Issues & Initiatives

The Secretary of the Senate under the Leadership of Majority Conference Leader John L. Sampson, President Pro Tem Malcolm A. Smith, and Majority Leader Pedro Espada have convened a task-force to assist members’ offices with constituent based issues and concerns. The Haiti Assistance & Relief Taskforce (HART) is putting together a series initiatives including but not limited to, conference calls, clergy meetings, virtual webcasts and town-hall style meetings where constituents can have their questions answered by representatives from USAID, FEMA, the US State Department and other agencies and organizations that are partnering in the relief effort. This website is the Senate's online resource where you will find the most up to date info on our relief efforts.

Senate bill S66003 is legislation extending full marriage rights to same sex couples in the State of New York. You can find the full text of that bill, roll call votes, archived video of the debate as well as statements from Senators themselves at our Marriage Equality Initiative page.

Our schools, hospitals, housing, transportation, police and other services depend on the census. Information that comes from the census determines which neighborhood will receive a new school, a health clinic, a senior citizens center or a bus line. If you’re not counted, you won’t count when these important decisions are made.

Next spring, the Census will begin the process of counting everyone who lives in New York. The New York State Senate is working with neighborhood leaders to make sure everyone in New York is counted in Census 2010.

Green Jobs/ Green Homes NY is a landmark job creation program that pays for itself through energy savings and the revitalization of conomically distressed communities. It will create 14,000 family-sustaining jobs while significantly reducing energy costs for an estimated 1 million homes and business, curtailing the dangerous effect of greenhouse emissions on the environment. Green Jobs/ Green Homes NY GJ/GNY doesn’t take any money out of the state budget; it saves homeowners money on their utility bills and creates thousands of jobs that bring money into the local economy.

The Federal Government has appropriated billions of dollars to help reinvigorate the economy and save jobs and New York is getting a share. We’ve created stimulus.nysenate.gov to share with you important information about how these funds are being spent.

You can find useful, plain language data about how your community and New York State can benefit from this stimulus program as well as plenty of information on job creation and business opportunities. You can also view videos and find testimony from a series of Town Hall meetings about the stimulus package that the State Senate held around New York this spring. Your State Senate wants you to have all the information available about how New York State is working with the Federal government and communities around the state to jump start our economy.

Browse through the issues affecting New York State and initiatives taken to address the problems that impact the lives of every New Yorker. Issue Search