Regular Session - July 3, 1996

                                                                 
9115

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         9                       ALBANY, NEW YORK

        10                         July 3, 1996

        11                          10:10 a.m.

        12

        13

        14                       REGULAR SESSION

        15

        16

        17

        18       SENATOR JOHN R. KUHL, JR., Acting President

        19       STEPHEN F. SLOAN, Secretary

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        21

        22

        23











                                                             
9116

         1                      P R O C E E D I N G S

         2                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

         3       Senate will come to order.  Ask the members to

         4       find their places, staff to find their places.

         5       Ask everyone to rise with me and join in saying

         6       the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.

         7                      (The assemblage repeated the

         8       Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. )

         9                      In the absence of clergy, may we

        10       bow our heads in a moment of silence.

        11                      (A moment of silence was

        12       observed.)

        13                      Senator Bruno.

        14                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Mr. President,

        15       can we at this time call for an immediate

        16       meeting of the Rules Committee in Room 332.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There

        18       will be an immediate meeting of the Rules

        19       Committee in the Majority Conference Room, Room

        20       332.  Immediate meeting of the Rules Committee

        21       in the Majority Conference Room, Room 332.

        22                      Reading of the Journal.

        23                      THE SECRETARY:  In Senate,











                                                             
9117

         1       Tuesday, July 2nd.  The Senate met pursuant to

         2       adjournment, Senator Kuhl in the Chair upon

         3       designation of the Temporary President.  Prayer

         4       by the Reverend Peter G. Young, Blessed

         5       Sacrament Church, Bolton Landing.  The Journal

         6       of Monday, July 1st, was read and approved.  On

         7       motion, Senate adjourned.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Hearing

         9       no objection, the Journal stands approved as

        10       read.

        11                      Presentation of petitions.

        12                      Messages from the Assembly.

        13                      Messages from the Governor.

        14                      Reports of standing committees.

        15                      Reports of select committees.

        16                      Communications and reports from

        17       state officers.

        18                      Motions and resolutions.

        19                      Senator Bruno.

        20                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Mr. President, I

        21       believe that there is a resolution at the desk

        22       by Senator Skelos.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There











                                                             
9118

         1       is.

         2                      SENATOR BRUNO:  I would ask that

         3       the title be read and we move its immediate

         4       adoption.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

         6       will read the title of the privileged resolution

         7       by Senator Skelos.

         8                      THE SECRETARY:  By Senator

         9       Skelos, Legislative Resolution honoring His

        10       Eminence, Archbishop Iakovos for his 37 years of

        11       distinguished service as Primate of the Greek

        12       Orthodox Church of North and South America.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Question

        14       is on the resolution.  All those in favor

        15       signify by saying aye.

        16                      (Response of "Aye.")

        17                      Opposed nay.

        18                      (There was no response. )

        19                      The resolution is adopted.

        20                      Senator Bruno, that brings us to

        21       the calendar.

        22                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Mr. President,

        23       can we at this time take up the non-controver











                                                             
9119

         1       sial calendar.

         2                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

         3       will read the non-controversial calendar.

         4                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

         5       554, by Senator Kuhl, Senate Print 2404-B, an

         6       act to amend the Public Officers Law, in

         7       relation to defense and indemnification.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

         9       will read the last section.

        10                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 3.  This

        11       act shall take effect immediately.

        12                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

        13       roll.

        14                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

        15                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 35.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

        17       is passed.

        18                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        19       785, by Senator Stafford, Senate Print 6590-A,

        20       an act to amend the Tax Law, in relation to the

        21       distribution of the additional mortgage

        22       recording tax.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary











                                                             
9120

         1       will read the last section.

         2                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

         3       act shall take effect on the 30th day.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

         5       roll.

         6                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

         7                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 35.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

         9       is passed.

        10                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        11       1181, by Senator Nozzolio, Senate Print 6114-A,

        12       an act to amend the Public Authorities Law and

        13       the Real Property Tax Law, in relation to

        14       authorizing the town of Sterling.

        15                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

        16       will read the last section.

        17                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 4.  This

        18       act shall take effect immediately.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

        20       roll.

        21                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

        22                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 35.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill











                                                             
9121

         1       is passed.

         2                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

         3       1575, by Senator Larkin, Senate Print 7503-A, an

         4       act to amend the Highway Law, in relation to

         5       designating a portion of the state highway

         6       system as the 94th Infantry Division Memorial

         7       Highway.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

         9       will read the last section.

        10                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

        11       act shall take effect immediately.

        12                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

        13       roll.

        14                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

        15                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 36.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

        17       is passed.

        18                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        19       1654, by Senator Johnson, Senate Print 6304-A,

        20       an act to amend the Public Health Law, in

        21       relation to excluding certain bodies of salt

        22       water.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary











                                                             
9122

         1       will read the last section.

         2                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

         3       act shall take effect immediately.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

         5       roll.

         6                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

         7                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 36.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

         9       is passed.

        10                      Senator Bruno, that completes the

        11       reading of the non-controversial and apparently

        12       the controversial calendar.

        13                      Have a little order in the house

        14       please, a little order in the house.

        15                      Senator Bruno.

        16                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Mr. President,

        17       can we return to reports of standing committees

        18       and I believe that there is a recent report from

        19       the Judiciary Committee, and I would ask it be

        20       read at this time.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  We'll

        22       return to the order of reports of standing

        23       committees.  I'll ask the Secretary to read the











                                                             
9123

         1       report coming from the Judiciary Committee.  All

         2       of the members should have a list on their desks

         3       now of the nominees who are going to be

         4       considered with one exception, and that is one

         5       person's name is not on that list and that would

         6       be Judge Mega, but he will be the first person

         7       taken up.  So the Secretary will read.

         8                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Lack,

         9       from the Committee on Judiciary, reports the

        10       following nomination: Reappointment to the New

        11       York State Court of Claims, Christopher John

        12       Mega, of Brooklyn.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        14       Lack.

        15                      SENATOR LACK:  Thank you, Mr.

        16       President.

        17                      Once again we have five very

        18       worthwhile new appointments to the Court of

        19       Claims from the Governor and one reappointment.

        20       I would first like to thank the Minority for

        21       waiving official notice of the reappointment.

        22       It was a surprise on purpose this morning, and

        23       I'm happy to say that our former colleague, now











                                                             
9124

         1       the Presiding Judge of the Court of Claims,

         2       whose term had expired on June 2nd, was indeed

         3       surprised and that the Governor has once again

         4       nominated him to a term expiring on June 2nd in

         5       the year 2005, and by that time we'll need some

         6       corrective legislation, if I can remember ages

         7       correctly, to make sure that he serves out that

         8       term.

         9                      I'm very privileged to stand up

        10       to move the nomination of Chris Mega.  There are

        11       three -- three dynosaurs in this chamber from

        12       the class, the elected class of '78, myself,

        13       Chris and Charlie Cook.  We were talking about

        14       that last night.  Charlie and I are still in

        15       political life.  Chris -- Chris went to the

        16       Court of Claims several years ago and

        17       epitomizes, quite frankly, that court.  Governor

        18       Pataki, in his wisdom, made him the presiding

        19       judge of the Court of Claims, and judges of that

        20       court sitting in both the criminal bench and on

        21       the civil court have, to me, only words of

        22       praise for Judge Mega, for Chris Mega, as both a

        23       judge, an administrator and presiding judge of











                                                             
9125

         1       that court.

         2                      It was absolutely no problem

         3       today for anybody in the committee to waive any

         4       kind of questions or statements they needed from

         5       Judge Mega.  Those of us who have known him for

         6       the past 20-odd years, between his membership in

         7       the Assembly, this body and on the court, know

         8       he is of the highest character, a close, good

         9       friend and colleague to us all and, if there was

        10       ever a person who had the temperament to be

        11       sitting on the bench running the bench that he

        12       is, it is certainly Chris Mega.

        13                      I, Mr. President, can't think of

        14       anybody who I'm happier to stand up to move than

        15       my former colleague, former chair of the Senate

        16       Judiciary Committee, and I'll yield to Senator

        17       DiCarlo for purposes of a second.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The Chair

        19       recognizes Senator DiCarlo.

        20                      SENATOR DiCARLO:  Thank you very

        21       much, Mr. President.

        22                      It is indeed an honor and a

        23       privilege to second the nomination of Judge











                                                             
9126

         1       Mega.  After all, the elevation of Senator Mega

         2       to Judge Mega made it possible for me to be

         3       elected to the Senate, and let me thank the

         4       Governor publicly for taking Chris and removing

         5       him as a possibility of a candidate to run

         6       against me.  There have been those who have said

         7       they were going to bring Chris off the bench to

         8       run for the Senate again, and sometimes he

         9       jokingly said he was going to come back and run

        10       against me, and the only one that I feared was

        11       Chris Mega because one of the most loved elected

        12       officials that we've ever had in my Bay Ridge/

        13       Bensonhurst community is Judge Chris Mega.

        14                      When he served for so many years

        15       in the Assembly and the Senate, I wasn't

        16       privileged enough to be here as a Senator when

        17       we confirmed him the first time, so I missed out

        18       on that.  I was here as a citizen, but now I'm

        19       here as a Senator and it's a privilege to second

        20       his nomination.

        21                      I am lucky enough to have

        22       probably two of the finest judges anywhere as

        23       constituents of mine.  Judge Mega and Dominick











                                                             
9127

         1       DiCarlo, my dad, are both constituents, and my

         2       father, the chief judge of the U. S. Court of

         3       International Trade, and Judge Mega as the

         4       presiding judge of the New York State Court of

         5       Claims.

         6                      Chris Mega has always made our

         7       community proud.  We were proud of him when he

         8       was our Assemblyman.  We were proud of him when

         9       he was our Senator, and we are even more proud

        10       of Chris as a judge.

        11                      So, on behalf of the people of my

        12       district, the people of Brooklyn, I second his

        13       nomination, and this is a proud day for the

        14       people of Bensonhurst.

        15                      SENATOR GOLD:  Mr. President.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Chair

        17       recognizes Senator Cook.

        18                      SENATOR COOK:  Mr. President,

        19       thank you.

        20                      I -- in seconding the nomination

        21       of my good friend Chris, I picked up on a couple

        22       of words that Senator Lack had used when he said

        23       he was a person of character, and I can attest











                                                             
9128

         1       that he indeed is a character, and that it's a

         2       good character in every sense of the word.

         3                      When he said we'd been here

         4       20-odd years, they certainly have been odd, and

         5       this has been perhaps the most odd of all; but

         6       three years ago when Senator Mega, then Senator

         7       Mega, was confirmed, it seemed to me that I had

         8       never heard in this chamber such an outpouring

         9       of admiration and support as we heard that

        10       evening from virtually everyone in the chamber,

        11       and they -- those words were sincere for a

        12       couple of reasons.

        13                      First was because of the Chris

        14       that we knew as a colleague, of the

        15       conscientious way in which he'd always done his

        16       job, of the insights that he brought into this

        17       chamber, of the way that he reflected not only

        18       the needs of his constituents but also the best

        19       interests of the entire state; and secondly, we

        20       were proud of him because we knew that when he

        21       got onto the bench he indeed would be an

        22       exemplary judge because he would take with him

        23       those same personal qualities that he had











                                                             
9129

         1       demonstrated so often here, and we have not been

         2       disappointed.

         3                      When he was elevated then or

         4       appointed as presiding judge, it was another

         5       great milestone in his life and a milestone in

         6       the life of the state because again we knew that

         7       he would do an excellent job, and I don't

         8       remember during my years in Albany a presiding

         9       judge who has, in such a personal way, taken an

        10       interest in those who are being appointed to the

        11       court in terms of talking with them and helping

        12       them through the process and after their

        13       confirmation working with them.

        14                      Chris has really taken -- taken

        15       his responsibilities as a presiding judge as

        16       being a mentor for the new judges coming onto

        17       the court, and that is a very, very important

        18       task and one that I'm sure all of his present

        19       and future colleagues will appreciate.

        20                      So it is with an immense personal

        21       pride and satisfaction that I stand again to

        22       second the nomination of Judge Mega, knowing

        23       full well that the state of New York is going to











                                                             
9130

         1       be so well served for many more years into the

         2       future until he reaches that golden retirement

         3       day that Madelyn is so anxiously awaiting.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         5       Gold, on the nomination.

         6                      SENATOR GOLD:  Thank you, Mr.

         7       President.

         8                      First of all, with all due

         9       respect to the Majority, as long as I'm here I

        10       will never understand Republicans.  Senator

        11       DiCarlo got up to speak on this and when you

        12       started to talk about candidates against you, I

        13       thought you were trying to convince some of us

        14       to vote no on this to make him a candidate and

        15       have him come back.

        16                      But at any rate, having seen the

        17       background, Senator Mega has done everything

        18       right.  First of all, you know, while I've been

        19       a Queens kid for 59-some-odd years of my life, I

        20       did start in Brooklyn and starting in Brooklyn

        21       is always a good way to head for success, and

        22       the other thing that's in Senator Mega's

        23       background which we all know is a major moving











                                                             
9131

         1       force to success is to start in the New York

         2       State Assembly but get out and come to the

         3       Senate and go from there, and he's done all

         4       those things right.

         5                      Senator Cook said something which

         6       I'm very impressed with because I had -- I've

         7       noticed it, and I think everybody has noticed

         8       it.  You know, we talk about certain courts like

         9       they'll say, Remember the Burger court or

        10       whatever.  Unquestionably, since Chris has left

        11       us and gone to the judiciary, particularly

        12       acting as the chief judge there and the

        13       administrative judge of that court, he has

        14       really been making it the Mega court, and a Mega

        15       court is a smart court.  A Mega court is a

        16       gracious court, a polite court, a just court

        17       and, most of all, a fair court.  There's just no

        18       way that the judges coming in and the judges who

        19       are there could not be impressed from the

        20       quality that's coming from the top.

        21                      We've said a lot of fine things

        22       about Chris Mega when he first got on the bench

        23       and what's most important to me is that Chris











                                                             
9132

         1       Mega has fulfilled his obligation to me and

         2       everybody in this chamber because he has been

         3       absolutely an outstanding judge and that sense

         4       of humanity which we loved in him as a Senator

         5       has carried through to his work as a judge.

         6                      So I want to congratulate the

         7       Governor.  I'm glad we did not leave this

         8       session without reappointing Chris Mega.  It

         9       would have been a wrong thing to do.  I'm

        10       particularly delighted that his family, who are

        11       very wonderful, gracious, lovely people as you

        12       would expect a Mega to be, are here, and we all

        13       should take a great sense of pride that Chris

        14       has lived up to everything we thought when we

        15       confirmed him, and God bless him in good health,

        16       and I know you'll continue in that way.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        18       Marchi, on the nomination.

        19                      SENATOR MARCHI:  Mr. Chairman,

        20       the -- I was delighted to have chaired the

        21       Judiciary Committee at the time his name was

        22       presented to this body and the air then as now

        23       was redolent with great promise that he held.











                                                             
9133

         1                      Now we're at the point where we

         2       can measure performance against that promise and

         3       the conclusion is one of acclamation.  One good

         4       turn deserves another, and one good term

         5       deserves another, and it's certainly merited

         6       richly in this case.

         7                      I've known him for all of the

         8       entire 20 years that he's been here, and the

         9       warmth that he has generated has preserved in

        10       this body, I think, his testimony and validates

        11       the judgment outside of this body that has found

        12       his service not wanting but richly fulfilling

        13       the promise that he held.

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        15       Farley, on the nomination.

        16                      SENATOR FARLEY:  Thank you, Mr.

        17       President.

        18                      I rise also to second the

        19       nomination of Chris Mega.  You know, they talk

        20       about judicial temperament.  They talk about how

        21       important that is to be a judge and also to be

        22       the chief judge.  I think it's terribly

        23       important.











                                                             
9134

         1                      I don't think there's ever been

         2       anyone that has been more beloved by his

         3       colleagues and respected in this house than

         4       Chris Mega, and it's carrying itself over to the

         5       Court of Claims and, as Senator Gold said, I

         6       think it's reflected in the entire body of the

         7       people, the type of people we're confirming

         8       today and that are serving on the Court of

         9       Claims.

        10                      I'm pleased to support the

        11       nomination -- renomination of Chris Mega, one of

        12       the nicest guys that I've ever known and

        13       certainly one of the finest Senators and a great

        14       chairman of the Judiciary Committee when he was

        15       here, and a great chief judge.

        16                      I wish you well, Chris.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        18       Paterson, on the nomination.

        19                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Thank you, Mr.

        20       President.

        21                      On behalf of the Minority Leader,

        22       Senator Connor, we always found Senator Mega to

        23       be extremely responsive to our Conference.











                                                             
9135

         1       Personally he was of particular assistance to me

         2       when he was chair of the Judiciary here in the

         3       Senate and was always one that would go that

         4       extra yard or that extra little bit that would

         5       make the greatest difference to working with a

         6       colleague.

         7                      But I think that often a point is

         8       made that kind of resonates with its importance,

         9       and I think it was the one that Senator Cook

        10       made just a few moments ago with respect to

        11       Senator Mega's truncating the process and

        12       educating and, in many ways, enlightening

        13       members of the judiciary and prospective members

        14       of the judiciary of what the process actually

        15       is.

        16                      There is often a stigma that,

        17       unfortunately, the legislative body suffers from

        18       about the process and about the meaning of the

        19       process and Senator Mega, I think, has done a

        20       great deal to familiarize candidates for the

        21       judiciary and nominees with what their

        22       responsibilities are and what the New York State

        23       Senate and Assembly expect and what is really











                                                             
9136

         1       the best service to the residents of New York

         2       State.

         3                      For that reason, he has already,

         4       in just a couple of years and particularly in

         5       his administrative role, moved to the same level

         6       in the judiciary as he did right here in this

         7       chamber standing right in the forefront and a

         8       beacon of light from which others may learn and

         9       may experience, and so with that we wish him the

        10       best and hope that we continue to confirm him as

        11       he moves up and serves the state in greater

        12       capacities.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        14       Abate, on the nomination.

        15                      SENATOR ABATE:  Yes.  I too rise

        16       to publicly acknowledge the great work of

        17       Senator Mega.  Senator Mega, on a number of

        18       occasions, has come to my rescue, and I never

        19       thought I'd have the opportunity to publicly

        20       thank him.

        21                      When he was the Chair of the

        22       Committee on Crime Victims, Crime and

        23       Correction, I came before that committee to seek











                                                             
9137

         1       confirmation as the Chair of the state Crime

         2       Victims Board.  Probably it was one of the few

         3       hearings ever held on a nominee.

         4                      The hearing was impeccably fair.

         5       He was decent.  He wanted to hear all the

         6       testimony, and the long and the short of it, I

         7       was confirmed; but in large measure I was

         8       confirmed because of Senator Mega's fairness,

         9       his willingness to hear the facts.

        10                      I will be forever indebted to you

        11       for the caliber of work that you have done in

        12       the Senate, as was exemplified in that hearing.

        13       You have a reputation not just within this

        14       Senate but outside the Senate for enormous

        15       intelligence and decency and caring for people.

        16       It's a pleasure to have worked with you on the

        17       outside.  I would like to continue in that

        18       capacity, and it's a great honor to be able to

        19       applaud your good works again in the state

        20       Senate.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        22       Dollinger, on the nomination.

        23                      SENATOR DOLLINGER:  Mr.











                                                             
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         1       President, it's a pleasure to rise today in the

         2       bright sunlight of the early morning to talk

         3       about Chris Mega.  As I recall, and I look over

         4       at the Senate Judiciary chairman because I

         5       wasn't at the committee meeting this morning,

         6       but as I recall, the last time we discussed

         7       Christopher Mega in this chamber, it was either

         8       the early morning or the late afternoon of the

         9       last day of the session.  My hope would be that

        10       this is the last day of session as well,

        11       although I understand that that hope may be

        12       unfounded.

        13                      The good thing about Chris Mega

        14       is whether we approve him in the dark of night

        15       or in the light of day this July, as the state's

        16       judiciary continues to shine, and I think the

        17       bright sunshine here just brings a greater

        18       sparkle to this man and his contributions.

        19                      I'll conclude with one little

        20       comment.  I could talk for a long time.  In his

        21       capacity as the Senate Judiciary chairman, he

        22       was very good to me, but I'll simply pay you,

        23       Judge, what I think is the best compliment that











                                                             
9139

         1       a lawyer can pay to another lawyer, that some

         2       day I would like the opportunity to try a case

         3       in front of you because I'd trust your

         4       compassion, I'd trust your fairness, I'd trust

         5       your understanding and judgment about legal

         6       issues, and I also know that if for some reason

         7       there is, as occasionally happens in the law, a

         8       crack in the law, an interstice that needs to be

         9       filled with good legal common sense and

        10       judgment, that you're just the kind of man who I

        11       would trust my clients and my own career as a

        12       lawyer in filling that crack with the proper

        13       common sense and legal insight.

        14                      Christopher Mega is the complete

        15       package as a Court of Claims judge, and I'm

        16       proud to be supporting his nomination.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        18       Waldon, on the nomination.

        19                      SENATOR WALDON:  Thank you very

        20       much, Mr. President, my colleagues.

        21                      I am very proud to rise to second

        22       the nomination of Christopher Mega.  Very seldom

        23       in life do you meet someone who can be so











                                                             
9140

         1       personable and so outgoing in a very understated

         2       way and that same person proves to be so

         3       efficient in an administrative capacity.  Often

         4       times those of us in politics who are considered

         5       to be hail fellows well met, we do a lot of

         6       slapping of backs, laughing and telling of jokes

         7       and talking about each other a little bit, but

         8       not all of us have real substance, and I believe

         9       that Chris Mega is one of those people truly who

        10       has substance.

        11                      You hear about superstars being

        12       "megastars", hear about people having "mega

        13       bucks".  We're very fortunate indeed to have as

        14       the chief judge of the Court of Claims a "mega

        15       judge" in Chris Mega.

        16                      I very warmly second his

        17       nomination.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        19       Maltese, on the nomination.

        20                      SENATOR MALTESE:  Mr. President,

        21       like so many of my colleagues, I was thinking

        22       that all of us could say the same thing about

        23       Chris Mega, but I could not let the opportunity











                                                             
9141

         1       go by to, one, congratulate the Governor on

         2       making this type of an appointment of a person

         3       who is so near and dear to our hearts.

         4                      I think if there's a word that

         5       exemplifies and categorizes Chris Mega, it's

         6       "heart," a person of great integrity and a

         7       caring, concerned person, just the type of

         8       person that should be in the judiciary in this

         9       state, should be in government in this state,

        10       and I'm proud to second his nomination.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        12       Saland, on the nomination.

        13                      SENATOR SALAND:  Thank you, Mr.

        14       President.

        15                      Much like Senator Maltese,

        16       there's certainly enough adjectives and

        17       superlatives to describe Chris Mega.  We've

        18       heard them certainly all today.

        19                      Some people are blessed with a

        20       gift of intellect, some are blessed with the

        21       ability to be fair and discerning.  Some are

        22       blessed with a host of qualities, and in Chris

        23       Mega I think what we have is a combination of











                                                             
9142

         1       all of these virtues in one person.

         2                      I'm reminded, and I just shared

         3       with Senator Maltese that some 16 years ago

         4       Chris and I and Dominick DiCarlo and Charlie

         5       Cook were breakfast buddies and Dominick and

         6       Chris have now acceded to a higher, higher

         7       level.

         8                      For those of us who have

         9       practiced law, and I was trying to figure out if

        10       Charlie would be leaving, and I said to Senator

        11       Maltese, Well, perhaps Charlie could be a town

        12       justice, and he said to me, No, perhaps he could

        13       go to the U. S. Supreme Court.

        14                      I'm planning on staying for a

        15       while, Chris, but I wish you nothing but the

        16       best.  Madelyn, congratulations.  Savor the

        17       moment; you enjoy it.  May you have many more.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        19       Lachman, on the nomination.

        20                      SENATOR LACHMAN:  Mr. President,

        21       though my 20 weeks in the state Legislature have

        22       sometimes seemed like 20 years, they have only

        23       been 20 weeks, so I've never had the pleasure of











                                                             
9143

         1       serving with then Senator Mega and currently

         2       Judge Mega.  However, my district intersects

         3       with the district that Senator DiCarlo now

         4       represents and Senator Mega used to represent,

         5       and I can tell everyone in the chamber that he

         6       is a beloved figure in the community, a

         7       non-partisanly beloved figure, Democrats and

         8       Republicans and Christians and Jews and old

         9       immigrants and new immigrants, and I think one

        10       of the great strengths of this outstanding judge

        11       is the fact that he nurtures his roots in terms

        12       of his community.  He has never left his

        13       community and wherever he will go from his

        14       current position, his community will always be

        15       behind him.

        16                      So it is a great pleasure indeed

        17       to second the nomination and to congratulate

        18       Judge Mega.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        20       Bruno, to close on the nomination.  Excuse me,

        21       before that, Senator Levy.

        22                      SENATOR LEVY:  Yes.  Thank you

        23       very much, Mr. President.











                                                             
9144

         1                      It's really such a pleasure to

         2       get up and join with my colleagues in seconding

         3       the nomination of Senator Mega as we -- we never

         4       forget serving with him and the friendships that

         5       we have with him, and I listened very, very

         6       carefully to what Senator Saland said, and he

         7       talked about adjectives, but I'd have to

         8       respectfully correct him because there are not

         9       enough adjectives to -- to describe the

        10       qualities of Chris Mega.

        11                      It was an old day school

        12       expression that nice guys finish last.  Well, he

        13       certainly belies that.  Nice guys finish first

        14       and he just did the most wonderful job as a

        15       chief judge of the Court of Claims and he did it

        16       in a nice way.  I congratulate the Governor on

        17       this extraordinary appointment, and we look

        18       forward to seeing him and working with him.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        20       Hoffmann, on the nomination.

        21                      SENATOR HOFFMANN:  Having had the

        22       pleasure of serving with Senator Mega for a

        23       number of years, including on the Crime and











                                                             
9145

         1       Corrections Committee which he chaired, I too

         2       join my colleagues in complimenting the Governor

         3       on an excellent choice.  This is a new

         4       definition to the term "judicial temperament",

         5       Senator Mega.  Your leadership, your wit, your

         6       candor and your chief commitment to justice will

         7       bode well for the taxpayers of the state.

         8                      So, Mr. President, I too am very

         9       pleased to rise to second the nomination.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Any other

        11       Senator wishing to speak on the nomination

        12       before Senator Bruno closes?  Hearing none,

        13       Senator Bruno to close on the nomination.

        14                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Thank you, Mr.

        15       President.

        16                      It's a real pleasure to see our

        17       good friend, Judge Mega, here with his wife

        18       Madelyn who keeps making him look so good; his

        19       daughter Valerie who had the good judgment to

        20       marry a man named Joe, and his beautiful grand

        21       children Christopher and Victoria.  We welcome

        22        -- she applauds herself with good judgment, and

        23       it's merited.











                                                             
9146

         1                      Everyone in the chamber would

         2       like to say something about Chris Mega and they

         3       would all say things similar to what we've

         4       already heard.  He is a good guy.  He is a

         5       friend.  He is diligent.  He always thinks on

         6       behalf of a constituency.  He just does things

         7       right, and whether you're on the same side or

         8       the opposite side when he was in the Legislature

         9       you always knew that whatever was happening was

        10       going to happen in a fair way and for me in my

        11       personal life as we got to know each other, I

        12       want to just say that it has been a real

        13       pleasure and a great experience and I'm proud to

        14       be standing here speaking on your behalf as you

        15       go forward to serve the people of this state in

        16       a high capacity for another ten years.  Those of

        17       us that run every two years can only wishfully

        18       think about how good that feels.

        19                      But this is well deserved, not

        20       just for Judge Mega but for all the people of

        21       this state who benefit by his public service.

        22                      I also want to commend the other

        23       judges to be confirmed here for your good work.











                                                             
9147

         1       I have a meeting that I have to leave the

         2       chamber to attend, with the Governor and the

         3       Speaker and some other people trying to move the

         4       process forward so we can do a budget so that

         5       amongst other things we can all get paid -- and

         6       that will be recorded, I'm sure -- but I didn't

         7       want to leave before standing to say

         8       congratulations, very best wishes, and we thank

         9       you for the good work that you've done in the

        10       Legislature, and you will continue to do from

        11       the bench.

        12                      Thank you, Mr. President.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

        14       question is on the nomination and reappointment

        15       of Christopher John Mega of Brooklyn, New York,

        16       to the New York State Court of Claims.  All

        17       those in favor signify by saying aye.

        18                      (Response of "Aye.")

        19                      Opposed nay.

        20                      (There was no response. )

        21                      The nominee is unanimously

        22       confirmed.

        23                      We're very pleased to be joined











                                                             
9148

         1       by Judge Mega and his family on the floor of the

         2       chamber here today.  Judge, congratulations and

         3       good luck!

         4                      (Applause)

         5                      The Secretary will continue to

         6       read.

         7                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Lack,

         8       from the Committee on Judiciary, reports the

         9       following nomination:

        10                      Judge of the New York State Court

        11       of Claims, Matthew J. D'Emic, of Brooklyn.

        12                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        13       Lack, on the nomination.

        14                      SENATOR LACK:  Thank you, Mr.

        15       President.

        16                      I'm pleased to stand in the

        17       chamber and move the nomination of Matthew J.

        18       D'Emic as a judge of the Court of Claims.  His

        19       credentials have been examined by the committee

        20       and have been found to be excellent.

        21                      He appeared before the committee

        22       this morning, who unanimously moved him for

        23       confirmation to the floor of the Senate, and I











                                                             
9149

         1       would yield for purposes of a second to Senator

         2       DiCarlo.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         4       DiCarlo, on the nomination.

         5                      SENATOR DiCARLO:  Thank you, Mr.

         6       President.

         7                      It's a pleasure to rise again to

         8       second a nomination for a judicial appointment,

         9       and let me say that the Governor has made an

        10       excellent choice in Matthew D'Emic.  Matt D'Emic

        11       is a constituent of mine.  Matt D'Emic is a

        12       graduate of Bavarian High School where I also

        13       graduated.  Matt D'Emic is a person who is well

        14       known in my community.  His family is well known

        15       in my community, and he and his family have the

        16       respect of my community.

        17                      Let me briefly present some of

        18       his credentials to you.  He is presently, or was

        19       law secretary to Kings County Supreme Court, law

        20       secretary to the administrative judge, Second

        21       Judicial Department; a private practitioner, and

        22       let me read something and a list of a few things

        23       that I think say a lot about our nominee, and











                                                             
9150

         1       that's community involvement, and that's giving

         2       of his time for the benefit of not only my

         3       community but the city of New York and the state

         4       of New York and the United States of America.

         5                      He's on the board of directors of

         6       the Cathedral Club of Brooklyn; the board of

         7       directors of the Guild for Exceptional Children;

         8       board of advisers to Mother Vincent Care

         9       Residence; board of advisers to the Salvation

        10       Army, vice-president, St. Anselm Youth

        11       Activities Council, charter member of the Ramon

        12       Institute, member of the Parent Education and

        13       Custody Effectiveness Program; vice-president of

        14       the Catholic Lawyers Guild, a charter chair of

        15       the Bavarian High School Alumni Bar Association;

        16       on the board of directors of the Bay Ridge

        17       Lawyers Association; charter committee member of

        18       the Voice of Bay Ridge Businesses; the board of

        19       trustees of Bavarian High School; a member of

        20       Community Board 10; committee member of the

        21       Ragamuffin Parade, a committee member of Our

        22       Lady of Angels Centenary Reunion; on the finance

        23       committee of St. Andrew the Apostle Church, and











                                                             
9151

         1       he's an arbitrator for the American Arbitration

         2       Association.

         3                      He has received numerous awards

         4       and commendations for his endless giving to our

         5       community, our city and our state, and I think

         6       that says a lot about a person who we are

         7       confirming to become a judge.  Not only is this

         8       individual highly qualified in the legal sense,

         9       but he is also qualified in the personal sense.

        10                      He is a person who gives of his

        11       time, cares about his fellow men and women,

        12       cares about his community and he is the type of

        13       individual that we should all be proud in

        14       sending to the bench, and I'd like to

        15       congratulate the Governor on an excellent

        16       choice.

        17                      I second his nomination.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Is there

        19       any other Senator wishing to speak on the

        20       nomination?  Hearing none, the question is on

        21       the nomination of Matthew J. D'Emic, of

        22       Brooklyn, to the New York State Court of

        23       Claims.  All those in favor of the nomination











                                                             
9152

         1       signify by saying aye.

         2                      (Response of "Aye.")

         3                      Opposed nay.

         4                      (There was no response. )

         5                      The nominee is unanimously

         6       confirmed.

         7                      We're very very pleased to be

         8       joined by Judge D'Emic, who is in the gallery to

         9       your left, and his wife Rosemary, children Drew,

        10       Matt and Katie, and his brother Patrick.  Judge

        11       D'Emic, congratulations and good luck!

        12                      (Applause)

        13                      Secretary will continue to read.

        14                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Lack,

        15       from the Committee on Judiciary, reports the

        16       following nomination: Judge to the New York

        17       State Court of Claims, Alan L. Honorof, of

        18       Plandone Manor.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        20       Lack, on the nomination.

        21                      SENATOR LACK:  Thank you, Mr.

        22       President.

        23                      Once again I rise to move the











                                                             
9153

         1       nomination of Alan L. Honorof, of Plandone

         2       Manor, for a seat on the New York State Court of

         3       Claims.  Mr. Honorof has been examined by staff

         4       of the committee.  His nomination has been moved

         5       to the committee this morning.  It was

         6       unanimously endorsed by the committee and sent

         7       to the floor of the Senate and I would -- I am

         8       pleased to yield for purposes of a second to

         9       Senator Tully.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        11       Tully, on the nomination.

        12                      SENATOR TULLY:  Thank you, Mr.

        13       President.

        14                      I'd first like to congratulate

        15       Governor Pataki in nominating Alan L. Honorof to

        16       become a judge of the New York State Court of

        17       Claims.  He's a constituent of mine, a friend

        18       for many, many years.

        19                      He's a very active person in his

        20       community.  He's been very active in his bar

        21       association.  He's a member of the New York,

        22       Pennsylvania and Florida bars.  He's been an

        23       assistant district attorney and besides the











                                                             
9154

         1       general practice of law, he's been town and

         2       village counsel for many of the fine villages in

         3       Nassau County, as well as the attorney for the

         4       city of Glen Cove.

         5                      He is eminently qualified, both

         6       academically and legally, and has what we think

         7       is very important for someone serving in the

         8       judiciary; that's judicial temperament.

         9                      I'd also just like to say hello,

        10       Mr. President, to his daughter Lindsay and

        11       congratulate her on her graduation from

        12       kindergarten, and I wish her good luck as she

        13       learns to ride her two-wheeled bike over the

        14       summer, and I'd also like to say hello to Alan

        15       Honorof's son Marshall, who will be going on to

        16       the fourth grade and be an expert on the subject

        17       of amphibians.

        18                      I'm pleased to second the

        19       nomination of Alan Honorof, and good luck on the

        20       bench and best wishes to your family and your

        21       mother and father, I know, are here with you as

        22       well.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator











                                                             
9155

         1       Levy, on the nomination.

         2                      SENATOR LEVY:  Yes.  Thank you

         3       very much, Mr. President.

         4                      Likewise a privilege to join with

         5       Senator Tully in recommending Alan Honorof who's

         6       been a friend for many, many years, and being a

         7       friend we certainly know what a quality attorney

         8       he is.  He's been a political colleague for

         9       many, many years that we've worked together with

        10       him.  His dad was a highly respected and

        11       successful village judge.  The great performance

        12       in the tradition and the legacy of the Honorof

        13       family has been judicial service.

        14                      He's going to make a fine judge

        15       of the Court of Claims, and I likewise

        16       congratulate the Governor on this outstanding

        17       appointment.  All the best!

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        19       Marcellino, on the nomination.

        20                      SENATOR MARCELLINO:  Yes, Mr.

        21       President.

        22                      I also rise to second the

        23       nomination of Alan Honorof.  Alan has been a











                                                             
9156

         1       good friend for many years.  He's a capable

         2       person and will show the proper judicial

         3       temperament and will be a credit to the Court of

         4       Claims, and I congratulate the Governor, like

         5       Senator Tully and Senator Levy, on this very

         6       fine appointment.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         8       Skelos, on the nomination.

         9                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President, I

        10       too join with my colleagues from Nassau in

        11       congratulating the Governor on this fine

        12       appointment.  I've had the pleasure of knowing

        13       Alan for a number of years both professionally

        14       and also politically.  He's going to be an

        15       absolutely great Court of Claims judge.

        16                      Congratulations to you!

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Is there

        18       any other Senator wishing to speak on the

        19       nomination?  Hearing none, the question is on

        20       the nomination of Alan L. Honorof, of Plandone

        21       Manor, to become a judge of the New York State

        22       Court of Claims.  All those in favor of the

        23       nomination signify by saying aye.











                                                             
9157

         1                      (Response of "Aye.")

         2                      Opposed nay.

         3                      (There was no response. )

         4                      The nominee is unanimously

         5       confirmed.

         6                      We're very pleased to have Judge

         7       Honorof, his wife Debbi, their children Marshall

         8       and Lindsay and his parents Gladys and Daniel

         9       Honorof with us in the chamber today in the

        10       gallery to your left.

        11                      So, Judge, congratulations and

        12       good luck.

        13                      (Applause)

        14                      Secretary will continue to read.

        15                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Lack,

        16       from the Committee on Judiciary, reports the

        17       following nomination:

        18                      Judge to the New York State Court

        19       of Claims, Joseph J. Maltese, of Staten Island.

        20                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        21       Lack.

        22                      SENATOR LACK:  Thank you, Mr.

        23       President.











                                                             
9158

         1                      It's my honor to rise once again

         2       to move the nomination of Judge Joseph J.

         3       Maltese to become a judge of the New York State

         4       Court of Claims.  He has appeared before the

         5       committee, was unanimously endorsed to be moved

         6       to the floor this morning, and I would

         7       respectfully yield to Senator Marchi for

         8       purposes of a second.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Chair

        10       recognizes Senator Marchi, on the nomination.

        11                      SENATOR MARCHI:  We have a very

        12       fine nomination, for which the Governor again

        13       should be complimented in submitting the

        14       nomination of Joseph Maltese.

        15                      He has been serving since 1992 on

        16       the civil court.  He was elected to the civil

        17       court.  Before that he had extensive experience,

        18       a graduate of Wagner College, with graduate work

        19       at New York university.  He also takes time to

        20       preside over justice in the military court.  I

        21       had a little experience myself of that nature,

        22       Judge, and he does that with distinction.  He's

        23       done it as a prosecutor, as a judge, a rich











                                                             
9159

         1       experience in that court as well.

         2                      He has been serving with

         3       distinction and shows certainly great promise on

         4       the burdens that he will be assuming.  He is

         5       here with his wife Joreen, and his daughters -

         6       well, his daughters are here.  His children are

         7       here, Julie, I believe, yeah, Julie, Jacqueline

         8       and Julie.  They have deserve to be mentioned

         9       because they're a fine family, and I'm very

        10       happy to second that nomination.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        12       DiCarlo, on the nomination.

        13                      SENATOR DiCARLO:  Thank you, Mr.

        14       President.

        15                      It is a busy morning for me and

        16       I'm very happy that it's busy because we've got

        17       some outstanding candidates and outstanding

        18       judges before us.

        19                      Judge Maltese, a resident of

        20       Staten Island, Richmond County, which I also

        21       represent, is a fine, fine judge and we're proud

        22       of his nomination here today.

        23                      I remember campaigning with Judge











                                                             
9160

         1       Maltese a number of years ago in the Brooklyn

         2       section of my district and he was an outstanding

         3       campaigner, and he's an outstanding judge, but

         4       if the truth be told, he is a dynamic

         5       individual, but the most dynamic individual in

         6       his family is his lovely wife Joreen, and we

         7       welcome her, and congratulations to you, Joreen,

         8       and to you, Judge.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Is there

        10       any other Senator wishing to speak on the

        11       nomination?  Hearing none, the question is on

        12       the nomination of Joseph J. Maltese, of Staten

        13       Island, to the judgeship of the New York State

        14       Court of Claims.  All those in favor of the

        15       nomination, signify by saying aye.

        16                      (Response of "Aye.")

        17                      Opposed nay.

        18                      (There was no response. )

        19                      The nominee is unanimously

        20       confirmed.

        21                      We're very very pleased to have

        22       Judge Maltese with us, his wife Joreen, their

        23       children, Jacqueline, Julie and Megan, and also











                                                             
9161

         1       he's brought along his law clerk Matthew.

         2                      So, Judge, congratulations and

         3       good luck.

         4                      (Applause)

         5                      Secretary will continue to read.

         6                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Lack,

         7       from the Committee on Judiciary, reports the

         8       following nomination:

         9                      Judge to the New York State Court

        10       of Claims, Victor M. Ort, of Oyster Bay.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        12       Lack.

        13                      SENATOR LACK:  Thank you, Mr.

        14       President.

        15                      I rise to move the nomination of

        16       Victor M. Ort, of Oyster Bay, to be a judge of

        17       the New York State Court of Claims.  The staff

        18       of the Judiciary Committee has examined his

        19       credentials, has found them to be eminently

        20       satisfactory.  He appeared before the committee

        21       this morning, was unanimously endorsed and was

        22       moved to the floor of the Senate for

        23       confirmation, and it is my pleasure to yield at











                                                             
9162

         1       this time for purposes of confirmation to

         2       Senator Marcellino.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         4       Marcellino, on the nomination.

         5                      SENATOR MARCELLINO:  Mr.

         6       President, I rise with pleasure to nominate Vic

         7       Ort, a friend and neighbor for many years from

         8       the lovely town of Oyster Bay on the North Shore

         9       of Long Island in Nassau County, vacation home

        10       to many, resort community to all.  We invite all

        11       tourists to come in.  We'll let you tour Vic's

        12       home.  I'm sure his wife Judy is home now or

        13       going home immediately to prepare the house.

        14                      Vic will be a fine addition to

        15       the Court of Claims.  He's got all the

        16       professional credentials that you could want and

        17       expect of a jurist of this quality and his high

        18       stature.  He's got his service to the community.

        19       He's a Kiwanian.  I forgive him for that as a

        20       Rotarian.  We'll nominate him anyway.

        21                      He's well qualified, will do an

        22       excellent job.  He's a superb individual, and I

        23       also want to congratulate the Governor again on











                                                             
9163

         1       this very, very fine appointment to the Court of

         2       Claims.

         3                      Congratulations!

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         5       Tully, on the nomination.

         6                      SENATOR TULLY:  Thank you, Mr.

         7       President.

         8                      Once again, I want to

         9       congratulate Governor Pataki on the nomination

        10       of Victor Ort.  He is probably the most happy

        11       person I have every met.  He always seems to

        12       have a happy smile and seems to love what he's

        13       been doing.  He's been a village attorney, an

        14       acting police justice, and an assistant to

        15       perhaps the best jurist ever to serve on this or

        16       any other bench for that matter, the Honorable

        17       James Niehoff of the Appellate Division.

        18                      In the case of Mr. Ort, I believe

        19       he will continue to love the law.  I believe he

        20       will serve us well, and I congratulate the

        21       Governor again and am pleased to second his

        22       nomination.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator











                                                             
9164

         1       Levy, on the nomination.

         2                      SENATOR LEVY:  Yeah.  Thank you

         3       very much, Mr. President.

         4                      It's likewise a pleasure to rise

         5       to second this nomination.  We really have an

         6       outstanding bench in Nassau County, and Vic Ort

         7       will be a quality addition to an extraordinary

         8       bench.  He was an outstanding attorney.  He's

         9       had a brilliant career in the judiciary as a

        10       judicial public servant.

        11                      I also want to congratulate the

        12       Governor for a very fine appointment and great

        13       addition to the Court of Claims.

        14                      Thank you very much, Mr.

        15       President.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        17       Skelos, on the nomination.

        18                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        19       again I want to join my colleagues from Nassau

        20       in congratulating the Governor on this fine

        21       appointment.  When I was in law school at night

        22       I served as a personal officer to Judge Hogan,

        23       who was the presiding judge of the appellate











                                                             
9165

         1       term at that time, and one of the individuals

         2       that I had the pleasure of working with was Vic

         3       Ort.  Learned an awful lot about the law from

         4       both Judge Hogan and Vic, and this is just a

         5       marvelous, marvelous appointment and

         6       congratulations to you.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Is there

         8       any other Senator wishing to speak on the

         9       nomination?

        10                      Hearing none, the question is on

        11       the nomination of Victor M. Ort, of Oyster Bay,

        12       to become a justice of the New York State Court

        13       of Claims.  All those in favor of the nomination

        14       signify by saying aye.

        15                      (Response of "Aye.")

        16                      Opposed nay.

        17                      (There was no response. )

        18                      The nominee is unanimously

        19       confirmed.

        20                      We're very, very pleased to have

        21       Judge Ort and his wife Judy with us in the

        22       chamber to your left in the gallery.  Judge Ort,

        23       congratulations and good luck.











                                                             
9166

         1                      (Applause)

         2                      Secretary will continue to read.

         3                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Lack,

         4       from the Committee on Judiciary, reports the

         5       following domination:

         6                      Judge to the New York State Court

         7       of Claims, Stephen J. Rooney, of Staten Island.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         9       Lack, on the nomination.

        10                      SENATOR LACK:  Mr. President, I

        11       rise once again to nominate Judge Stephen J.

        12       Rooney as a judge of the New York State Court of

        13       Claims.  His credentials have been examined by

        14       the committee.  He's here before the committee

        15       this morning.  He was unanimously endorsed and

        16       his nomination moved to the floor, and it's a

        17       very, very great pleasure since Senator Marchi

        18       has been asking me about this nomination for a

        19       long time, to yield the floor at this time for

        20       purposes of a second to Senator John Marchi.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        22       Marchi, on the nomination.

        23                      SENATOR MARCHI:  Mr. President,











                                                             
9167

         1       again I'd like to restate my admiration for the

         2       Governor personified in the nominations that

         3       have been submitted to us and also to echo to

         4       some extent what Senator Levy said, the pride

         5       that he takes in the quality of the bench in

         6       this county, and we enjoy that same feeling, Mr.

         7       President, in the county of Richmond.

         8                      The two nominees that we've had

         9       are people who have served as judges, have not

        10       been found wanting.  In the case of Stephen

        11       Rooney, he has a -- a tremendous, tremendous

        12       background, serving him very well, given the

        13       nature and quality of the service that he has

        14       rendered.

        15                      A very cultured, scholarly

        16       individual, he has served in both the district

        17       attorney's office in Manhattan and in Richmond

        18       County, has been Chief of the Major Offense

        19       Bureau, has tried to verdict over 50 cases

        20       during his period as a -- in his service with

        21       both Bob Morgenthau and the district attorney of

        22       Richmond County and since 1989 he was appointed

        23       to the Criminal Court, serving with distinction











                                                             
9168

         1       there, and in recent years has been designated

         2       to serve on the Supreme Court of the state of

         3       New York.

         4                      So that there is a wealth of

         5       experience.  It bears well to -- to reflect, I

         6       think, as we have -- as this is the last

         7       nomination, I take it, that's being presented to

         8       us today -- of the importance that a quality

         9       bench means, a coordinated branch of government,

        10       and it's so important since they share in many

        11       ways a creative, and exercise a creative impact

        12       even on the question of law making in its own

        13       way without certainly not impinging on the

        14       prerogatives of the legislative body.

        15                      He has a fine family, and again I

        16       am certainly delighted with this nomination and

        17       if the past is prologue, by virtue of his

        18       service on the bench and his gifted service as a

        19       prosecutor, I believe that he will give an

        20       excellent account of himself on the bench.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        22       DiCarlo, on the nomination.

        23                      SENATOR DiCARLO:  I thank you,











                                                             
9169

         1       Mr. President.

         2                      For the fourth and final time, I

         3       rise to second a nomination of a Staten

         4       Islander.  Senator Marchi gave his credentials,

         5       so I won't do that.  Just to say that he is a

         6       qualified person, a respected judge, and will do

         7       us proud on Staten Island and the state of New

         8       York, and to say one thing about his wife, I've

         9       worked with her.  She is a dynamic lady like

        10       Judge Maltese's wife, and Kate Rooney, we're

        11       proud of you also, and what you do for Staten

        12       Island; and congratulations, Judge.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Is there

        14       any other Senator wishing to speak on the

        15       nomination?  Hearing none, the question is on

        16       the nomination of Stephen J. Rooney, of Staten

        17       Island, to become a justice on the New York

        18       State Court of Claims.  All those in favor of

        19       the nomination signify by saying aye.

        20                      (Response of "Aye.")

        21                      Opposed nay.

        22                      (There was no response).

        23                      The nominee is unanimously











                                                             
9170

         1       confirmed.

         2                      We're very, very pleased to have

         3       Judge Rooney, his wife Kathryn, their children,

         4       Mary Kate and Elizabeth, with us in the chamber

         5       in the gallery to your left.  Judge, thank you

         6       for being with us.  Congratulations and good

         7       luck.

         8                      (Applause)

         9                      Senator Holland.

        10                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  Mr. President,

        11       may we please return to reports of standing

        12       committees.  I believe there is a report of the

        13       Rules Committee at the desk.

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There is

        15       a report of the Rules Committee at the desk.  We

        16       will return to the order of reports of standing

        17       committees.  I'll ask the Secretary to read the

        18       report of the Rules Committee.

        19                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Bruno,

        20       from the Committee on Rules, reports the

        21       following bills:

        22                      Senate Print 6736-B, by Senator

        23       Hoblock, an act to amend the Transportation Law;











                                                             
9171

         1                      6328, by Senator Cook, an act to

         2       amend the Retirement and Social Security Law;

         3                      6900-A, by Senator Marcellino, an

         4       act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law;

         5                      7887, by Senator Libous, an act

         6       to amend the Education Law;

         7                      7903, by Senator Bruno, an act to

         8       amend Chapter 721 of the Laws of 1994;

         9                      7909, by Senator Bruno, an act to

        10       amend a chapter of the laws of 1996 as proposed

        11       in Legislative Bill Numbers 7903 and Assembly

        12       11260; and

        13                      By the Assembly Committee on

        14       Rules, Assembly Print 11179, an act to amend the

        15       General Obligations Law.

        16                      All bills ordered directly to

        17       third reading.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        19       Holland.

        20                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  I move we

        21       accept the report of the Rules Committee.

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Motion is

        23       to accept the report of the Rules Committee.











                                                             
9172

         1       All those in favor signify by saying aye.

         2                      (Response of "Aye.")

         3                      Opposed nay.

         4                      (There was no response. )

         5                      The report is accepted.  Bills

         6       will go directly to third reading.

         7                      Senator Holland.

         8                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  Mr. President,

         9       can we take up the non-controversial reading of

        10       the Supplemental Calendar Number 1, please.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  For the

        12       benefit of the members, there is a supplemental

        13       calendar, Supplemental Calendar Number 1, on

        14       your desks.  I'll ask the Secretary to read the

        15       non-controversial Supplemental 1 Calendar.

        16                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        17       636, by Senator Hoblock.

        18                      SENATOR GOLD:  Lay it aside,

        19       please.

        20                      THE SECRETARY:  6736-B -

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

        22       is high.  The bill will be laid aside.

        23                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number











                                                             
9173

         1       1696, by Senator Cook, Senate Print Number 6328,

         2       an act to amend the Retirement and Social

         3       Security Law.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

         5       will read the last section.

         6                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 4.  This

         7       act shall take effect immediately.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

         9       roll.

        10                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

        11                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 54.

        12                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

        13       is passed.

        14                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator

        15       Marcellino moves to discharge from the Committee

        16       on Rules Assembly Bill Number 10696-A and

        17       substitute it for the identical Third Reading

        18       Calendar 1697.

        19                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Lay aside.

        20                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:

        21       Substitution is ordered.  Secretary will read

        22       the title.

        23                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number











                                                             
9174

         1       1697, by the Assembly Committee on Rules,

         2       Assembly Print 10696-A, an act to amend the

         3       Environmental Conservation Law.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Lay the

         5       bill aside.

         6                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Libous

         7       moves to discharge from the Committee on Rules

         8       Assembly Bill Number 9785 and substitute it for

         9       the identical Third Reading Calendar 1698.

        10                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Lay aside.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:

        12       Substitution is ordered.  Secretary will read

        13       the title.

        14                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        15       1698, by member of the Assembly Crouch, Assembly

        16       Print 9785, an act to amend the Education Law.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Bill is

        18       before the house.  Lay the bill aside.

        19                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        20       1699, by Senator Bruno, Senate Print 7903, an

        21       act to amend Chapter 721 of the Laws of 1994,

        22       authorizing the city of Troy.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There is











                                                             
9175

         1       a home rule message at the desk.  Secretary will

         2       read the last section.

         3                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 23.  This

         4       act shall take effect immediately.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

         6       roll.

         7                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

         8                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 54.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

        10       is passed.

        11                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        12       1700, by Senator Bruno, Senate Print 7909, an

        13       act to amend a chapter of the laws of 1996.

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There is

        15       a home rule message at the desk, but the bill is

        16       high.  Lay the bill aside.

        17                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        18       1701, by the Assembly Committee on Rules,

        19       Assembly Print 11179, an act to amend the

        20       General Obligations Law.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

        22       will read the last section.

        23                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This











                                                             
9176

         1       act shall take effect on the same day as a

         2       chapter of the laws of 1996.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

         4       roll.

         5                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

         6                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 54.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

         8       is passed.

         9                      Senator Holland.

        10                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  Mr. President,

        11       can we do the controversial reading of

        12       Supplemental Calendar Number 1, please.

        13                      THE SECRETARY:  Secretary will

        14       read the controversial calendar.  Again this is

        15       Supplemental Calendar Number 1.

        16                      Senator Holland.

        17                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  Mr. President,

        18       there will be an immediate meeting of the

        19       Finance Committee in Room 332.

        20                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There

        21       will be an immediate meeting of the Finance

        22       Committee in the Majority Conference Room.

        23       Immediate meeting of the Finance Committee in











                                                             
9177

         1       the Majority Conference Room, Room 332.

         2                      Secretary will call the

         3       controversial calendar beginning with Calendar

         4       Number 1698, by Senator Libous, Senate Print

         5       7887.

         6                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

         7       1698, substituted earlier today, by member of

         8       the Assembly Crouch, Assembly Print 9785, an act

         9       to amend the Education Law.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        11       Lachman.

        12                      SENATOR LACHMAN:  Yes.  Will the

        13       distinguished Senator from Greater Binghamton,

        14       the home town of the Press and the Sun Bulletin,

        15       please explain the intent of this legislation?

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        17       Libous, an explanation of Calendar Number 1698

        18       has been requested.

        19                      SENATOR LIBOUS:  Thank you, Mr.

        20       President and Senator Lachman.

        21                      Basically what we discovered -

        22       my Assemblyman discovered that there's a quirk

        23       in the law and that some of the school board











                                                             
9178

         1       elections, various types of elections in school

         2       districts, that absentee ballots cannot be used

         3       and basically this allows us to move forward so

         4       that people can vote by absentee ballot, which I

         5       think is something that is appropriate.

         6                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         7       Lachman.

         8                      SENATOR LACHMAN:  Will the

         9       Senator yield for one question?

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Will the

        11       Senator yield?

        12                      SENATOR LIBOUS:  Yes.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        14       yields.

        15                      SENATOR LACHMAN:  I assume, but

        16       I'd like to have this in the record, that this

        17       applies only to LEAs, Local Education

        18       Authorities and, therefore, precludes any of New

        19       York City's community school boards from

        20       participating in this endeavor.

        21                      SENATOR LIBOUS:  That is correct,

        22       Mr. President.

        23                      SENATOR LACHMAN:  Thank you.











                                                             
9179

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Any other

         2       Senator wishing to speak on Calendar Number

         3       1698?  Hearing none, Secretary will read the

         4       last section.

         5                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

         6       act shall take effect immediately.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the

         8       roll.

         9                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

        10                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 54.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

        12       is passed.

        13                      Secretary will now read Calendar

        14       Number 1697.

        15                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        16       1697, substituted earlier today, by the Assembly

        17       Committee on Rules, Assembly Print 10696-A, an

        18       act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

        20       will read the last section.

        21                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

        22       act shall take effect immediately.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Call the











                                                             
9180

         1       roll.

         2                      (The Secretary called the roll. )

         3                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes -

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Announce

         5       the results when tabulated.

         6                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 53, nays 1,

         7       Senator Maziarz recorded in the negative.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

         9       is passed.

        10                      Senator Holland.

        11                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  Mr. President,

        12       is there any housekeeping?

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        14       Holland, we do have a privileged resolution by

        15       Senator Connor at the desk that we could take up

        16       at this time if you'd like to.

        17                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  Take up the

        18       resolution, please.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  We'll

        20       return to motions and resolutions.  I'll ask the

        21       Secretary to read the title of the privileged

        22       resolution, by Senator Connor, which is at the

        23       desk.











                                                             
9181

         1                      THE SECRETARY:  By Senator

         2       Connor, Legislative Resolution commending Angela

         3       Battaglia upon the occasion of her appointment

         4       to the New York City Planning Commission.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Any

         6       Senator wishing to speak on the resolution?

         7       Hearing none, the question is on the resolution

         8       by Senator Connor.  All those in favor signify

         9       by saying aye.

        10                      (Response of "Aye.")

        11                      Opposed nay.

        12                      The resolution is adopted.

        13                      Senator Holland.

        14                      SENATOR HOLLAND:  Mr. President,

        15       may we stand at ease awaiting the result -- the

        16       report of the Finance Committee, please.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

        18       Senate will stand at ease awaiting the report of

        19       the Senate Finance Committee.

        20                      (Whereupon at 11:19 a.m., the

        21       Senate stood at ease.)

        22

        23













                                                             
9182

         1                      (The Senate reconvened at 12:08

         2       p.m.)

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senate

         4       will come to order.

         5                      Chair recognizes Senator Skelos.

         6                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

         7       return to reports of standing committees.  I

         8       believe there is a report of the Finance

         9       Committee at the desk.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There is

        11       a report from the Finance Committee at the desk.

        12                      SENATOR SKELOS:  I ask that it be

        13       read.

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  We will

        15       return to the order of reports of standing

        16       committees.

        17                      The Secretary will read.

        18                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Stafford,

        19       from the Committee on Finance, reports the

        20       following nomination:

        21                      Member of the Board of Trustees

        22       of the City University of New York, Anne

        23       Paolucci, of Beachurst.











                                                             
9183

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

         2       question is on the nomination of Anne Paolucci,

         3       of Beachurst, to become a member of the Board of

         4       Trustees of the City University of New York.

         5       All in favor, signify by saying aye.

         6                      (Response of "Aye.")

         7                      Those opposed, nay.

         8                      (There was no response.)

         9                      The nominee is confirmed.

        10                      Secretary will continue to read.

        11                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Stafford,

        12       from the Committee on Finance, reports the

        13       following nomination:

        14                      Member of the Metropolitan

        15       Transportation Authority, Ernest J. Salerno, of

        16       Pearl River.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

        18       question is on the nomination.  All in favor,

        19       signify by saying aye.

        20                      (Response of "Aye.")

        21                      Opposed, nay.

        22                      (There was no response.)

        23                      The nominee is confirmed.











                                                             
9184

         1                      Secretary will continue to read.

         2                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Stafford,

         3       from the Committee on Finance, reports the

         4       following nomination:

         5                      Member of the Board of Directors

         6       of the New York Convention Center Operating

         7       Corporation, Robert E. Boyle, of Croton-on

         8       Hudson.

         9                      SENATOR GOLD:  Mr. President.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Chair

        11       recognizes Senator Gold, on the nomination.

        12                      SENATOR GOLD:  Thank you.

        13                      Mr. President, I try to listen

        14       very carefully and learn from our distinguished

        15       Majority Leader, Senator Bruno, and on more than

        16       one occasion he has told us, advised us, even

        17       lectured us on this side as to the importance of

        18       process.  He has had comments to make when we

        19       wanted to amend the rules to do certain things

        20       we thought would be right, and he told us how

        21       important the rules were.

        22                      To begin with, I think that we

        23       owe a public apology to Senator Dollinger.











                                                             
9185

         1       About a month or so ago, there was quite a to-do

         2       on this floor as to whether or not he properly

         3       followed our rules to request someone to appear

         4       before a committee.  We owe him that apology

         5       because, according to Senator Stafford,

         6       distinguished Chairman of Finance, there was an

         7       acknowledgment that I, in a timely way, had

         8       requested that this nominee, Mr. Boyle, appear

         9       before the Finance Committee.  I asked whether

        10       he had been asked, and Senator Stafford

        11       indicated, in his own truthful way, that the

        12       request "had been considered," quotes/unquotes.

        13       But it was an acknowledgment there that he had

        14       not asked or no one had asked the nominee to

        15       appear.  I felt that the nominee should have

        16       been asked and the nominee could have said yes

        17       or no, and at least we would know that the

        18       nominee said yes or no.

        19                      Why is there an issue here?  When

        20       we have people who are nominated by the Governor

        21       for positions which pay money, apparently we

        22       have them come before our committees, but we

        23       have a process which says that if people are not











                                                             
9186

         1       paid money then we would not have them appear.

         2                      Now, we know that there are a lot

         3       of positions which, while important, are

         4       ceremonial or don't carry with it huge

         5       administrative responsibilities, and these

         6       people are not asked to appear.  But there are

         7       positions such as the Board of the New York

         8       Convention Center where no one receives money,

         9       but the position is extraordinarily important.

        10                      Everybody in this room knows that

        11       there was a problem with the Convention Center.

        12       Everybody in this room was involved in trying to

        13       correct that problem, and it's important that

        14       people who serve on the Board of Directors of

        15       the New York Convention Center be above question

        16       and certainly available to questions when

        17       properly requested.  My request of the Finance

        18       Committee was a proper request.

        19                      Senator Leichter, in his usual

        20       candor, pointed out to the committee that in the

        21       short period of time that Mr. Boyle has been

        22       working with the Convention Center he seems to

        23       be doing an okay job, and maybe that is not the











                                                             
9187

         1       basis why we wanted to see him.  I indicated

         2       that I do not like to throw out bombs when

         3       people's names and reputations are involved and

         4       that I felt that there was good cause in my mind

         5       to have him there and have him discuss

         6       questions.  The area of inquiry dealt with the

         7       Governor's campaign, his role as the treasurer,

         8       his role with the inauguration, and the

         9       questions were such that I'm sure if Mr. Boyle

        10       were here we could have cleared the air and it

        11       was an area where the air should be cleared.

        12                      In spite of my request, timely

        13       made, the committee, controlled by the Majority,

        14       decided to go forward.  There is one other quote

        15       that I would like to put on the record from our

        16       distinguished Chairman of Finance, Senator

        17       Stafford, and that was his gracious

        18       acknowledgment that the Minority in this house

        19       has done its constitutional job and has been

        20       cooperative in handling appointments from the

        21       Governor.

        22                      Now, Governor Pataki has sent up

        23       a lot of nominations which you can well imagine











                                                             
9188

         1       if it were my choice or your choice might be

         2       different.  The law doesn't permit me to vote

         3       yes or no based upon what I would do or what a

         4       Democrat would do, and I have, I believe, lived

         5       up to my constitutional obligation and voted to

         6       confirm nominations of a Republican Governor

         7       that I might not agree with, but people who were

         8       qualified and, therefore, were deserving of my

         9       constitutional obligation to vote yes, even

        10       though they were not mine.

        11                      So what happened today was not an

        12       attempt to injure the system.  It was not an

        13       attempt to hold back the system from operating.

        14       It was a properly made request, made timely, to

        15       have a nominee to a position of great

        16       responsibility appear before the committee.  I

        17       think that the request should have been honored,

        18       not as a senatorial courtesy, not that we walk

        19       in here with our togas and bow to each other but

        20       because governmentally it was the right thing to

        21       do.  Governmentally, until December 31st, you

        22       have a majority in this house and, on the other

        23       hand, every one of us, Majority or Minority, are











                                                             
9189

         1       elected to come here and participate, and

         2       showing the kind of muscle that was shown today

         3       in the Finance Committee does not do honor to

         4       the Finance Committee.

         5                      We know that there are a majority

         6       of Republicans on that committee and, in spite

         7       of right or wrong, you can do whatever you want

         8       to do.  I do not think you did Mr. Boyle

         9       justice.  Mr. Boyle is entitled to the

        10       opportunity to answer the questions.  The

        11       innuendoes that you are hiding him, that you are

        12       protecting him, which were made by some people

        13       at the committee do not do justice to Mr. Boyle,

        14       and it's your fault.  If Mr. Boyle had been

        15       asked to attend and did not attend, then it's

        16       his fault, or at least you could say that he was

        17       given an opportunity, but the Majority in this

        18       house has denied him the opportunity to even

        19       make that choice, and I think you did the man an

        20       injustice, and I think you owe Senator Dollinger

        21       an apology for remarks which were made a month

        22       ago, and you owe Mr. Boyle an apology for not

        23       giving him the opportunity to say whether or not











                                                             
9190

         1       he would appear.

         2                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         3       Leichter, on the nomination.

         4                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Yes.

         5                      Mr. President.  I am really

         6       saddened and disappointed at the action of the

         7       Majority and what occurred in the Senate Finance

         8       Committee, and I think Senator Gold in his

         9       characteristic moderate and very modest way, I

        10       think, maybe didn't really fully portray what

        11       happened here.

        12                      What happened is that somebody

        13       who is being appointed to an extremely

        14       significant, important position as a member of

        15       the board of directors of the Convention Center

        16       and who has been acting, will continue to act as

        17       the chief operating officer of a center that we

        18       know has been poorly run, has maybe been run in

        19       a way that has fostered and furthered illegal

        20       activities, denied the City and the state of New

        21       York needed revenue, that that person did not

        22       appear to answer questions, one, about his

        23       stewardship as the chief operating officer, his











                                                             
9191

         1       plans, his policies -- and there is a lot of

         2       dispute right now involving legislation as to

         3       how that Convention Center is to be run; and

         4       putting aside all of the other issues, that we

         5       would confirm somebody for such an important

         6       position and not have that person appear is, I

         7       submit to you, an abdication of responsibility

         8       by the committee.

         9                      Now, then you've got to ask

        10       yourself, "Well, wait.  Why is that happening?"

        11       And you look and you realize and you understand

        12       that some very serious questions have been

        13       raised about Mr. Boyle, questions about a

        14       contribution that his campaign committee made to

        15       Governor Pataki, I think when the Governor was a

        16       Senator, that were repaid by "Friends of Pataki"

        17       in 1995.  There is the whole question of the

        18       inaugural committee and how that money was

        19       raised, how that money was spent, and we know

        20       that the Pataki administration has stonewalled

        21       on that.

        22                      So why would a person who is

        23       responsible for this important position and,











                                                             
9192

         1       secondly, whose role in campaign financing and

         2       the inaugural committee is very central to

         3       public issues that have been raised -- why

         4       doesn't he appear?  And I think I can only draw

         5       one conclusion, that this is part of the

         6       stonewalling, of an effort to keep the public

         7       from knowing what has happened to monies in the

         8       inaugural committee and whether the law was

         9       complied with, whether there were activities

        10       that, even if they were legal, raise a lot of

        11       serious policy questions, and Mr. Boyle is right

        12       at the heart of all those questions, and he

        13       should have appeared.

        14                      I think we had an obligation to

        15       the people of the state of New York to have him

        16       appear and, if nothing else, you had the ranking

        17       Minority member of the committee make a request,

        18       followed the procedures that some weeks ago

        19       Senator Stafford pointed out, when Senator

        20       Dollinger raised some questions about why

        21       somebody hadn't appeared, and Senator Stafford

        22       said, "We have a procedure.  Ask for it in

        23       writing."











                                                             
9193

         1                      I want to say Senator Stafford

         2       has always been extremely courteous.  Earlier

         3       this year, I asked to have somebody appear.  He

         4       made every effort to have that person appear, so

         5       I don't blame Senator Stafford on this.  But I

         6       just question, is there a policy here by the

         7       Republican Party of this state and by the Pataki

         8       Administration not to have Mr. Boyle and other

         9       people who are connected with the inaugural

        10       committee, who raised money for that committee,

        11       who were otherwise involved in raising monies

        12       for the Pataki campaign and for the Governor

        13       previously -- to keep them from appearing and

        14       answering questions?

        15                      Mr. Boyle should have been here.

        16       He should have answered questions as to those

        17       activities.  He should answer questions as to

        18       what is happening at the Convention Center and

        19       his not appearing, to my mind, makes it

        20       impossible to act on his nomination.

        21                      I just want to say that, while I

        22       was very critical when he was first appointed as

        23       chief operating officer, I want to say in all











                                                             
9194

         1       fairness, that the impression I have is that he

         2       has done a good job; but that's not the issue.

         3       The issue is that I shouldn't have to rely on

         4       newspaper stories.  The issue is that he has to

         5       appear because of the position he holds.  He has

         6       to appear because the ranking Minority member

         7       asked that he appear, and that's the procedures

         8       of the committee, and he has to appear because

         9       some of the questions relate to the financial

        10       campaign matters that I have mentioned before.

        11                      Not appearing, I don't think that

        12       his nomination is ripe for us to act on.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        14       Dollinger, on the nomination.

        15                      SENATOR DOLLINGER:  Mr.

        16       President, I rise to urge my colleagues to vote

        17       in the negative on this nomination.  Let me

        18       explain why.

        19                      First of all, I appreciate

        20       Senator Gold suggesting that I'm owed an

        21       apology.  I don't believe I am, but I believe he

        22       is entitled to an apology because, as everyone

        23       knows, a month ago in the Finance Committee when











                                                             
9195

         1       two nominees came forward and I wanted to raise

         2       a question with one of the nominees about the

         3       fact that they had contributed money in excess

         4       of the $5,000 corporate limitation that the law

         5       of this state limits corporate contributions, I

         6       wanted to find out the extent of that nominee's

         7       complicity in making that donation and find out

         8       whether the person who was nominated had

         9       actually knowingly violated the laws of this

        10       state, to determine his fitness to sit on the

        11       Greater Rochester Regional Transportation

        12       Authority.

        13                      I was told by the chairman of the

        14       committee that we wouldn't hold that appointment

        15       because there was an unwritten rule in the

        16       Senate Finance Committee that unless there was a

        17       designation "to appear" next to the names of

        18       nominees they would not appear.  I apologized to

        19       the chairman at the time and said I wasn't aware

        20       of that rule.  But I have now raised what I

        21       believe is a question about this nominee's

        22       fitness for office and I would like -- as a

        23       matter of senatorial courtesy at that time and











                                                             
9196

         1       because it affected my community and because 70

         2       percent of the people who ride on the Transit

         3       Authority live in my district, I asked that it

         4       be delayed.

         5                      Following the rules of the Senate

         6       Finance Committee, the unwritten rule, I was

         7       told, "You didn't ask ahead of time; therefore,

         8       there is no need for them to appear," and

         9       because I didn't have the facts I needed to

        10       determine the fitness of the candidate for that

        11       job, I voted no.  I later had a conversation

        12       with that candidate in which I apologized to him

        13       and said, "Had I known, I might have voted yes."

        14                      Today, another injustice is being

        15       done because Senator Gold -- who followed the

        16       unwritten rule of the Senate Finance Committee.

        17       When he noticed that Mr. Boyle had no

        18       designation next to his name, Senator Gold

        19       acting on behalf of this Conference asked the

        20       chairman of the committee to invite Mr. Boyle to

        21       come.  What I understand happened based on my

        22       hearing in the Finance Committee is that the

        23       chairman of the committee and the committee











                                                             
9197

         1       majority decided not to even bother to ask Mr.

         2       Boyle to appear.

         3                      So, apparently, there is no rule

         4       in the Senate Finance Committee about who

         5       appears except one rule which is also

         6       unwritten.  If the candidate who is nominated

         7       could have to answer questions that would

         8       embarrass George Pataki, he will not appear.

         9       That's now the rule.  It's almost like Animal

        10       Farm.  Remember?  Four legs is good, and then it

        11       went to two legs is good, then two legs that are

        12       pigs are good.

        13                      Well, apparently, we're evolving

        14       a rule here, which is, you don't have to appear

        15       unless you are asked.  If you are asked, you

        16       still don't have to appear because we won't ask

        17       you if we know that your appearance would

        18       embarrass George Pataki.

        19                      And, Senator Gold, please take

        20       this in the spirit it's offered.  I will

        21       apologize for the breach of the rules.  Why did

        22       I want to talk to Mr. Boyle?  I understand from

        23       Senator Leichter that he may be doing a good job











                                                             
9198

         1       in his current position, but I'm more concerned

         2       in determining his fitness about his role in

         3       what I believe has become the cancer that is

         4       eating away at the credibility of the Governor,

         5       and that is, his failure to disclose the money

         6       that was received in contributions from the

         7       inaugural corporation and the money that it paid

         8       out.  It's eating away at his public credibility

         9       and, unfortunately, it's eating away at the

        10       credibility of his administration.

        11                      It starts with Dr. DeBuono and

        12       the Health Committee.  She refused to answer

        13       questions about payments she had received from

        14       the inaugural committee.  I can't understand

        15       why.  I was disappointed she wouldn't answer the

        16       question.  It appears as though the cone of

        17       silence, the agreement of silence, the code of

        18       silence, is going to bind everyone on the second

        19       floor and everyone beholding to anyone on the

        20       second floor to prevent public disclosure of

        21       this important information.

        22                      Also impacts Mr. Boyle, and I

        23       would like to contrast my reaction to Mr. Boyle











                                                             
9199

         1       and to Commissioner DeBuono with Mr. Steinberg.

         2       You remember Mr. Steinberg, nominated by

         3       Governor Pataki to be the chairman of the

         4       Thruway Authority.  I asked Mr. Steinberg in his

         5       appearance before the committee, "Did you or

         6       your corporation, Reliance Insurance Company,

         7       give a contribution to the Governor's inaugural

         8       corporation, New York Inauguration 95, New York

         9       Transition 95?  Did Reliance Insurance Company

        10       give a contribution?"  He said yes.  I asked him

        11       whether that contribution violated the $5,000

        12       corporate limit that Reliance would have given

        13       to other candidates during 1995.  He said he

        14       didn't know.  I think that was a fair answer.  I

        15       think it was an accurate answer.  That's all we

        16       needed from Mr. Boyle, fair, accurate answers

        17       about his conduct in the operation of the

        18       inaugural corporation.

        19                      I continue to maintain -- I have

        20       maintained it in public.  I have maintained it

        21       on this floor.  I have maintained it even back

        22       in Rochester, New York.  In my judgment, the

        23       inaugural corporation solicited gifts to benefit











                                                             
9200

         1       Governor Pataki that were in excess of $75 that

         2       could -- could -- may -- I won't say will, but

         3       they could violate a law passed by this chamber,

         4       passed by the Republicans in this chamber,

         5       passed by the Democrats in this chamber, which

         6       made it a rule in this state that you can not

         7       accept a gift in excess of $75 from any entity.

         8                      Why did we pass that rule?  To do

         9       the one thing that the Governor's failure to

        10       disclose is eroding away, the public confidence

        11       in government.

        12                      And it seems to me that that

        13       cancer has spread today to Mr. Boyle and,

        14       unfortunately, by not allowing him to appear, by

        15       not allowing him to answer questions, the

        16       complicity in walking out on that political

        17       plank of the inaugural committee now comes to

        18       this chamber and to the majority in this

        19       chamber.

        20                      I think it's really a travesty we

        21       have come to this point.  I would urge the

        22       Governor to immediately disclose where he got

        23       the money from, disclose how it would be spent,











                                                             
9201

         1       disclose who got contributions, and I would

         2       simply ask that the Governor do it now.

         3                      It seems to me -- and I hate to

         4       put Mr. Boyle's public integrity at stake, but

         5       he should have been here.  He should have been

         6       answering questions.  He should have done -

         7       followed the procedures in the Senate Finance

         8       Committee to make sure that the truth -- the

         9       truth -- was known.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Is there

        11       any other Senator wishing to speak on the

        12       nomination?

        13                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Mr. President,

        14       just very briefly.

        15                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        16       Stafford.

        17                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  This morning I

        18       think it is very fortunate for us that we do

        19       have these members -- excuse me -- these

        20       nominees for members of the Board of Directors

        21       of the New York Convention Center Operating

        22       Corporation.  I might add very quickly that it's

        23       a bipartisan effort, and I would commend the











                                                             
9202

         1       leaders of the Legislature, all who were

         2       involved in these nominations, both Minority and

         3       Majority.

         4                      Having people appear for these

         5       nonpaying positions -- people are busy.  People

         6       almost always are leaders.  People almost always

         7       are involved in what we would say are the

         8       issues, are their professions, their businesses,

         9       in their communities, and there is a very

        10       extensive B.C.I. investigation.

        11                      We then have the opportunity,

        12       which we do and we take it very seriously -- we

        13       have the opportunity to review those

        14       investigations, the results, the reports from

        15       those investigations, and we say at the meeting

        16       that we have reviewed the reports and we have

        17       found nothing which would interfere or would

        18       make it impossible or nothing that is there that

        19       would indicate this person should not serve in

        20       this capacity.

        21                      I compliment the Governor, the

        22       leaders of the Legislature that are involved in

        23       these nominations.  I think they are good











                                                             
9203

         1       nominations.  I do have to emphasize that the

         2       person who has been mentioned the most and,

         3       frankly, the one we are considering at this time

         4       has done an excellent job in a very, very

         5       difficult situation.  It was our Majority Leader

         6       who asked that we have hearings concerning this

         7       issue.  These hearings were held in New York

         8       City.  The Majority Leader himself was there.  I

         9       assure you they were extensive because I was

        10       there.

        11                      I would say, Mr. President, that

        12       Mr. Boyle is capable.  He is doing an excellent

        13       job, and I certainly am honored to move his

        14       confirmation.

        15                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

        16       question is on the nomination.

        17                      SENATOR GOLD:  Mr. President.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        19       Gold.

        20                      SENATOR GOLD:  Yes, I will be

        21       brief, but, Senator Stafford, some of your

        22       comments, although obviously said in good faith,

        23       just don't cut it with me.  You say people are











                                                             
9204

         1       busy, and these are nonpaying jobs.

         2                      Well, Senator, if they are too

         3       busy then they shouldn't take any job, and part

         4       of the job is answering to the Legislature.

         5       Part of the job in running this convention

         6       center is making sure that whatever the scandals

         7       were in the past that people have confidence

         8       today and, Senator, part of our procedures on

         9       the committee is to give the individual a chance

        10       to say whether he or she is too busy to come.

        11       So I don't think that your answer is at all

        12       adequate, and I don't think your answer does Mr.

        13       Boyle justice.

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

        15       question is on the nomination of Robert E. Boyle

        16       to become a member of the Board of Directors of

        17       the New York Convention Center Operating

        18       Corporation.  All those in favor of the

        19       nomination, signify by saying aye.

        20                      (Response of "Aye.")

        21                      Opposed, nay.

        22                      (Response of "Nay.")

        23                      The nominee is confirmed.











                                                             
9205

         1                      Secretary will continue to read

         2       the report of the Senate Finance Committee.

         3                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Stafford,

         4       from the Committee on Finance, reports the

         5       following nominations:

         6                      Members of the Board of Directors

         7       of the New York Convention Center Operating

         8       Corporation, Lloyd Constatine of New York City;

         9       Ronald Goldstock, of New York City; Eric M.

        10       Javits, Esq., of Woodbury; Paul O'Neil, of New

        11       York City; and Joseph E. Spinnato, of

        12       Muttontown.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

        14       question is on the nomination of several members

        15       to become members of the Board of Directors of

        16       the New York Convention Center Operating

        17       Corporation.  All those in favor of the

        18       nomination -- Senator Waldon, why do you rise?

        19                      SENATOR WALDON:  I would like to

        20       ask the Chairman of Finance a question or two,

        21       if I may, on the nominations.

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        23       Stafford, do you yield to a question from











                                                             
9206

         1       Senator Waldon?

         2                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Yes.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

         4       yields.

         5                      SENATOR WALDON:  Thank you, Mr.

         6       President.

         7                      My colleague, Senator Stafford,

         8       the distinguished Chairman, I won't be long, but

         9       I was sitting here looking at these names, and I

        10       looked back through my mind's eye over the names

        11       of the people we have approved recently, going

        12       back even to those appointed to the Court of

        13       Claims and I was wondering how many of the

        14       Governor's recommendations during this session

        15       have been people who have been traditionally

        16       entitled "minority", meaning Latinos and/or

        17       African-Americans, if you know that; and, if you

        18       don't, if you could get that information to us,

        19       it would be appreciated.

        20                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Certainly

        21       will.

        22                      SENATOR WALDON:  Thank you, Mr.

        23       President.











                                                             
9207

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

         2       question is on the nomination of several members

         3       to become members of the Board of Directors of

         4       the New York Convention Center Operating

         5       Corporation.  All those in favor of the

         6       nominations, signify by saying aye.

         7                      (Response of "Aye.")

         8                      Opposed, nay.

         9                      (Response of "Nay.")

        10                      The nominees are confirmed.

        11                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Mr. President.

        12                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        13       Bruno.

        14                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Is there anything

        15       else at the desk that requires our attention at

        16       this time?

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  We have

        18       one motion, Senator Bruno.

        19                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Take that up at

        20       this time.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Return to

        22       motions and resolutions.

        23                      The Chair recognizes Senator











                                                             
9208

         1       Farley.

         2                      SENATOR FARLEY:  Thank you, Mr.

         3       President.  On behalf of my colleague who's

         4       sitting beside me, Senator Seward -

         5                      I'm doing your work for you?

         6                      SENATOR SEWARD:  Thank you.

         7       Thank you.

         8                      SENATOR FARLEY:  I wish to call

         9       up his bill, Print Number 5206A, which was

        10       recalled from the Assembly which is now at the

        11       desk.

        12                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Secretary

        13       will read.

        14                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        15       637, by Senator Seward, Senate Print 5206A, an

        16       act to amend the County Law.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        18       Farley.

        19                      SENATOR FARLEY:  I now move to

        20       reconsider the vote by which this bill passed.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The

        22       Secretary will call the roll on reconsideration.

        23                      (The Secretary called the roll on











                                                             
9209

         1       reconsideration.)

         2                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  The bill

         4       is before the house.

         5                      Senator Farley.

         6                      SENATOR FARLEY:  Mr. President,

         7       Senator Seward now offers the following

         8       amendments.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:

        10       Amendments are received and adopted.

        11                      That takes care of all the

        12       housekeeping, Senator Bruno.

        13                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Mr. President, I

        14       would suggest that we presently stand at ease,

        15       and I would ask for an immediate conference of

        16       the Majority in Room 332.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator

        18       Paterson.

        19                      SENATOR BRUNO:  My estimation

        20       would be that we will probably be about 20

        21       minutes, and then we can resume and hopefully

        22       conclude session for this day.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  Senator











                                                             
9210

         1       Paterson.

         2                      SENATOR BRUNO:  Senator Paterson.

         3                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Mr. President,

         4       there will be an immediate conference of the

         5       Minority in the Minority Leader's Conference

         6       Room exactly when this session ends -- no,

         7       exactly when this recess begins.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT KUHL:  There

         9       will be an immediate meeting of the Majority

        10       Conference in the Majority Conference Room.

        11       Immediate meeting of the Majority Conference in

        12       the Majority Conference Room, Room 332.

        13                      There will also be an immediate

        14       meeting of the Minority in the Minority

        15       Conference Room, Room 314.  An immediate meeting

        16       of the Minority Conference in the Minority

        17       Conference Room, Room 314.

        18                      And the Senate will stand at ease

        19       for about 20 minutes.

        20                      (Whereupon, at 12:36 p.m., the

        21       Senate was at ease.)

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        23       Senator Skelos.











                                                             
9211

         1                      SENATOR SKELOS:  There will be an

         2       immediate meeting of the Rules Committee in the

         3       Majority Conference Room.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  There

         5       will be an immediate meeting of the Rules

         6       Committee in the Majority Conference Room.

         7                      SENATOR SKELOS:  The Senate will

         8       stand at ease.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        10       Senate stands at ease.

        11                      (Whereupon, the Senate continued

        12       at ease until 2:26 p.m.)

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        14       Senator Skelos.

        15                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President.

        16       If we could return to reports of standing

        17       committees.  I believe there's a report of the

        18       Rules Committee at the desk.  I ask that it be

        19       read.

        20                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        21       Secretary will read the rules report.

        22                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Bruno,

        23       from the Committee on Rules, reports the











                                                             
9212

         1       following bills:

         2                      Senate Print 4428B, by Senator

         3       Lack, an act to amend the Judiciary Law and the

         4       State Finance Law;

         5                      6024, by Senator Saland, an act

         6       to amend the State Finance Law;

         7                      7894A, by the Senate Committee on

         8       Rules, an act authorizing the city of

         9       Canandaigua;

        10                      7897, by the Senate Committee on

        11       Rules, an act to amend the Public Authorities

        12       Law;

        13                      7904, by Senator DiCarlo, an act

        14       to amend the Civil Service Law; and

        15                      7913, by Senator Holland, an act

        16       to authorize the lease of property.

        17                      All bills ordered directly for

        18       third reading.

        19                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President, I

        20       move we accept the report of the Rules

        21       Committee.

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  All

        23       in favor of accepting the report of the Rules











                                                             
9213

         1       Committee, signify by saying aye.

         2                      (Response of "Aye.")

         3                      Opposed, nay.

         4                      (There was no response.)

         5                      The report is accepted.

         6                      Senator Skelos.

         7                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

         8       if we can take up the Supplemental Calendar No.

         9       2, noncontroversial.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        11       Secretary will read.

        12                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        13       1702, by Senator Lack, Senate Print 4428B, an

        14       act to amend the Judiciary Law and the State

        15       Finance Law.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Read

        17       the last section.

        18                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 5.  This

        19       act shall take effect April 1.

        20                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

        21       the roll.

        22                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

        23                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.











                                                             
9214

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

         2       bill is passed.

         3                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Saland

         4       moves to discharge from the Committee on Rules

         5       Assembly Bill Number 8743 and substitute it for

         6       the identical Third Reading Calendar 1703.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         8       Substitution ordered.  Secretary will read.

         9                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        10       1703, by member of the Assembly Schimminger,

        11       Assembly Print 8743, an act to amend the State

        12       Finance Law.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Read

        14       the last section.

        15                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

        16       act shall take effect immediately.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

        18       the roll.

        19                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

        20                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        22       bill is passed.

        23                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number











                                                             
9215

         1       1704, by the Senate Committee on Rules, Senate

         2       Print 7894A, an act authorizing the city of

         3       Canandaigua.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  There

         5       is a home rule message at the desk.  Read the

         6       last section.

         7                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 3.  This

         8       act shall take effect immediately.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

        10       the roll.

        11                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

        12                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        14       bill is passed.

        15                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        16       1705, by the Senate Committee on Rules, Senate

        17       Print 7897, an act to amend the Public

        18       Authorities Law.

        19                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Lay it aside.

        20                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        21       bill is laid aside.

        22                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        23       1706, by Senator DiCarlo, Senate Print 7904, an











                                                             
9216

         1       act to amend the Civil Service Law.

         2                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Read

         3       the last section.

         4                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

         5       act shall take effect immediately.

         6                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

         7       the roll.

         8                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

         9                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        11       bill is passed.

        12                      Senator Skelos.

        13                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        14       on Calendar Number 1704, I believe the bill is

        15       high, so I would like to move to reconsider the

        16       vote by which the bill passed.

        17                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        18       1704, by the Senate Committee on Rules, Senate

        19       Print 7894A, an act authorizing the city of

        20       Canandaigua.

        21                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Lay the bill

        22       aside.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The











                                                             
9217

         1       Secretary will call the roll on reconsideration.

         2                      (The Secretary called the roll on

         3       reconsideration.)

         4                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

         6       bill is before the house.  The bill is laid

         7       aside.

         8                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

         9       1707, by Senator Holland, Senate Print 7913, an

        10       act to authorize the lease of property at the

        11       Letchworth Developmental Center.

        12                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        13       is there a message of necessity at the desk?

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Yes,

        15       there is a message.

        16                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Move to accept.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        18       Motion to accept the message.

        19                      All in favor, aye.

        20                      (Response of "Aye.")

        21                      Opposed, nay.

        22                      (There was no response.)

        23                      The message is accepted.











                                                             
9218

         1                      Read the last section.

         2                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 5.  This

         3       act shall take effect immediately.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

         5       the roll.

         6                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

         7                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

         9       bill is passed.

        10                      Senator Skelos.

        11                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        12       on Supplemental Calendar No. 1, can we take up

        13       Calendar Number 1700.  We now have a message.

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        15       Secretary will read.

        16                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        17       1700, by Senator Bruno, Senate Print 7909, an

        18       act to amend a chapter of the Laws of 1996.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        20       Senator Skelos.

        21                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Is there a

        22       message of necessity at the desk?

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Yes,











                                                             
9219

         1       there is a message.

         2                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Move we accept.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

         4       motion is to accept the message.

         5                      All in favor, say aye.

         6                      (Response of "Aye.")

         7                      Opposed, nay.

         8                      (There was no response.)

         9                      Message is accepted.

        10                      There is a home rule message at

        11       the desk.

        12                      The Secretary will read.

        13                      SENATOR GOLD:  What is the

        14       number?

        15                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        16       Calendar Number 1700, Supplemental Calendar No.

        17       1.

        18                      Read the last section.

        19                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

        20       act shall take effect on the same date as a

        21       chapter of the Laws of 1996.

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

        23       the roll.











                                                             
9220

         1                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

         2                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

         4       bill is passed.

         5                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President.

         6       If we could just stand at ease, Mr. President.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         8       Senate will stand at ease.

         9                      (Whereupon, at 2:33 p.m., the

        10       Senate stood at ease until 2:55 p.m.)

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        12       Senator Skelos.

        13                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        14       if we could return to reports of standing

        15       committees, I believe there is a report of the

        16       Finance Committee at the desk.  I ask that it be

        17       read, for Senator Paterson.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        19       Secretary will read.

        20                      THE SECRETARY:  Senator Stafford,

        21       from the Committee on Finance, reports the

        22       following bill:

        23                      Senate Print 7915, by the Senate











                                                             
9221

         1       Committee on Rules, an act making appropriations

         2       for the support of government; and

         3                      Senate Print 7916, by the Senate

         4       Committee on Rules, an act to amend Chapter 905

         5       of the Laws of 1986.

         6                      Both bills ordered directly for

         7       third reading.

         8                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

         9       move to accept the report of the Finance

        10       Committee.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        12       motion is to accept the report of the Finance

        13       Committee.

        14                      All those in favor, say aye.

        15                      (Response of "Aye.")

        16                      Opposed, nay.

        17                      (Response of "Nay.")

        18                      The report is accepted.

        19                      Senator Skelos.

        20                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        21       at this time, if we could take up Senate 7915.

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        23       Secretary will read.











                                                             
9222

         1                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

         2       1708, by the Senate Committee on Rules, Senate

         3       Print 7915, an act making appropriations for the

         4       support of government.

         5                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President.

         6       Is there a message of necessity and

         7       appropriation at the desk?

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Yes,

         9       there is.

        10                      SENATOR SKELOS:  I move to accept

        11       the message.

        12                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        13       motion is to accept the message.

        14                      All in favor.

        15                      (Response of "Aye.")

        16                      Opposed.

        17                      (There was no response.)

        18                      Message is accepted.

        19                      Senator Hoffmann.

        20                      SENATOR HOFFMANN:  On this bill,

        21       Mr. President.

        22                      I have raised the issue in

        23       Finance, and Senator Stafford did his best I











                                                             
9223

         1       think to explain a rather incomprehensible

         2       situation.  In the scheme of things around here

         3       this may not be a real big deal to some people,

         4       but it puts a number of us in a somewhat awkward

         5       situation because, for the first time, we now

         6       have two separate pay bills, known as extenders,

         7       incorporated into one bill.

         8                      The state employees, the general

         9       operations of the state, are now being included

        10       in a bill that also continues to pay for

        11       legislators.  Now, these last many weeks in

        12       which we have been extending pay to other state

        13       employees and to ourselves, some of us have

        14       taken the position that members of the

        15       Legislature should not be paid when we have not

        16       done the people's work and have not yet

        17       concluded a state budget.  I am among that

        18       number.

        19                      Today, however, I am in the very

        20       uncomfortable situation of having to vote either

        21       against paying all state employees or voting for

        22       continuing pay to legislators who are doing a

        23       less than adequate job in the eyes of many











                                                             
9224

         1       people in this state.  So I would just like the

         2       record to reflect that in the past I stood with

         3       several colleagues and voted against extending

         4       pay to legislators in the absence of a budget,

         5       and I would like to be able to do that today.

         6                      I wish there were an adequate

         7       explanation.  No slight intended to the chairman

         8       who I think did try to explain this situation,

         9       but there must be some other reason why these

        10       two bills have been jumbled together into one

        11       bill today than saving printing costs.  God

        12       knows, we spend enough on printing around here

        13       putting together legislation that's not likely

        14       to go any place.  One-house bills are the order

        15       of the day most days in both the Senate and the

        16       Assembly.

        17                      So I just can't believe that the

        18       primary motivation of combining the extender for

        19       all state employees with combining the extender

        20       to legislators was to save on the cost of

        21       printing.

        22                      But I have no alternative except

        23       to do what I think is best for the rest of the











                                                             
9225

         1       employees of the state of New York, so I will

         2       reluctantly vote in favor of this measure.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         4       Senator Gold.

         5                      SENATOR GOLD:  Mr. President, I

         6       have no idea, obviously, why we have one bill

         7       instead of two, and I sympathize with Senator

         8       Hoffmann, who would like to be able to clarify

         9       that vote.  On the other hand, I respect Senator

        10       Hoffmann's right to make her own interpretations

        11       of her job.

        12                      I want it clear that in voting

        13       for this bill I would vote for this bill if it

        14       were separated into two bills.  I think that the

        15       record indicates that I and others have

        16       absolutely done our job.  Our job, as I see it,

        17       was to make sure that the budget filed by

        18       Governor Pataki in December did not become law.

        19       My obligation to the people was to make sure

        20       that the budget as amended by Governor Pataki in

        21       January did not become law.  My job was to see

        22       to it that the amendments made by Governor

        23       Pataki, even though they were an improvement in











                                                             
9226

         1       March, did not become law and to fight to see

         2       that perhaps the legislative agreement -- which

         3       unfortunately we haven't seen in bill form -

         4       might become law because I believe that the

         5       original budget would have meant the death of

         6       people.  I believe that the original budget was

         7       cruel and did some terrible things.

         8                      Now, lest anybody misunderstand,

         9       I don't think George Pataki is cruel.  I think

        10       he is a fine gentleman, and I say that not

        11       tongue in cheek.  I say that very seriously.

        12       But the product was such that it was my job

        13       since it was filed, until today, and continuing

        14       until we get a budget, to fight for a proper

        15       budget, and the concept that some people have

        16       that we should pass a budget on March 31st even

        17       if it's bad for the people is a concept I will

        18       not buy.

        19                      The concept that in order to get

        20       myself paid I should pass any budget and put my

        21       own paycheck over that interest of my

        22       constituents is something I do not buy.  Now, I

        23       know there are people here who feel that if we











                                                             
9227

         1       don't pass a budget we haven't done our work.  I

         2       respect their intellectual right to come to that

         3       conclusion.  I just want the record clear on my

         4       intellectual right to feel that I am doing the

         5       right thing by my people by fighting the budget

         6       until it's right.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         8       Senator Dollinger.

         9                      SENATOR DOLLINGER:  Mr.

        10       President, I have been just reading the bills

        11       just to clarify the issue of legislative pay,

        12       and I concur with Senator Hoffmann that this

        13       practice of bringing these two formerly separate

        14       bills together -- I'm not satisfied.

        15                      I wasn't at the Finance

        16       Committee, and I apologize for not being there,

        17       but it seems to me -- we have done it in the

        18       past that we've had a chance to vote on our own

        19       pay as well as the pay for the other members of

        20       this state work force, and it seems to me by

        21       combining them we're doing ourselves a

        22       disservice and the people of this state.

        23                      I join in Senator Hoffmann's











                                                             
9228

         1       appraisal of this that I would vote against

         2       payment for ourselves, and yet I'm not going to

         3       punish the rest of the state work force by

         4       voting against this bill.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         6       Senator Marcellino.

         7                      SENATOR MARCELLINO:  Mr.

         8       President, I don't often rise to agree with my

         9       colleague, Senator Gold, but in this particular

        10       case I tend to agree that a late budget if it's

        11       the right budget is the way to go, and I think

        12       at this point in time we are negotiating.

        13       Leadership is in the process of negotiating a

        14       budget.  I disagree with some of the editorials

        15       that I've seen around the state in various

        16       newspapers that say we should pass any budget by

        17       April 1.  It has to be the budget that the

        18       Legislature and the Executive can concur and

        19       agree is the right budget for the state of New

        20       York, and in that process, we are engaged right

        21       now and that process should go on as long as it

        22       takes to come up with a budget that will deliver

        23       the services at the right price for the people











                                                             
9229

         1       of this state and not just any budget for any

         2       budget's sake.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         4       Senator Mendez.

         5                      SENATOR MENDEZ:  Yes, Mr.

         6       President.  I do rise also to concur with

         7       Senator Gold and Senator Marcellino.  I voted

         8       for all the 200 legislators to be paid last time

         9       that we had that bill before us, and I intend to

        10       do so in this instance.

        11                      Today, yes, there's only one bill

        12       rather than two.  I feel, and I am sure my

        13       colleagues do feel the same way, that we have

        14       earned the money.  In our efforts on the

        15       community level and doing the constituent work

        16       and informing our voters of what's the process

        17       that takes place here and informing them about

        18       the issues, that is important also.  Just doing

        19       the budget alone, on time, as it was mentioned

        20       before, is not the way to go if that budget is

        21       going to be penalizing to any group of citizens

        22       of the State of New York.

        23                      So, therefore, I will gladly -- I











                                                             
9230

         1       wish I could vote a hundred times for this one

         2       bill in this instance, because I think I, as

         3       well as my colleagues, have earned the money,

         4       budget or no budget.

         5                      Thank you.

         6                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         7       Senator Oppenheimer.

         8                      SENATOR OPPENHEIMER:  I think my

         9       question has been answered because aside from -

        10       well, I concur with my colleagues who said that

        11       in the past when we had two separate bills many

        12       of us voted against the legislative piece

        13       funding for our salaries, but, of course, this

        14       time, I would be voting in favor because I

        15       certainly don't think we should penalize the

        16       people who work for us.

        17                      But I had noticed that we had

        18       also in this bill -- I guess I should ask this

        19       question, if the sponsor will yield for a

        20       question?

        21                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  By all means.

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        23       Senator Stafford will yield.











                                                             
9231

         1                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Yes.

         2                      SENATOR OPPENHEIMER:  We have,

         3       which we haven't in the past had -- we have the

         4       income maintenance, the medical assistance.

         5                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Senator, it's

         6       my fault.  I can't hear.

         7                      SENATOR OPPENHEIMER:  Okay.

         8       Also, it's not pointed at me.  It's pointed up.

         9       It should be pointed sideways.

        10                      We also have in this bill income

        11       maintenance and medical assistance and community

        12       development.  I don't believe that was in our

        13       past bills, but it is in this bill also.

        14                      These are things that we haven't

        15       had combined into one bill in the past.  Is that

        16       not correct?

        17                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  It has been in

        18       the past.  Again, this I think shows the

        19       responsibility of the Executive and the

        20       Legislature that there are specific areas or

        21       specific items that should be included at this

        22       time that have been in the past, and, of course,

        23       they are this time.











                                                             
9232

         1                      SENATOR OPPENHEIMER:  In the past

         2        -- if I can clarify?

         3                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Yes.

         4                      SENATOR OPPENHEIMER:  They were

         5       separate, but now they are in this one bill.

         6                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  They have been

         7       in various bills, and they have usually been

         8       together.

         9                      SENATOR OPPENHEIMER:  Yes.  Thank

        10       you.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        12       Senator Nanula.

        13                      SENATOR NANULA:  Thank you, Mr.

        14       President.

        15                      I, too, plan to vote for this

        16       bill although under duress, and I didn't plan on

        17       addressing the issue of legislative pay, but

        18       since it has been brought forward to this body

        19       today and, of course, it is in the bill, I'd

        20       like to extend some of my thoughts on it.

        21                      A couple of points were made, and

        22       I certainly respect the individuals who made

        23       them and also respect their positions in terms











                                                             
9233

         1       of this being a democratic process, one where we

         2       all can stand regardless of what our position is

         3       and bestow our position.  Since we're doing that

         4       on this issue, I would like to bestow a few of

         5       my positions in regard to this.  I have been

         6       quite vocal on this issue historically, and a

         7       couple of points were made, one being, "Well, we

         8       should take as much time as needed and

         9       deliberate over the various differences we have

        10       in regard to a budget, whether they take a week

        11       or two weeks or three weeks or four weeks or

        12       three months or four months."

        13                      Well, the last I recall, there

        14       was a deadline, at least one that is always

        15       discussed, called April 1st.  There is a

        16       deadline that we're supposed to be, as a

        17       legislative body, working together with the

        18       Governor to achieve, and, certainly, there were

        19       some good points made by Senator Gold in regards

        20       to some of our opinions that the Governor's

        21       budget wasn't one that we would want to

        22       support.  But that doesn't mean that we should

        23       just open-ended, without any kind of time line











                                                             
9234

         1       be on a path in a responsible fashion to pass a

         2       budget, and Senator Mendez, who I have

         3       tremendous respect for, talked about our labor

         4       and that we should be compensated for it.

         5                      Well, so should the various

         6       companies that have done business with the state

         7       that aren't being paid, so should the various

         8       municipalities that are going to bond short-term

         9       that aren't getting money from the state because

        10       we haven't passed a budget and, beyond all of

        11       that, what kind of image does this process give

        12       to corporations and give to bond raters and

        13       others that are involved in looking at this

        14       state as a place to conduct business, as a place

        15       to rate in terms of the way in which we conduct

        16       business?

        17                      I agree wholeheartedly with my

        18       colleagues that this budget process in terms of

        19       not passing a budget that is not good for the

        20       people of New York is appropriate, but to not

        21       have any sensitivity or to not understand what

        22       this process means, what the delay in this

        23       process means to the people of this state, I











                                                             
9235

         1       think, is really shortsighted, and I'll tell you

         2       something else.  It's a scar on all of us to the

         3       electorate because people are losing faith in

         4       government as a result of the way in which we're

         5       handling ourselves up here.

         6                      Again, I'm voting for this bill.

         7       I'm very dissatisfied that the Legislature pay

         8       was included with the various other necessities

         9       that are going to be passed in this bill, and I

        10       wish it wasn't and, again, I wanted to simply

        11       explain my position and bestow some of my

        12       additional positions in regards to the process

        13       itself.

        14                      Thank you.

        15                      SENATOR GOLD:  Mr. President.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        17       Senator Gold.

        18                      SENATOR GOLD:  Yes, I will be

        19       very, very brief but Senator Nanula reminded me

        20       of something, and I wanted to throw that out.

        21                      There was something in the paper

        22       recently, last few days or last week, about the

        23       bond raid... -- raters.  Actually, maybe raiders











                                                             
9236

         1       is a better word.  But it's interesting.

         2                      The one thing we did do on time

         3        -- and I'm proud that we did it -- was the debt

         4       service bill and, since the beginning of time,

         5       this state has always paid its debts, and yet we

         6       pay people like Moody's.  We pay them to look at

         7       our material and give a rating, and they decide

         8       what they're going to rate it, and that rating

         9       costs us money.  If that isn't the silliest

        10       process I've ever heard of -- and I'm putting in

        11       legislation, I'm telling you now, to change

        12       that.

        13                      I think we should be able to give

        14       them information, whatever information they

        15       want, and let them rate it for whoever wants to

        16       listen, but we should stop paying them, number

        17       one, and there isn't any reason in the world

        18       that the State of New York should have anything

        19       other than the finest credit rating.  Because

        20       what's the issue?  We pay our debts.  What's the

        21       issue this year?  On time, we passed a debt

        22       service bill.  So anybody who rates us other

        23       than the finest is a phony, and they are playing











                                                             
9237

         1       to a market which is a phony market.

         2                      The issue is, "Do we pay our

         3       debts?" and we pay them and we pay them on

         4       time.  So that part of this ought to be cleared

         5       away, and if there are municipalities or school

         6       districts or the state that are losing

         7       percentage points in their rating, that is phony

         8       baloney.

         9                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Good point.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        11       Senator Hoffmann.

        12                      SENATOR HOFFMANN:  Mr. President,

        13       I was impressed with the comments by my

        14       colleague from Buffalo, Senator Nanula, and I

        15       too have to respond to something that Senator

        16       Gold alluded to and he just elaborated on it

        17       somewhat further.

        18                      We are hearing -- those of us

        19       maybe in the upstate area hear a little bit more

        20       than some of you in the New York City area

        21       because there is a difference in the way the

        22       media reports the activities of the

        23       Legislature.  It's a little different.  I think











                                                             
9238

         1       the best analogy would be, those of you in the

         2       New York City metropolitan area are reported in

         3       a sporting event in terms of color; we are

         4       covered on a play-by-play basis in the upstate

         5       media and over a period of many months now, one

         6       repeated fumbled ball after another has led to a

         7       tremendous diminishing of respect not only for

         8       us as individuals but for this entire

         9       legislative body and for government in general,

        10       as Senator Nanula so eloquently said.

        11                      But there is a real element of

        12       pain in our constituency.  One of my BOCES

        13       superintendents approached me the other day.  He

        14       had just returned from the bank where he had

        15       borrowed $15 million for the nine school

        16       districts that he covers, $15 million of debt

        17       service that he will have to absorb, that the

        18       taxpayers of that district will have to absorb,

        19       that is caused by our failure to put together a

        20       budget and to have a state aid formula in place

        21       before our April 1 deadline.  Those are real

        22       costs incurred by people at the local level and

        23       we are responsible for them.











                                                             
9239

         1                      For us to continue to provide our

         2       own salaries in this abdication of our

         3       responsibility is a shame, is a disgrace, and

         4       causes great, great lack of respect for the

         5       entire legislative process in this state.  So,

         6       of course, I want to vote against extending the

         7       salaries to legislators.  It's a small thing to

         8       do, but it's symbolic to some people, and it

         9       shows that a few of us are honestly trying to

        10       make this place a little bit better.

        11                      But, today, we saw a bill put on

        12       the floor that allows no opportunity to cast

        13       that vote and stand on the principle that

        14       legislators should not be paid because the

        15       budget is late.  We don't have that opportunity

        16       to do that because somebody very cleverly

        17       crafted a bill that now lumps together all state

        18       employees with the Legislature.

        19                      I only wish that whoever it is

        20       working behind the scenes in some back room some

        21       place who came up with that idea was putting the

        22       same kind of energy into coming up with a budget

        23       for the State of New York.  This kind of











                                                             
9240

         1       devious, clever trickery that this Legislature

         2       is all too famous for is what is causing us to

         3       have our wheels turn so terribly slowly.  These

         4       gears just don't even come close to meshing, let

         5       alone turning and moving the machine forward.

         6                      Two houses posturing and people

         7       trying to figure ways to embarrass legislators

         8       instead of allowing us to get together, put our

         9       heads together, and collectively determine what

        10       it is that the taxpayers of this state need.  It

        11       is high time that we all took the position that

        12       this is a disgrace and we are embarrassed at the

        13       way this government conducts this shameful

        14       process that we call a budget.

        15                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Mr. President.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        17       Senator Stafford.

        18                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  I can't

        19       believe that I am going to stand up here, when

        20       we're all getting ready to leave, and speak.  I

        21       could say this is the first time ever.

        22                      (Laughter.)

        23                      SENATOR GOLD:  It's always the











                                                             
9241

         1       first time ever.

         2                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  But it isn't.

         3                      We have fought wars so we can do

         4       what's been done here the past few days and

         5       weeks.  You know, when you run for cover -- when

         6       you run for cover and it sounds good and you

         7       want to make the press and you want the

         8       headlines and you want to look like you're the

         9       big deal, what do you do?  You attack, and then

        10       go home and do nothing and then come here and do

        11       nothing.

        12                      This is a complex state, and for

        13       those that do not know that, I suggest that they

        14       travel around the state a little.  I can be

        15       quite provincial.  My area isn't the most

        16       cosmopolitan in the world.  It's the northeast

        17       corner of the state.  It is upstate.  But I know

        18       that there are various agendas, and I use the

        19       word "agenda" advisedly.  This isn't any other

        20       state.  This is New York, where we have the

        21       capital of the world in Plattsburgh -

        22                      (Laughter.)

        23                      -- and we have some real, real











                                                             
9242

         1       difficult questions, issues, and I think it's a

         2       credit to the people that serve that they do

         3       stand firm and they do their best.

         4                      Now, this date that everybody

         5       talks about, I would be pleased if we could have

         6       an artificial date and say this is when we're

         7       going to do it and it's going to be done, but

         8       when you have -- What do we have, 211

         9       legislators?

        10                      SENATOR GOLD:  211.

        11                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  -- 211

        12       legislators, we have an executive branch, and

        13       when you see the various compromises that have

        14       to be made, and I use the word "compromise"

        15       advisedly and in the good sense of the word, I

        16       think that it's a credit that we can do this in

        17       this state even though it's not maybe at the

        18       exact date that someone thinks it should be

        19       done.

        20                      Now, the Governor and the leaders

        21       will each owe me a dollar, but I think it's so

        22       unfortunate that we read those names and we hear

        23       pounding, pounding, pounding on those people











                                                             
9243

         1       and, "Oh, it's so terrible!  It's so terrible!"

         2                      You know, someone said to me the

         3       other day, "Well, how in the world do you solve

         4       this?"  I said, "Elect a Republican Assembly,"

         5       and they didn't want to write that.  It makes

         6       too much sense.

         7                      Thank you.

         8                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         9       Senator Oppenheimer.

        10                      SENATOR OPPENHEIMER:  Well, I

        11       could explain my vote, yes.

        12                      Or the contrary to our eloquent

        13       prior speaker, we could elect a Democratic

        14       Governor and a Democratic Senate.

        15                      But I -- I -- I -- I want to

        16       paint a small positive note on something, but

        17       also say that I don't believe that there are 209

        18       legislators up here that are pleased.  I think

        19       there are 209 legislators up here who are

        20       grumbling a bit because we don't see this as the

        21       finest hour, and we think there is a better way,

        22       and I think we have to face the issue that this

        23       year we had something different happen, and that











                                                             
9244

         1       something different was very major non-budget

         2       policy items were brought into the budget

         3       discussion, and I think that is what has caused

         4       so much angst this year and, had we not done

         5       that, had it not been handled that way, I think

         6       we could have had certainly a more timely

         7       budget.

         8                      I happen to think that we have

         9       the capability in this great government of ours

        10       to bring in an on-time budget.  I think it's a

        11       question of focus and concentration and working

        12       maybe more days and more full time in the first

        13       few months of our sessions.

        14                      So I can't say that that's an

        15       inevitability that the longer and the later we

        16       are that it just produces a better and better

        17       document.  I can't subscribe to that.

        18                      I would also like to note

        19       something that I had heard buzzing around, and

        20       I'm not sure if this will come to pass, but it

        21       was, I thought, a way of assisting those

        22       communities, those municipalities, and those

        23       school districts that are experiencing some very











                                                             
9245

         1       serious difficulty now, particularly in my area,

         2       and they are not only now paying the money to

         3       borrow from the bank but they are also losing

         4       interest payments that they might have were our

         5       funds given to them on time, deposited in a bank

         6       and collecting interest, and there was some

         7       discussion that perhaps state government would

         8       be interested in compensating those school

         9       districts and municipalities for the loss of

        10       that interest income which they will be

        11       experiencing as well as for the increased cost

        12       to borrow the money and that the state is having

        13       that money that much longer, the cash float is

        14       with us; we are getting that interest income and

        15       that perhaps it would be appropriate and the

        16       right thing to do to pass it on to the

        17       municipalities and the school districts.  I

        18       think that is one way that they would be able to

        19       at least survive and not be too seriously

        20       impacted by what is happening up here.  I offer

        21       that as a recommendation.

        22                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        23       Senator Mendez.











                                                             
9246

         1                      SENATOR MENDEZ:  Mr. President,

         2       I'm going to be very brief.  I just want to put

         3       the whole situation in perspective.  I feel, Mr.

         4       President, that the 211 legislators in this

         5       state feel very bad that April the 1st came and

         6       went and we didn't have a budget for all of our

         7       constituents in New York State.  We all -- I

         8       think we all feel or the ones that have spoken,

         9       that they feel very bad about it.

        10                      But the issue here is -- whether

        11       we do not have a budget, the issue here is that

        12       it is totally unacceptable to me at the personal

        13       and the collective level as a legislator.  The

        14       implication that this bill whether in a -- in

        15       one bill or in two bills shouldn't be voted on,

        16       and the reason for not voting for it is that we

        17       legislators have not done our job.  Mr.

        18       President.  That is such, in my view, an

        19       irrational statement that I shouldn't even be

        20       placing so much attention to it, but for the

        21       record I wanted to clarify it.

        22                      Thank you, Mr. President.

        23                      SENATOR CONNOR:  Mr. President.











                                                             
9247

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         2       Senator Connor.

         3                      SENATOR CONNOR:  Thank you, Mr.

         4       President.  I would urge all my colleagues to

         5       support these emergency appropriations because

         6       we've certainly seen in Washington what happens

         7       when extremists close down the government.  It

         8       doesn't inure to the people's benefit nor to the

         9       political benefit of the extremists.

        10                      I agree with some of what has

        11       been said here.  I quibble and quarrel with some

        12       of the nuances of what we've heard.

        13                      I would remind all of my

        14       colleagues that it doesn't take 211 legislators

        15       to bring about a budget; that there are 212

        16       people involved; that there is someone on the

        17       second floor -- the chief executive of this

        18       state -- who, frankly, in my opinion, should

        19       have declared victory about four or five weeks

        20       ago when both houses on a bipartisan basis

        21       agreed upon a budget, submitted it to the second

        22       floor.  It spent less money than last year.  It

        23       preserved the tax cuts, and it restored needed











                                                             
9248

         1       funding for things that we care about like

         2       education, like health care, like support for

         3       our elderly and infirm.

         4                      I don't understand what was wrong

         5       with that budget, and I think we have to put the

         6       proper focus on it.  As of that moment, agreed

         7       they were late, but the 211 members of the

         8       Legislature had, in effect, brought about the

         9       process that resulted in a budget, and it was

        10       the Governor who decided for a variety of

        11       reasons to say no, and that was well reported in

        12       the press, as we know; and in doing that, it

        13       seems, from what I have been reading and

        14       hearing, the drive was the linkage of a lot of

        15       unrelated programmatic, nonbudgetary matters at

        16       the insistence of the Governor of this state,

        17       and that's why I think all fair-minded New

        18       Yorkers believe that its George Pataki's fault

        19       that we have broken the record.

        20                      I hate to see us break the record

        21       because records always seem to be the goal the

        22       next time out, and every record seems to fall,

        23       whether it was the four-minute mile or any other











                                                             
9249

         1       record, consecutive hits, or whatever, and I

         2       hate to see us set such a record as we're doing,

         3       but I don't think -- I think we have to remember

         4       back a few weeks and realize it's not just that

         5       we, the legislators, haven't done our job.  The

         6       Legislature presented the Governor with a budget

         7       proposal and he said no.

         8                      Did he say no about the numbers

         9       in that budget?  Not from what I can divine -

        10       and I say divine because we've all seen a

        11       Governor who ran on a program of opening up the

        12       process, opening up the budget process, who

        13       coined the phrase "three men and a budget," now

        14       revert to the most secretive process we've ever

        15       seen in this capital.  For all his predecessors'

        16       faults in this area, he has not only broken the

        17       record on time, he has broken the quality record

        18       in terms of the secretiveness of this, because

        19       in his budget negotiations are programmatic

        20       issues that really aren't budget items, and the

        21       attempt to link them has delayed this budget to

        22       the disadvantage of our localities, of our

        23       school districts and will put even more pressure











                                                             
9250

         1       on the local property taxes which we, certainly

         2       on this side of the aisle, stand foursquare

         3       against shifting any of the responsibilities of

         4       the state to the local property taxpayers.

         5                      But make no mistake about it, Mr.

         6       President.  We are here on the eve of

         7       Independence Day because George Pataki -- who

         8       made an on-time budget, who made doing away with

         9       three men and a budget in secret, who made an

        10       open process the hallmark of his campaign and

        11       carried it forward in his first "State of the

        12       State" address -- that's why we're here, because

        13       he has forgotten what his agenda was for opening

        14       up this process and reforming this state

        15       government.

        16                      So, Mr. President, we in the

        17       Legislature have been here.  We have been

        18       working with all of our various responsibili

        19       ties.  If we have been prevented from dis

        20       charging all of them, it is because the process

        21       is rotten.  The process is secretive and the

        22       process excludes in many important respects the

        23       people's elected representatives; and if we











                                                             
9251

         1       don't have a budget today, it's because George

         2       Pataki didn't know when he had a winner when the

         3       two houses presented him with an agreed-upon

         4       budget.

         5                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Mr.

         6       President.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         8       Senator Stafford.

         9                      SENATOR STAFFORD:  Everybody is

        10       being so brief here, so I will be very brief.

        11       But I was just saying, in negotiations, you do

        12       have the Assembly, the Senate and the Governor.

        13       That makes three parts.  Now, I don't suggest

        14       that what was said was gall, but -- but it's

        15       three parts, and, Mr. President, I don't want

        16       this debate to end without suggesting that there

        17       were other areas where suggestions were made and

        18       where there were problems in getting together,

        19       and that was in the Legislature, and I do have

        20       to say I wouldn't be doing my job as everyone is

        21       doing their job very well here today if I didn't

        22       suggest that it was not in this house, but I do

        23       think I should make that point.











                                                             
9252

         1                      Thank you.

         2                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Read

         3       the last section.

         4                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 38.  This

         5       act shall take effect immediately.

         6                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

         7       the roll.

         8                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

         9                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        11       bill is passed.

        12                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        13       at this time, if we could call up Calendar

        14       Number 1709.

        15                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        16       Secretary will read.

        17                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

        18       1709, by the Senate Committee on Rules, Senate

        19       Print 7916, an act to amend Chapter 905 of the

        20       Laws of 1986.

        21                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        22       is there a message of necessity at the desk?

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The











                                                             
9253

         1       message of necessity is at the desk.

         2                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Move to accept

         3       the message.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         5       Motion to accept the message.

         6                      All in favor, say aye.

         7                      (Response of "Aye.")

         8                      All opposed, nay.

         9                      (There was no response.)

        10                      The message is accepted.

        11                      Secretary will read.  Read the

        12       last section.

        13                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 11.  This

        14       act shall take effect immediately.

        15                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

        16       the roll.

        17                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

        18                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

        19                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        20       bill is passed.

        21                      Senator Skelos.

        22                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        23       at this time, on Senate Supplemental Calendar











                                                             
9254

         1       No. 2, would you please call up Calendar Number

         2       1705.

         3                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  1705,

         4       Supplemental Calendar 2.  Secretary will read.

         5                      THE SECRETARY:  Calendar Number

         6       1705, by the Senate Committee on Rules, Senate

         7       Print 7897, an act to amend the Public

         8       Authorities Law.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Home

        10       rule message is at the desk.

        11                      Call the roll.

        12                      Senator Paterson.

        13                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Mr. President,

        14       might we have a brief explanation on that?

        15       Senator Leichter had a question or two and he's

        16       left the chamber temporarily.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        18       Explanation is asked for.

        19                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Senator

        20       Leichter is back.  Very temporarily.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        22       Senator Hannon.

        23                      SENATOR HANNON:  Yes, Mr.











                                                             
9255

         1       President.  This bill establishes a public

         2       benefit corporation in Westchester County, we

         3       call it the Westchester County Health Care

         4       Corporation, and a public benefit corporation in

         5       Nassau County to be called the Nassau County

         6       Health Care System, both of which are charged

         7       with delivering integrated health care.

         8                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Mr. President.

         9                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        10       Senator Leichter.

        11                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Yes.  Would

        12       Senator Kemp Hannon yield, please?

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        14       Senator Hannon, will you yield?

        15                      SENATOR HANNON:  Yes, Mr.

        16       President.

        17                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        18       Senator Hannon yields.

        19                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Senator, I'm

        20       always concerned when at the end of the session

        21       we see major bills that apparently have been

        22       introduced very recently and when there may not

        23       have been opportunity by the affected











                                                             
9256

         1       communities to be involved, to be heard, to

         2       consider.  Certainly, there has been very little

         3       opportunity by the members of the Senate to

         4       really give consideration to what seems to be a

         5       very major change in the law affecting health

         6       services in Westchester County and Nassau County

         7       in the way local hospitals are going to be

         8       operated.

         9                      But before I get back to the -

        10       well, maybe we ought to do that first.  Can you

        11       tell us -

        12                      SENATOR HANNON:  Mr. President,

        13       is there a question that's being directed to

        14       me?

        15                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        16       Senator Leichter, is there a question?

        17                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Indeed there

        18       is, Mr. President.

        19                      Could you tell us, Senator, when

        20       this bill first came into being, have there been

        21       any hearings held on it, what the purpose of

        22       bill is?

        23                      SENATOR HANNON:  Both of these











                                                             
9257

         1       measures are supported, Mr. Leichter -- Senator

         2       Leichter, by home rule messages.  In order to

         3       pass a home rule message, the local government

         4       affected must have a public hearing, must have a

         5       vote by their local legislative body, have that

         6       message signed by their chief executive

         7       officer.  So each of these are subject to the

         8       hearings of their localities.

         9                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Was this bill

        10       considered by the Health Committee, your

        11       committee or the committee in which you are

        12       chairman?

        13                      SENATOR HANNON:  It was

        14       considered by myself and the staff.  It was

        15       introduced by Rules, put into Rules, and the

        16       fact that I am carrying it means that it has our

        17       support.

        18                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  But, Senator,

        19       you make it sound like, you know, "I am the

        20       Health Committee."  My question was whether the

        21       Health Committee -- not in any way denigrating

        22       your very important role in that committee, but

        23       you are not the only member of that committee.











                                                             
9258

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         2       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield?

         3                      Senator Hannon continues to

         4       yield.

         5                      SENATOR HANNON:  Senator, as you

         6       well know from the rules of this house that

         7       committees are closed down.  When bills are

         8       introduced, they are introduced through the

         9       Rules Committee.  The bill was considered by the

        10       Rules Committee and reported to this floor.  To

        11       the extent that the rules have been complied

        12       with, you now have the extent if you have

        13       questions on the substance part of this to

        14       direct them at me.

        15                      If you want to direct them in

        16       regard to the procedure, I mean I can only tell

        17       you that every procedure that is applicable has

        18       been followed to the exact detail.

        19                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Senator, if

        20       you would continue to yield then.

        21                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        22       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield?

        23                      SENATOR HANNON:  Yes.











                                                             
9259

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         2       Senator Hannon yields.

         3                      Senator Leichter.

         4                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Then the

         5       answer is it was never considered by the Health

         6       Committee as such but was considered by you,

         7       your staff and the Rules Committee.

         8                      SENATOR HANNON:  Senator

         9       Leichter, if I give an answer, that's my

        10       answer.  If you want to characterize it -- don't

        11       characterize it.  Just say it's your opinion

        12       that it hasn't.  Staff has looked at this.  We

        13       have consulted with people who are familiar with

        14       health care systems.  We feel that we have tried

        15       to lend the expertise as best possible.

        16                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Okay.

        17       Senator, was any hearing held by any legislative

        18       committee, whether yours or in the Assembly on

        19       this measure?

        20                      SENATOR HANNON:  As we have not

        21       had hearings in regard to many of the other

        22       important issues such as the whole hospital

        23       reimbursement system, no, it wasn't held on











                                                             
9260

         1       this, either.  It's been the subject of

         2       considerable articles in each of the

         3       localities.  It's been subject to considerable

         4       scrutiny.  Both of the legislative bodies that

         5       gave home rule messages, I believe, are

         6       bipartisan.  People have had ample opportunity

         7       to have input on this.

         8                      To the extent that this meets all

         9       of what I would think to be the desired

        10       opportunities for people to comment, that has

        11       taken place, shaped it.  These are not the

        12       proposals that came up here originally.  They

        13       were shaped by different parts of the

        14       legislative system for input for better ways to

        15       do it, et cetera.  I think we have come out with

        16       a product that will meet what needs to be met in

        17       each of the communities which is that as we move

        18       forward into a different system of health care

        19       delivery, we find that the municipal framework

        20       that they are subject to no longer allows them

        21       to have the flexibility to compete, no longer

        22       allows them to have the same level playing field

        23       that other hospitals that may be just miles way











                                                             
9261

         1       have and, without these changes, they would be

         2       literally left in the dust.

         3                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Mr. President,

         4       if Senator Hannon would continue to yield.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         6       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield to

         7       Senator Leichter?

         8                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Senator, let's

         9       put the process aside.  Certainly to my

        10       satisfaction, unfortunately, the answer that I

        11       elicited from you was that the process was, at

        12       best, a very closed one, possibly a hurried one,

        13       and certainly not the openness that I would like

        14       to see that we consider important pieces of

        15       legislation.

        16                      But let's turn to some of the

        17       substance and since the first time I saw the

        18       bill was maybe a half hour ago -- it's a bill of

        19       some 40 pages -- I can't say that I'm expert on

        20       it.  In fact, I really have a need to know much

        21       more about it, but the one thing that struck me,

        22       Senator, and I want to ask you about, why the

        23       difference between the way Nassau is treated and











                                                             
9262

         1       the way Westchester is treated and specifically

         2       why in Nassau are the members of the board of

         3       directors of this new health care corporation

         4       appointed by the county executive?  In

         5       Westchester, I believe eight out of the fifteen

         6       members of the board of directors are appointed

         7       by the Governor.  Why that difference?

         8                      SENATOR HANNON:  Those are the

         9       ways the bills came to us as were shaped by the

        10       various channels that they went through; namely,

        11       for Nassau, that's the way that the county

        12       government submitted it to us and this is the

        13       way for Westchester that both the county in the

        14       process -- they have been heavily involved with

        15       Assemblyman Brodsky in the Assembly in regard to

        16       shaping this, and I had asked that very same

        17       question as regards to, Why do you have a

        18       majority of the members of the board in

        19       Westchester appointed by the Governor? and the

        20       answer to me was, "It was Assemblyman Brodsky

        21       insisted upon that"; and in speaking with the

        22       folks from the Westchester Hospital, in the

        23       course of the conversation -- I didn't bring it











                                                             
9263

         1       up -- they said, "Well, we would love to have

         2       the procedure in Westchester that is in the

         3       Nassau portion," but that the -- I said, "No, if

         4       you have gone through the whole process and Mr.

         5       Brodsky wanted it that way, we're not going to

         6       interfere with that whole process," and as a

         7       result -- when they did do the home rule, that's

         8       the way they sent us the home rule.  So we have

         9       two different entities for -- I don't think

        10       there's many other differences -- have picked

        11       out just that difference and are supporting

        12       that.

        13                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Mr. President,

        14       again through you, if Senator Hannon will

        15       continue to yield.

        16                      Well, Senator, that is why I

        17       think the process is so important and that's why

        18       I started out on process because if there had

        19       been hearings, if the Health Committee had been

        20       involved, maybe you wouldn't have found yourself

        21       in a situation where I think, very uncharacter

        22       istically, as I hear you say it, you sort of had

        23       to act as a rubber stamp.  Well, Nassau wanted











                                                             
9264

         1       it this way -

         2                      SENATOR HANNON:  Excuse me, Mr.

         3       President.  I -- first of all, I resent the

         4       innuendo of rubber stamp.  I resent the innuendo

         5       that there has not been a sufficient amount of

         6       time.  This bill has been in a week.  If you

         7       haven't looked at your introductions and read

         8       the bills as they are introduced -- we have had

         9       a sufficient amount of time.  I have passed a

        10       score of bills on this floor this session within

        11       the last two weeks that have gone through the

        12       exact same process.  Would I have liked to have

        13       had more time?  I'd like to have more time on

        14       all of them, but there are important issues to

        15       deal with, and this is one of many of the

        16       important issues we have to deal with.

        17                      The bill is before you.  If you

        18       would like to talk about the substance, I would

        19       be highly desirous to do that here on the floor,

        20       in private.  No one is withholding anything from

        21       you, and so the innuendo that there is something

        22       flawed with the process is a highly great one to

        23       do if you are in the minority.  I was in your











                                                             
9265

         1       shoes exactly for many years, had the position

         2       that Senator Paterson has.  But it doesn't work,

         3       especially when you have someone as feisty as me

         4       willing to say it.

         5                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Mr. President,

         6       if Senator Hannon will continue to yield.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         8       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield?

         9                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Senator, let

        10       me make it very clear.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        12       Senator continues to yield.

        13                      Senator Leichter.

        14                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Let me make it

        15       very clear.  There is no innuendo at all.  There

        16       is a direct, clear, explicit statement that the

        17       process is very flawed, and I was just trying to

        18       point out that you had somewhat confirmed it by

        19       saying, well, Nassau came up with this proposal,

        20       Westchester with this proposal and, you know,

        21       within a week, and so on, and this is how we

        22       accepted it.

        23                      I want to say I think that is un











                                                             
9266

         1       characteristic of what I know is not only the

         2       great intelligence that you bring to your

         3       position -- I say that very sincerely -- but

         4       your activism and your understanding of the

         5       issues.

         6                      But, Senator, let me continue by

         7       asking you this.  The fact that the Nassau

         8       board, as I understand it, would not be a state

         9       board because you don't have any appointments by

        10       the Governor, and so on, would that mean that

        11       that board, for instance, and that corporation

        12       is not subject to the state Ethics Law whereas,

        13       in Westchester, because it is a state board, it

        14       would be subject to the state's Ethics Law?

        15                      SENATOR HANNON:  The local ethics

        16       laws -- well, first of all, the Westchester

        17       board would be directly subject to the state law

        18       but the Nassau board would be indirectly subject

        19       to it, because the locality must pass a local

        20       ethics law that is in conformance with the state

        21       law.  They have done that.  It is the same as

        22       the state law, so as a practical effect, the

        23       disclosure and the rules are the same for both











                                                             
9267

         1       members.

         2                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Again, if

         3       you'll continue to yield.

         4                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         5       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield?

         6                      SENATOR HANNON:  Yes.

         7                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         8       Senator Leichter.

         9                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  If I

        10       understand what you are saying, is that

        11       Westchester is automatically subject to the

        12       state Ethics Law; Nassau was not, but that the

        13       county legislature has passed or incorporated

        14       for this purpose or made this corporation

        15       subject to the state Ethics Law?

        16                      SENATOR HANNON:  My answer is,

        17       based on the best memory that I have, based on

        18       the 1987 statute that we passed, that we

        19       required local governments to have an Ethics Law

        20       that is substantially the same as -- and there's

        21       very tight bands around it -- as the state, and

        22       the County of Nassau has passed such a law.  So,

        23       therefore, as a practical effect, they have the











                                                             
9268

         1       exact same provisions.  These are, by the way,

         2       unpaid boards of directors, members of the board

         3       of directors.

         4                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  If you would

         5       continue to yield.

         6                      Unpaid or not, when you carry out

         7       an important public function, I know you agree

         8       with me that we want people subject to the

         9       highest ethical standards.

        10                      But let me ask you, for the

        11       Nassau Health Care Corporation, are there any

        12       provisions in there for minority and women

        13       business as I believe there are applicable to

        14       the Westchester corporation?

        15                      SENATOR HANNON:  I'm not aware of

        16       any specific set asides or formulas like that.

        17                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Let me just

        18       ask you, is there a difference between

        19       Westchester and the rules that apply to the

        20       Westchester corporation and that would apply to

        21       the Nassau corporation?

        22                      SENATOR HANNON:  In terms of

        23       procurement?











                                                             
9269

         1                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  My

         2       understanding is that the Westchester board, by

         3       virtue of the gubernatorial appointment, is

         4       subject to provisions of state law whereas

         5       Nassau would not be, and one of those would be

         6       the laws that we have relating to minority and

         7       women business enterprises.

         8                      SENATOR HANNON:  Well, I can see

         9       your logic of the question.  I'm not so sure I

        10       agree with its relevance.  We have made Nassau

        11       subject to the same procurement statutes as in

        12       Westchester.  It's certainly subject to many of

        13       the public bidding things, but I'm not so sure

        14       that in terms of level playing field for its

        15       competition with hospitals nearby that I would

        16       want that type of provision in there when you

        17       are buying syringes and medical equipment and

        18       oxygen tanks and things like that, Senator.

        19       That's a discussion that I think is not one you

        20       would want to really pursue down the road.  I

        21       mean it just doesn't seem to me to make sense.

        22                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  If you would

        23       continue to yield.











                                                             
9270

         1                      Really what I'm trying to do,

         2       Senator, with your help, is to show to our

         3       colleagues and try to understand if there is any

         4       rationale or any valid public policy reason for

         5       treating Nassau and Westchester differently, and

         6       we've pointed out -

         7                      SENATOR HANNON:  What is it -

         8       well, look.  We put these bills together because

         9       we want both to pass.  We're talking the policy

        10       making decisions of the process from both, and

        11       if there are differences, so be it.  But they

        12       are not -- they do not go to the essence.  The

        13       essence is to create integrated delivery systems

        14       in both counties.  That is the essence.

        15                      To the extent you want these

        16       people to operate as if they're a Dormitory

        17       Authority or facilities construction authority,

        18       I think they have different missions, and the

        19       point you raise about minority and women

        20       business enterprises, I don't think really are

        21       applicable.  What does that have to do when you

        22       are dealing with medical equipment?

        23                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Mr. President,











                                                             
9271

         1       again, if Senator Hannon will continue to

         2       yield.  I think the difference is to try to

         3       understand why, again, a health corporation

         4       that's being established in Westchester is so

         5       radically different from one being established

         6       in Nassau, and I don't -- I don't know whether

         7       it's an answer, Senator, to say, "Well, they

         8       both have the same mission."  If they both have

         9       the same mission, why don't they have the same

        10       terms?

        11                      Let me ask you about another

        12       difference.

        13                      SENATOR HANNON:  Well, then your

        14       point is -- first of all, it was -- in your

        15       question, you try to summarize up and again

        16       mischaracterize my answer by using the phrase

        17       "radically different".  I would beg to tell you

        18       that that's your characterization.  That's not

        19       mine.  I think 99 percent of the terms are

        20       exactly the same.

        21                      The next point is, in terms of

        22       getting an answer to this, is that these are

        23       both patterned off of the Health and Hospitals











                                                             
9272

         1       Corporation of the city of New York, but they

         2       are not the same, mainly because the world of

         3       health care changed, and they are not the same

         4       also because there are just different

         5       geographical things.  We don't make all local

         6       governments fit into ticky-tacky boxes that are

         7       identical, because they are not.  They have

         8       different needs and different concerns.

         9                      So we pass a whole panoply of

        10       laws that allow for vast differences.  These

        11       don't happen to be vast differences.  They are

        12       minor points that the localities wanted, so I

        13       don't think that you are going to be successful

        14       in trying to establish a point that somehow one

        15       or the other should have been the same.  We did

        16       make them the same for some things such as

        17       dealing with labor so that the individual labor

        18       unions would not have any objections to these,

        19       but there are other points that we allow for

        20       variety.

        21                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Mr. President,

        22       through you, if Senator Hannon will yield.

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:











                                                             
9273

         1       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield?

         2                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  If you will

         3       continue to yield.

         4                      SENATOR HANNON:  Yes.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         6       Senator Hannon continues to yield.

         7                      Senator Leichter.

         8                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Maybe your

         9       definition and mine of "significant differences"

        10        -- and even "radical differences," are somewhat

        11       at variance with mine.  But I would say -- if in

        12       one you have a board where the Governor appoints

        13       eight of fifteen and in the other one the

        14       Governor makes no appointments, I would say

        15       that's a pretty big difference.

        16                      But let me ask you about another

        17       difference, Senator.  I understand that the

        18       Westchester board for the transfer of property

        19       that requires the two-thirds vote of the local

        20       legislative body, that -- two-thirds of the

        21       county board of legislators.  I am advised there

        22       is no similar provision for Nassau County.  Why

        23       that difference?











                                                             
9274

         1                      SENATOR HANNON:  The ordinary

         2       model public benefit corporation -- if you can

         3       say there's a model, but the general one doesn't

         4       have that in.  But the board of legislators of

         5       the county of Westchester said that they did

         6       want that in, so it was included.

         7                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Well, Senator,

         8       if you will continue to yield.  I mean shouldn't

         9       we try to have uniform laws when we set up these

        10       sort of new corporations?  They certainly are

        11       new, and we appreciate how much is changing in

        12       the health care field, and maybe this is the

        13       direction to go.  But why have these widely

        14       differing approaches?

        15                      I just don't understand it.  If

        16       you are saying to me that's what the local

        17       legislative body wanted, I mean -- again, I

        18       don't mean to say you are a rubber stamp.  Far

        19       from it.  But we certainly look at what the

        20       localities request of us, and maybe it makes

        21       sense, and maybe it doesn't.  But why make this

        22       difference between Westchester and Nassau?  I

        23       still don't understand it.











                                                             
9275

         1                      SENATOR HANNON:  Senator, despite

         2       your use of value-laden, politically-charged

         3       words, your question really shows an

         4       unfamiliarity with what's going on in health

         5       care.  Some place later on in this session as a

         6       stand-alone bill or as part of a health care

         7       reform act of 1996 is a successor to the NYPHRM

         8       act.  I hope to see provisions in there with

         9       regard to provider service networks, and one of

        10       the things that we have had to hammer out is

        11       what type of provider service network are we

        12       going to dictate be present, and we found out

        13       that there is in the states such a wide variety

        14       of different networks, such a wide variety of

        15       different combinations that we ought not to lock

        16       them in.  So that when we're trying to take

        17       these two localities, take their hospitals,

        18       unfetter them and unshackle them from municipal

        19       rules, still keep them within the grounds of

        20       regulation by the Insurance Department and the

        21       Health Department of this state so they can move

        22       forward but do so in a reasonable way, in a way

        23       that we can be assured that both the public











                                                             
9276

         1       trust and the public goals will be met, no you

         2       don't lock them into some type of straitjacket

         3       but you do it within a regulatory framework that

         4       can give us as legislators and our constituents

         5       as patients the assurance that what is going to

         6       take place will be reasonable and good health

         7       care.

         8                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Mr. President,

         9       again if Senator Hannon will be good enough to

        10       continue to yield.

        11                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        12       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield?

        13                      Senator Hannon continues to

        14       yield.

        15                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Senator

        16       Hannon, I have no problem with that particular

        17       formulation, and I think most members would

        18       agree as long as we can understand and see a

        19       reason for these differentiations.  But unless I

        20       have missed it, I don't think you have explained

        21       to me what it is about health care in Nassau as

        22       distinguished from health care in Westchester

        23       which justifies the differences in the











                                                             
9277

         1       approaches of the two corporations we've seen,

         2       particularly one which I consider is a very

         3       great difference, and that is gubernatorial

         4       appointments.  Can you tell us what it is about

         5       the nature -

         6                      SENATOR HANNON:  The local

         7       governments each, respectively, decided that

         8       they wanted those items, and I think in their

         9       judgment -- we're not to supercede the judgment,

        10       the collective judgments of the executive

        11       branch, the legislative branch, of those two

        12       large sophisticated counties and that, to my

        13       mind, after they have had due deliberation of

        14       that, is a good enough recommendation.

        15                      We have made sure that they are

        16       within the framework of the state.  We have made

        17       sure that they are only going to stick within

        18       the bounds of this legislation.  We have made

        19       sure they have to adhere to the Health

        20       Department rules.  We've made sure they have to

        21       adhere to the Insurance Department rules.  I

        22       think that we should not go farther.

        23                      To you extensive major











                                                             
9278

         1       differences are simply looked upon to me as

         2       reasonable changes and reasonable variations

         3       that people can look on and have.

         4                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  Okay.  Thank

         5       you very much, Senator Hannon, and I appreciate

         6       your answering these questions, but I must say I

         7       remain unpersuaded about supporting this bill,

         8       and I am concerned about process.  I think

         9       process is very important.  I think process has

        10       a direct relationship with a work product.

        11                      I think for bills of this

        12       significance, of this importance, to come up

        13       this late in the session -- in point of fact,

        14       they came to this house after the Majority

        15       Leader said we're finished.  In fact, you and I

        16        -- this may be illusory because, if my memory

        17       serves me, we finished on June 18.  The Majority

        18       Leader summed up the accomplishments of the

        19       session; the Minority Leader spoke about the

        20       accomplishments of this session.

        21                      So to come up with a bill that is

        22       an extremely important bill -- not only for

        23       Nassau and Westchester, it's important for the











                                                             
9279

         1       entire state because of -- as you appreciate

         2       probably more so than anybody else -- the

         3       interrelationship of what various localities do

         4       with what happens statewide and how it serves as

         5       a model in the rest of the state.  So I'm

         6       concerned when I see these major bills come up

         7       and, Senator, unlike you, who -- as you

         8       indicated, you look at the introductions and

         9       read every bill that's introduced at the end of

        10       the session.  I don't.  Maybe I should.  I wish

        11       I had the time to read them and study it, but I

        12       don't know which bill is going to be moved, and

        13       so on.

        14                      The point is that as a body here

        15       we don't know what's in a major bill and that

        16       disturbs me.  At least if I knew that the bill

        17       went through the Health Committee, was

        18       considered, was aired, was heard, was discussed,

        19       that's a safeguard to see that the democratic

        20       process works to bring out the best possible

        21       legislation.  That didn't happen in this case.

        22                      Then, when I find such

        23       differences that I can not understand or explain











                                                             
9280

         1       and it's not sufficient for me to say, "Well,

         2       Nassau made this proposal; Westchester made this

         3       proposal" -- I mean either we're going to have

         4       gubernatorial appointments or we're not going to

         5       have gubernatorial appointments.  But to have

         6       such a -- and I consider it radical -- I use

         7       that word intentionally and advisedly -

         8       approaches, I think there has got to be some

         9       reason and understanding for it.

        10                      Now, I am told that the Assembly

        11       is not going with your bill because they have

        12       the same problems that I have.  They don't see

        13       any reason why Nassau ought to be treated so

        14       differently from Westchester County and,

        15       frankly, given the histories of the counties and

        16       things that happen raises the question whether

        17       this is really just a political matter, a

        18       political approach that drives this and not any

        19       differences in the health care of the two

        20       counties which justifies a different approach.

        21                      I am also told that all the

        22       Democrats in the Nassau County Legislature voted

        23       against this.  I don't know whether it's so or











                                                             
9281

         1       not.  It's certainly not determinative of the

         2       view that I'm going to take of the bill, but I

         3       think it tends to show the political nature that

         4       seems to have driven this particular approach

         5       for Nassau and how it differs from the approach

         6       that we have for Westchester County.

         7                      I certainly have a lot of unease

         8       about these bills, and I think at this time in

         9       our legislative session is not the time to pass

        10       these sort of bills, not when we can't

        11       understand these variations between two

        12       counties.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        14       Senator Paterson.

        15                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Mr. President,

        16       if Senator Hannon would yield for just a quick

        17       question.  Of course, I want to thank the other

        18       members of the staff for their patience.

        19                      Senator Hannon, there seems to be

        20       a distinction between the Westchester public

        21       benefit corporation and Nassau County with

        22       respect to constraints on the transfer of

        23       property.  Can you explain that for us?











                                                             
9282

         1                      SENATOR HANNON:  You will have to

         2       point out -- Senator Paterson, you will have to

         3       point out to me the sections you're referring

         4       to.

         5                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Okay.  What

         6       I'll do is while I'm trying to find that,

         7       perhaps I just have this question.  Wouldn't it

         8       have displayed more foresight to have the public

         9       benefit corporations from two different areas,

        10       two different counties, to have, as Senator

        11       Leichter suggests, been consistent with respect

        12       to gubernatorial appointments?  And even if

        13       there isn't a chance that there will be much of

        14       minority or women's business enterprise in the

        15       transfer of hospital supplies and perhaps even

        16       if there is an ethical system that would mirror

        17       the state ethics system, wouldn't it -- at least

        18       in terms of the formulation of legislation with

        19       respect to events that may occur in the future

        20        -- wouldn't it have been more foresighted to

        21       have created a kind of scrupulous fairness in

        22       drafting of the legislation with respect to that

        23       of public benefit corporations that already











                                                             
9283

         1       existed?

         2                      SENATOR HANNON:  No.

         3                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Page 12,

         4       Senator Hannon, I think speaks to the

         5       Westchester public benefit corporation; page 34

         6       is the comparative information for the Nassau

         7       County public benefit corporation.  There is a

         8       two-thirds vote required in the Westchester for

         9       the transfer of property, and there's no

        10       constraint in the Nassau County version.

        11                      SENATOR HANNON:  It's what each

        12       of the local governments wanted.

        13                      SENATOR PATERSON:  But that's my

        14       point.  As a state and in a situation where

        15       there could be ramifications that would have far

        16       greater results or harm depending on whether or

        17       not there is a constraint on the transfer of

        18       property, I would just wonder why as a state we

        19       would be granting the status of public benefit

        20       corporation with such a divergence of

        21       ramifications?

        22                      SENATOR HANNON:  Senator

        23       Paterson, I think you and Senator Leichter have











                                                             
9284

         1       the advantage of coming from the great city of

         2       New York but also the disadvantage of not

         3       understanding the county government laws of this

         4       state.

         5                      Westchester, Nassau, along with

         6       Suffolk are the three counties in this state

         7       that have very peculiar charters.  They were

         8       charters passed by this Legislature, put to

         9       referendum of each of the counties, approved,

        10       respectively, separately by each of the voters.

        11       So we have created in essence by state statute

        12       their charters.

        13                      We have recognized vast

        14       differences in terms of power, vast differences

        15       in terms of how they procure things, vast

        16       differences how they go about organizing, having

        17       a vote, who gets to which board.  We have set

        18       those down in 1930 and 1940, so that for over 50

        19       years we have recognized vast changes.

        20                      These little things here are now

        21       coming out of those local bodies.  I view them

        22       in total harmony with the types of differences

        23       that we have already recognized and many times,











                                                             
9285

         1       by amendments to those respective charters,

         2       ratified.  To the extent that there is any

         3       difference, I think that they are totally

         4       understandable.  We do, after all, go for home

         5       rule.  We do, after all, face charges from your

         6       side of the aisle if we are interfering in the

         7       home rule powers in one of the counties.

         8                      What we're trying to do here is

         9       simply say to people when you have made that

        10       determination and it is a reasonable

        11       determination, we will go along with that.

        12                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Thank you,

        13       Senator.

        14                      If the Senator will continue to

        15       yield for just one last question.

        16                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        17       Senator Hannon, do you continue to yield?

        18                      SENATOR HANNON:  With the promise

        19       that it's the last question.

        20                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        21       last question, Senator Paterson?

        22                      SENATOR PATERSON:  This is the

        23       last question.











                                                             
9286

         1                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  This

         2       will be the last answer.

         3                      Senator Hannon.

         4                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Senator, with

         5       respect to constraints on the transfer of

         6       property, I would say that you could probably

         7       convince me and, as a matter of fact, since you

         8       can't have two deputy minority leaders from the

         9       same district, that's one of the reasons I moved

        10       out because, like Senator Leichter, I have the

        11       advantage of being from the great city of New

        12       York but, like yourself, I have the advantage of

        13       having grown up in Long Island, so I do know a

        14       little bit about the Nassau, Suffolk and

        15       Westchester County local governments, and I can

        16       understand that.

        17                      But on the issue of minority and

        18       women business enterprise and state ethics

        19       standards, I would tend to think that they would

        20       be more universal and that we would not want to

        21       delegate to the local governments the option of

        22       adhering or not adhering, even if we don't know

        23       the relevant criteria, for fear that some event











                                                             
9287

         1       in the future will come up, and we as a state

         2       are not protected because we did not write this

         3       into our legislation, and it looks a little

         4       inconsistent when you come to those more

         5       principled areas.

         6                      When it relates to the type of

         7       situation that you just described in your last

         8       answer, I accept it where it comes to the

         9       transfer of property.  But on certain issues

        10       that have plagued individuals in the state for

        11       long periods of time or other issues such as

        12       ethics, which really should be the standard

        13       equally in all jurisdictions, I don't know that

        14       I do agree, and so I just wanted you to explain

        15       to me how the issues of ethics and of trying to

        16       establish equality in business opportunity would

        17       be the same as the transfer of property which

        18       you just described?

        19                      And that is my last question and

        20       with that, I also wish you, Senator, a happy

        21       Independence Day.

        22                      SENATOR HANNON:  We have

        23       subjected everybody in Nassau to the Public











                                                             
9288

         1       Officers Law for all purposes and make them

         2       public officers and employees for all purposes.

         3       Page 30, that subjects them to the Ethics Laws.

         4       That subjects them to the exact same provisions

         5       in actuality that the people in Westchester get

         6       subjected to, and I don't see that there is any

         7       difference.

         8                      SENATOR PATERSON:  Thank you,

         9       Senator.

        10                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Read

        11       the last section.

        12                      THE SECRETARY:  Section 2.  This

        13       act shall take effect immediately.

        14                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  Call

        15       the roll.

        16                      (The Secretary called the roll.)

        17                      THE SECRETARY:  Ayes 56.

        18                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:  The

        19       bill is passed.

        20                      Senator Skelos.

        21                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Is there any

        22       housekeeping at the desk?

        23                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:











                                                             
9289

         1       Senator Leichter.

         2                      SENATOR LEICHTER:  May I have

         3       unanimous consent to be recorded in the negative

         4       on Calendar 1705, please.

         5                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

         6       Without objection.

         7                      Senator Skelos, there appears to

         8       be no housekeeping.

         9                      SENATOR SKELOS:  Mr. President,

        10       there being no further business, I move we

        11       adjourn subject to the call of the Majority

        12       Leader, intervening days to be legislative days.

        13                      ACTING PRESIDENT NOZZOLIO:

        14       Senate stands adjourned.

        15                      (Whereupon, at 4:03 p.m., the

        16       Senate adjourned.)

        17

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