Regular Session - April 1, 2003
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NEW YORK STATE SENATE
THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD
ALBANY, NEW YORK
April 1, 2003
3:08 p.m.
REGULAR SESSION
LT. GOVERNOR MARY O. DONOHUE, President
STEVEN M. BOGGESS, Secretary
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P R O C E E D I N G S
THE PRESIDENT: The Senate will
please come to order.
I ask everyone present to please
rise and repeat with me the Pledge of
Allegiance.
(Whereupon, the assemblage recited
the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.)
THE PRESIDENT: In the absence of
clergy, may we bow our heads in a moment of
silence, please.
(Whereupon, the assemblage
respected a moment of silence.)
THE PRESIDENT: Reading of the
Journal.
THE SECRETARY: In Senate,
Monday, March 31, the Senate met pursuant to
adjournment. The Journal of Sunday, March 30,
was read and approved. On motion, Senate
adjourned.
THE PRESIDENT: Without
objection, the Journal stands approved as
read.
Presentation of petitions.
Messages from the Assembly.
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Messages from the Governor.
Reports of standing committees.
Reports of select committees.
Communications and reports from
state officers.
Motions and resolutions.
Senator Skelos.
SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
I move that we accept the Resolution Calendar
in its entirety.
THE PRESIDENT: All in favor of
accepting the Resolution Calendar signify by
saying aye.
(Response of "Aye.")
THE PRESIDENT: Opposed, nay.
(No response.)
THE PRESIDENT: The Resolution
Calendar is adopted.
Senator Skelos.
SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
if we could return to reports of standing
committees, I believe there's one report at
the desk. I ask that it be read.
THE PRESIDENT: Reports of
standing committees.
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The Secretary will read.
THE SECRETARY: Senator Bruno,
from the Committee on Rules, reports the
following bill direct to third reading:
Senate Print 3282A, by Senator Alesi, an act
to amend the Legislative Law.
SENATOR SKELOS: Move to accept
the report.
THE PRESIDENT: All in favor of
accepting the report of the Rules Committee
please signify by saying aye.
(Response of "Aye.")
THE PRESIDENT: Opposed, nay.
(No response.)
THE PRESIDENT: The Rules
Committee report is accepted.
Senator Skelos.
SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
if we could go to the noncontroversial reading
of the calendar.
THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
will read.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
192, by Senator Alesi, Senate Print 2484A, an
act to amend Chapter 329 of the Laws of 2002
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relating to establishing.
SENATOR PATERSON: Lay it aside.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is laid
aside.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
231, by Senator Morahan, Senate Print 392, an
act to amend the Education Law, in relation to
applying safety regulations.
THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
act shall take effect on the first day of
July.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 49.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
240, by Senator Trunzo, Senate Print 1690, an
act to amend the Vehicle and Traffic Law, in
relation to maximum speed limits.
THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
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act shall take effect on the first day of
August.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 49.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
266, by Senator Kuhl, Senate Print 1468, an
act to amend the Penal Law, in relation to the
imposition of driver's license suspensions.
THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
act shall take effect on the first day of
November.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 47. Nays,
2. Senators Montgomery and Duane recorded in
the negative.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
278, by Senator Volker, Senate Print 2482, an
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act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law, in
relation to designating.
SENATOR PATERSON: Lay it aside,
please.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is laid
aside.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
281, by Senator Balboni, Senate Print 520, an
act to amend the General Municipal Law, in
relation to creating the Village of Westbury
Community Development Agency.
THE PRESIDENT: There is a
home-rule message at the desk.
Read the last section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
act shall take effect immediately.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 50.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
283, by Senator LaValle, Senate Print 839, an
act to amend the Town Law, in relation to
permitting fire districts.
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THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
act shall take effect immediately.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 50.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
284, by Senator McGee, Senate Print 909, an
act to amend the County Law, in relation to
investigation of death by coroners in certain
counties.
THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
act shall take effect immediately.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 50.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
289, by Senator Skelos, Senate Print 2975, an
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act to amend the Real Property Tax Law, in
relation to including certain vacant real
property.
THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
act shall take effect on the same date and in
same manner.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 50.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
Senator Skelos, that completes the
reading of the noncontroversial calendar.
SENATOR SKELOS: Thank you, Madam
President.
I believe there are several
substitutions at the desk. If we could make
them at this time.
THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
will read.
THE SECRETARY: On page 16,
Senator Hannon moves to discharge, from the
Committee on Health, Assembly Bill Number 6615
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and substitute it for the identical Senate
Bill Number 449, Third Reading Calendar 221.
And on page 21, Senator Little
moves to discharge, from the Committee on
Local Government, Assembly Bill Number 4887A
and substitute it for the identical Senate
Bill Number 2643, Third Reading Calendar 287.
THE PRESIDENT: Substitutions
ordered.
Senator Paterson.
SENATOR PATERSON: Madam
President, Resolution 875, introduced by
Senator Diaz, we'd like to open that up for
cosponsorship for anyone who would be
interested in joining us.
Everybody is on board? All right,
then, Madam President, everyone is on board.
And anyone who doesn't want to be on board can
jump off.
THE PRESIDENT: Any members who
do not wish to cosponsor Resolution 875 please
notify the desk.
Senator Skelos.
SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
if we could go to the controversial reading of
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the calendar.
THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
will read.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
192, by Senator Alesi, Senate Print 2484A, an
act to amend Chapter 329 of the Laws of 2002
relating to establishing.
SENATOR PATERSON: Explanation.
THE PRESIDENT: Senator Alesi, an
explanation has been requested.
SENATOR ALESI: Thank you, Madam
President.
This bill is a chapter amendment to
a bill that was supported, I believe, by the
Senator who asked for the explanation, last
year. And it simply enhances the previous
bill at the suggestion of the Governor.
SENATOR PATERSON: Explanation
satisfactory.
THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
act shall take effect immediately.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
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THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 53. Nays,
1. Senator Duane recorded in the negative.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
278, by Senator Volker, Senate Print 2482, an
act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law, in
relation to designating public safety
officers.
SENATOR PATERSON: Explanation.
THE PRESIDENT: Senator Volker,
an explanation has been requested.
SENATOR VOLKER: Excuse me, Madam
President. I was being distracted here.
This is a bill -- a bill close to
this passed the Senate last year. It's a bill
that makes peace officers of the Buffalo
Municipal Housing Authority.
The Buffalo Municipal Housing
Authority has been around for many years and
has a group of people about 95 percent of
which have been trained.
What happened in this bill, the
Buffalo P.D., Buffalo Police Department had
always been somewhat reluctant to have a bill
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like this passed. But the Buffalo Police
Department is now being downgraded -- or maybe
the word is not downgraded, it's being
reformed. Unfortunately, we're going to
hopefully do some changes to allow the Buffalo
Police Department to fiscally exist in a
little bit of a restricted manner. That means
they're going to do some attrition and change
the way the department operates.
These housing authority people are
people who have patrolled the housing
authority areas for a considerable period of
time.
After the Governor vetoed the bill
last year, we have been working with the
Governor's office, Criminal Justice people,
and the Buffalo Housing Authority, and they're
cooperating to make sure that everyone who is
in the Buffalo Housing Authority has training,
what amounts to equivalency to police
officers. They're in the municipal training
course; virtually all of them have been.
And in fact, I see I have a
certification here from the Buffalo Housing
Authority that says any of the people that
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they have that have not been properly trained
will be trained.
You'll notice in the bill it says
that "sworn officer who has achieved or been
granted the status of sworn police officer and
has been certified by the Division of Criminal
Justice Services as successfully completing an
approved course for police officers."
That's what this bill is all about,
to make sure that these people are properly
trained. I think they're going to be needed
in Buffalo. I forget what the number is; I
think it's about 30 people or something of
that nature.
But anyways, that's the story of
this bill. And nobody that is not trained
will be allowed the status that is given in
this bill.
THE PRESIDENT: Senator Paterson.
SENATOR PATERSON: Madam
President, I assume that last year the
Governor vetoed this bill because the public
safety officers were not given the training
that would make them equal to police officers.
And the training is obviously included in this
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bill, as Senator Volker just very ably pointed
out.
And we passed the bill unanimously
last year. We still support the bill. And we
hope that this complies with the Governor's
request.
SENATOR VOLKER: Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
section.
THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
act shall take effect on the first of
November.
THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
(The Secretary called the roll.)
THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 54.
THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
passed.
Senator Skelos, that completes the
reading of the controversial calendar.
SENATOR SKELOS: Is there any
housekeeping at the desk?
THE PRESIDENT: No, there isn't,
Senator.
Senator Volker.
SENATOR VOLKER: Madam President,
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I would like to return to motions and
resolutions.
And I'd like to star my bill, which
is Calendar Number 325, Senate Print 2325, on
page 24. I'm sorry, page 24, Calendar 325,
and Senate Print 2325.
THE PRESIDENT: At the sponsor's
request, Calendar Number 325 will be starred.
Senator Skelos.
SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
if you could recognize Senator Krueger.
THE PRESIDENT: Senator Krueger.
SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you,
Madam President. I believe there's a motion
to petition at the desk.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, there is,
Senator.
SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you,
Madam President. I move to waive the reading
and asked to be recognized to explain my bill.
THE PRESIDENT: The reading is
waived. You may proceed on the petition.
SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you.
I am here today to urge us to move
to the floor of this house for debate Senate
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Bill 380, which is coincidentally very close
to Senate Bill 2954, a bill sponsored by
Senators Padavan, Mendez, Spano, and Velella.
And this is a bill to extend rent
and coop protection laws from June 15, 2003,
to June 15, 2010, and eliminate the vacancy
decontrol of apartments renting for more than
$2,000 per month.
This bill is critical to be moved
to the floor of the Senate, whether it is my
bill, 380, which has a two-year extender
beyond the Republican version of the bill, or
the Republican version of the bill.
It has been estimated that over the
last decade, 84,000 units in New York City
have been removed from rent regulation through
high-rent vacancy decontrol, which allows
landlords to remove apartments permanently
from state rent and eviction regulation.
Landlords achieve this by applying
the statutory vacancy bonus and then
calculating the amount that must be spent on
renovations to get the legal rent above
$2,000. Once the rent reaches above $2,000
per month, these units are being permanently
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decontrolled.
This bill would also extend rent
and eviction protections to Mitchell-Lama
developments occupied on or after January 1974
and to tenants living in former federal
Section 8 housing projects.
The reason this is critical that we
do this now is that a June 15, 2003, clock is
ticking. And in fact, for large numbers of
tenants in the city of New York and in Nassau,
Westchester, and Rockland Counties, they fear
the risk of their protection in their homes
and the future of losing their homes.
These protections have helped to
assure an affordable housing stock for nearly
2½ million people in our state. This is a
much greater number of people than live in any
other form of government public housing or
subsidized housing. These regulated units are
more affordable than the other housing
available in my city and, I would argue, in
the other counties affected.
The people living in this housing
are primarily low- and middle-income. In a
tough economic time -- and we know we are in
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tough economic times here in the state of
New York -- people with incomes below $50,000
a year, the majority of people living in
rent-regulated housing, do not have
alternatives. They do not have additional
income, and they do not have alternative
places to move to.
The majority of tenants in
rent-regulated housing are people of color.
They are black, they are Hispanic, they are
Asian.
We need, as a Legislature, to move
forward with rent regulation. The Assembly
has passed a same-as bill to the bill cited
before being sponsored by Senators Padavan,
Mendez, Spano, and Velella. I would urge this
house move forward today to either consider my
bill or the Republican version of the bill, so
that the tenants of this state can be assured
of a future in their own homes.
We should not -- I repeat, we
should not be waiting any longer. It is now
April 1st. These bills sunset June 15th. So
I urge my colleagues here in the house to
allow a full debate and discussion of this
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legislation so that we may move forward.
Thank you, Madam President.
THE PRESIDENT: All those
Senators in agreement with the petition out of
committee please signify by raising your
hands.
THE SECRETARY: Those recorded in
agreement are Senators Andrews, Breslin,
Brown, Diaz, Dilán, Duane, Hassell-Thompson,
L. Krueger, C. Kruger, Montgomery, Onorato,
Parker, Paterson, Sabini, A. Smith, M. Smith,
Stachowski, and Stavisky.
THE PRESIDENT: The petition is
defeated.
Senator Skelos.
SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
if we could return to housekeeping.
THE PRESIDENT: Senator
Fuschillo.
SENATOR FUSCHILLO: Thank you,
Madam President.
On behalf of Senator Maltese, on
page number 20 I offer the following
amendments to Calendar Number 273, Senate
Print Number 1900, and ask that said bill
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retain its place on Third Reading Calendar.
THE PRESIDENT: The amendments
are received, Senator, and the bill will
retain its place on the Third Reading
Calendar.
Senator Skelos.
SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
just a reminder from Senator Larkin that
tomorrow is West Point Day. And we know that
the superintendent will be here with numerous
cadets.
We've all had a wonderful
experience on West Point Day. The
superintendent, I believe, will be speaking at
11:00 a.m. here in the chamber.
And in light of the sacrifices that
are being made by so many of our military, I
think it would be more than appropriate if the
chamber is blessed with the members being here
so that we can give the welcome that they
deserve.
And there being no further business
to come before the Senate, I move we adjourn
until Wednesday, April 2nd, at 11:00 a.m.
THE PRESIDENT: On motion, the
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Senate stands adjourned until Wednesday,
April 2nd, at 11:00 a.m.
(Whereupon, at 3:30 p.m., the
Senate adjourned.)