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For Immediate Release: Friday, July 1st,
2005
Contact: Jordan Isenstadt (c) 516.991.3842 (w) 212.490.9535
(f) 212.490.2151
State Senator Liz Krueger: The Senate Actually Made Some
Progress at the End; Still Much Work Left to be Done Still, Senator Krueger
surmised that much of the progress was motivated through the “dysfunctional”
label that has hounded the Legislature, and the shrinking grip that the
Republican majority has on the State Senate was certainly a factor in these
reform efforts. “We (Senate Democrats) were pushing for these reforms
since I first ran for office, and the passage of several of our reform
measures over the last days of session was a direct response to these
efforts. The pressure in Contract Lobbying
Reform: Senator Krueger,
a sponsor of legislation similar to the bill that was passed stated “the
passage of this legislation is an important first step to ensure that the
public knows who is working to influence its government.” The
legislation passed the Senate unanimously. Under the legislation,
lobbyists seeking state contracts would have to file reports on who was
paying and would be barred from plying their trade once the contract-letting
process officially begins. State officials can still inform a contractor that
the state will soon advertise for bids, and lawmakers will be able to lobby
commissioners and other top administration officials on behalf of lobbyists and
their clients. Initial violations call for fines up to $10,000, and a second
violation within four years would result in a ban from procurement lobbying
for four years. Any violation of the ban on lobbying during the final
contract process could lead to a fine of up to $50,000, plus the amount of
any compensation received by the lobbyist. More than 20 states already
require disclosure of money spent on contract lobbying. Upon explaining her
vote, Senator Krueger praised the bill on its merits, but suggested
that multiple amendments should be made to the lobbying law, including the
banning of gifts, the regulation of political contributions by companies
seeking state business and the establishment of a one year “cooling-off”
period before former elected officials can lobby. “This legislation is
like many other bills that we deal with in Public Authority Reform:
Senator Krueger praised the passage
of legislation that aims to shine light on the secretive world of public
authorities by establishing a new inspector general, a budget office, a
performance review of the state's 700 independent entities, as well as
requirements to prevent the type of sweetheart deal that almost delivered
over 40 miles of development rights along the Erie Canal to a well-connected
businessman two years ago for just $30,000. “Public authorities have
been the epicenter of stealth mismanagement and scandal in Ethics Reform: Closing the so-called Flynn Loophole was an
important step at the end of session, but the number of years it took to pass
this obvious reform should stand as a reminder of the disturbing lack of
responsibility of the government, indicated Senator Krueger. The
Flynn loophole, named after General Lawrence Flynn, a
former New York National Guard general, allowed the target of an ethics
inquiry to escape accountability simply by retiring or resigning from the
state payroll. The loophole has shut down 50 investigations since 1995, when
it was initially tested through the courts. “The fact that this
loophole has existed for so many years is indicative of the problems that we
have had in Legislative Rules
Reform: Senator Krueger’s
major disappointment of the legislative session was the fact that very few
substantive rules reforms were instituted, despite the musings in January by
the Senate Majority that “no one is going to out-reform us.” The only reform
to be adopted was the ending of the practice known as empty seat voting. Senator
Krueger pointed to several outstanding procedural reform items, including
altering the committee structure, opening up bill sponsorship to all Senators
regardless of party, ending absentee proxy voting in committee, and crafting
a functional conference committee system. “Our efforts to make
meaningful changes in the legislative rules have been blocked by the Majority
time and time again,” stated Senator Krueger. “In fact, of
eleven proposals offered in the Rules committee since this session began – on
topics including open bill sponsorship, recording votes on discharge motions
and requiring a 3/5’s vote to accept messages of necessity – the Majority has
never even responded. The Majority refuses to allow debate and vot4es on
these resolutions, and until they decide to act seriously about reform, these
proposals will languish – unread and unconsidered in the Rules
committee. The Senate Democrats are committed to changing this.” Senator Krueger’s fight for real reform of the legislative process
continues, as her lawsuit against the “Three Men in A Room” moves through the
courts. “We are suing to change a variety of legislative practices that
serve to undermine democratic procedures and limit deliberation regarding the
issues impacting our State,” stated Krueger. Republican
Assemblymember Tom Kirwan and the Finally, Senator Krueger
pointed to additional reform measures that were not addressed by the
Legislature during this session. These include reform of the
Rockefeller Drug Laws, Real Budget reforms, Fair Education Funding Formula’s
(resolution of CFE), Campaign Finance Reform; Economic Development Policy
reform; addressing Inequitable Tax Policies and Equitable Redistricting. -30- |
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