Regular Session - February 6, 2006
557
1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE
2
3
4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD
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6
7
8
9 ALBANY, NEW YORK
10 February 6, 2006
11 3:08 p.m.
12
13
14 REGULAR SESSION
15
16
17
18 LT. GOVERNOR MARY O. DONOHUE, President
19 STEVEN M. BOGGESS, Secretary
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25
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1 P R O C E E D I N G S
2 THE PRESIDENT: The Senate will
3 please come to order.
4 I ask everyone present to please
5 rise and repeat with me the Pledge of
6 Allegiance.
7 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited
8 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.)
9 THE PRESIDENT: In the absence of
10 clergy, may we bow our heads in a moment of
11 silence, please.
12 (Whereupon, the assemblage
13 respected a moment of silence.)
14 THE PRESIDENT: Reading of the
15 Journal.
16 THE SECRETARY: In Senate,
17 Sunday, February 5, the Senate met pursuant to
18 adjournment. The Journal of Saturday,
19 February 4, was read and approved. On motion,
20 Senate adjourned.
21 THE PRESIDENT: Without
22 objection, the Journal stands approved as
23 read.
24 Presentation of petitions.
25 Messages from the Governor.
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1 Messages from the Assembly.
2 Reports of standing committees.
3 Reports of select committees.
4 Communications and reports from
5 state officers.
6 Motions and resolutions.
7 Senator Seward.
8 SENATOR SEWARD: Yes, Madam
9 President. On behalf of Senator Padavan, on
10 page 14 I offer the following amendments to
11 Calendar Number 47, Senate Print Number 5979,
12 and ask that that bill retain its place on the
13 Third Reading Calendar.
14 THE PRESIDENT: The amendments
15 are received, and the bill will retain its
16 place on the Third Reading Calendar.
17 Senator Seward.
18 SENATOR SEWARD: Madam President,
19 on behalf of Senator Morahan, on page 15 I
20 offer the following amendments to Calendar
21 Number 71, Senate Print Number 6333, and ask
22 that that bill retain its place on the Third
23 Reading Calendar.
24 THE PRESIDENT: The amendments
25 are received, and that bill will retain its
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1 place on the Third Reading Calendar.
2 Senator Seward.
3 SENATOR SEWARD: Yes. And
4 finally, on behalf of Senator Marcellino,
5 Madam President, on page 17 I offer the
6 following amendments to Calendar Number 92,
7 Senate Print Number 632, and ask that that
8 bill retain its place on the Third Reading
9 Calendar.
10 THE PRESIDENT: The amendments
11 are received, and that bill will also retain
12 its place on the Third Reading Calendar.
13 Senator Skelos.
14 SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
15 there's a Resolution 3408, by Senator Farley,
16 at the desk. Could we have it read in its
17 entirety.
18 THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
19 will read.
20 THE SECRETARY: By Senator
21 Farley, Legislative Resolution Number 3408,
22 congratulating the Fonda-Fultonville Cross
23 Country Team upon the occasion of winning the
24 Class C New York State championship.
25 "WHEREAS, The State of New York
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1 takes great pride in acknowledging the
2 outstanding achievements of its high school
3 athletic teams; and
4 "WHEREAS, The Fonda-Fultonville
5 Cross Country Team won the Class C New York
6 State championship in Queensbury on
7 November 12, 2005. The combined team score of
8 55 points was 12 points better than the
9 runner-up team; and
10 "WHEREAS, The third-place finish by
11 Jeremy McAllister, with a time of 16:18.7, and
12 the fourth-place finish by John Moore, with a
13 time of 16:25.7, led the team as they captured
14 the titled; and
15 "WHEREAS, Other team members whose
16 impressive performances throughout the season
17 were tremendous assets to the team are Jeffrey
18 Dufel, Edward Givis, Jr., Blake Dwyer, Joseph
19 Geniti, and Brian Palumbo; and
20 "WHEREAS, This cross-country team,
21 led by Head Coach Mark Therrien and Coach Mike
22 Benton, is the first team from the
23 Fonda-Fultonville Central School District to
24 ever win a state championship; and
25 "WHEREAS, Their extraordinary
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1 success this season and the teamwork and
2 sportsmanship exhibited by team members are a
3 wonderful inspiration to teams across New York
4 State; and
5 "WHEREAS, The State of New York is
6 proud to congratulate this group of
7 extraordinary young men; now, therefore, be it
8 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative
9 Body pause in its deliberations to
10 congratulate the Fonda-Fultonville Cross
11 Country Team upon the occasion of winning the
12 Class C New York State Championship; and be it
13 further
14 "RESOLVED, That copies of this
15 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted
16 to Coach Therrien and the members of the
17 Fonda-Fultonville Cross Country team."
18 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Farley.
19 SENATOR FARLEY: Thank you, Madam
20 President. Thank you, Senator Skelos.
21 We're honored today to have this
22 team and its coaches and principal up in our
23 gallery, and Coaches Mark Therrien and Mike
24 Benton. This is a very first time that this
25 little community of Fonda-Fultonville, the
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1 school, has ever been a state champion.
2 We have a number of teams that come
3 in here, but it's particularly an honor to
4 have Fonda-Fultonville because they have
5 been -- for three consecutive years, they've
6 competed in the state championship and have
7 really scored well.
8 We have the members of the team up
9 here. This is an organization that is totally
10 team-oriented. And their slogan, "One team,
11 one goal," really personifies what they're up
12 to. We're honored to have them here.
13 And you know the interesting thing
14 about this team from this community, their
15 parents have been out there in support of
16 every one of their events. And as they've
17 gone through -- and incidentally, they were
18 able to beat Canastota and Pawling in the
19 finals, two outstanding schools. As their
20 Senator, I'm very, very proud to have them
21 here.
22 And, Madam President, if you'd
23 please welcome and congratulate this fine
24 group of young men, our team from
25 Fonda-Fultonville.
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1 THE PRESIDENT: All in favor of
2 the resolution please signify by saying aye.
3 (Response of "Aye.")
4 THE PRESIDENT: Opposed, nay.
5 (No response.)
6 THE PRESIDENT: The resolution is
7 adopted.
8 Congratulations. Welcome to the
9 Senate. And best wishes for similar success.
10 We're confident that you'll have similar
11 success down the road.
12 Let's give them a big round of
13 applause.
14 (Applause.)
15 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Skelos.
16 SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
17 there are two resolutions at the desk by
18 Senator Nozzolio, Resolutions 3399 and 3400.
19 If we could have them read in their entirety
20 and then please recognize Senator Nozzolio.
21 THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
22 will read.
23 THE SECRETARY: By Senator
24 Nozzolio, Legislative Resolution Number 3399,
25 congratulating the Red Creek Boys Varsity
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1 Soccer Team and Coach Don Hartley upon the
2 occasion of capturing the Class C State
3 Championship.
4 "WHEREAS, Excellence and success in
5 competitive sports can be achieved only
6 through strenuous practice, team play and team
7 spirit, nurtured by dedicated coaching and
8 strategic planning; and
9 "WHEREAS, Athletic competition
10 enhances the moral and physical development of
11 the young people of this state, preparing them
12 for the future by instilling in them the value
13 of teamwork, encouraging a standard of healthy
14 living, imparting a desire for success, and
15 develop a sense of fair play and competition;
16 and
17 "WHEREAS, The Red Creek Boys Soccer
18 Team are the Class C State Champions; and
19 "WHEREAS, The Red Creek Boys Soccer
20 Team defeated defending champion Keio Academy
21 2-0; Keio Academy won three of the past four
22 champions and has a record of 109-6-4 over the
23 past five seasons; and
24 "WHEREAS, En route to winning the
25 championship, Red Creek scored a goal in each
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1 half and stunned Keio by winning the school's
2 first title since 1991 and its fourth overall;
3 and
4 "WHEREAS, Some of the other
5 accomplishments the Red Creek Boys Soccer Team
6 achieved include outscoring the opponents 26-1
7 in the post-season, winning its third
8 consecutive Section V Class C Title, and
9 obtaining the most sectional championships by
10 any school for any sport in Section V history;
11 and
12 "WHEREAS, Some of the individual
13 achievements of the Red Creek Boys Soccer Team
14 include: Travis Heslop was named Tournament
15 MVP; Earl Sharkey was named to Second Team All
16 State; and Travis Heslop, Mark McIntyre, Kyle
17 Salo, and Stephen Long were all named to the
18 2005 Section V Boys Soccer All Tournament
19 Team; and
20 "WHEREAS, The athletic talent
21 displayed by this team is due in great part to
22 the efforts of Coach Don Hartley and his team
23 of outstanding assistants, skilled and
24 inspirational tutors respected for their
25 ability to develop potential into excellence;
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1 and
2 "WHEREAS, The team's overall record
3 of 21-1-2 is outstanding, and the team members
4 were loyally and enthusiastically supported by
5 family, fans, friends and the community at
6 large; and
7 "WHEREAS, The hallmarks of the Red
8 Creek Boys Soccer Team, from the opening game
9 of the season to participation in the
10 championship, were a brotherhood of athletic
11 ability, of good sportsmanship, of honor and
12 of scholarship, demonstrating that these team
13 players are second to none; and
14 "WHEREAS, Athletically and
15 academically, the team members have proven
16 themselves to be an unbeatable combination of
17 talents, reflecting favorably on their school;
18 and
19 "WHEREAS, Coach Don Hartley and his
20 dedicated staff have done a superb job in
21 guiding, molding and inspiring the team
22 members toward their goals; and
23 "WHEREAS, Sports competition
24 instills the values of teamwork, pride and
25 accomplishment, and Coach Don Hartley and his
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1 outstanding athletes have clearly made a
2 contribution to the spirit of excellence which
3 is a tradition of their school; now,
4 therefore, be it
5 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative
6 Body pause in its deliberations to
7 congratulate the Red Creek Boys Soccer Team,
8 its members -- Kyle Salo, Eric Stevens, Andrew
9 Keeling, Earl Sharkey, Colton Gregg, Anthony
10 Roden, Mark McIntyre, James Fisher, Renan
11 Trzesniowski, Jeremy March, Devin Reese, Ben
12 Reese, Billy Stevenson, Ben Dates, Travis
13 Heslop, Ian Cramer, Jordan Lang, Chris
14 Burghdurf, Stephen Lang, and Ryan Fisher --
15 and Coach Don Hartley on their outstanding
16 season and overall team record; and be it
17 further
18 "RESOLVED, That copies of this
19 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted
20 to the Red Creek Boys Soccer Team and to Coach
21 Don Hartley."
22 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Nozzolio.
23 SENATOR NOZZOLIO: Madam
24 President, thank you. On the resolution.
25 Madam President and my colleagues,
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1 it's with great honor that I rise in support
2 of this resolution honoring this fine group of
3 citizens, young citizens from the Eastern
4 Wayne/Northern Cayuga region, the school
5 district known as Red Creek.
6 Unlike Senator Farley's team that
7 was just honored, this team came a long way in
8 transportation today to travel to our State
9 Capitol to recognize the contributions so that
10 we could recognize their outstanding athletic
11 accomplishment.
12 I want to give special thanks to
13 those from the school district of Red Creek
14 who are here today. That we have Denise
15 George, who helped with transportation; the
16 athletic director, Scott Sugar; David Greg,
17 assistant coach; our managers, Trentin Reese
18 and Cody Donahue, who performed such an
19 outstanding job on behalf of the team; Noel
20 Patterson, principal; and Don Hartley, head
21 coach, for your outstanding contributions.
22 It's so nice to have you here with you us
23 today.
24 I'd also like to give special
25 thanks to a leader in the community who has
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1 served as superintendent of the Red Creek
2 Central Schools now for a number of years, who
3 sponsored the trip today and who helped bring
4 the team to Albany. I want to give special
5 thanks to my friend David Sholes, for his
6 leadership and his support of these fine young
7 athletes.
8 Madam President, so much is in the
9 news today about young people who go awry,
10 about criminality, drug abuse and the like. I
11 can tell you here, represented in the Red
12 Creek Central School Soccer Team, they are
13 champions in every definition of that word,
14 champions on the field and off the field. The
15 community is extremely proud of this team,
16 extremely proud of their accomplishments, but
17 prouder still of the fact that they're
18 excellent students who care about the place
19 where they live.
20 And that's what makes them
21 champions. Performance on the athletic field
22 is only one measure, one standard of their
23 excellence. They are excellent not just on
24 the field but in the community.
25 They also know how to come back;
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1 that they lost the Season One game. And that
2 team is a team represented by my good friend
3 Senator Alesi, the East Rochester team that
4 had beaten them during the regular season but
5 they came back and beat East Rochester in the
6 sectional championship.
7 And that's a mark of a champion,
8 one who knows that it may be a setback but you
9 can get up from that setback and go on to
10 greater things. And that's what the young men
11 did here in securing that state championship.
12 Madam President, I thank you for
13 meeting with the team today. It was so nice
14 of you to spend some of your time to wish them
15 well. And I thank my colleagues for allowing
16 me the opportunity to recognize true
17 excellence in our young people.
18 Congratulations. They're fine
19 young men, fine representatives of the
20 community.
21 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Valesky.
22 SENATOR VALESKY: Thank you,
23 Madam President.
24 I want to thank Senator Nozzolio
25 for bringing this resolution to the floor
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1 today. He and I have the opportunity to
2 represent the Red Creek Central School
3 District, and it is our honor to salute and
4 congratulate the Red Creek Boys Soccer Team
5 today.
6 They certainly understand the value
7 of hard work. They know what teamwork is all
8 about. And it has taken them to this point as
9 champions. I hope that as they return to
10 their school district and to their hometowns
11 that they realize that the accomplishments
12 that they have achieved in recent months also
13 carry with it a sense of responsibility that
14 they have to their fellow classmates, that
15 they have to the younger members of the
16 communities in which they live.
17 They have, through their teamwork,
18 set examples for their entire community. I
19 know that they are up to that challenge. And
20 I join Senator Nozzolio and the rest of my
21 colleagues in wishing them all the best and
22 continued success in all of their endeavors.
23 Thank you.
24 THE PRESIDENT: All in favor of
25 the resolution please signify by saying aye.
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1 (Response of "Aye.")
2 THE PRESIDENT: Opposed, nay.
3 (No response.)
4 THE PRESIDENT: The resolution is
5 adopted.
6 Again, I was delighted to meet with
7 you. Congratulations. Best wishes for
8 continued success.
9 Let's give them a round of
10 applause.
11 (Applause.)
12 THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
13 will read.
14 THE SECRETARY: By Senator
15 Nozzolio, Legislative Resolution 3400,
16 congratulating Ellen Muster of Marion High
17 School upon the occasion of capturing the 2005
18 New York State Class C Cross Country
19 Championship.
20 "WHEREAS, Excellence and success in
21 competitive sports can be achieved only
22 through strenuous practice, team play and team
23 spirit, nurtured by dedicated coaching and
24 strategic planning; and
25 "WHEREAS, Athletic competition
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1 enhances the moral and physical development of
2 the young people of this state, preparing them
3 for the future by instilling in them the value
4 of teamwork, encouraging a standard of healthy
5 living, imparting a desire for success, and
6 developing a sense of fair play and
7 competition; and
8 "WHEREAS, It is the sense of this
9 Legislative Body to recognize and pay tribute
10 to those young people within the State of
11 New York who, by achieving outstanding success
12 in athletic competition, have inspired and
13 brought pride to their school and community;
14 and
15 "WHEREAS, Attendant to such
16 concern, and in full accord with its
17 long-standing traditions, this Legislative
18 Body is justly proud to congratulate Ellen
19 Muster, of Marion High School, upon the
20 occasion of capturing the 2005 New York State
21 Class C Cross Country Championship; and
22 "WHEREAS, One of only seven girls
23 from Section V to capture the New York State
24 Cross Country Championship, Ellen Muster ran a
25 strategic race, staying with the lead pack
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1 through the first mile. She moved into fifth
2 place by the second mile and fourth place with
3 400 meters remaining, before rocketing past
4 the field to win by 10 seconds with a time of
5 18:49.5; and
6 "WHEREAS, A junior at Marion High
7 School, Ellen Muster was also a Wayne County
8 Champion, Finger Lakes West All Star,
9 Section V Class C Champion, and was named to
10 the Wayne-Finger Lakes Super Seven Team this
11 season; and
12 "WHEREAS, Loyally and
13 enthusiastically supported by family, fans,
14 friends and the community at large, Ellen
15 Muster exemplifies the best potential which is
16 inherent in our most precious resource, our
17 youth; and
18 "WHEREAS, Sports competition
19 instills the values of teamwork, pride and
20 accomplishment, and Ellen Muster has clearly
21 made a contribution to the spirit of
22 excellence which is a tradition at Marion High
23 School; now, therefore, be it
24 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative
25 Body pause its deliberations to congratulate
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1 Ellen Muster of Marion High School upon the
2 occasion of capturing the 2005 New York State
3 Class C Cross Country Championship; and be it
4 further
5 "RESOLVED, That a copy of this
6 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted
7 to Ellen Muster."
8 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Nozzolio.
9 SENATOR NOZZOLIO: Thank you,
10 Madam President. On the resolution.
11 And thank you, Clerk Testo, for
12 that excellent reading of both those
13 resolutions.
14 That a resolution on behalf of
15 recognizing Ellen Muster as Class C New York
16 State Cross Country Champion speaks for
17 itself, but I'd like to say a few other things
18 about Ellen. That she is a champion true and
19 true, one who became state champion -- the
20 next closest runner was 10 seconds away. So
21 that tells you she was clearly an outstanding
22 runner at the state championship meet, and
23 that a championship very well deserved.
24 She also has a 91 grade point
25 average. That we're very pleased that she is
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1 a scholar-athlete. And that with that
2 average, with that success, she certainly is
3 well on the road to success.
4 Seated up in the gallery with Ellen
5 is her father, Frank, who has been with her
6 every jog of the way, attended the state
7 championship meet. And I know he was very
8 proud of her accomplishments.
9 Also Duane Perry and Paul Pfeiffer.
10 Duane is principal at Marion Central and Paul
11 is Ellen's coach. To you gentlemen, I want to
12 say thank you for your efforts and
13 contributions in raising such a fine young
14 New Yorker. Ellen is a champion in every way.
15 She's also seated up there with
16 another Wayne County champion, Assemblyman Bob
17 Oaks, who rumor has it used to run cross
18 country but I'm sure could never run cross
19 country as well as our state champion, Ellen.
20 And that we certainly want to thank Bob for
21 his support of all of Wayne County athletics
22 and particularly the resolutions that were
23 offered today recognizing Wayne County
24 champions the Red Creek Soccer Team, as well
25 as New York State Cross Country champion Ellen
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1 Muster.
2 Thank you, Madam President. I move
3 the resolution.
4 THE PRESIDENT: All in favor of
5 the resolution please signify by saying aye.
6 (Response of "Aye.")
7 THE PRESIDENT: Opposed, nay.
8 (No response.)
9 THE PRESIDENT: The resolution is
10 adopted.
11 Congratulations, Ellen, and best
12 wishes for continued success.
13 Let's give her a round of applause.
14 (Applause.)
15 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Skelos.
16 SENATOR SKELOS: Madam President,
17 if we could take up Resolution 3409, by
18 Senator Paterson, and have it read in its
19 entirety, please.
20 THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
21 will read.
22 THE SECRETARY: By Senators
23 Paterson and Bruno, Legislative Resolution
24 Number 3409, memorializing the life and legacy
25 of Coretta Scott King.
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1 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King, born
2 April 27, 1927, in Perry County, Alabama, the
3 second of three children born to Obadiah and
4 Bernice Scott, and the widow of civil rights
5 leader Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,
6 rose from rural poverty on her parents' farm
7 to become a powerful and international symbol
8 of the civil rights movement begun in the
9 1960s; and
10 "WHEREAS, Mrs. King was exposed at
11 an early age to the injustices of life in a
12 segregated society, walking five miles a day
13 to attend her one-room schoolhouse in Marion,
14 Alabama, while white students rode buses to an
15 all-white school closer to their homes; and
16 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King
17 excelled in her studies, particularly music,
18 and graduated first in her class at Lincoln
19 High School. In 1945, she began attending
20 Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, where
21 two years earlier her older sister, Edythe,
22 had been the first black to enroll; and
23 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King
24 studied education and music in college, and
25 took an active interest in the nascent civil
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1 rights movement. She joined the Antioch
2 chapter of the National Association for the
3 Advancement of Colored People and the
4 college's race relations and civil liberties
5 committees; and
6 "WHEREAS, After graduation, Coretta
7 went on to Boston's New England Conservatory
8 of Music in 1952, hoping to become a classical
9 singer, and working as a mail order clerk and
10 housekeeper to augment the fellowship that
11 barely paid her tuition; and
12 "WHEREAS, Martin Luther King, Jr.,
13 a theology student at the time, from a
14 prominent Atlanta family, recognized and
15 remarked on his first date with Coretta in
16 1952 that she possessed qualities of
17 character, personality, intelligence and
18 beauty; and
19 "WHEREAS, Coretta and the Reverend
20 Dr. King, then a young minister, married a
21 year later, beginning a strong partnership
22 that ended with the civil rights leader's
23 assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, on
24 April 14, 1968; and
25 "WHEREAS, Mrs. King worked to keep
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1 her late husband's dream alive with the utmost
2 dignity and serenity; and
3 "WHEREAS, Mrs. King's remarkable
4 grace made her a civil rights icon in her own
5 right, a powerful symbol of the Reverend
6 Martin Luther King, Jr.'s creed of brotherhood
7 and nonviolence, and a tireless advocate for
8 social and political issues ranging from
9 women's rights to the struggle against
10 apartheid in South Africa; and
11 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King's
12 fortitude rivaled that of her husband, and
13 made her one of the most influential figures
14 in the struggle for civil rights; and
15 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King, often
16 called the 'first lady of the civil rights
17 movement,' raised four young children --
18 Yolanda Denise, Martin Luther III, Dexter
19 Scott, and Bernice Albertine -- and was with
20 her husband in his finest hours. She was also
21 at his side when he received the Nobel Peace
22 Prize in 1964 and marched beside him from
23 Selma, Alabama, into Montgomery, in 1965, on
24 the triumphant drive for a voting rights law;
25 and
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1 "WHEREAS, After her husband's
2 assassination, Mrs. King became a symbol of
3 her husband's struggle for peace and
4 brotherhood. Presiding with a quiet, steady,
5 stoic presence over seminars and conferences
6 on global issues, she continued Dr. King's
7 work for social justice and devoted her life
8 to his legacy; and
9 "WHEREAS, Mrs. King found herself
10 in increasing demand as a public speaker,
11 becoming the first woman to deliver the Class
12 Day address at Harvard College, the first
13 woman to preach at a statutory service at St.
14 Paul's Cathedral in London, serving as a
15 Women's Strike for Peace delegate to the
16 17-nation Disarmament Conference in Geneva,
17 Switzerland, and being named a liaison to
18 international peace and justice organizations;
19 and
20 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King
21 conceived and performed a series of more than
22 30 critically acclaimed 'Freedom Concerts,'
23 combining poetry, narration and music to tell
24 the story of the civil rights movement, and
25 staging these concerts in some of America's
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1 most distinguished concert venues as
2 fundraisers for the Southern Christian
3 Leadership Conference, an organization her
4 husband had founded; and
5 "WHEREAS, Mrs. King continued to
6 serve the cause of justice and human rights,
7 with her travels taking her throughout the
8 world on goodwill missions to Africa, Latin
9 America, Europe, and Asia; and
10 "WHEREAS, To carry on her late
11 husband's legacy, Coretta Scott King focused
12 on two ambitious and daunting tasks -- the
13 first, to have a national holiday in her
14 husband's honor, and the second, to build a
15 nationally recognized center in Atlanta to
16 honor his memory, continue his work, and
17 provide a research center for scholars
18 studying his work and the civil rights era;
19 and
20 "WHEREAS, The first goal was
21 achieved, despite much opposition, in 1983,
22 when Congress approved a measure designating
23 the third Monday in January as an official
24 federal holiday in honor of Dr. King, who was
25 born in Atlanta on January 15, 1929.
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1 Dr. King's birthday is now marked by annual
2 celebrations in over 100 countries; and
3 "WHEREAS, The second goal was also
4 achieved, by her founding of the
5 multi-million-dollar Martin Luther King, Jr.,
6 Center for Nonviolent Social Change. The
7 center is deeply involved with the issues of
8 hunger, unemployment, voting rights, and
9 racism, and Mrs. King believed these issues
10 breed violence; and
11 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King
12 remained active in the causes of racial and
13 economic justice, devoting much of her energy
14 in her later years to AIDS education and
15 curbing gun violence; and
16 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King
17 remained a beloved figure, often compared to
18 Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis as a woman who
19 overcame tragedy, held her family together,
20 and became an inspirational figure to men and
21 women around the world; and
22 "WHEREAS, Coretta Scott King
23 preached words of hope and encouragement to be
24 cherished by all of us today: 'Many despair
25 at the evil and unrest and disorder in the
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1 world today, but I see a new social order and
2 I see the dawn of a new day'; now, therefore,
3 be it
4 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative
5 Body pause in its deliberations to recognize
6 and pay tribute to the life of Coretta Scott
7 King, a tireless witness for racial equality,
8 justice and reconciliation."
9 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Ada
10 Smith.
11 SENATOR ADA SMITH: Thank you,
12 Madam President.
13 The civil rights movement has
14 suffered yet another loss, for Coretta Scott
15 King was a leader in her own right. And
16 contrary to what many have said, she didn't
17 just keep her husband's dream alive, because
18 it was a shared dream which she lived daily.
19 As a member of the now-defunct
20 New York State King Commission, where Senator
21 Paterson and I had the privilege of
22 representing the Senate, and a board member of
23 the National Black Caucus of State
24 Legislators, I have spent numerous hours in
25 the presence of this dignified, charming,
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1 astute and gracious lady. Her warm and
2 generous demeanor epitomized the gentle yet
3 strong and firm convictions which she always
4 exhibited.
5 She was a mother, a daughter, a
6 sister, and a soldier who chose to teach.
7 Through her teachings, we all continue to
8 promulgate the prolific and challenging
9 oratory of her great husband.
10 If nothing else, we must reflect
11 upon the loss of the mother of the civil
12 rights movement, Rosa Parks, and, even closer
13 to home, the passing of the Reverend William
14 Augustus Jones, who had the privilege of
15 working alongside the Reverend Dr. Martin
16 Luther King.
17 We must cull from the passing of
18 these three giants the strength and the
19 motivation to persevere, as I leave you with
20 the words of hope and encouragement Coretta
21 Scott King so eloquently stated: "Many
22 despair at all the evil and unrest and
23 disorder in the world. But I see a new social
24 order, and I see the dawn of a new day."
25 And I say to each of you: Wake up,
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1 Senators. The sun is emerging from behind
2 these dark clouds, and the new day is now.
3 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Larkin.
4 SENATOR LARKIN: Thank you, Madam
5 President. It is indeed an honor and
6 privilege for me to stand here today and pay
7 tribute to Mrs. King.
8 You know, there's an old saying in
9 our world: Behind every good man, there's a
10 staunch woman. Mrs. King was very devoted to
11 Dr. King, but she was devoted to Dr. King's
12 principles and what he thought.
13 I, for one, had the privilege of
14 meeting her during the march from Selma to
15 Montgomery in March of 1965, which we
16 celebrated here last year with all of us
17 joining together.
18 But when the meetings took place,
19 in talking to Mrs. King's associates on what
20 she was trying to do, she was very clear. She
21 wasn't standing out there saying, Look at me,
22 look at me. She was standing out there with
23 one mission, what can we do to make people
24 realize we're all born under one God. We were
25 all born to try to do what was best for us.
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1 Last week in my district,
2 Congressman John Lewis came to speak
3 concerning Dr. King. But he also made very
4 clear his passionate expression for everyone
5 to say prayers for Mrs. King, who was in
6 Mexico at the time looking for special
7 treatment.
8 You know, one of the things that
9 bothers me is that we as adults are standing
10 around -- sitting around here, standing around
11 here today, but we're forgetting one thing.
12 We're not getting our message out to our young
13 people that this was an individual who
14 practiced what she preached. She was an
15 individual with a clear mind of what we should
16 be doing.
17 Yes, and there are some people who
18 still don't get the message. And the message
19 is very clear. When we can start as adults to
20 teach our children the right from wrong and
21 what we can do to make it happen, the
22 thoughts, prayers and wishes of Coretta Scott
23 King will be said and revered around the
24 world.
25 She was a lady of compassion, a
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1 woman devoted to her children, the four that
2 she raised. But more than that, she was a
3 person who said what she believed and believed
4 in what she said.
5 Thank you.
6 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Parker.
7 SENATOR PARKER: Madam President,
8 on the resolution.
9 In the narrow-minded view, to
10 memorialize Coretta Scott King as simply the
11 wife of Dr. Martin Luther King, even though he
12 was undoubtedly the most prominent figure in
13 the civil rights movement, Coretta Scott King
14 was much more than a supportive and loving
15 spouse. She was a partner in Dr. King's
16 vision and mission for nonviolent social
17 change. She held on to the dream that emerged
18 as an icon of the civil rights movement.
19 Dr. King, with his charismatic
20 leadership and inspiration words, gave birth
21 to generations of children and grandchildren
22 of the civil rights movement -- children like
23 Jesse Jackson, Andrew Young, Al Sharpton,
24 David Paterson, Velmanette Montgomery, Ada
25 Smith and Malcolm Smith, and not to forget
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1 Ruth Hassell-Thompson.
2 After Dr. King was assassinated,
3 she graciously mothered generations of these
4 children and dedicated herself to scholarship
5 and activism. She called on America to fight
6 what she called the three great
7 evils: racism, poverty and war. Then, with
8 his brotherhood view of the dream, she
9 dedicated her life to two tangible tasks. She
10 agitated and gained a national holiday in
11 memorial of her late husband and established
12 the Martin Luther King Center for Nonviolent
13 Social Change in Atlanta.
14 Ms. King was a tireless advocate
15 and became an influential figure around the
16 world working towards that dream. Dr. King
17 may not have lived to see the realization of
18 his dream in his lifetime, but it was
19 Mrs. King, the first lady of the modern civil
20 rights movement, who bravely carried the torch
21 of freedom. And in doing so, she became the
22 veritable drum major for justice for
23 generations of African-Americans, ensuring
24 that the sons and daughters of former slaves
25 and the sons and daughters of former
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1 slave-owners will be able to sit down together
2 at the table of brotherhood.
3 Thank you.
4 THE PRESIDENT: Senator
5 Montgomery.
6 SENATOR MONTGOMERY: Thank you,
7 Madam President.
8 I am very honored to rise in
9 recognition and memorializing of this great
10 woman, who was indeed -- notwithstanding my
11 colleague's remarks that she wasn't only the
12 wife, but she was indeed the wife of
13 Dr. Martin Luther King.
14 And I did not know Coretta Scott
15 King up close. I was never in her presence.
16 I wasn't a friend. But I have seen some of
17 the evidence of her as a woman who embodies
18 what I like to think is America's best of
19 womanhood.
20 Number one, we know that Dr. Martin
21 Luther King, Jr., was extremely absent from
22 his family, often intensely. He traveled, he
23 gave of himself, he gave his life to us, to
24 the citizens of this nation. So this couple,
25 who -- she gave up an opportunity to live as
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1 comfortable middle-class woman, because of her
2 commitment to her husband and her dedication
3 to the cause that he worked on. But they did
4 have four children, and there had to be
5 someone to make sure that those four children
6 survived and did well. So Dexter and Martin
7 III and Bernice and Yolanda, those are
8 testaments to the greatness of this woman,
9 because they themselves are now also great
10 people and making contributions to America.
11 And the second thing that I want to
12 thank her for, and as evidence of her
13 greatness, is that she went out after her
14 husband was assassinated and developed a
15 movement to build a monument to the principles
16 and to the work that he had done.
17 So in Atlanta there is the King
18 Center, which is really a wonderful museum
19 housing a lot of the very, very minute aspects
20 of the civil rights movement that a lot of us
21 have forgotten. You know, they have signs
22 "Colored Only." You know, sometimes we even
23 forget that that was ever a part of America.
24 And so it's very, very important.
25 I took my son there. It was a spiritual
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1 experience. And I just kept thinking -- and
2 at the very moment that we were in that
3 museum, she was in the hospital with a stroke.
4 And so I kept thinking what a great woman, to
5 go out and do whatever was necessary for her
6 to do in order to build this wonderful center.
7 It's a vivid reminder, and it will
8 be forever, I hope, Madam President, her gift
9 to us, where we can go and sit quietly and
10 reflect and remember those aspects of a
11 movement that was so important, to not only
12 Martin Luther King but to all of us. It was
13 the period in our lives, the transition from a
14 very dark period to hopefully a much more
15 enlightened one. That's what Coretta Scott
16 King means to me.
17 And so I'm very happy, and thank
18 you to Senator Smith and my colleagues for
19 this memorial to this great American woman.
20 Thank you.
21 THE PRESIDENT: Senator Marchi.
22 SENATOR MARCHI: Madam President,
23 the -- I'm having a little problem here. But
24 the magnificent contribution that Lady King
25 made and that some of the speakers here --
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1 Senator Montgomery, Senator Smith, Senator
2 Larkin. Do we realize that in any other
3 country in the world, people who were laboring
4 under the slavery and then, after that,
5 something barely better in many cases -- and
6 this has evoked around the world death,
7 revolutions, people spewing their hatred
8 against others -- our realization that each
9 and every child of God, everyone coming and
10 born on this planet was born by the will of
11 God with a mortal, immortal soul.
12 So she's up there. She sees us and
13 she hears us. And the fact that we have been
14 able to make so much ground and achieve so
15 much progress in the name of human
16 understanding -- because that's what it's all
17 about -- of love for one another, was made by
18 a refrain and a domination of the spirit to
19 hit back.
20 And God knows that there were many,
21 many persons who suffered great wrong and
22 great pain, great suffering and even death in
23 the restricted view that some in those days
24 had of this minority.
25 So it liberated us all. We all
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1 became much more civilized by people such as
2 Coretta King, much more. We started to
3 realize that we are children of God and that
4 each one of us has an immortal soul, and there
5 are better ways, not practiced by most nations
6 around the world when there was persecution
7 involved, but doing it in the face of
8 continued harassment.
9 So we have to be moved, Madam
10 President, we have to be moved, as I'm sure
11 you are and all of us here are, of this
12 wonderful spirit who lived next to pain and
13 actually witnessed it happen to her own
14 family. And we don't know whether it has come
15 to a complete end, but we like to think so.
16 So if we lift our hands and also on
17 bended knee and praise people, such as
18 Mrs. King did, with her appeal to our
19 mortality and our appeal as a human being.
20 This was a human being that had suffered so
21 much. And yet she continued courageously,
22 with love, and with the prayerful realization
23 that we ought to live up to the promise that's
24 each and every one of us.
25 We are equal only in the sense that
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1 all of us here, and outside this place,
2 children of God are entitled to be respected.
3 And she was hurt and lacerated in the most
4 vile possible way, because it happened right
5 within her own family. But she did not return
6 hatred. She did not respond with more odious
7 comment but called on all of us to be the
8 best.
9 So I'm proud of my colleagues, all
10 of you that have spoken on this. And I know
11 you speak what is in the feeling of everyone
12 here, that we close on this chapter our
13 prayers that she is up there and she's
14 watching, watching over us and rejoicing in
15 the fact that there are more and more people
16 willing to speak up to the dignity that God
17 has imparted to each and every one of us.
18 We're no better and no worse, but we are
19 individuals created in a divine image and
20 scheduled to make that trip to the unknown
21 country that one of our famous writers once
22 pointed.
23 So, Madam President, I do hope
24 that, along with the statements that have been
25 made or may be made here today, that it also
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1 be accompanied by your prayers, by your
2 prayers that we will see the triumph of love,
3 not the progress of hate. And that it is
4 within our grasp because we have had the
5 courageous and brave leadership of people such
6 as Mrs. King and her departed husband.
7 THE PRESIDENT: On the
8 resolution.
9 Senator Schneiderman first.
10 SENATOR SCHNEIDERMAN: Madam
11 President, we'd like to open the resolution
12 for everyone involved. Anyone who doesn't
13 want to be on it, please let the chair know.
14 Thank you.
15 THE PRESIDENT: There being no
16 objection from the Majority, anyone who does
17 not wish to be a cosponsor please notify the
18 desk.
19 All in favor please signify by
20 saying aye.
21 (Response of "Aye.")
22 THE PRESIDENT: Opposed, nay.
23 (No response.)
24 THE PRESIDENT: The resolution is
25 adopted.
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1 Senator Morahan.
2 SENATOR MORAHAN: Yes, Madam
3 President. Could we have the noncontroversial
4 reading of the calendar at this time, please.
5 THE PRESIDENT: The Secretary
6 will read.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 57, by Senator Wright, Senate Print 5532A, an
9 act to amend the Penal Law, in relation to
10 making persons 14 and 15 years of age
11 criminally responsible.
12 SENATOR SCHNEIDERMAN: Lay it
13 aside.
14 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is laid
15 aside.
16 SENATOR WRIGHT: Lay it aside for
17 the day.
18 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is laid
19 aside for the day.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 58, by Senator Volker, Senate Print 5539, an
22 act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law, in
23 relation to period of interim probation.
24 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
25 section.
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1 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
2 act shall take effect immediately.
3 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 55.
6 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
7 passed.
8 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
9 63, by Senator Fuschillo, Senate Print 5698,
10 an act to amend the Penal Law, in relation to
11 criminal impersonation.
12 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
13 section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
15 act shall take effect on the 90th day.
16 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 55.
19 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
20 passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 65, by Senator Golden, Senate Print 5766, an
23 act to amend the Penal Law, in relation to the
24 unlawful disclosure.
25 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
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1 section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect on the 90th day.
4 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
5 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 55.
7 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
8 passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 69, by Senator Volker, Senate Print 6319, an
11 act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law, in
12 relation to persons designated.
13 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
14 section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect on the 180th day.
17 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 53. Nays,
20 2. Senators Duane and L. Krueger recorded in
21 the negative.
22 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
23 passed.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 72, by Senator Little, Senate Print 6385, an
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1 act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law, in
2 relation to authorizing defendants.
3 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
4 section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
8 (The Secretary called the roll.)
9 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 54. Nays,
10 1. Senator Duane recorded in the negative.
11 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
12 passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 73, by Senator Maltese, Senate Print 273, an
15 act to amend the Labor Law and the Penal Law,
16 in relation to certain employment.
17 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
18 section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
20 act shall take effect on the first of
21 November.
22 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 55.
25 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
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1 passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 78, by Senator Maziarz, Senate Print 3748, an
4 act to amend the Workers' Compensation Law, in
5 relation to disqualifying.
6 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
7 section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect on the first of July.
10 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
11 (The Secretary called the roll.)
12 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 55.
13 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
14 passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 79, by Senator Spano, Senate Print 5406, an
17 act prohibiting any employer from issuing
18 checks.
19 THE PRESIDENT: Read the last
20 section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
22 act shall take effect one year after the date
23 on which it shall have become a law.
24 THE PRESIDENT: Call the roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
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1 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 55.
2 THE PRESIDENT: The bill is
3 passed.
4 Senator Morahan, that completes the
5 noncontroversial reading of the calendar.
6 SENATOR MORAHAN: Thank you,
7 Madam President. Is there any unfinished
8 business at the desk?
9 THE PRESIDENT: No, there is not.
10 And that completes the calendar.
11 SENATOR MORAHAN: There being no
12 other business before the Senate, I move that
13 we adjourn until Tuesday, February 7th, at
14 3:00 p.m.
15 THE PRESIDENT: On motion, the
16 Senate now stands adjourned until Tuesday,
17 February 7th, 3:00 p.m.
18 (Whereupon, at 3:55 p.m., the
19 Senate adjourned.)
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