to our constituents and to all New Yorkers is simple: My door is always open...the more people we hear from, the more good ideas we get, the more effective we will be as a legislature...the better Speaker I will be for everyone.

For eight million New Yorkers, we are the People's House. We are in every neighborhood, every day and every night.

It is our responsibility to connect our government with the needs of the people. And for many of the over one million New Yorkers who recently entered this country, we are the life line to needed services.

As Speaker I will work with all of our colleagues to make it easier to address the problems of our constituents.

And this means using technology to find patterns of problems across the City.

If multiple neighborhoods cannot get stop signs installed in a timely fashion, we should know that this is a systemic problem...and treat it as that. If some neighborhoods are saddled with higher unemployment than others, we should quantify it and then direct economic development money to help those communities that need it most.

The Mayor's job is to focus on the needs of New Yorkers on a macro-level from the top down...our job is to focus on their needs from the bottom up. To listen and learn from our constituents one neighborhood block at a time.

Yet, our goals and the mayor's goals are the same. Too often this body acts as a report card on the Mayor... he makes an announcement in the Blue Room and journalists run over to us to give it a grade.

I believe that our job, first and foremost, is to work with the Mayor - whatever his party affiliation - to make the City a better place.

That's why as Speaker I am committed to putting progress ahead of partisanship.

Yes, we will oppose the Mayor when we believe we must - I have done so in the past and I will do so in the future...but I sincerely hope - and believe - that we can agree more often than we disagree...and that both sides of City Hall can work together with a renewed sense of trust and teamwork. The truth is, the stakes are too high to do it any other way.

We must work together on a more rational budget process that improves long-term planning and fixes the annual dance over cuts and restorations.

We must work together to continue to keep to our city safe from terror attack and our streets safe from crime.

Mr. Mayor I will go anywhere you need to stop the flow of illegal guns into this City. I'll go to Washington DC or to Albany to work hand-in-hand with Speaker Shelly Silver... anywhere... to help us in the fight to keep these weapons off our streets.

And we must work together to help the millions of working class people for whom the City has become simply unaffordable. While grade schools are getting better, middle schools are simply not improving fast enough.

We face a housing crisis that is pricing too many tenants and homeowners out of their neighborhoods. It is unacceptable that people who work here and who want to live and raise a family here cannot afford to do so. It is our job to help change that.

And, most importantly, we must work together improve the lives of the least fortunate.

To give everyone the opportunity to have a job that offers dignity and respect...and that pays a living wage... to make the delivery of social services more effective... To make our public hospitals better... and to offer smarter preventive care for our children.

To accomplish these goals, the City Council must become an incubator of big ideas...the creator of innovative policies that help people across the economic spectrum and across the City. We will look to cities and states throughout the country and to neighborhoods and communities throughout New York for the smartest solutions to people's everyday problems.

Let me end on a personal note. My father was watching the local news at my office two days ago and the reporter came on to talk about my selection as Speaker. The reporter talked about my being the first woman speaker... and the first openly gay speaker.

And without missing a beat, my dad stuck out his chest and proudly yelled at the TV - you forgot Irish, you bum!

Let me say that I am incredibly proud that in the most diverse city in the world, that diversity is seen as a strength - not an impediment. For that I owe a debt of gratitude to all of you in this chamber and to all of our constituents in our districts.

Thank you for your support... thank you for your trust... I won't let you down.

 

 

Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum's 2006 Inaugural Address


You the people of New York have entrusted me to serve as your Public Advocate for another term. Thank you for your support. I am honored and privileged to assume this solemn responsibility.

Over the past four years my office has helped countless New Yorkers and made significant contributions to the way our city is run and they way it delivers services. Today, I am more certain than ever that the office of the Public Advocate has a vital role in the governance of our city.

Let me tell you about just a few of the New Yorkers we have helped:
We helped Eric – a homeless man with two children – get food stamps so that he could buy food for his family.
We helped Violet - a senior citizen living on a fixed income – get a subsidy to cover her rent increase.
And we helped Phil Kelly’s son get the special education services he had been denied. I am pleased that Mr. Kelly and his family could be here today.

And just consider the difference a determined public advocacy has made in the last 4 years:
We helped tens-of-thousands more New Yorkers sign up for food stamps by pushing through reforms to the application process.
We helped our most vulnerable residents – our elderly – get better housing, better transportation and better healthcare service.
We helped the city meet the challenges of special education and ensure that many children get the services to which they are entitled.

I am proud of what we have accomplished, but the first term was just the beginning.

I have enjoyed a productive relationship with the outgoing City Council speaker, Gifford Miller, and look forward to working constructively with his successor and with comptroller Thompson and the Bloomberg administration.

Mayor Bloomberg and I have not always agreed, but I believe we share many similar goals.

I am ready to join him in a bipartisan partnership driven by one overriding goal: to ensure that New Yorkers get the government services they need and deserve.

If we work together there is no limit to what we can achieve: to make sure no one goes hungry; to make sure every senior has a warm home and adequate healthcare; to make sure every New Yorker has a safe and affordable home; and that all our children get an education that prepares them for tomorrow.

Working together we can build an even stronger New York, a New York that never looses sight of the people who are the heart and soul of this great city.

I have worked in city government for more than 30 years and the people of New York are the best bosses I have ever had. I am honored that they once again chose me to serve the city that I love.

And I am proud that my office is one place where all New Yorkers can turn when they need help.

Thank you.

 

The Speaker Speaks Out


Gotham Gazette: Our guest today is former City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, who headed the council through the administrations of Ed Koch, David Dinkins, and Rudolph Giuliani.

Mr. Vallone, you have recently written a book about your experiences in New York City government, entitled Learning to Govern. What inspired you to write this book and why did you decide to do it now?

Peter Vallone: Based upon my years in office, it became very clear to me that very few people know anything about government. The American system of government, in my opinion, is the greatest system of government ever devised by anybody. [What has happened since 9/11], I think, makes it essential that we go back to learn about our government.

I also wanted to let readers know that what they read and see on television is not a true story about what goes on in government. The only way to make money in media is to talk about what goes wrong in life and in government. So, if you pick up today's newspapers or look at the television, they'll be talking about murders, they'll be talking about some government official somewhere who was indicted, but they won't be talking about the nuts and bolts of government, and all the things that are going right in government.

[Another thing I wanted to address is] that the balance of government is tipping in favor of an all-powerful executive at the expense of the legislative branch. Since so many people know someone in office that they don't like, eight of 10 people are now in favor of term limits for the legislative branch of government. This is a disaster for our legislature because it can never be equal to a mayor, a governor, or a president without some kind of seniority.

TERM LIMITS AND THE SPEAKER’S RACE

Gotham Gazette: The council is currently working toward choosing its next speaker. At a recent forum among candidates for speaker, each speaker said they supported the idea of the council extending term limits from 8 years to 12 years. Do you agree with that?

Peter Vallone: Yes, it's a small step in the right direction. At least 12 years gives you some natural staggering where not everyone will be leaving at the same time.

The term limit movement started because a billionaire who ran against Guiliani spent $14 million, but only got 14,000 votes in the Republican primary, and got so annoyed that he decided to institute term limits throughout the whole country. But he couldn't do it in Congress, because it was unconstitutional. Couldn't do it in the state legislature; unconstitutional. Where could he do it? Here, the greatest city in the world.

So, yes, I'm definitely much in favor of the council’s move. This change should be done by referendum, obviously. But there is no fairness in the referendum because the same billionaire will put millions of dollars of ads on television showing the speaker of the city council in a caricature smoking cigars and raising taxes, and the city council is prohibited by charter to lobby or campaign.

Gotham Gazette: But at the same time, doesn't the city council voting among itself to overturn something the voters chose through referendum twice undermine the idea that the public can participate in the political process?

Peter Vallone: That's a very valid point, but the only way that that point succeeds is if the city council or someone had the opportunity to get to the public and tell them the other side of the story. So while it should be done by a referendum, it can't be done by a referendum unless you have some good government group that is willing to match the amount of money that's being spent to buy television time.

Gotham Gazette: So what you're saying is that the people of New York, the voters of New York, cannot be trusted to see through a television commercial and vote what's the best thing for the city?

Peter Vallone: Not that they can't be trusted, but that they don’t have the ability to see both sides of the story.

Gotham Gazette: But the newspaper editorials and the good government groups are coming out opposed to the proposals on term limits. Their focus is on the process. They’re not talking about whether term limits is good or bad, they say the voters have voted for it twice in referendum, and to repeal it or to extend it, it should be referendum instead of legislature.

Peter Vallone: They're saying it because it's the easiest thing to say. It's the popular thing to do. And I don’t think that the popular thing to do is the right thing to do in every case. And the right thing to do for the city is to give council members more time. Term limits should be abolished all together.

Real term limits means vote the bum out when he or she comes up for office. They don't have to serve for eight years. Throw them out in four years if they aren't doing their job. You're taking away the choice of the people to keep someone good in office. If they choose to keep someone, why deprive them of that choice? It’s unconstitutional.

If you're really going to have term limits, pass a constitutional amendment.

Bob Zane: Question for the speaker: You made a strong case against term limits. Do you feel the same way about a mayor having term limits?

Peter Vallone: No, there needs to be a balance of power. So whether it's the president, (who does have term limits), or the mayor (who does as well), or the governor, (who doesn't), the mere fact that you are a chief executive gives you enormous power. The whole idea is to check that power, so you don't have a dictator. If they stay in power too long, it's almost impossible to compete with them in anything. I think term limits for the executive branch of government is a reasonable thing to have. I'm not saying you should have it; I just don't have any beef against it.

By contrast, no individual legislator has power to change policy unless he or she comes together with a majority of that legislature, and has a speaker who can speak for the majority, and get the executive to negotiate. What's going to happen with the council with term limits is that each speaker is going to be weaker and weaker. The mayor is going to be doing business with 51 council members and he or she is going to regret this until his or her dying day. There are going to be 51 people walking into the office saying I won't vote for this unless you give me this or that. And it's just going to get worse and worse as time goes on.

GIFFORD MILLER’S CITY COUNCIL

Gotham Gazette: You say that terms limits were a disaster. To twist that, are you saying that the city council has been a disaster? What is your assessment of Miller's council?

Peter Vallone: No, because you have close to 40 council members that still have another term to serve. They’re all gone in the next term.

Gotham Gazette: What's your assessment of the last four years?

Peter Vallone: I think they did a great job, as good a job as they could do under the circumstances because they still had experienced legislators there. But now what happens, is from the moment of that the speaker is elected, he or she is a lame duck. They're already looking to see who the next person is going to be.

Gotham Gazette: Wouldn't that be true with Miller as well?

Peter Vallone: No, because Miller served with me. He was a council member with me. People knew him, and he had a record. I supported him because he was bright and honest. What the county leaders were going to try to do was put another fellow in office who is now in jail. He got a six-year term. You know who you work with, you know who you deal with, you know who's honest, you know who might be shady. That's how legislators come together.

HAS THE COUNCIL BECOME A COUNTERWEIGHT TO THE MAYOR?

Gotham Gazette: A lot of your book is about how the elimination of the Board of Estimate in 1989 changed city government. What was the board, and what happened when it was eliminated?

Peter Vallone: Prior to the 1989 charter change, you had an all powerful mayor and board of estimate. It was just a group of executives, not legislators. The board of estimate was made up of the mayor, the president of the city council, which would be equivalent to a vice mayor or a vice president on the federal level, the comptroller, who counts the money and monitors the money, and the five presidents of the boroughs. All are executive positions, and the city council could not move one penny of the budget without their permission.

Under this system, the borough president of Staten Island, representing less than 400,000 people, had the same say as the president of Brooklyn, who represented 2.5 million people. It was a terrible situation. It led not only to corruption in personal activities, but corruption in government itself. It relegated the city council to a group that did nothing except follow whatever the heck the mayor wanted to.

[When the Board of Estimate was eliminated in 1989], what happened to the city of New York? The first thing that happened is that the city council put into effect, with a lot of hard work, the Safe City Safe Streets initiative, which tremendously changed the whole outlook of the City of New York. Instead of people running around in gangs killing people on the subway, we were able to negotiate and bring about this new measure.

We changed the policy of the homeless. Instead of huge shelters just warehousing people, we came up with transitional ways of getting people into permanent housing. We came up with campaign financing, which said that you don’t have to be a billionaire to run for mayor of the City of New York, or to become a council member. We had the power for the first time that Congress of the United States had and that any state legislature has.

Gotham Gazette: You said that the elimination of the Board of Estimate finally made the council a legitimate counterweight to the mayor. That was about 16 years ago. I think it would be fair to say that some people still don’t seem to see the council as a counterweight. Why do you think that is?

Peter Vallone: Well, because they don’t get the press and publicity that the mayor does. The mayor will have a press conference every single day and announce whatever he thinks is going right or wrong. The speaker of the city council, before he or she derives the ability to speak for the entire council, has to speak to the entire council and has to draw a consensus. This is fine; that's the way it should be. But it takes time and discipline, and it takes argument and it takes discussion. In addition, if the speaker of the city council does have a press conference, maybe one or two people will show up to listen to him. So there is a complete lack of fairness and balance.

PUBLIC ADVOCATE AND BOROUGH PRESIDENTS: WHAT’S THE POINT?

Gotham Gazette: One of the things we do at Gotham Gazette is Searchlight on the City Council. We started it before there was a Web, in 1989, in acknowledgment of the strengthening of the city council. But when the government changed it changed other things also. There has been a lot of talk in the last couple of years in particular questioning the creation of the public advocate and the retention of the borough presidents. Are there things in this new form of city government that you wish had been done differently? Has it worked out?

Peter Vallone: Let me address the public advocate. I did my hardest to try and convince the charter commission to do away with that office, not all together, but to change it, call it the vice mayor, so they run on the same ticket so you don’t have two people that could be poles apart in terms of policy. There was no necessity for public advocate because each of the council members, all 51 council members can be advocates for their own district. So I think the public advocate is an office whose time is over and could be abolished.

Mayor Giuliani tried to do so, but he did it the wrong way. He hated Mark Green [who was public advocate at the time]. He was going against Mark Green and I said “I can't do that. You're making this personal”. I said I would support you if you made it just for the public advocate but I don’t have any beef against Mark Green.

Gotham Gazette: What about the borough presidents?

Peter Vallone: Borough presidents, I think, have a role. When people wanted to abolish it, I said no. They shape 5 percent of the expense budget in their own district and 5 percent of the capital budget. When the mayor proposes his or her budget, the borough president can change it.

Also, the City of New York is so big that, in my mind, each of the boroughs should be states, so that New York would have a lot more influence in Washington then it does now. There's an argument, I think for breaking up the State of New York, at least into two states. That could be done. My son, the chair of the public safety committee, has introduced a study group to talk about secession.

They say that will never happen in this state. Yes it would; everybody upstate hates us, they think the City of New York is draining all of their money out. They don't realize that we've given billions of dollars. When I was campaigning [for governor] up in Buffalo, it was like campaigning in Kentucky. When I went to Plattsburgh, New York, I'm talking to Canadians. They all hate New York City, thinking that all we do is draw money away from them. So, I think they would vote for this and we'd have an opportunity perhaps to convince Congress to give us at least two states instead of one state.

UPSTATE VS. DOWNSTATE; GETTING OUR FAIR SHARE

Gotham Gazette: But if New York City seceded from New York State who would get the name?

Peter Vallone: Well that becomes – well, we could give them the name. Or it would be the State of New York and the City of New York. We could go that way. It could be North and South. Like North Dakota, South Dakota: it could be North New York, South New York. Whatever the heck they want.

It’s like when my favorite senator, Patrick Moynihan, had a bridge called the Hellgate bridge, the longest railroad bridge in the world, that hadn’t been painted or fixed since it was put up in 1916. So, when Pat Moynihan became chair of the finance committee, I went and I said, “Pat, we gotta do something about this. This is federally owned!” So we got $55 million to repair and paint the bridge, but then he said—and he only had three months left in office— “Let’s have a contest as to what color.” And I said, “Please, Pat, no more contests; let’s do this.” And he said, “Well, what color?” and I said “Whatever color you want is perfectly all right.” So he gets a train and we start on the middle of the bridge, and he comes out with this color. I had never seen this color. He said, “Do you like it?” I said, “I love it. It’s a great color. Let’s get it done while you’re in office.” Because you know what happens in Washington: things disappear. So, he named the color, Hellgate Red.

The damn thing is deteriorating now, and we don’t have the kind of strength in Washington anymore to find out why it was such a bad paint job. But anyway, that's the story of how you get things done in Washington, and that’s why it's so important to have seniority again. Could you imagine if you had term limits, and Pat Moynihan was gone in two terms? We never would’ve gotten half of the things that we need to get from Washington, that we’re still not getting. But at least we get something, because we have someone like Charlie Rangel, who’s a step away from a very powerful position in Congress, if the Democrats take over. It’s all seniority. And that’s how you get fairness. I’m not talking about taking advantage of anybody. I’m just saying, New York City, and New York State, should get a fair deal.

Dorie Peters: Mr. Vallone, given the obvious bias against New York City by the upstaters, I was puzzled why Sheldon Silver seemed to be against your campaign for governor.

Peter Vallone: He didn’t seem to be, he was very much against my campaign. I have never stopped criticizing the state from the moment I was elected because of the inequities that existed.

Politics is a great vehicle to get you into office, but it should not be the end. Well, Albany -— which now has the distinction of being the worst state legislature in the whole country, all right -— has just the opposite. Instead of using politics to get you into government to do the right thing for all people -— good government -— they use government to get you into politics to do the right thing for the party.

And I use as the greatest example of wrong-headedness something Sheldon Silver did because of one solitary, little election in Rockland County for state senate. Two months before 9/11, Mayor Giuliani and I find out that Joe Bruno has decided to repeal the commuter use fee, which generates $600 million a year, in order to give the candidate running in Rockland County an advantage over the Democratic candidate.

We say “Joe Bruno, what are you doing? You can’t take $600 million out of our budget.”

“Don’t worry, it’s only politics,” he said. “Shelly Silver, and your Democratic friends in the Assembly will never pass it.”

So we went over to the other side and said to Silver: “You’re not going to pass it, are you?”

Silver replied: “Oh, yes, I am. This is politics. You think I’m going to give them an advantage in this seat in Rockland County? Go to your governor; let him veto it.”

We go to the governor, and Governor Pataki said: “What, me veto? A repeal of a tax, are you kidding?”

And, it just sailed right through.

Two months later, 3,000 people are killed, and hundreds of thousand of jobs disappear. Hundred of millions of dollars are taken out of the city’s budget. No other city in the world could have survived this kind of economic disaster, no less the incomprehensible disaster of the loss of human life.

You know, when there was a disaster in San Fransisco, an earthquake, no one had to ask the governor or the California legislature to do anything. On their own they passed a special assessment and got billions of dollars to help restore and rebuild San Francisco. We haven’t gotten a penny. Not a penny, and I think that’s an outrage. I don’t have anything personal against Shelly, or Joe, or any of them. But I do think that you have to throw light on what’s going wrong. You’d think that Albany was in Siberia; nobody seems to care what goes on in Albany.

But if you burp in City Hall, it becomes a major story the next day. You would think that Gifford Miller was a murderer, because somebody on the staff said they only spent X amount of thousands of dollars, instead of millions of dollars, for citywide mailing. It was a story repeated over and over again, every day.

CAMPAIGN FINANCE

Gotham Gazette: So, your alternative to term limits is a stronger campaign finance system?

Peter Vallone: Absolutely. I put that into effect back in 1987 because we recognized then that there should be a balance and we were the first legislature in the land to do it.

Gotham Gazette: Do you think it works well now?

Peter Vallone: No, because the staff members of the campaign finance board are very idealistic, nice, young people who think that the enemy is the elected official. We should not punish people for making innocent mistakes.

Also, the city council just passed a law overruling the Campaign Finance Board because they wanted to prohibit unions from giving money. You have an organization like District Council 37, which is an amalgamation of maybe 40 different unions, so that they don’t have the same popularity that police have, teachers have, or sanitation officers have. These are librarians that might only have 200 in the whole city. By themselves they really don’t have any power, but they came together with other social service groups and formed something that has been very effective in giving them a voice where they didn’t have a voice before. We were the lowest paid librarians, for example, in the entire country and the council changed that.

Now, say District Council 37 gives you the maximum contribution, but the librarians also want to give a contribution; that's what's been going on, each of the separate unions give small contributions. The Campaign Finance Board comes along and says, nope if you're a member of the bigger union you can't give a contribution, only the union can give a contribution. It's just not right. That is union busting.

THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY

Gotham Gazette: You mentioned that one of the reasons you wrote this book was as a guide for people who are considering running for office. In the book, you detail the system that first helped you get into public service, which was the Democratic clubhouse system. The Democrats have now lost four consecutive mayoral elections and there's not much talk about the strengths of the party at the moment. Do you think that the clubhouse system's time has come and gone?

Peter Vallone: Well, it depends on what you mean by clubhouse system. I don’t think the party system has come and gone. I think the only way an average person can get elected is to form a group of people who support that candidacy, and to have volunteers rather than paid people. That becomes a political party.

Nonpartisan elections are another thing that people are in favor of because it sounds nice. But by taking away the political parties, non-partisan elections just turn the system over to whoever has the most money. Parties mean that candidates have a lot of people who are going to help get signatures, petitions, all that kind of stuff, without paying them. If I'm a billionaire, I don't need a party. I will hire thousands of people to work for me. That becomes my party. How are you going to compete against that unless you have an existing organization that's going to know how to get a signature, how to go house-to-house, how to go to the Board of Elections and so on.

Gotham Gazette: So, do you think it's easier or harder for a political newcomer to run for office in New York now than when you first ran?

Peter Vallone: It's easier to challenge an incumbent today, much easier. That's why incumbents don't pass campaign finance.

THE CITY UNDER BLOOMBERG

Gotham Gazette: To go back to the city government, Mr. Vallone, you served as council speaker with three different mayors. You referred to Ed Koch as the spirit of the city. You referred to David Dinkins as the heart of the city. And you referred to Guiliani as the brain of the city. Do you have a name for Bloomberg?

Peter Vallone: I think it's too early. I support him, even though I'm a Democrat, because of his experience. His inexperience led us to lose hundreds of millions of dollars because when he was first elected, everybody had great sympathy for the City of New York and they could have gotten the commuter use fee back among other things but the governor and the heads of the state senate and assembly said "Don’t worry Mr. Mayor wait until after the next election in November. Wait until after the gubernatorial election and the legislative election and then we’ll talk.”

Mayor Bloomberg at that time had total inexperience, so he believed them. And a year later, we got nothing. Now, he has the experience. He knows what he's dealing with upstate, and that's why I supported him this time, because now I know he's going to go after them, and I'll be right there alongside of him. If I don’t have the power to do anything about it, at least I have a voice to speak.

Gotham Gazette: So what would be your one word name for him?

Peter Vallone: I was trying to think about that. He's a good manager, very competent. And he now has that necessary experience to know what you're dealing with when you're dealing with the state and when you're dealing with the federal government. He knows that you have to strike when you can, and when you realize your power while you have it.

Book Club Member: The next governor looks as though it well may be Elliot Spitzer. Do you think with him in office the city would get a greater or more of a fair share?

Peter Vallone: I certainly hope so. I think there's a much better chance to have someone like Eliot Spitzer, someone who's familiar with the city, as governor. And I think he has a good record of not worrying about the big companies coming after him because he exposes corruption. The more fearless you are, the better off you are in terms of doing the right thing. That is what my book is all about. Just do the right thing and don’t worry about the consequences. In the end, the people will support you.

Gotham Gazette:What do you think the big stories will be in New York City in 2006?

Peter Vallone: Well, unfortunately, I think term limits is going to be a big story. If the council passes, and I hope they do, a measure to extend the limit to 12 years, for sure there's going to be a referendum put on the ballot to reverse it. And there will be a lot of very bad publicity for the council members, which will result in their being afraid to do anything. And they may not even be able to pass the term limits bill for fear of reprisal. It's just going to be a continual knock on the city council, which really doesn’t deserve it. I think that they deserve a lot of credit for changing the policy of the city and making it a better place to live. And unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any way of communicating with the electorate the truth of what's going on. And the big story in 2006 is probably going to be "Let’s kick around the city council."

Gotham Gazette: Any other predictions?

Peter Vallone: I think you're going to find a mayor who's going to take on the state legislature, and that’s my hope and my wish, And I think he has learned how to deal with the governor and is going to be very forceful and I hope he goes back to the spirit of the city, Ed Koch, who threatened to run against Shelly Silver. You need a mayor that's really going to go out and do it. And I think that could be a wonderful story.

 

Waiting For Albany


 

The problem was straightforward: Since more than half of all New Yorkers are immigrants or the children of immigrants, many parents could not read the report cards and other school documents that their children brought home to them in a language they did not understand, English.

The solution seemed straightforward as well, at least to the New York City Council, which passed a law last month that would require schools to provide translation and interpretation services in eight major languages -- Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Bengali, Haitian Creole, Korean, Urdu, and Arabic.

But the Bloomberg administration is reportedly opposed to the council’s bill -– not because it opposes translations for non-English-speaking parents, but because it accuses the council “of overstepping its jurisdiction.” The power to make such decisions, it says, largely rests in Albany.

It is a familiar refrain. Critics may accuse Mayor Michael Bloomberg of using it as a convenient excuse in several issues, but the truth is, Albany does control much that is vital to the lives of the residents of New York City.

New Yorkers must depend on the governor and the state legislature -- based in Albany -– for how much rent and taxes we pay, how Lower Manhattan will be rebuilt, and whether the water we drink is clean, as well as much of what will happen in the city’s schools (especially how much money those schools will have.) The proposed Jets Stadium for the West Side of Manhattan may have provoked vigorous debate among New Yorkers, but it was Albany that put the kibosh on the plan. The city's subways and public buses may not venture past the five boroughs, but the new contract for the city’s transit workers could be nixed by Albany. Indeed, a day after the news last week that a provision of the new contract gives 20,000 transit workers refunds of previous contributions towards their pensions, Governor George Pataki announced he might veto it.

The most crucial NYC issues that are in Albany’s hands during this election year haven’t changed much since the last time there were major state-wide elections four years ago. (See Blame Albany, written in 2002, for a list of the “downstate dozen” issues.)

The issues stay more or less the same because, to put it bluntly, the public officials in Albany don’t do what they are supposed to. In 20 of the past 21 years, to pick a large example, Albany has failed to come up with a state budget by the legally-mandated deadline. Last year was the sole exception.

At the beginning of the legislative session last year, good-government groups suggested that the time was ripe for reforms that would force Albany to address New York’s problems more efficiently and effectively -- especially changes in legislative rules and an effort to make elections more competitive.

As the new legislative session is set to begin this week, New Yorkers continue to push for a package of reform from Albany to address some of the long-standing issues for which the city and its residents have had to wait. Two of many such examples are education and health care.

Waiting For a Sound Basic Education

It has been almost five years since the New York State Supreme Court declared the state's financing of public schools was in violation of a student's constitutional right to a "sound basic education." Responding to a lawsuit filed by the Campaign For Fiscal Equity, the court ordered the state to provide city schools with adequate funding for teachers, facilities, classrooms and to create reasonable class sizes. The deadline for compliance passed a year and a half ago. The city has yet to see a penny.

After the initial deadline the ruling judge, Justice Leland DeGrasse, appointed three referees to assess the noncompliance of the state and to submit a plan to implement the unfulfilled verdict. The recommendations of the referees (in pdf format) required that the state provide New York City $5.63 billion for operating expenses and $9.2 billion for facilities. Governor Pataki, arguing that the legislative and executive branch of government rather than the judiciary should determine the funding formula for public schools, is currently appealing the court order. If the court rules in favor of the state, the Campaign for Fiscal Equity plans to appeal to the Court of Appeals, the highest court in New York State.

While the legislature and governor have come to agree that the current system of funding needs to be revised, the amount of funding that should go to the city and the formula to determine that funding for the future remain areas of dispute.

A bill has been introduced in the Assembly, known as the "Schools for New York's Future Act," that essentially implements the court ruling and funding structure. However, prospects for passage are slim. The sponsor was Assemblymember Steve Sanders (See his article last year on the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case, The Governor Delays and Denies). But Sanders has just retired, and there is not much support for the funding formula in the Senate. As the governor and legislative leaders fail to reach a compromise, city school children continue to wait for the case to make its way through the courts.

Waiting For Health Care

New York City has 1.7 million people living without health insurance. Most are working people whose places of employment do not offer insurance.

The state actually has reduced the number of uninsured over the past several years, mostly through programs such as Family Health Plus and Healthy New York which have provided greater access to Medicaid for low income New Yorkers.

But health advocates say that Albany could do much more to increase the number of insured, including the continuation of a unique New York program that allows community groups to sign people up for Medicaid (called “facilitated enrollment"), which is due to expire soon. Legislators could also make it easier for employers to provide benefits for their workers, and allow more flexibility for the employed to buy into public programs.

The challenge in increasing (or even just maintaining) health care coverage is to do it while at the same time reducing (or just containing) health care costs. Health care is an increasingly expensive proposition that is of growing concern to public officials, as the recent transit contract negotiations brought to light. For example, one out of every seven dollars the City of New York raises in revenue goes towards Medicaid. And, according to a report (in pdf format) issued by the Citizens Budget Commission, the city’s contribution is growing at a rate of close to three percent annually.

Some of the increased cost is due to fraud. Last year, the State Senate approved legislation that would create an independent Medicaid inspector general, taking away some of the responsibility for combating fraud from the Health Department. Governor Pataki and Attorney General Eliot Spitzer opposed the measure, as did the State Assembly.

Curbing runaway spending on prescription drugs is another area that could help the state save millions of dollars. New York’s spending on prescription drugs has more than doubled over the past five years; in 2004, it had reached $3.8 billion.While costs are going up around the nation, Albany lagged behind other capitals in passing legislation to reign in costs and now New York pays much more than other states: New York could have saved an estimated $348 million, for example if it had been as aggressive as states like Michigan in setting the prices it pays pharmacies for the drugs they dispense. While the state recently created a ''preferred drug list,” a tool used by at least 30 other states to make prices more competitive, the program contains a very big loophole that allows doctors to easily circumvent it. According to the New York Times, this came after heavy lobbying by the pharmaceutical lobby, which has spent millions in New York State ensuring healthy profits.

Waiting For The Budget

The annual delay in the passage of the state budget has had severe repercussions among a wide range of organizations that cannot make decisions without knowing how much money they will be receiving from the state. This forces them to waste time and money as they wait. Unsure how much funding they will get, for example, classrooms must do without new science equipment, art teacher positions remain unfilled and after -school sports and clubs are held in limbo.

This past November voters rejected a “budget reform” ballot proposal drafted by the state legislature that attempted to address the problem by shifting power to propose a budget from the governor to the legislature if there were no agreement in place by the deadline. Voters ultimately saw this as little more than a power grab.

“I wish it had passed," Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowtiz from the Bronx said shortly after its defeat. "Hopefully, it will be raised in the political agenda.”

The budget reform agenda this year includes:

  • Creation of an Independent Budget Office, along the lines of the Congressional model, to conduct nonpartisan budget analysis
  • Requiring multiyear financial planning with regular updates to make longer-term consequences of budget decision more apparent and to instill greater transparency and discipline to the budget process.
  • Balancing the budget in accordance with what accountants call "Generally Accepted Accounting Principles" to ensure accurate accounting and more realistic budgets.
  • Creation of a package of incentives to ensure on-time budgets -- and disincentives (penalties) to prevent late budgets.

Ethical Lapses

In 2004 State Senator Guy Velella was sent to prison for accepting bribes to paint bridges, only to be released by an obscure city panel. After public outrage, Mayor Bloomberg appointed new members to the panel, which then returned Velella to prison.

Assemblymember Roger Green was caught last year billing the Assembly for travel expenses to and from Albany when he was getting free rides from a prison-services company seeking state contracts. He stepped down from his seat after pleading guilty -- but then was re-elected.

Brooklyn Democratic leader and Assemblymember Clarence Norman has been found guilty of misuse of campaign funds and is being tried for larger charges stemming from an investigation into the sale of judgeships in Brooklyn.

The persistence of these ethical lapses, adding to the inability to reach agreement on such substantive issues as education, health care and the budget, helped push the movement to reform Albany towards center stage in the 2004 legislative elections.

Reform Agenda, 2005 and 2006

The push towards reform was helped along by a persuasive report by the Brennan Center for Justice calling the state legislature the most “dysfunctional” in the nation.

Candidates from both parties began touting their reform credentials and pledging to their constituents that they would help clean up the mess in Albany. Thomas Suozzi, the county executive from Nassau County (who now is eyeing a race for governor), campaigned for his county position on a “Fix Albany” theme, and even helped unseat a fellow Democrat.

The 2005 legislative session resulted in some real reform:

The state passed meaningful lobbying reform that will require oversight of lobbyists seeking to influence government contracts.

The state closed the “get out of jail free” loophole that allowed former officials to avoid prosecution by resigning from office.

Campaign finance disclosure requirements and the freedom of information law have been strenghthened.

There have been some helpful changes to the rules in both houses of the legislature.

This year, there will be a push to go further:

1. Further ethics reform to restrict gifts from lobbyists and campaign contributions from businessmen who receive government contracts.

2. Reform of the state’s public authorities to ensure greater oversight and transparency, particularly in the area of debt issuance.

3. Budget reform.

4. Further legislative rules reform to ensure a more transparent, deliberative and democratic legislative process

5. Redistricting reform to take the power of drawing district lines out of the politician’s hands who benefit from the way they are drawn and give the power to an independent, disinterested body.

Waiting For Albany To Change?

The year 2006 begins with a number of questions:

Will the budget process be fixed?

Will the legislature act to clean up its own house(s)?

Will legislators focus on reforming public authorities and ethics?

Will the process of drawing up districts be changed to allow for more competitive elections?

Many are hopeful these issues will be addressed, if for no other than practical reasons. Governor Pataki’s declaration that he is not seeking re-election changes the equation of the “three men in the room” – the fact that Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, Republican Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and Governor Pataki have ruled Albany as a triumvirate for years. On the one hand, there is talk among legislators that there will be a “Silver-Bruno” alliance that will bridge their wide partisan divide. On the other hand, Pataki is clearly hoping to run for president of the United States, and will certainly want to boost his accomplishments in his last year in office.

To make matters more intriguing, two minority members of the legislature, Democratic State Senator Liz Krueger and Republican Assemblyman Tom Kirwan have filed a lawsuit against the governor and the two legislative leaders, charging that the rules in both legislative bodies discriminate against the minority members (in the Senate, the minority are the Democrats; in the Assembly, the minority are the Republicans.) Building on the momentum generated by the movement to reform Albany, the lawsuit challenges the closed-door system of government that the three men have implemented. Although a preliminary court decision has greatly narrowed the scope of their lawsuit, Krueger said she was pleased with that ruling, which reaffirmed her belief that "there is a role for the judiciary in addressing legislative dysfunction."

The new dynamic that exists this year, a year in which all the legislators must run for re-election, might allow for progress to occur without relying on court rulings. At the close of 2005, in response to the murder of two New York City police officers, the governor and the legislature demonstrated their ability to compromise in the passage of new crime and gun control measures. Will this spirit continue? We will just have to wait and see.

Doug Israel is advocacy and policy director, and Amy Ngai program associate, of Citizens Union Foundation, which publishes Gotham Gazette.

 

Nutcracked


Nutcracked

Power Pas de Deux: City Ballet Director Peter Martins vs. Anne Bass; Socialite Withdraws Her Fund-Raising After ProtĂ©gĂ© Incident; Says Seething Hoosier: NYCB ‘Feels Irrelevant to Me Now’

 

By Jason Horowitz

On Sept. 30, powerful socialite and benefactress Anne Bass ended one of the city cultural elite’s oldest pas de deux when she resigned from the board of the School of American Ballet after 25 years.

 
The school, founded by George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein to train Americans in Balanchine’s muscular, daring and revolutionary form of classical dance, and which later gave rise to the New York City Ballet, the resident dance company of Lincoln Center, had been directed since 1983 by the dashing and tempestuous playboy, Peter Martins.
 
And finally, it is Mr. Martins—and his leadership of the school and the company—that she blames for her exit.
 
“For me, [the New York City Ballet] feels irrelevant now,” Ms. Bass told The Observer. “It seemed like such an integral part of life years ago.”
 
In her resignation letter, she was more specific.
 
“Over the past few years, my escalating concerns over serious issues of governance made it impossible for me to continue,” she began. “I am no longer willing to support an institution that increasingly bears so little resemblance to the one that George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein bequeathed to their successors, and to which I have been committed for over twenty years since my Chairmanship of the 50th Anniversary campaign in 1984.”
 
The signs were already there: The ex-wife of Fort Worth billionaire Sid Richardson Bass, who had given at least $5 million to the school in the course of her decades on the board, had retracted a $1 million donation in January that was earmarked for a new studio, prompting a Page Six item speculating about her commitment to the organization.
 
Her criticism of the dance company and the administration at the school, Mr. Martins’ supporters say, reflects that of a handful of disgruntled former board members, including Ms. Bass and a former president of the school, Suzanne Davidson, who was ousted in 2003.
 
In her resignation letter, Ms. Bass accused Mr. Martins of denying Ms. Davidson a fair review back then.
 
 
She also charged that he used students at the school as pawns in his battles with board members who challenged his authority. One dancer that Ms. Bass sponsored to attend the school “suffered cruel and excessive punishment at the hands of the Chairman of the Faculty (Peter Martins) shortly before the end of the school year,” she wrote in the letter.
 
Mr. Martins’ personal assistant, Deborah Koolish, said that he was unavailable for comment.
 
Marcia Thompson, a school-board member who has been supportive of Mr. Martins, dismissed the Bass-Martins division as typical of things in the high-powered Lincoln Center offshoot.
 
“There are always people coming and going off the board,” said Ms. Thompson. “There were artistic differences as well as administrative differences. There is always discord.”
 
And so, strangely, the difficulty between Anne Bass and Peter Martins—the benefactor and the ballet master—seems archetypal for the school’s board, on which Chelsea Clinton, Wendy Wasserstein and Coco Kopelman also presently serve. Many of the board members present at the spirited and often spiteful meetings of 2003 said they reflected little more than an ugly family spat, a rough patch on the way to greener pastures. The school’s financial health is robust, they said, and none of the boardroom politics ever spilled over into the classrooms.
 
“There was certainly a tension in the institution,” said Peter Boal, a former principal in the company and a star teacher at the school, who recently left to take a job as director of the Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle.
 
“Emotions were running high at different times,” said Jeffrey Middleton, the school’s resident pianist, who nevertheless insisted that the staff and students were unaffected. “That was a complicated matter. Everybody had their own viewpoint.”
 
They still do.
 
New York Observer  

 



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