Regular Session - March 1, 2021
986
1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE
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4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD
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9 ALBANY, NEW YORK
10 March 1, 2021
11 3:39 p.m.
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14 REGULAR SESSION
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18 SENATOR BRIAN A. BENJAMIN, Acting President
19 ALEJANDRA N. PAULINO, ESQ., Secretary
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987
1 P R O C E E D I N G S
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
3 Senate will come to order.
4 I ask everyone present to please
5 rise and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
6 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited
7 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: In the
9 absence of clergy, let us bow our heads in a
10 moment of silent reflection or prayer.
11 (Whereupon, the assemblage respected
12 a moment of silence.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: As we
14 reflect or pray in recognition of the anniversary
15 of the first case of COVID-19 detected in
16 New York, let us remember that more than
17 512,000 Americans and 47,000 New Yorkers have
18 died from this deadly virus.
19 Let us pray for their families and
20 friends, that they find healing and solace. And
21 let us pray for continuing progress in
22 distributing the vaccines, that we may reach the
23 light at the end of this dark tunnel and begin to
24 rebuild a better society in the wake of such
25 enormous tragedy.
988
1 Reading of the Journal.
2 THE SECRETARY: In Senate, Sunday,
3 February 28, 2021, the Senate met pursuant to
4 adjournment. The Journal of Saturday,
5 February 27, 2021, was read and approved. On
6 motion, Senate adjourned.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Without
8 object, the Journal stands approved as read.
9 Presentation of petitions.
10 Messages from the Assembly.
11 The Secretary will read.
12 THE SECRETARY: Senator Gounardes
13 moves to discharge, from the Committee on
14 Civil Service and Pensions, Assembly Bill Number
15 3354B and substitute it for the identical Senate
16 Bill 2588A, Third Reading Calendar 304.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
18 substitution is so ordered.
19 THE SECRETARY: Senator Gounardes
20 moves to discharge, from the Committee on
21 Civil Service and Pensions, Assembly Bill Number
22 3988 and substitute it for the identical Senate
23 Bill 4681, Third Reading Calendar 371.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
25 substitution is so ordered.
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1 Messages from the Governor.
2 Reports of standing committees.
3 Reports of select committees.
4 Communications and reports from
5 state officers.
6 Motions and resolutions.
7 Senator Gianaris.
8 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
9 we're going to begin by taking up the reading of
10 the calendar, please.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
12 Secretary will read.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 119, Senate Print 1034A, by Senator Gianaris, an
15 act to amend the Labor Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
17 the last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
19 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
20 shall have become a law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
22 the roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
25 Gianaris to explain his vote.
990
1 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
2 Mr. President.
3 Thank you to my colleagues for
4 supporting this important proposal.
5 We are one year from the beginning
6 of COVID impacting our state, and too many people
7 have passed and gotten sick because we didn't
8 take adequate steps in that time to protect the
9 frontline workers, people who continued to go to
10 work both because they had to, to provide for
11 their families, and also to keep our communities
12 running during the pandemic.
13 This bill today would require strict
14 guidelines that employers would have to put into
15 place at their places of employment to make sure
16 that their workers are protected against airborne
17 diseases like the coronavirus -- standards as it
18 relates to PPE, air filtration, social
19 distancing, et cetera, that for too many was
20 lacking over the last several months.
21 It also empowers workers, through a
22 workplace safety committee made up of employees,
23 to monitor and report failures to comply with
24 these regulations.
25 And so this was a bill that came
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1 together with the support of a lot of
2 representatives of organized labor, activists
3 around workplace safety. And I'm appreciative to
4 all of them, and to my colleagues, for taking
5 this important step to make things better for
6 those we've been relying on so much over the last
7 year.
8 So I certainly vote in the
9 affirmative, and I thank my colleagues who are
10 also voting yes.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
12 Gianaris to be recorded in the affirmative.
13 Announce the results.
14 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
15 Calendar 119, those Senators voting in the
16 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
17 Helming, Jordan, Lanza, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
18 Palumbo, Rath, Ritchie, Serino, Stec, Tedisco and
19 Weik.
20 Ayes, 46. Nays, 16.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
22 bill is passed.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 161, Senate Print 1209, by Senator Kaminsky, an
25 act to amend the Town Law.
992
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
2 the last section.
3 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
4 act shall take effect immediately.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
6 the roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
9 Announce the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
12 bill is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 164, Senate Print 1393, by Senator Brooks, an act
15 in relation to authorizing the Town of Babylon to
16 grant Long Island Teen Challenge of West Babylon
17 a real property tax exemption.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
19 the last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
21 act shall take effect immediately.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
23 the roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
993
1 Announce the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
3 Calendar 164, voting in the negative are
4 Senators Akshar and O'Mara.
5 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
7 bill is passed.
8 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
9 197, Senate Print 1579A, by Senator Parker, an
10 act to amend the Real Property Actions and
11 Proceedings Law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
13 the last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
17 the roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
20 Announce the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
22 Calendar Number 197, those Senators voting in the
23 negative are Senators Akshar, Borrello, Boyle,
24 Gallivan, Griffo, Helming, Jordan, Lanza,
25 Martucci, Mattera, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
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1 Palumbo, Rath, Ritchie, Serino, Stec, Tedisco and
2 Weik.
3 Ayes, 42. Nays, 20.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
5 bill is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 243, Senate Print 1239, by Senator Mayer, an act
8 to amend the Education Law.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
10 the last section.
11 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
12 act shall take effect immediately.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
14 the roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
17 Announce the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
20 bill is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 304, Assembly Number 3354B, substituted earlier
23 by Assemblymember Fall, an act to amend the
24 Civil Service Law and the Labor Law.
25 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
995
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Lay it
2 aside.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 360, Senate Print 17A, by Senator Mayer, an act
5 to amend the Labor Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
7 the last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect immediately.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
11 the roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
14 Announce the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
16 Calendar Number 360, those Senators voting in the
17 negative are Senators Akshar, Borrello, Helming,
18 Jordan, Lanza, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Rath,
19 Serino, Tedisco and Stec.
20 Ayes, 50. Nays, 12.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
22 bill is passed.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 365, Senate Print 3470, by Senator Kennedy, an
25 act to amend the Labor Law.
996
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
2 the last section.
3 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
4 act shall take effect immediately.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
6 the roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
9 Announce the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
12 bill is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 367, Senate Print 4049, by Senator Ramos, an act
15 to amend the Labor Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
17 the last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
19 act shall take effect immediately.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
21 the roll.
22 (The Secretary called the roll.)
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
24 Announce the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
997
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
2 bill is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 371, Assembly Number 3988, substituted earlier by
5 Assemblymember Abbate, an act to amend the
6 Retirement and Social Security Law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Read
8 the last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
10 act shall take effect immediately.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
12 the roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
15 Senator Gounardes to explain his vote.
16 SENATOR GOUNARDES: Thank you,
17 Mr. President.
18 I rise to thank my colleagues in
19 support of this legislation.
20 Throughout the last year -- and it's
21 amazing how today has been the one-year mark
22 since we know that we had our first death in
23 New York City from the COVID virus, we have lost
24 hundreds of public workers across the state, but
25 no place greater than in New York City, where
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1 literally hundreds of people who had no choice
2 but to go to work every single day, putting their
3 lives on the line at a time when we didn't know
4 what was coming down the pike, passed away from
5 this virus.
6 Last year the Legislature approved a
7 death benefit bill to support those family
8 members of the loved ones that we lost, and now
9 we are doing the very simple step but very
10 important and symbolic step of extending the
11 eligibility of that death benefit, which had
12 previously expired on December 31st.
13 I thank my colleagues for doing
14 this. This is the right thing to do for the
15 family members of public servants from Buffalo
16 down to Brooklyn, out to the tip of Long Island,
17 who sadly gave their lives to the city, the
18 state, their counties, all in the service of
19 protecting others. And I thank everyone for
20 their support.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
22 Gounardes to be recorded in the affirmative.
23 Announce the results.
24 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
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1 bill is passed.
2 Senator Gounardes {sic}, that
3 completes the reading of today's calendar.
4 SENATOR GIANARIS: Please go to the
5 reading of the controversial calendar.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
7 Secretary will ring the bell.
8 The Secretary will read.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 304, Assembly Number 3354B, by
11 Assemblymember Fall, an act to amend the
12 Civil Service Law and the Labor Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
14 Lanza, why do you rise?
15 SENATOR LANZA: Mr. President, I
16 believe there's an amendment at the desk. I
17 waive the reading of that amendment and ask
18 that you recognize Senator Helming to be heard.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Thank
20 you, Senator Lanza.
21 Upon review of the amendment, in
22 accordance with Rule 6, Section 4B, I rule it
23 nongermane and out of order at this time.
24 SENATOR LANZA: Accordingly,
25 Mr. President, I appeal the ruling of the chair
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1 and ask that you recognize Senator Helming.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
3 appeal has been made and recognized, and
4 Senator Helming may be heard.
5 SENATOR HELMING: Thank you,
6 Mr. President.
7 Mr. President, I rise to appeal the
8 ruling of the chair because the proposed
9 amendment is clearly germane to Senate Bill 2588,
10 the bill before the house that we seek to amend.
11 Both the bill before us,
12 Senator Gaughran's bill, and the amendment,
13 Senator Biaggi's bill, deal specifically with
14 pandemic-related actions. More specifically, the
15 amendment states the State Legislature is an
16 independent, coequal branch of government with
17 the constitutional authority and responsibility
18 to make laws.
19 Under the State Constitution, the
20 Legislature is a coequal branch of government.
21 But now, it is not. We are spectators.
22 Today is March 1st. Exactly one
23 year ago today, the first case of COVID-19 was
24 confirmed in New York State. Two days later, the
25 Legislature granted Governor Cuomo his emergency
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1 pandemic powers.
2 Here we are, one year later -- one
3 year later and more than a month since the
4 Attorney General's report on nursing homes that
5 confirmed for me and many of my colleagues on
6 both sides of the aisle that it is long past time
7 to end the Governor's emergency powers.
8 Since the AG's report, it's been
9 an avalanche of sad and concerning news. The
10 loss of more than 15,000 nursing home and
11 long-term-care residents to COVID-19. The
12 deliberate withholding of information by the
13 Department of Health. Ongoing federal
14 investigations. And amidst all of this, small
15 businesses are still hurting. People are still
16 unemployed, families are still struggling, and
17 kids are still not back in school full-time.
18 Decisions about how and when
19 businesses can operate, who can get the vaccine,
20 and where and when -- this is about decisions on
21 whether families can see their moms and dads in
22 nursing homes, when and if students can go back
23 to school five days a week.
24 We as lawmakers must have a say in
25 these decisions. The Legislature must help lead
1002
1 our state's recovery. We need to work on this
2 together, the legislative and executive branches
3 both, not the executive branch alone, especially
4 in light of what's happening now.
5 So again, I call on my colleagues to
6 act today. End the Governor's extraordinary
7 powers. Restore the lawful role of the
8 Legislature. Reinstate our coequal branches of
9 government and our systems of checks and
10 balances. Vote now for this bipartisan amendment
11 for the good of the government and the people we
12 represent. Let's finally get this done.
13 For these reasons, Mr. President, I
14 strongly urge you to reconsider your ruling.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Thank
16 you, Senator Helming.
17 I want to remind the house that the
18 vote is on the procedures of the house and the
19 ruling of the chair.
20 Those in favor of overruling the
21 chair signify by saying aye.
22 SENATOR LANZA: Request a show of
23 hands.
24 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
25 we have agreed to waive the showing of hands and
1003
1 record each member of the Minority in the
2 affirmative.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Without
4 objection, so ordered.
5 Announce the results.
6 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 20.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
8 ruling of the chair stands, and the bill-in-chief
9 is before the house.
10 Are there any other Senators wishing
11 to be heard?
12 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
13 closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
14 Read the last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect immediately.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Call
18 the roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
21 Borrello to explain his vote.
22 SENATOR BORRELLO: Thank you,
23 Mr. President.
24 I have to say that I struggled with
25 this bill greatly -- not because people do not
1004
1 need the time to get a vaccine, but because of
2 the impact it will have on so many small
3 businesses.
4 You know, there's really no
5 allocation for part-times. You know, if someone
6 is hiring someone to watch their children, are
7 they going to have to give them that four hours
8 paid time off?
9 But at the end of the day I've
10 decided to support this bill, mostly because of
11 the tremendous lack of vaccine that we have here
12 in New York State and the way the Governor has
13 handled the rollout of this vaccine distribution.
14 He's made it political.
15 I have people in my district driving
16 hours to get a vaccination, taking whatever
17 appointment might be available, no matter how far
18 away it is, so they can get this much-needed
19 vaccination.
20 So while I really am concerned about
21 the impact on our small businesses, this is
22 really important because of the way the Governor
23 has handled the rollout of this vaccine
24 distribution. We cannot really afford to let
25 someone pass up an open appointment. It's like
1005
1 hitting the lottery for some people right now.
2 That speaks to the poor way this has been handled
3 and continues to be handled by this Governor and
4 by this administration.
5 So I am voting yes today in the
6 hopes that this will help some folks get their
7 vaccine as soon as they can.
8 Thank you.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
10 Borrello to be recorded in the affirmative.
11 Senator Gounardes to explain his
12 vote.
13 SENATOR GOUNARDES: Thank you,
14 Mr. President.
15 Again I rise, I want to thank my
16 colleagues in support of this legislation.
17 because what we're trying to do here is make it
18 as frictionless and as easy as possible for every
19 single person in this state to be able to go and
20 get their vaccine, their COVID-19 vaccine.
21 And, you know, to my colleague
22 Senator Borrello, you know, we all struggle with
23 the vaccine administration. And it's a shame
24 that the federal government under the prior
25 administration failed to have a coordinated
1006
1 national strategy on vaccinations, failed to
2 prepare us for adequate supply, and that we are
3 now all struggling -- my constituents are
4 struggling with the same issues yours are, as I'm
5 sure many of our colleagues are, because of the
6 failures of the prior administration to roll out
7 the vaccines properly and to prioritize those
8 states that were hardest-hit by the COVID-19
9 virus.
10 But we're taking steps to make that
11 better. We're now taking steps with this bill to
12 make it easier for people to be able to take the
13 time that they need to go get their vaccine, both
14 of their doses if they're taking a vaccine that
15 requires two doses, to be able to have time to
16 recuperate.
17 And we are doing this in the same
18 way that we have acted on previous issues to give
19 people paid leave for other important health
20 matters -- most recently and most notably, our
21 cancer screening bill that we passed two years
22 ago.
23 So we are using the same model that
24 we've used in the past. This is something that
25 is tried and true for both employees and
1007
1 employers in the State of New York. And I think
2 it's going to go a long way to help people get
3 the vaccines that we need.
4 And thankfully, over the last couple
5 of weeks we have seen a significant uptick in the
6 number of vaccines that have been shipped to
7 New York. We have seen a significant uptick in
8 the numbers of vaccinations. We're still not
9 where we want to be, and I'll agree with you on
10 that, but we've certainly made progress over the
11 last couple of weeks -- thankfully, in that we
12 have an administration in Washington that's
13 listening to us.
14 I vote aye.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
16 Senator Gounardes to be recorded in the
17 affirmative.
18 Senator Lanza to explain his vote.
19 SENATOR LANZA: Thank you,
20 Mr. President.
21 I want to thank the sponsor,
22 Senator Gounardes, for this legislation.
23 As my colleague Senator Borrello
24 stated, it's so important that we here in the
25 Legislature do anything and everything that we
1008
1 can do to get these vaccines into the arms of the
2 people of the State of New York.
3 You know, I find it ironic that
4 we're talking about the federal government. The
5 federal plan or lack of plan seemed to have
6 worked for the other 49 states. New York, at the
7 bottom of the heap here, is having a hard time
8 getting vaccines to people.
9 We all know the reason. It's
10 because Dr. Zucker had no plan, zero plan. He
11 was too busy lying to the people of the State of
12 New York instead of making sure that he was
13 putting into place a policy that would allow
14 New Yorkers from one end of the state to the
15 other to get this vaccination.
16 So I commend Senator Gounardes. We
17 need legislation like this. As long as
18 Dr. Zucker's not going to do his job, I'm glad
19 that Senator Gounardes and this body is doing its
20 job.
21 Mr. President, I vote in the
22 affirmative.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
24 Lanza to be recorded in the affirmative.
25 Announce the results.
1009
1 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
3 bill is passed.
4 Senator Gianaris, that completes the
5 reading of the controversial calendar.
6 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
7 Mr. President.
8 Is there a report of the Finance
9 Committee at the desk?
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: There
11 is a report of the Finance Committee at the desk.
12 The Secretary will read.
13 THE SECRETARY: Senator Krueger,
14 from the Committee on Finance, reports the
15 following nomination:
16 As Deputy Comptroller for New York
17 City, Office of the State Comptroller, Rahul
18 Jain.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Senator
20 Gianaris.
21 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President, I
22 move the nomination of Rahul Jain as Deputy
23 Comptroller for New York City within the Office
24 of the State Comptroller.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: The
1010
1 question is on the nomination of Rahul Jain as
2 Deputy Comptroller for New York City, in the
3 Office of the State Comptroller.
4 All in favor say aye.
5 (Response of "Aye.")
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN:
7 Opposed?
8 (No response.)
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: Rahul
10 Jain has been confirmed as Deputy Comptroller for
11 New York City in the Office of the State
12 Comptroller.
13 Senator Gianaris.
14 SENATOR GIANARIS: Congratulations
15 to Rahul Jain.
16 Is there any further business at the
17 desk, Mr. President?
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: There
19 is no further business at the desk.
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: I move to
21 adjourn until tomorrow, Tuesday, March 2nd, at
22 3:00 p.m.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BENJAMIN: On
24 motion, the Senate stands adjourned until
25 Tuesday, March 2nd, at 3:00 p.m.
1011
1 (Whereupon, at 3:58 p.m., the Senate
2 adjourned.)
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