Regular Session - June 8, 2023
5932
1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE
2
3
4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD
5
6
7
8
9 ALBANY, NEW YORK
10 June 8, 2023
11 3:34 p.m.
12
13
14 REGULAR SESSION
15
16
17
18 SENATOR JAMAAL T. BAILEY, Acting President
19 ALEJANDRA N. PAULINO, ESQ., Secretary
20
21
22
23
24
25
5933
1 P R O C E E D I N G S
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
3 Senate will come to order.
4 I ask everyone -- thank you. The
5 Senate will come to order.
6 I ask everyone present to please
7 rise and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
8 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited
9 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Head
11 Priest Sridhar Bhatt, from the Hindu Temple in
12 Albany, New York, will deliver today's
13 invocation.
14 HEAD PRIEST SRIDHAR BHATT:
15 (Singing/chanting in Sanskrit.)
16 May we hear auspicious words with
17 our ears. May we see auspicious things with the
18 eyes. May we stay healthy with steady limbs and
19 organs. May we enjoy life that is beneficial for
20 the heart. May the Lord of ancient fame be
21 auspicious to us. May the supremely rich be
22 favorable to us. May the destroyer of evil be
23 favorable to us; may he bless and remove all the
24 evilness in us. May prosperity ensure our wealth
25 and knowledge.
5934
1 And bless all the gods. Bless us to
2 be faithful to the nation where we were born and
3 where we reside. And bless us to put the first
4 step forward in the path of peace, rather than
5 praying for it. God bless you all.
6 Once again, I thank Mrs. Jessica
7 Spanton for inviting me to deliver the
8 invocation. And God bless you all. And God will
9 give health, wealth and prosperity, and serve the
10 nation with good heart. God bless you all.
11 Hari Om.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
13 reading of the Journal.
14 THE SECRETARY: In Senate,
15 Wednesday, June 7, 2023, the Senate met pursuant
16 to adjournment. The Journal of Tuesday, June 6,
17 2023, was read and approved. On motion, the
18 Senate adjourned.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Without
20 objection, the Journal stands approved as read.
21 Senator Gianaris.
22 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
23 before we continue with the usual course of
24 business at the beginning of session, let's call
25 a meeting of the Judiciary Committee right away
5935
1 in Room 124.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: An
3 immediate meeting of the Judiciary Committee will
4 commence in Room 124.
5 Presentation of petitions.
6 Messages from the Assembly.
7 The Secretary will read.
8 THE SECRETARY: Senator Thomas
9 moves to discharge, from the Committee on Rules,
10 Assembly Bill Number 5994B and substitute it for
11 the identical Senate Bill 536A, Third Reading
12 Calendar 149.
13 Senator O'Mara moves to discharge,
14 from the Committee on Investigations and
15 Government Operations, Assembly Bill Number 4106
16 and substitute it for the identical Senate Bill
17 3601, Third Reading Calendar 697.
18 Senator Webb moves to discharge,
19 from the Committee on Budget and Revenue,
20 Assembly Bill Number 1261 and substitute it for
21 the identical Senate Bill 3603, Third Reading
22 Calendar 733.
23 Senator Walczyk moves to discharge,
24 from the Committee on Investigations and
25 Government Operations, Assembly Bill Number 6770
5936
1 and substitute it for the identical Senate Bill
2 Number 6405, Third Reading Calendar 770.
3 Senator Comrie moves to discharge,
4 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
5 Number 6940 and substitute it for the identical
6 Senate Bill 5806, Third Reading Calendar 786.
7 Senator Felder moves to discharge,
8 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
9 Number 5036 and substitute it for the identical
10 Senate Bill 6225, Third Reading Calendar 846.
11 Senator Mannion moves to discharge,
12 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
13 Number 7366 and substitute it for the identical
14 Senate Bill 6436A, Third Reading Calendar 861.
15 Senator Skoufis moves to discharge,
16 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
17 Number 5837A and substitute it for the identical
18 Senate Bill 3346A, Third Reading Calendar 893.
19 Senator Skoufis moves to discharge,
20 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
21 Number 4038 and substitute it for the identical
22 Senate Bill 4073, Third Reading Calendar 898.
23 Senator May moves to discharge, from
24 the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
25 Number 7286A and substitute it for the identical
5937
1 Senate Bill 5735A, Third Reading Calendar 922.
2 Senator Skoufis moves to discharge,
3 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
4 Number 6258A and substitute it for the identical
5 Senate Bill 5891A, Third Reading Calendar 928.
6 Senator Weber moves to discharge,
7 from the Committee on Investigations and
8 Government Operations, Assembly Bill Number 5872A
9 and substitute it for the identical Senate Bill
10 Number 6029, Third Reading Calendar 931.
11 Senator Skoufis moves to discharge,
12 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
13 Number 6202A and substitute it for the identical
14 Senate Bill 6190A, Third Reading Calendar 937.
15 Senator Mannion moves to discharge,
16 from the Committee on Investigations and
17 Government Operations, Assembly Bill Number 6558
18 and substitute it for the identical Senate Bill
19 Number 6507, Third Reading Calendar 960.
20 Senator Rolison moves to discharge,
21 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
22 Number 6556 and substitute it for the identical
23 Senate Bill 6590, Third Reading Calendar 965.
24 Senator Rolison moves to discharge,
25 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
5938
1 Number 6555 and substitute it for the identical
2 Senate Bill 6679, Third Reading Calendar 971.
3 Senator Stavisky moves to discharge,
4 from the Committee on Transportation,
5 Assembly Bill Number 6732 and substitute it for
6 the identical Senate Bill 6462, Third Reading
7 Calendar 1012.
8 Senator Harckham moves to discharge,
9 from the Committee on Environmental Conservation,
10 Assembly Bill Number 6949 and substitute it for
11 the identical Senate Bill 6604, Third Reading
12 Calendar 1149.
13 Senator Skoufis moves to discharge,
14 from the Committee on Transportation,
15 Assembly Bill Number 5673 and substitute it for
16 the identical Senate Bill 5834, Third Reading
17 Calendar 1173.
18 Senator Breslin moves to discharge,
19 from the Committee on Insurance, Assembly Bill
20 Number 7255 and substitute it for the identical
21 Senate Bill 7057, Third Reading Calendar 1190.
22 Senator Kennedy moves to discharge,
23 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
24 Number 4720 and substitute it for the identical
25 Senate Bill 5664, Third Reading Calendar 1198.
5939
1 Senator Comrie moves to discharge,
2 from the Committee on Procurement and Contracts,
3 Assembly Bill Number 6791 and substitute it for
4 the identical Senate Bill 6787, Third Reading
5 Calendar 1200.
6 Senator Sanders moves to discharge,
7 from the Committee on Internet and Technology,
8 Assembly Bill Number 4969 and substitute it for
9 the identical Senate Bill 6402, Third Reading
10 Calendar 1206.
11 Senator Cooney moves to discharge,
12 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
13 Number 6724 and substitute it for the identical
14 Senate Bill 6610A, Third Reading Calendar 1220.
15 Senator Sanders moves to discharge,
16 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
17 Number 6222A and substitute it for the identical
18 Senate Bill 6647A, Third Reading Calendar 1251.
19 Senator Stewart-Cousins moves to
20 discharge, from the Committee on Rules,
21 Assembly Bill Number 6693 and substitute it for
22 the identical Senate Bill 6599, Third Reading
23 Calendar 1298.
24 Senator Kennedy moves to discharge,
25 from the Committee on Finance, Assembly Bill
5940
1 Number 2137 and substitute it for the identical
2 Senate Bill 6292, Third Reading Calendar 1286.
3 Senator Salazar moves to discharge,
4 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
5 Number 6667 and substitute it for the identical
6 Senate Bill 6726, Third Reading Calendar 1308.
7 Senator Rivera moves to discharge,
8 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
9 Number 6180A and substitute it for the identical
10 Senate Bill 6815, Third Reading Calendar 1330.
11 Senator Mannion moves to discharge,
12 from the Committee on Energy and
13 Telecommunications, Assembly Bill Number 3125A
14 and substitute it for the identical Senate Bill
15 Number 6694, Third Reading Calendar 1352.
16 Senator Harckham moves to discharge,
17 from the Committee on Children and Families,
18 Assembly Bill Number 6616 and substitute it for
19 the identical Senate Bill 6538, Third Reading
20 Calendar 1388.
21 Senator Breslin moves to discharge,
22 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
23 Number 7043A and substitute it for the identical
24 Senate Bill 6802A, Third Reading Calendar 1398.
25 Senator Stewart-Cousins moves to
5941
1 discharge, from the Committee on Rules,
2 Assembly Bill Number 7206B and substitute it for
3 the identical Senate Bill 7026B, Third Reading
4 Calendar 1408.
5 Senator Ramos moves to discharge,
6 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
7 Number 1120 and substitute it for the identical
8 Senate Bill 1746, Third Reading Calendar 1454.
9 Senator Stec moves to discharge,
10 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
11 Number 2943 and substitute it for the identical
12 Senate Bill 2904, Third Reading Calendar 1466.
13 Senator Stec moves to discharge,
14 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
15 Number 4033 and substitute it for the identical
16 Senate Bill 2905, Third Reading Calendar 1467.
17 Senator Webb moves to discharge,
18 from the Committee on Finance, Assembly Bill
19 Number 5985A and substitute it for the identical
20 Senate Bill 4401A, Third Reading Calendar 1477.
21 Senator Brisport moves to discharge,
22 from the Committee on Social Services,
23 Assembly Bill Number 2176 and substitute it for
24 the identical Senate Bill 5897, Third Reading
25 Calendar 1509.
5942
1 Senator Mattera moves to discharge,
2 from the Committee on Finance, Assembly Bill
3 Number 7410 and substitute it for the identical
4 Senate Bill 5971, Third Reading Calendar 1510.
5 Senator Jackson moves to discharge,
6 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
7 Number 6499 and substitute it for the identical
8 Senate Bill 6216, Third Reading Calendar 1513.
9 Senator Gounardes moves to
10 discharge, from the Committee on Rules,
11 Assembly Bill Number 6571 and substitute it for
12 the identical Senate Bill 6339, Third Reading
13 Calendar 1521.
14 Senator Rolison moves to discharge,
15 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
16 Number 7477A and substitute it for the identical
17 Senate Bill 7431A, Third Reading Calendar 1550.
18 Senator Comrie moves to discharge,
19 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
20 Number 7427 and substitute it for the identical
21 Senate Bill 7489, Third Reading Calendar 1566.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: So
23 ordered.
24 Messages from the Governor.
25 Reports of standing committees.
5943
1 Reports of select committees.
2 Communications and reports from
3 state officers.
4 Motions and resolutions.
5 Senator Gianaris.
6 SENATOR GIANARIS: Madam President,
7 good afternoon.
8 Please recognize Senator
9 Scarcella-Spanton for a quick introduction.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
11 Scarcella-Spanton for an introduction.
12 SENATOR SCARCELLA-SPANTON: Thank
13 you, Madam Chair.
14 And I am so happy to welcome the
15 South Brooklyn Youth Alliance, led by
16 Coach Knight and Priscilla Santos, to Albany
17 today.
18 The South Brooklyn Youth Alliance
19 hails from Coney Island, Brooklyn, where it is
20 part of the incredible Coney Island Sharks and
21 Sharkettes program. They're up there, and they
22 are always -- the Sharkettes are always
23 performing at all of our local events. We're so
24 excited to have them here with us today.
25 The Coney Island Sharks have been a
5944
1 community-based organization for the past
2 33 years, providing a free youth program that not
3 only includes sports like football, but life
4 skills through mentoring, tutoring, youth
5 counsel, arts and community service.
6 The South Brooklyn Youth Alliance
7 program allows participants, young people ages 8
8 to 18, to voice their concerns on issues
9 concerning their communities and lives. It also
10 gives them a platform to advocate with government
11 representatives and local businesses in an
12 attempt to effectuate change. Which is why I'm
13 so proud to have them up in Albany today.
14 And I said to them earlier, because
15 I know they've been patiently waiting up there in
16 the gallery for a long time, that they should run
17 for office when they're older so they can start
18 on time, unlike all of us.
19 (Laughter.)
20 SENATOR SCARCELLA-SPANTON: I'm so
21 grateful to have you all here today. You guys
22 are true leaders in your communities. To
23 Coach Knight and to Priscilla Santos, thank you
24 for leading this wonderful organization.
25 It's my honor to have you here
5945
1 today, and I welcome you all to the State Senate.
2 Thank you.
3 (Applause from gallery.)
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: To our
5 guests, I welcome you on behalf of the Senate.
6 We extend to you the privileges and courtesies of
7 this house.
8 Please rise and be recognized.
9 (Standing ovation.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
11 Gianaris.
12 SENATOR GIANARIS: Madam President,
13 at this time I move to adopt the
14 Resolution Calendar.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: All
16 those in favor of adopting the Resolution
17 Calendar please signify by saying aye.
18 (Response of "Aye.")
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Opposed,
20 nay.
21 (No response.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
23 Resolution Calendar is adopted.
24 Senator Gianaris.
25 SENATOR GIANARIS: Can we now take
5946
1 up previously adopted Resolution 475, by
2 Senator Tedisco, read that resolution's title and
3 recognize Senator Tedisco.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
5 Secretary will read.
6 THE SECRETARY: Resolution 475, by
7 Senator Tedisco, congratulating Isabella
8 Gretzinger of Shenendehowa High School upon the
9 occasion of capturing the 2023 New York State
10 Public High School Athletic Association Girls
11 Wrestling Championship.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
13 Tedisco on the resolution.
14 SENATOR TEDISCO: Thank you so
15 much, Madam President.
16 I am proud and honored today to
17 welcome to the Senate chamber an outstanding
18 young lady from the great school in the
19 Shenendehowa School District. And as I tell
20 about all her achievements, I want to let you
21 know she's only a junior, so you can expect her
22 to be back visiting us in the future to be
23 honored probably over and over and over again.
24 Shenendehowa High School's Isabella
25 Gretzinger captured the New York State Public
5947
1 High School Athletic Association Girls Wrestling
2 Championship. Girls wrestling championship. How
3 about breaking that glass ceiling? With a 13 to
4 1 victory over Liverpool's Gabby Gonzalez at the
5 SRC Arena and Event Center in Syracuse on Friday,
6 January 27, 2023.
7 Isabella is the first New York State
8 Girls Wrestling Champion from Shenendehowa
9 High School and the very first title holder in
10 New York State for the girls 152 weight class.
11 She is a trailblazer for many more talented young
12 women to follow.
13 Her title capped off a spectacular
14 season with an overall record of 18-2, and she
15 was named the Times Union's Girls Athlete of the
16 Week for January 23-29, 2023.
17 Now, the two matches she had before
18 she went to that championship contest, she
19 defeated the first one in a pin in 26 seconds.
20 The second one was in two minutes and about
21 30 seconds.
22 So I pointed out to her if she could
23 give us that weaponry to do an on-time budget
24 every year, we would be very excited about it.
25 Because she was very expeditious and so talented,
5948
1 she did that in an excellent fashion. And that's
2 unbelievable for a wrestler to be that quick in
3 two successive tournaments.
4 And I told her, as my colleague
5 suggested upstairs to the individuals she
6 introduced -- and I mean this -- she's going to
7 have some great successes in the future. And I
8 want her to know that if she chose to run for
9 office at any level, I would be certainly happy
10 to support her, except if she decided the
11 44th Senatorial District was the one she wanted
12 to run in. Then I'd have to be her campaign
13 manager, I think.
14 But along with this unbelievable
15 champion is her mom and her dad. So with us is
16 her dad, long-time former WNYT news anchor
17 Jerry Gretzinger, and they're up in the corner
18 here. And her mom, Paula Fidalgo.
19 And I want you to know this -- and
20 many of you know who have been involved in
21 athletics, in any sport -- no one succeeds
22 without the mentorship and guidance of great
23 coaching. And we have a team of great coaches
24 here who helped Isabella achieve her goals.
25 So I would also ask you to welcome
5949
1 the coaches: Antonio Lomascolo, Robert Weeks,
2 Chris Capezzuti, Daniel Palmerino, and
3 Frank Popolizio.
4 Madam President, I wish you would
5 welcome and thank and congratulate this
6 outstanding champion and provide her all the
7 cordialities of this august body today.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
9 you.
10 To our guests -- Isabella,
11 congratulations. To our guests, I welcome you on
12 behalf of the Senate. We extend to you the
13 privileges and courtesies of this house.
14 Please all rise and be recognized.
15 (Standing ovation.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
17 Gianaris.
18 SENATOR GIANARIS: Madam President,
19 I wish to call up the following bills, which were
20 recalled from the Assembly and are now at the
21 desk: Senate Bills 6349 and 1051.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
23 Secretary will read.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 823, Senate Print 6349, by Senator Breslin, an
5950
1 act to amend the Executive Law.
2 Calendar Number 1073, Senate Print
3 1051, by Senator Cooney, an act to amend the
4 Executive Law.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
6 roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 59.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
10 bills are restored to their place on the Third
11 Reading Calendar.
12 SENATOR GIANARIS: Madam President,
13 I believe the motion was to reconsider the vote
14 by which those bills were passed.
15 And now they're restored to the
16 Third Reading Calendar, and I offer the following
17 amendments.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
19 amendments are received.
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you.
21 Can we proceed to call an immediate
22 meeting of the Rules Committee in Room 332, and
23 take up the calendar.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There
25 will be an immediate meeting of the
5951
1 Rules Committee in Room 332.
2 The Secretary will read.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 129, Senate Print 1303B, by Senator Parker, an
5 act to amend the Public Service Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect immediately.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
11 roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
14 Walczyk to explain his vote.
15 SENATOR WALCZYK: Thank you,
16 Madam President.
17 The utility rate design is
18 carefully crafted by the PSC to achieve a
19 balanced approach which provides fundamental
20 fairness for all customers, and this bill would
21 undo that balance and that charge by the PSC.
22 I'm therefore voting no. Thank you.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
24 Walczyk in the negative?
25 SENATOR WALCZYK: Yes.
5952
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
2 you. Senator Walczyk to be recorded in the
3 negative.
4 Announce the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6 Calendar 129, those Senators voting in the
7 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
8 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Griffo, Lanza, Oberacker,
9 O'Mara, Ortt, Rhoads, Tedisco, Walczyk and Weik.
10 Ayes, 47. Nays, 12.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 149, Assembly Bill Number 5994B, by
15 Assemblymember Darling, an act to amend the
16 General Business Law.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
18 last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
20 act shall take effect on the first of January.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
5953
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar 149, those Senators voting in the
3 negative are Senators Borrello, Oberacker and
4 Ortt.
5 Ayes, 56. Nays, 3.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
7 is passed.
8 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
9 237, Senate Print 2935C, by Senator Parker, an
10 act enacting the Just Energy Transition Act.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
12 last section.
13 THE SECRETARY: Section 7. This
14 act shall take effect immediately.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
19 the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
21 Calendar 237, those Senators voting in the
22 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
23 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
24 Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Rhoads,
25 Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
5954
1 Ayes, 41. Nays, 18.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
3 is passed.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 258, Senate Print 2175, by Senator Kennedy, an
6 act to amend the Workers' Compensation Law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
8 last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
10 act shall take effect on the first of January.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 346, Senate Print 2330B, by Senator Mayer, an act
21 to amend the Insurance Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
23 last section.
24 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
25 act shall take effect on the first of January.
5955
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
2 roll.
3 (The Secretary called the roll.)
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
5 the results.
6 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
7 Calendar 346, those Senators voting in the
8 negative are Senators Gallivan, Griffo,
9 Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Tedisco,
10 Walczyk and Weber.
11 Ayes, 53. Nays, 9.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 416, Senate Print 1027A, by Senator Gounardes, an
16 act to amend the Workers' Compensation Law.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
18 last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
20 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
21 shall have become a law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
5956
1 the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
4 is passed.
5 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6 429, Senate Print 158B, by Senator Krueger, an
7 act to amend the General Business Law.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
9 last section.
10 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
11 act shall take effect July 1, 2024.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
13 roll.
14 (The Secretary called the roll.)
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
16 Krueger to explain her vote.
17 SENATOR KRUEGER: Thank you,
18 Madam President.
19 I am very pleased that this bill is
20 moving today. I think it's probably one of the
21 first in the country that will establish your
22 right to privacy for healthcare-related activity
23 and participation with a doctor in a legally
24 provided medical service, and even limit private
25 corporations' ability to track you based on your
5957
1 use of medical care or your making appointments
2 via internet or even at some level learning that
3 maybe you're pregnant because you stopped using
4 your app to schedule your period.
5 And so it is so important in this
6 time, as technology expands and corporate ability
7 to find out information about us without our
8 permission becomes beyond ubiquitous, and some
9 states continue to attempt to control our bodies
10 and limit our rights to fundamental healthcare,
11 that legislation like this moves not just in our
12 state but in many others.
13 And happily I've been working with
14 legislators in quite a few states, and attorney
15 generals and others, to try to make sure we have
16 the right laws on the books to protect all of our
17 health privacy.
18 I proudly vote yes.
19 Thank you, Madam President.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
21 Krueger to be recorded in the affirmative.
22 Announce the results.
23 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
24 Calendar Number 429, voting in the negative:
25 Senator Walczyk.
5958
1 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
3 is passed.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 487, Senate Print 4467B, by Senator Mayer, an act
6 to amend the Executive Law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
8 last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
10 act shall take effect immediately.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
17 Calendar 487, those Senators voting in the
18 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello, Griffo,
19 Helming, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Stec, and
20 Walczyk.
21 Ayes, 53. Nays, 9.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
23 is passed.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 600, Senate Print 5881A, by Senator Skoufis, an
5959
1 act to amend the Real Property Law.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
3 last section.
4 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
5 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
6 shall have become a law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
11 the results.
12 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
13 Calendar 600, those Senators voting in the
14 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello, Griffo,
15 Helming, Rolison, Walczyk and Weik.
16 Ayes, 55. Nays, 7.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 645, Senate Print Number 5107A, by
21 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
22 Family Court Act.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 27. This
5960
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar Number 645, voting in the negative:
9 Senator Walczyk.
10 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 656, Senate Print 154C, by Senator Krueger, an
15 act to amend the General Business Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
19 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
20 shall have become a law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
5961
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar Number 656, voting in the negative are
3 Senators Oberacker and Walczyk.
4 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 697, Assembly Bill Number 4106, by
9 Assemblymember Gallahan, an act to amend the
10 Public Officers Law.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
12 last section.
13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
14 act shall take effect immediately.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
19 the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
22 is passed.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 714, Senate Print 5830, by Senator Salazar, an
25 act to amend the Correction Law.
5962
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
2 last section.
3 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
4 act shall take effect immediately.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
6 roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
9 the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
11 Calendar Number 714, those Senators voting in the
12 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan,
13 Helming, Murray, Oberacker, Ortt, Rhoads,
14 Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
15 Ayes, 52. Nays, 10.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 733, Assembly Bill Number 1261, by
20 Assemblymember Kelles, an act to amend the
21 Tax Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
23 a home-rule message at the desk.
24 Read the last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
5963
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar 733, those Senators voting in the
9 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
10 Gallivan, Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza,
11 Mannion, Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt,
12 Palumbo, Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis, Stec
13 and Tedisco.
14 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
16 is passed.
17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
18 744, Assembly Bill Number 3057, by
19 Assemblymember Cruz, an act to amend the
20 Criminal Procedure Law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
22 last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
24 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
25 shall have become a law.
5964
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
2 roll.
3 (The Secretary called the roll.)
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
5 the results.
6 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
7 Calendar 744, those Senators voting in the
8 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
9 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Griffo, Lanza, Martins,
10 Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
11 Palumbo, Rhoads, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber
12 and Weik.
13 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
15 is passed.
16 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
17 770, Assembly Bill Number 6770, by
18 Assemblymember Miller, an act to amend the
19 Public Officers Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
21 a home-rule message at the desk.
22 Read the last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
24 act shall take effect immediately.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5965
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
4 the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
7 is passed.
8 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
9 786, Assembly Bill Number 6940, by
10 Assemblymember Simone, an act to amend the
11 Not-For-Profit Corporation Law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
13 last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
17 roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
20 the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
23 is passed.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 803, Senate Print 4544, by Senator Skoufis, an
5966
1 act to amend the General Municipal Law.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
3 last section.
4 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
5 act shall take effect immediately.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
7 roll.
8 (The Secretary called the roll.)
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
10 the results.
11 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 815, Senate Print 643D, by Senator Kavanagh, an
16 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
18 last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 10. This
20 act shall take effect immediately.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
5967
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar 815, those Senators voting in the
3 negative are Senators Borrello and Walczyk.
4 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 817, Senate Print 3024A, by Senator Comrie, an
9 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
10 SENATOR WEIK: Lay it aside.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Lay it
12 aside.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 842, Senate Print 5207B, by Senator Skoufis, an
15 act to amend the General Municipal Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
19 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
20 shall have become a law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
5968
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar 842, those Senators voting in the
3 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
4 Griffo, Helming, Martins, Oberacker, O'Mara,
5 Ortt, Walczyk and Weik.
6 Ayes, 53. Nays, 9.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 846, Assembly Bill Number 5036, by
11 Assemblymember Eichenstein, an act to authorize
12 the City of New York to reduce the interest
13 accrued on certain charges assessed on real
14 property located at 1690 60th Street in Brooklyn.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There is
16 a home-rule message at the desk.
17 Read the last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
19 act shall take effect immediately.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
21 roll.
22 (The Secretary called the roll.)
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
24 the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
5969
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
2 is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 861, Assembly Bill Number 7366, by
5 Assemblymember Hevesi, an act to amend the
6 Social Services Law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
8 last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
10 act shall take effect one year after it shall
11 have become a law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
13 roll.
14 (The Secretary called the roll.)
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
16 the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 870, Senate Print 6238A, by Senator Myrie, an act
22 to amend the Executive Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
5970
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 871, Senate Print Number 6341B, by
12 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
13 Penal Law.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
15 last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
17 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
18 shall have become a law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
23 the results.
24 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
5971
1 is passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 879, Senate Print 5918B, by Senator Harckham, an
4 act to amend the Public Service Law.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
6 last section.
7 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
8 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
9 shall have become a law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
11 roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
14 the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
16 Calendar Number 879, voting in the negative:
17 Senator Walczyk.
18 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 888, Senate Print 6691A, by Senator Cleare, an
23 act to amend the Emergency Tenant Protection Act
24 of 1974.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
5972
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
8 Cleare to explain her vote.
9 SENATOR CLEARE: Thank you,
10 Madam President.
11 Over the past several decades,
12 entire rent-stabilized buildings have been
13 acquired by investors for the sole purpose of
14 deregulation and extreme profiteering, as opposed
15 to stewardship.
16 The legislation before us is
17 necessary because the structure of LLCs can be
18 made so complex that literally years can go by
19 without any government agency like HCR or HPD,
20 tenants' rights organizations or private citizens
21 being able to uncover who the official owner of
22 their building may be -- though the water may be
23 out, the heat failing, the ceiling crumbling, and
24 so forth.
25 The good actors in the housing space
5973
1 have no problem telling us who they are. But as
2 for others, we need to know. And being tied up
3 in mystery serves no useful public purpose. This
4 bill is about accountability and transparency,
5 and it deserves everyone's support.
6 I proudly vote aye and encourage my
7 colleagues to do the same.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
9 Cleare to be recorded in the affirmative.
10 Senator Krueger to explain her vote.
11 SENATOR KRUEGER: I want to thank
12 Senator Cleare for her excellent bill.
13 And as she pointed out, if you're
14 not doing anything wrong, why should you worry
15 that anybody knows who the owner of the business
16 is. Frankly, we require that almost every other
17 business in the State of New York has to announce
18 who it is in some way or some shape, so that
19 clients and customers know exactly who they're
20 dealing with.
21 So that the fact that this LLC
22 loophole has allowed certain entities to
23 successfully hide from government, from
24 complaints, and from the people who are dependent
25 on knowing who their owner or landlords or
5974
1 managers are, is crucial.
2 So it's way too long before we're
3 finally getting to this, so I just really
4 appreciate Cordell Cleare's commitment to this
5 and getting this bill done today. I proudly vote
6 yes.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
8 Krueger to be recorded in the affirmative.
9 Announce the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
11 Calendar 888, those Senators voting in the
12 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
13 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
14 Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, O'Mara,
15 Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec, Tedisco,
16 Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
17 Ayes, 42. Nays, 20.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 893, Assembly Bill Number 5837A, by
22 Assemblymember Brabenec, an act to amend the
23 Tax Law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There is
25 a home-rule message at the desk.
5975
1 Read the last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
10 Calendar 893, those Senators voting in the
11 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
12 Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
13 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Palumbo,
14 Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Tedisco and Webb.
15 Ayes, 47. Nays, 15.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 894, Senate Print 3444A, by Senator Helming, an
20 act to amend the Tax Law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
22 last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
24 act shall take effect immediately.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5976
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
4 the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6 Calendar 894, those Senators voting in the
7 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
8 Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
9 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo,
10 Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis, Tedisco and
11 Weber.
12 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 898, Assembly Bill Number 4038, by
17 Assemblymember Eachus, an act to amend the
18 Tax Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
20 a home-rule message at the desk.
21 Read the last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
23 act shall take effect immediately.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
25 roll.
5977
1 (The Secretary called the roll.)
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
3 the results.
4 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
5 Calendar 898, those Senators voting in the
6 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
7 Harckham, Helming, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza,
8 Mannion, Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt,
9 Palumbo, Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Tedisco and
10 Webb.
11 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 922, Assembly Bill Number 7286A, by
16 Assemblymember Lemondes, an act to amend the
17 Tax Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
19 a home-rule message at the desk.
20 Read the last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5978
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar 922, those Senators voting in the
5 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
6 Harckham, Helming, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza,
7 Mannion, Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt,
8 Palumbo, Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis,
9 Tedisco and Webb.
10 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 923, Senate Print 2736A, by Senator May, an act
15 to amend the Tax Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
19 act shall take effect immediately.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
21 roll.
22 (The Secretary called the roll.)
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
24 the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
5979
1 Calendar 923, those Senators voting in the
2 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
3 Harckham, Helming, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza,
4 Mannion, Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt,
5 Palumbo, Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis,
6 Tedisco and Webb.
7 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 928, Assembly Bill Number 6258A, by
12 Assemblymember Eachus, an act to amend the
13 Tax Law.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
15 a home-rule message at the desk.
16 Read the last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect immediately.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
23 the results.
24 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
25 Calendar 928, those Senators voting in the
5980
1 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
2 Harckham, Helming, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza,
3 Mannion, Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt,
4 Palumbo, Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Tedisco and
5 Webb.
6 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 931, Assembly Bill Number 5872A, by
11 Assemblymember Brabenec, an act to amend the
12 Tax Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
14 a home-rule message at the desk.
15 Read the last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
22 the results.
23 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
24 Calendar 931, those Senators voting in the
25 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
5981
1 Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
2 Martinez, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis and Webb.
3 Ayes, 52. Nays, 10.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 937, Assembly Bill Number 6202A, by
8 Assemblymember Maher, an act to amend the
9 Tax Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
11 a home-rule message at the desk.
12 Read the last section.
13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
14 act shall take effect immediately.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
19 the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
21 Calendar 937, those Senators voting in the
22 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
23 Harckham, Helming, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza,
24 Mannion, Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt,
25 Palumbo, Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Tedisco and
5982
1 Webb.
2 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
4 is passed.
5 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6 960, Assembly Bill Number 6558, by
7 Assemblymember Hunter, an act to amend the
8 Tax Law.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
10 a home-rule message at the desk.
11 Read the last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
20 Calendar 960, those Senators voting in the
21 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
22 Harckham, Helming, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza,
23 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo,
24 Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis, Tedisco and
25 Webb.
5983
1 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
3 is passed.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 965, Assembly Bill Number 6556, by
6 Assemblymember Jacobson, an act to amend the
7 Tax Law.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There is
9 a home-rule message at the desk.
10 Read the last section.
11 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
12 act shall take effect immediately.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
14 roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
17 the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
19 Calendar 965, those Senators voting in the
20 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
21 Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
22 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads,
23 Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis, Tedisco and Webb.
24 Ayes, 46. Nays, 16.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
5984
1 is passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 971, Assembly Bill Number 6555, by
4 Assemblymember Jacobson, an act to amend the
5 Tax Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
7 a home-rule message at the desk.
8 Read the last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
10 act shall take effect immediately.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
17 Calendar 971, those Senators voting in the
18 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
19 Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
20 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads,
21 Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis, Tedisco and Webb.
22 Ayes, 46. Nays, 16.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5985
1 984, Senate Print 4230, by Senator Kennedy, an
2 act to establish the extreme weather preparedness
3 task force.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
5 last section.
6 THE SECRETARY: Section 6. This
7 act shall take effect immediately.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
9 roll.
10 (The Secretary called the roll.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
12 the results.
13 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
15 is passed.
16 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
17 990, Senate Print 3313B, by Senator Skoufis, an
18 act to amend the Private Housing Finance Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 7. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5986
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1012, Assembly Bill Number 6732, by
8 Assemblymember Aubry, an act to amend the
9 Highway Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
11 last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
20 Calendar Number 1012, voting in the negative:
21 Senator Brisport.
22 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5987
1 1013, Senate Print 6580, by Senator Gallivan, an
2 act to amend the Highway Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
11 the results.
12 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
13 Calendar Number 1013, voting in the negative:
14 Senator Brisport.
15 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 1016, Senate Print 1292, by Senator Parker, an
20 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
22 last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
24 act shall take effect immediately.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5988
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
4 the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6 Calendar 1016, those Senators voting in the
7 negative are Senators Borrello, Brisport,
8 Gallivan, Gonzalez, Griffo, Helming, Oberacker,
9 Ortt, Salazar, Walczyk and Weik.
10 Ayes, 51. Nays, 11.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 1017, Senate Print 1453, by Senator Sanders, an
15 act to amend the General Municipal Law.
16 SENATOR GIANARIS: Lay it aside for
17 the day.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Lay it
19 aside for the day.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1037, Senate Print 6357, by Senator Mannion, an
22 act to amend the Social Services Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
5989
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 1039, Senate Print 5516A, by Senator Brouk, an
12 act to amend the Mental Hygiene Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect immediately.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
21 the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5990
1 1046, Senate Print 1449, by Senator Sanders, an
2 act to direct the City of New York to conduct an
3 analysis of stormwater and groundwater issues in
4 southeast Queens.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
6 last section.
7 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
8 act shall take effect immediately.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
10 roll.
11 (The Secretary called the roll.)
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
13 the results.
14 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
15 Calendar Number 1046, voting in the negative:
16 Senator Martinez.
17 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1054, Senate Print 6668, by Senator Rivera, an
22 act to amend the Social Services Law and the
23 Correction Law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
25 last section.
5991
1 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
2 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
3 shall have become a law.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
10 Calendar 1054, those Senators voting in the
11 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello, Gallivan,
12 Griffo, Helming, Lanza, Mattera, Murray,
13 Oberacker, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
14 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
15 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 1060, Senate Print Number 2477A, by
20 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
21 Labor Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
23 last section.
24 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
25 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
5992
1 shall have become a law.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar 1060, those Senators voting in the
9 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
10 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Griffo, Helming, Lanza,
11 Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, Ortt,
12 Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
13 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
15 is passed.
16 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
17 1062, Senate Print 4982, by Senator Ramos, an act
18 to amend the Labor Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5993
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar 1062, those Senators voting in the
5 negative are Senators Borrello,
6 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
7 Martins, Oberacker, Rhoads and Walczyk.
8 Ayes, 53. Nays, 9.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1085, Senate Print Number 3315A, by
13 Senator Sepúlveda, an act to amend the
14 Surrogate's Court Procedure Act.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
16 last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
19 shall have become a law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
21 roll.
22 (The Secretary called the roll.)
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
24 the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
5994
1 Calendar 1085, those Senators voting in the
2 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
3 Helming, Lanza, Martinez, Oberacker, Ortt,
4 Palumbo, Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber
5 and Weik.
6 Ayes, 47. Nays, 15.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1098, Senate Print 5056A, by Senator Thomas, an
11 act to amend the Financial Services Law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
13 last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
17 roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
20 the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
22 Calendar 1098, those Senators voting in the
23 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
24 Helming, Oberacker, Ortt, Palumbo, Rolison, Stec,
25 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
5995
1 Ayes, 49. Nays, 13.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
3 is passed.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 1112, Senate Print 6226A, by Senator Hinchey, an
6 act to amend the Public Health Law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
8 last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
10 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
11 shall have become a law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
13 roll.
14 (The Secretary called the roll.)
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
16 the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1115, Senate Print 6550, by Senator Mayer, an act
22 to amend the Vehicle and Traffic Law.
23 SENATOR GIANARIS: Lay it aside for
24 the day.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Lay it
5996
1 aside for the day.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 1134, Senate Print 6296, by Senator Mannion, an
4 act to amend the Penal Law.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
6 last section.
7 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
8 act shall take effect on the 60th day after it
9 shall have become a law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
11 roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
14 the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 1147, Senate Print 5802, by Senator Mannion, an
20 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
22 last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
24 act shall take effect June 1, 2024.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5997
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
4 Oberacker to explain his vote.
5 SENATOR OBERACKER: Thank you,
6 Madam President.
7 I would like to thank the bill's
8 sponsor. As a recent arrival to the age of 60, I
9 feel like I will be able to utilize this bill to
10 the best of my ability, and I proudly vote aye.
11 Thank you.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
13 Oberacker to be recorded in the affirmative.
14 Announce the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
16 Calendar 1147, those Senators voting in the
17 negative are Senators Brisport, Hoylman-Sigal and
18 Martinez.
19 Ayes, 59. Nays, 3.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1149, Assembly Bill Number 6949, by
24 Assemblymember Glick, an act to amend the
25 Environmental Conservation Law.
5998
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
2 last section.
3 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
4 act shall take effect immediately.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
6 roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
9 Harckham to explain his vote.
10 SENATOR HARCKHAM: Thank you very
11 much, Madam President.
12 Geothermal is one of the
13 technologies that's going to help us with our
14 transition to a clean energy future. Geothermal
15 is a much more efficient form of heating and
16 cooling than carbon-based systems. But it's not
17 as accessible or affordable as it could have been
18 because of a draconian regulation in New York
19 that says that if you go down a geothermal bore
20 hole more than 500 feet, it's considered an oil
21 and gas well. And with that comes a host of
22 reporting requirements, bonding requirements.
23 And it -- therefore the geothermal
24 industry will use two and three and four wells,
25 taking up more property and costing property
5999
1 owners much more.
2 So by allowing them to go deeper
3 than 500 feet, it becomes much more
4 cost-effective. For property owners, it allows
5 less space to be used, therefore we can bring
6 geothermal to properties in our urban
7 environments, our downtown, our commercial
8 environments as well.
9 This bill has no fiscal cost to the
10 state. It will be a win-win for opening the door
11 to geothermal for many residential and commercial
12 property owners as well as multifamily property
13 owners.
14 I proudly vote aye.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
16 Harckham to be recorded in the affirmative.
17 Senator Mattera to explain his vote.
18 SENATOR MATTERA: Yes, and I thank
19 the sponsor for this bill. This is a great bill.
20 Me being in the plumbing business,
21 this is very, very important for our renewable
22 energy and for our future because there was jobs
23 that were going to be lost, especially with the
24 renewable energy moving forward, and this will
25 help the plumbing industry in a lot of ways.
6000
1 But we need all sources of renewable
2 energy. Wind and solar is not going to do the
3 job with the CLCPA's mandates that are moving
4 forward.
5 So, Senator Harckham, I thank you so
6 much. Very important. We need other sources of
7 the renewable energy, and this is a good way of
8 moving forward. And green hydrogen is next.
9 Thank you very much.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
11 Mattera to be recorded in the affirmative.
12 Announce the results.
13 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
14 Calendar Number 1149, voting in the negative are
15 Senators Griffo and Oberacker.
16 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1166, Senate Print 6879A, by Senator Walczyk, an
21 act to amend the Public Housing Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
23 last section.
24 THE SECRETARY: Section 13. This
25 act shall take effect immediately.
6001
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
2 roll.
3 (The Secretary called the roll.)
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
5 the results.
6 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1173, Assembly Bill Number 5673, by
11 Assemblymember Eachus, an act to amend the
12 Highway Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect immediately.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
21 the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
23 Calendar Number 1173, voting in the negative:
24 Senator Brisport.
25 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
6002
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
2 is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 1187, Senate Print 5764B, by Senator Breslin, an
5 act to amend the Insurance Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
10 shall have become a law.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1190, Assembly Bill Number 7255, by
21 Assemblymember Anderson, an act to amend
22 Chapter 673 of the Laws of 2005.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6003
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 1194, Senate Print 1687, by Senator Hinchey, an
12 act to amend the Executive Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect on the first of July.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
21 Murray to explain his vote.
22 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you,
23 Madam President.
24 I just rise to thank the sponsor for
25 this. I know we've been working on this, and
6004
1 she's taken the lead and really done a great job.
2 Because this -- this has been a
3 problem, is getting the MWBEs recertified. Many
4 have waited -- I mean in some cases years -- to
5 find out if they were getting it and then were
6 denied for no apparent reason when there was no
7 change in their status.
8 So having this presumption will
9 absolutely help all of the MWBEs but also speed
10 up the process and make it -- make us able to
11 accomplish the mission of why we have the MWBEs
12 in the first place.
13 So I thank the sponsor. I proudly
14 vote yes.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
16 Murray to be recorded in the affirmative.
17 Announce the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1198, Assembly Bill Number 4720, by
23 Assemblymember McDonald, an act to amend the
24 Infrastructure Investment Act.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
6005
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 1199, Senate Print 6609, by Senator Cooney, an
14 act to amend the Executive Law.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
16 last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect immediately.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
23 the results.
24 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
25 Calendar Number 1199, those Senators voting in
6006
1 the negative are Senators Ashby,
2 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Helming, Martins, Murray,
3 Ortt, Rhoads and Weber.
4 Ayes, 54. Nays, 8.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1200, Assembly Bill Number 6791, by
9 Assemblymember Bichotte Hermelyn, an act to amend
10 Chapter 782 of the Laws of 2021.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
12 last section.
13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
14 act shall take effect immediately.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
19 the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
22 is passed.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 1206, Assembly Bill Number 4969, by
25 Assemblymember Vanel, an act creating a temporary
6007
1 state commission to study and investigate how to
2 regulate artificial intelligence.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
11 the results.
12 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1207, Senate Print 6476A, by Senator Gonzalez, an
17 act directing a state agency telework report.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
19 last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
21 act shall take effect immediately.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6008
1 the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
3 Calendar 1207, those Senators voting in the
4 negative are Senators Griffo, Martins, Oberacker,
5 Ortt, Walczyk and Weber.
6 Ayes, 56. Nays, 6.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1220, Assembly Bill Number 6724, by
11 Assemblymember Bronson, an act in relation to
12 authorizing the City of Rochester to convey by
13 appropriate instruments to the Rochester
14 Pure Waters District, an easement in
15 Genesee Valley Park.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
17 a home-rule message at the desk.
18 Read the last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
20 act shall take effect immediately.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
6009
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar Number 1220, voting in the negative:
3 Senator Lanza.
4 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1221, Senate Print 6667, by Senator May, an act
9 to amend the General Municipal Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
11 last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1225, Senate Print 5965A, by Senator Bailey, an
24 act to amend the Correction Law.
25 SENATOR GIANARIS: Lay it aside for
6010
1 the day.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Lay it
3 aside for the day.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 1227, Senate Print 260, by Senator Serrano, an
6 act to amend the Education Law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
8 last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
10 act shall take effect immediately.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
17 Calendar Number 1227, voting in the negative:
18 Senator Walczyk.
19 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1230, Senate Print 6980A, by Senator Mayer, an
24 act to amend the Education Law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
6011
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
10 Calendar 1230, those Senators voting in the
11 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello, Gallivan,
12 Griffo, Oberacker, Ortt, Stec, Tedisco and
13 Walczyk.
14 Ayes, 53. Nays, 9.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
16 is passed.
17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
18 1238, Senate Print 6627A, by Senator Kennedy, an
19 act in relation to authorizing and directing the
20 New York State Power Authority to rename the
21 Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant to the
22 Shirley J. Hamilton Niagara Power Plant.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6012
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar 1238, those Senators voting in the
9 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
10 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
11 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, Ortt,
12 Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
13 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
15 is passed.
16 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
17 1239, Senate Print Number 1610, by
18 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
19 Real Property Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
21 last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
23 act shall take effect on the 60th day after it
24 shall have become a law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
6013
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
4 the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6 Calendar 1239, those Senators voting in the
7 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
8 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
9 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
10 O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Skoufis,
11 Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
12 Ayes, 40. Nays, 22.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1246, Senate Print Number 6676, by
17 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
18 Uniform City Court Act.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
22 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
23 shall have become a law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
25 roll.
6014
1 (The Secretary called the roll.)
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
3 the results.
4 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
5 Calendar 1246, those Senators voting in the
6 negative are Senators Ashby, Griffo, Oberacker,
7 Ortt, Palumbo, Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk,
8 Weber and Weik.
9 Ayes, 51. Nays, 11.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 1251, Assembly Bill Number 6222A, by
14 Assemblymember Anderson, an act to amend the
15 Banking Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
19 act shall take effect immediately.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
21 roll.
22 (The Secretary called the roll.)
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
24 the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
6015
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
2 is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 1254, Senate Print 6970, by Senator Sanders, an
5 act to amend the Banking Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect immediately.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
11 roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
14 the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 1264, Senate Print Number 6674, by
20 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
21 Social Services Law and the Insurance Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
23 last section.
24 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
25 act shall take effect on the first of January.
6016
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
2 roll.
3 (The Secretary called the roll.)
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
5 the results.
6 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1267, Senate Print 885B, by Senator Hinchey, an
11 act to amend the Multiple Residence Law.
12 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Lay it
14 aside.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1270, Senate Print Number 2481, by
17 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
18 Executive Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect on the first of January.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6017
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar 1270, those Senators voting in the
5 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
6 Oberacker, Ortt and Stec.
7 Ayes, 56. Nays, 6.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 1277, Senate Print 3381A, by Senator Kennedy, an
12 act to amend the Executive Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
16 act shall take effect immediately.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
21 the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
23 Calendar 1277, those Senators voting in the
24 negative are Senators Borrello,
25 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Lanza,
6018
1 Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, Ortt,
2 Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
3 Ayes, 46. Nays, 16.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1286, Assembly Bill Number 2137, by
8 Assemblymember Peoples-Stokes, an act to amend
9 the Public Authorities Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
11 a home-rule message at the desk.
12 Read the last section.
13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
14 act shall take effect immediately.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
19 the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
22 is passed.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 1293, Senate Print 5554, by Senator Comrie, an
25 act to amend the General Municipal Law.
6019
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
2 last section.
3 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
4 act shall take effect immediately.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
6 roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
9 the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
11 Calendar 1293, those Senators voting in the
12 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
13 Helming, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, Rolison,
14 Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
15 Ayes, 49. Nays, 13.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 1298, Assembly Bill Number 6693, by
20 Assemblymember Shimsky, an act to authorize the
21 assessor of Mount Pleasant to accept an
22 application for exemption from real property
23 taxes.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
25 last section.
6020
1 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
2 act shall take effect immediately.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
4 roll.
5 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
7 the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
10 is passed.
11 There's a substitution at the desk.
12 The Secretary will read.
13 THE SECRETARY: Senator Jackson
14 moves to discharge, from the Committee on
15 Cities 1, Assembly Bill Number 6659 and
16 substitute it for the identical Senate Bill 6171,
17 Third Reading Calendar 1307.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
19 substitution is so ordered.
20 The Secretary will read.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1307, Assembly Bill Number 6659, an act to amend
23 Chapter 470 of the Laws of 2022.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
25 a home-rule message at the desk.
6021
1 Read the last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 1308, Assembly Bill Number 6667, by
14 Assemblymember Walker, an act to amend
15 Chapter 548 of the Laws of 2022.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
17 a home-rule message at the desk.
18 Read the last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
20 act shall take effect immediately.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
6022
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar Number 1308, voting in the negative:
3 Senator Oberacker.
4 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1320, Senate Print 4557, by Senator Skoufis, an
9 act in relation to permitting certain
10 municipalities to receive reimbursement from the
11 state for law enforcement activities.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
13 last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
17 roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
20 the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
22 Calendar Number 1320, voting in the negative:
23 Senator Brisport.
24 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6023
1 is passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 1330, Assembly Bill Number 6180A, by
4 Assemblymember Braunstein, an act to amend the
5 Public Health Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect immediately.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
11 roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
14 the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
16 Calendar Number 1330, voting in the negative:
17 Senator Walczyk.
18 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1333, Senate Print 6956, by Senator Myrie, an act
23 in relation to requiring the Commissioner of
24 Health to develop a sustainability plan for the
25 State University of New York Downstate Medical
6024
1 Center.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
3 last section.
4 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
5 act shall take effect immediately.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
7 roll.
8 (The Secretary called the roll.)
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
10 the results.
11 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 1338, Senate Print 6551, by Senator Mayer, an act
16 to amend the Labor Law.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
18 last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
20 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
21 shall have become a law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6025
1 the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
4 is passed.
5 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6 1344, Senate Print 6675, by Senator Breslin, an
7 act to amend the Election Law.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
9 last section.
10 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
11 act shall take effect on the 60th day after it
12 shall have become a law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
14 roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
17 the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1345, Senate Print 6933, by Senator Webb, an act
23 to amend the Election Law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
25 last section.
6026
1 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
2 act shall take effect immediately.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
4 roll.
5 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
7 the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
9 Calendar Number 1345, those Senators voting in
10 the negative are Senators Borrello,
11 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Martins and Rhoads.
12 Ayes, 58. Nays, 4.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1352, Assembly Bill Number 3125A, by
17 Assemblymember Magnarelli, an act to amend the
18 Public Service Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
23 shall have become a law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
25 roll.
6027
1 (The Secretary called the roll.)
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
3 the results.
4 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1355, Senate Print 6796, by Senator Addabbo, an
9 act to amend the Agriculture and Markets Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
11 last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
18 Addabbo to explain his vote.
19 SENATOR ADDABBO: Thank you,
20 Madam President. Good afternoon, everybody.
21 Yesterday when we passed Senate Bill
22 2163, it was actually a bill meant to make it
23 illegal to slaughter any horse within the State
24 of New York.
25 But when I spoke yesterday on the
6028
1 floor I mentioned that it was done in order to
2 address some of the issues we're having in terms
3 of how do we implement or how do we address and
4 actually carry out the laws of actually helping
5 to protect against the slaughter of horses.
6 This bill today, 6796, takes another
7 step. And now it basically says that in any
8 place that a horse is sold or at auction, that
9 there should be signage explaining that this is a
10 law now in New York that we are now saving horses
11 from slaughter. So at any site that has either
12 an auction or a sale of a horse, signage will be
13 presented or posted.
14 In addition to that, it also says
15 that an agent of -- the Agriculture and Markets
16 Department will have an agent at the sale or
17 auction of a horse, to actually help the
18 enforcement of these pieces of legislation that
19 we are passing here in this house and hopefully
20 in the other house.
21 Once again, I want to thank the
22 horse advocates for working with my office. I
23 want to thank our leader for getting this bill to
24 the floor, and my colleagues as we take another
25 positive step in saving horses, protecting them,
6029
1 also improving after-care.
2 And again, I want to thank you all
3 for your support, and I'll be voting aye.
4 Thank you, Madam President.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
6 Addabbo to be recorded in the affirmative.
7 Announce the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
9 Calendar Number 1355, voting in the negative:
10 Senator Walczyk.
11 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 1357, Senate Print 6597A, by Senator Kavanagh, an
16 act to amend the General Business Law.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
18 last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
20 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
21 shall have become a law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
6030
1 Borrello to explain his vote.
2 SENATOR BORRELLO: Thank you,
3 Madam President.
4 I'm in the restaurant business, and
5 I can tell you that it's a little annoying when I
6 see that someone doesn't have a paper menu and
7 you have to scan the app on the phone and see the
8 menu on that tiny little screen.
9 But the bottom line is, this is not
10 something that government needs to be involved
11 in. If people don't like that and they can't get
12 a paper menu, they can choose to go somewhere
13 else. And quite frankly, it's a bad business
14 practice, as far as I'm concerned. I would never
15 do that. But I also believe that they have a
16 right to do that. And if they choose not to
17 provide a paper menu, the consumer, the guest,
18 will decide for themselves whether or not they
19 want to continue to patronize that.
20 So I'm going to vote no because this
21 is just government overreach.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
23 Borrello to be recorded in the negative.
24 Announce the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6031
1 Calendar 1357, those Senators voting in the
2 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
3 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Lanza,
4 Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, Palumbo, Rolison,
5 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
6 Ayes, 47. Nays, 15.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1388, Assembly Bill Number 6616, by
11 Assemblymember Zebrowski, an act to amend
12 Chapter 329 of the Laws of 2009.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect immediately.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
21 the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6032
1 1390, Senate Print 6564, by Senator Kennedy, an
2 act to amend the Local Finance Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
4 a home-rule message at the desk.
5 Read the last section.
6 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
7 act shall take effect immediately.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
9 roll.
10 (The Secretary called the roll.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
12 the results.
13 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
14 Calendar 1390, those Senators voting in the
15 negative are Senators Ashby and Walczyk.
16 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1398, Assembly Bill Number 7043A, by
21 Assemblymember Fahy, an act to amend the
22 Vehicle and Traffic Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
24 a home-rule message at the desk.
25 Read the last section.
6033
1 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
2 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
3 shall have become a law.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
10 Calendar 1398, those Senators voting in the
11 negative are Senators Lanza and Griffo.
12 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1408, Assembly Bill Number 7206B, by
17 Assemblymember Pretlow, an act to amend the
18 Vehicle and Traffic Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
20 a home-rule message at the desk.
21 Read the last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
23 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
24 shall have become a law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
6034
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
4 the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6 Calendar Number 1408, those Senators recorded in
7 the negative are Senators Martinez and Palumbo.
8 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1448, Senate Print 7460, by Senator Palumbo, an
13 act to amend Chapter 438 of the Laws of 2022.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
15 last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
22 the results.
23 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
25 is passed.
6035
1 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
2 1454, Assembly Bill Number 1120, by
3 Assemblymember Joyner, an act to amend the
4 Labor Law.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
6 last section.
7 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
8 act shall take effect immediately.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
10 roll.
11 (The Secretary called the roll.)
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
13 the results.
14 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
15 Calendar 1454, those Senators voting in the
16 negative are Senators Borrello, Griffo, Helming,
17 Oberacker and Weber. Also Senator Stec.
18 Ayes, 56. Nays, 6.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1466, Assembly Bill Number 2943, by
23 Assemblymember Simpson, an act to amend the
24 Highway Law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
6036
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
10 Calendar Number 1466, voting in the negative:
11 Senator Brisport.
12 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1467, Assembly Bill Number 4033, by
17 Assemblymember Simpson, an act to amend the
18 Highway Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6037
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar Number 1467, voting in the negative:
5 Senator Brisport.
6 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1477, Assembly Bill Number 5985A, by
11 Assemblymember Rosenthal, an act to amend the
12 Public Health Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect June 1, 2024.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
21 the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6038
1 1483, Senate Print 4707A, by Senator Walczyk, an
2 act to amend the Highway Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
11 the results.
12 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1486, Senate Print 4897A, by Senator Rolison, an
17 act to amend the Highway Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
19 last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
21 act shall take effect immediately.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6039
1 the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
3 Calendar Number 1486, voting in the negative:
4 Senator Brisport.
5 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
7 is passed.
8 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
9 1509, Assembly Bill Number 2176, by
10 Assemblymember Epstein, an act to amend the
11 Social Services Law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
13 last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
17 roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
20 the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
22 Calendar Number 1509, voting in the negative:
23 Senator Oberacker.
24 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6040
1 is passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 1510, Assembly Bill Number 7410, by
4 Assemblymember Fitzpatrick, an act to amend the
5 Highway Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect immediately.
10 (The Secretary called the roll.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
12 the results.
13 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
14 Calendar Number 1510, voting in the negative:
15 Senator Brisport.
16 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1511, Senate Print 6050, by Senator Mayer, an act
21 to amend the Education Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
23 last section.
24 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
25 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
6041
1 shall have become a law.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
6 Mattera to explain his vote.
7 SENATOR MATTERA: Thank you,
8 Madam President.
9 And I want to thank Senator Mayer
10 for this very, very important bill, project labor
11 agreements for construction projects with SUNY
12 and CUNY schools. This is so, so important.
13 Over the years that I've been a
14 business agent with the trades, I've had a lot of
15 unscrupulous contractors arrested with the
16 district attorney's office because they cheat,
17 and this bill will prevent that. This will
18 protect the good general contractors, this will
19 protect all the good contractors and all
20 construction deals, and this is definitely going
21 to protect all of the workers.
22 Just to give a little bit of a
23 history, my dad -- may he rest in peace -- my
24 father back in 1971 was working at the VA
25 Hospital over in Northport, and my dad was not
6042
1 getting paid the proper wage. And he found out
2 from union reps that came up to him. His boss,
3 yes, was not paying him correctly. And my dad
4 went home and he went into the union. And thank
5 God my dad did, because all these years my father
6 was so proud to be a union member, making sure
7 that he was getting paid the prevailing wage.
8 This is taxpayers' monies that are
9 being paid. And when we have local jobs for
10 local people, that's what this bill does. This
11 bill generates revenue in the State of New York.
12 We do not have out-of-state workers that are
13 coming in, that are taking our jobs away and
14 bringing the money back to their states, and
15 their bosses aren't even paying them the right
16 rate.
17 So you know what, this -- yes, we
18 have our district attorneys. But with all the
19 trades, with the electricians, the plumbers, the
20 steamfitters, the laborers, the concrete, all the
21 trades -- the HVAC workers -- all I get to say is
22 this. The apprenticeship programs are so
23 important. So when our contractors bid on the
24 work, they're bidding on this prevailing wage
25 work with apprentices. So that's how they're
6043
1 very much competitive.
2 This is very important with our
3 renewable energy. We have project labor
4 agreements for all these projects. All these
5 projects right now should be done -- Stony Brook.
6 When Senator LaValle --
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
8 Mattera, how do you vote?
9 SENATOR MATTERA: Yes. And you
10 know what, Madam President? I thank you. This
11 is a great bill. I vote yes. Thank you.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
13 you. Senator Mattera to be recorded in the
14 affirmative.
15 Announce the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
17 Calendar Number 1511, voting in the negative:
18 Senator Ortt.
19 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1512, Senate Print 6097, by Senator Gounardes, an
24 act to amend the Retirement and Social Security
25 Law.
6044
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
2 a home-rule message at the desk.
3 Read the last section.
4 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
5 act shall take effect immediately.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
7 roll.
8 (The Secretary called the roll.)
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
10 the results.
11 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 1513, Assembly Bill Number 6499, by
16 Assemblymember Pheffer Amato, an act to amend the
17 General Municipal Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
19 a home-rule message at the desk.
20 Read the last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6045
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1514, Senate Print 6246, by Senator Gounardes, an
8 act to amend the Vehicle and Traffic Law.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
10 a home-rule message at the desk.
11 Read the last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
20 Calendar 1514, those Senators voting in the
21 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
22 Helming, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
23 Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec, Tedisco,
24 Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
25 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
6046
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
2 is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 1515, Senate Print 6247, by Senator Myrie, an act
5 to amend the Election Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
9 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
10 shall have become a law.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1516, Senate Print 6253, by Senator Jackson, an
21 act to amend the General Municipal Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
23 a home-rule message at the desk.
24 Read the last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6047
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 1517, Senate Print 6254, by Senator Jackson, an
12 act to amend the General Municipal Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
14 a home-rule message at the desk.
15 Read the last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
22 the results.
23 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
25 is passed.
6048
1 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
2 1518, Senate Print 6293, by Senator Jackson, an
3 act to amend the Retirement and Social Security
4 Law.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
6 a home-rule message at the desk.
7 Read the last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
9 act shall take effect immediately.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
11 roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
14 the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
17 is passed.
18 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
19 1519, Senate Print 6318A, by Senator Hinchey, an
20 act to amend the Public Service Law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
22 last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
24 act shall take effect immediately.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
6049
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
4 Hinchey to explain her vote.
5 SENATOR HINCHEY: Thank you,
6 Madam President.
7 If you travel anywhere across our
8 state, it is likely that you will lose cellphone
9 service. And in 2023, I just find that
10 unacceptable. I think all of us would find that
11 unacceptable.
12 Not only is it an economic
13 development issue, but it's also a safety issue.
14 And in the rural communities that I represent,
15 there are many back roads, but if you're
16 traveling at night and something happens, you are
17 out of luck. Personally, for me, I can't leave
18 my house and travel in any direction and complete
19 a phone call.
20 As I said, it's 2023. We need to
21 solve this situation imminently. And so I'm
22 really proud for bringing this bill to the floor.
23 This will help us create, for the first time, a
24 statewide map of cellphone service coverage and
25 actually set thresholds and standards, similar to
6050
1 other states, so that we can ensure once and for
2 all that we are actually investing in cellphone
3 service coverage and building out that
4 infrastructure so that everyone across our state
5 can have reliable phone service, especially in a
6 time when we are losing landlines and most people
7 only have a cellphone.
8 I thank the Majority Leader for
9 bringing this bill to the floor, and I'm really
10 proud to vote aye.
11 Thank you, Madam President.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
13 Hinchey to be recorded in the affirmative.
14 Senator Ashby to explain his vote.
15 SENATOR ASHBY: Thank you,
16 Madam President. I want to thank the sponsor for
17 bringing this bill to the floor and for the
18 considered effort to make this improvement.
19 You know, we've seen these study
20 bills come across the Legislature before, and
21 unfortunately we haven't seen a lot of action.
22 I'm hopeful that with this bill we will see
23 action. It's imperative that we address this in
24 this body, and with the companies that are out
25 there, that we work together to make the
6051
1 necessary improvements.
2 And I proudly vote aye.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
4 Ashby to be recorded in the affirmative.
5 Senator Stec to explain his vote.
6 SENATOR STEC: I too rise,
7 Madam President, to support this legislation.
8 However, government is very good at
9 studies and studies and studies. I've got a
10 study that took two years, the Upstate Cellular
11 Coverage Task Force. We spend a lot of money on
12 this, two years to do. It's already over two
13 years old, and the recommendations haven't been
14 implemented. We need to get going. It's time to
15 fish or cut bait.
16 So while I support this, and more
17 data is always good and it's hard to argue
18 against studying something, you know what?
19 Studying isn't going to save lives when a car
20 goes off the road in the Adirondacks and they
21 can't make a phone call and somebody dies, they
22 freeze to death because they didn't have a cell
23 signal. And that happened in my district.
24 It's time to move forward. It's
25 time to get this done. Everybody -- people have
6052
1 gotten rid of their landlines, they're going
2 purely to cell. I've talked to a lot of my
3 sheriffs: 70, 75 percent of 911 calls are coming
4 in on the cellular phone. People are getting --
5 and companies aren't investing in landlines
6 anymore because the customers are getting rid of
7 landlines.
8 It's time to make an investment, do
9 whatever we've got to do. Studies are nice, but
10 it's time to fish or cut bait.
11 I vote aye.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
13 Stec to be recorded in the affirmative.
14 Senator May to explain her vote.
15 SENATOR MAY: Thank you,
16 Madam President.
17 And I want to thank Senator Hinchey
18 for this bill and for all her work on trying to
19 make sure that we have connectivity across the
20 state.
21 As chair of the Commission on
22 Rural Resources, I am grateful for this bill
23 because this is a rural issue -- but also as
24 chair of the committee on our smaller cities. In
25 Syracuse, where I live, when I ran for office the
6053
1 first time in 2008, I lived in a house that was
2 less than a quarter-mile from Syracuse
3 University. We had terrible cell service on our
4 street. And I got a call the day after the
5 election and I had to run two flights of stairs
6 up to the attic in order to receive this call.
7 And I was all out of breath when I
8 had to say, "Thank you, Governor Cuomo, nice to
9 talk to you." I mean, the governor called to
10 congratulate me, and I -- the only way I could
11 receive that call was by running up to the third
12 floor.
13 So I hope that this will help our
14 people all over the state, in rural and urban
15 areas, who are struggling to get the cell service
16 they deserve. Thank you.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
18 May to be recorded in the affirmative.
19 Senator Kennedy to explain his vote.
20 SENATOR KENNEDY: Thank you,
21 Madam President.
22 I just want to rise and extend my
23 gratitude to the bill sponsor, Senator Hinchey,
24 for putting this thoughtful piece of legislation
25 together.
6054
1 I think everyone here remembers when
2 they got their first cellphone. We remember a
3 time when cellphones didn't exist -- well, maybe
4 everybody.
5 (Laughter.)
6 SENATOR KENNEDY: Maybe not -- you
7 know. We're showing our age here, you know.
8 But, I mean I remember when I got
9 mine. I was on my first job back in like 1999.
10 You know, it was 24 years ago now. There are
11 some in this chamber that were still in diapers.
12 I'm not going to shout anybody out, but you know
13 who you are.
14 Bottom line is now, you know, these
15 cellphones, the only time that you see a phone
16 attached to a cord these days, it seems, is when
17 they're plugged in. And even that's becoming a
18 thing of the past.
19 Cellular service is a part of our
20 lives in each and every way. It is almost an
21 attachment of our own self. We are dependent
22 upon cellular service. So it's important that we
23 study where service exists, where it still needs
24 to be implemented to the level that we deserve
25 across our state, and serve as a model for the
6055
1 rest of the nation.
2 Again, I thank Senator Hinchey for
3 putting this bill forward and the leader for
4 bringing it to the floor.
5 With that, Madam President, I vote
6 aye.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
8 Kennedy to be recorded in the affirmative.
9 Announce the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 1520, Senate Print 6335A, by Senator Mannion, an
15 act to amend the Civil Service Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
19 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
20 shall have become a law.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
6056
1 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
3 is passed.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 1521, Assembly Bill Number 6571, by
6 Assemblymember Pheffer Amato, an act to amend the
7 Retirement and Social Security Law.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
9 last section.
10 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
11 act shall take effect immediately.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
13 roll.
14 (The Secretary called the roll.)
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
16 the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1529, Senate Print 6584A, by Senator Gianaris, an
22 act to amend the Executive Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6057
1 act shall take effect on the 120th day after it
2 shall have become a law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
4 roll.
5 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
7 the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1550, Assembly Bill Number 7477A, by
13 Assemblymember Jacobson, an act to amend
14 Chapter 371 of the Laws of 2020.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
16 last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect immediately.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
23 the results.
24 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
25 Calendar 1550, those Senators voting in the
6058
1 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
2 Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
3 Martinez, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis and Webb.
4 Ayes, 52. Nays, 10.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1566, Assembly Bill Number 7427, by
9 Assemblymember Jackson, an act to amend
10 Chapter 303 of the Laws of 1999.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
12 last section.
13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
14 act shall take effect immediately.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
19 the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
22 is passed.
23 Calendar Number 1580 is high and
24 will be laid aside for the day.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6059
1 1665, Senate Print 2279C, by Senator Cleare, an
2 act to amend the General Business Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
11 the results.
12 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
13 Calendar 1665, those Senators voting in the
14 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
15 Oberacker, Ortt, Rhoads and Stec.
16 Ayes, 55. Nays, 7.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1667, Senate Print 2379A, by Senator Persaud, an
21 act to amend the Administrative Code of the
22 City of New York.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6060
1 act shall take effect on the 90th day after it
2 shall have become a law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
4 roll.
5 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
7 the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
9 Calendar 1667, those Senators voting in the
10 negative are Senators Griffo, Oberacker, Ortt and
11 Walczyk.
12 Ayes, 58. Nays, 4.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1683, Senate Print 6210A, by Senator Mayer, an
17 act to amend the Judiciary Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
19 last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
21 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
22 shall have become a law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6061
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar 1683, those Senators voting in the
5 negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan, Griffo,
6 Helming, Murray, Oberacker, Stec, Tedisco,
7 Walczyk and Weik.
8 Ayes, 52. Nays, 10.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1699, Senate Print 6755A, by Senator Skoufis, an
13 act authorizing the Town of Warwick, County of
14 Orange, to alienate certain lands held in public
15 trust in the Town of Warwick.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There's
17 a home-rule message at the desk.
18 Read the last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 7. This
20 act shall take effect immediately.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
25 the results.
6062
1 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
3 is passed.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 1707, Senate Print 7216A, by Senator Gonzalez, an
6 act to amend the Tax Law.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Read the
8 last section.
9 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
10 act shall take effect January 1, 2024.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
17 Calendar 1707, those Senators voting in the
18 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
19 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
20 Kennedy, Lanza, Martinez, Martins, Mattera,
21 Murray, Oberacker, Ortt, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
22 Tedisco, Walczyk, Webb, Weber and Weik.
23 Ayes, 40. Nays, 22.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
25 is passed.
6063
1 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
2 1715, Senate Print 7411A, by Senator Ortt, an act
3 to amend the State Finance Law.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
5 last section.
6 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
7 act shall take effect immediately.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
9 roll.
10 (The Secretary called the roll.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
12 the results.
13 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
15 is passed.
16 (Laughter.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: That
18 completes the reading of the calendar,
19 Senator Gianaris.
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
21 there's a report of the Rules Committee at the
22 desk. Can we please take that up.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
24 Secretary will read.
25 THE SECRETARY: Senator
6064
1 Stewart-Cousins, from the Committee on Rules,
2 reports the following bills:
3 Senate Print 365B, by
4 Senator Thomas, an act to amend the
5 General Business Law;
6 Senate Print 586A, by
7 Senator Krueger, an act to amend the
8 Civil Practice Law and Rules;
9 Senate Print 721, by
10 Senator Serrano, an act to create a temporary
11 state commission to study and make
12 recommendations concerning the incidence of
13 asthma in the Borough of the Bronx;
14 Senate Print 955, by Senator Cooney,
15 an act to amend the Vehicle and Traffic Law;
16 Senate Print 1163A, by
17 Senator Sanders, an act to acknowledge the
18 fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and
19 inhumanity of slavery in the City of New York;
20 Senate Print 1554B, by
21 Senator Addabbo, an act in relation to creating a
22 temporary commission to conduct a comprehensive
23 study on the current utilization of paid family
24 leave;
25 Senate Print 1723A, by
6065
1 Senator Skoufis, an act to establish a youth
2 development agriculture technology challenge;
3 Senate Print 1724A, by
4 Senator Harckham, an act to amend the Vehicle and
5 Traffic Law;
6 Senate Print 1780A, by
7 Senator Bailey, an act to incentivize the
8 purchase of local produce in supermarkets and
9 grocery stores through the FreshConnect program;
10 Senate Print 2237A, by
11 Senator Rivera, an act to amend the
12 Social Services Law;
13 Senate Print 2328A, by
14 Senator Mayer, an act to amend the
15 General Municipal Law;
16 Senate Print 2407, by
17 Senator Bailey, an act to amend the Agriculture
18 and Markets Law;
19 Senate Print 3144D, by
20 Senator Mannion, an act to amend the
21 Retirement and Social Security Law;
22 Senate Print 4329A, by
23 Senator Sepúlveda, an act in relation to
24 authorizing the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles to
25 enter into reciprocity agreements with other
6066
1 states;
2 Senate Print 4546, by
3 Senator Parker, an act to amend the
4 Social Services Law;
5 Senate Print 4548, by
6 Senator Parker, an act to amend the
7 Social Services Law;
8 Senate Print 4561A, by
9 Senator Gonzalez, an act to amend the
10 Social Services Law;
11 Senate Print 4649, by
12 Senator Kennedy, an act to amend the Tax Law;
13 Senate Print 4817A, by
14 Senator Addabbo, an act to amend the Racing,
15 Pari-Mutuel Wagering and Breeding Law;
16 Senate Print 4830C, by
17 Senator Kennedy, an act to amend the
18 Public Authorities Law;
19 Senate Print 5448A, by
20 Senator Jackson, an act to amend the
21 Executive Law;
22 Senate Print 5712, by
23 Senator Comrie, an act in relation to directing
24 the Department of Health to conduct a study
25 relating to the opening of a public hospital in
6067
1 southeast Queens;
2 Senate Print 5819, by
3 Senator Mattera, an act to amend Chapter 431 of
4 the Laws of 2018;
5 Senate Print 5909B, by
6 Senator Rivera, an act to amend the
7 Public Health Law;
8 Senate Print 5963A, by Senator Liu,
9 an act to amend the Education Law;
10 Senate Print 5980, by Senator Ryan,
11 an act requiring a multi-agency study on the
12 issues impacting the continuum of caregiving in
13 the State of New York;
14 Senate Print 6093, by
15 Senator Harckham, an act authorizing the
16 Carmel Central School District to offer a
17 separate referendum on the question of
18 term limits for members of the Carmel Central
19 School District board of education;
20 Senate Print 6130A, by
21 Senator Parker, an act to amend the Election Law;
22 Senate Print 6303A, by
23 Senator Kennedy, an act to amend the
24 General Business Law;
25 Senate Print 6409A, by Senator Liu,
6068
1 an act to amend the Real Property Tax Law;
2 Senate Print 6504A, by Senator Chu,
3 an act to amend the Public Health Law;
4 Senate Print 6527A, by
5 Senator Murray, an act authorizing the
6 Grace Gospel Church of Suffolk to file an
7 application for retroactive real property tax
8 exemption;
9 Senate Print 6535, by
10 Senator Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, an act in relation
11 to authorizing the Shulamith School for Girls to
12 file with the County of Nassau assessor an
13 application for a retroactive real property tax
14 exemption;
15 Senate Print 6569A, by
16 Senator Myrie, an act to amend the
17 Criminal Procedure Law;
18 Senate Print 6617, by
19 Senator Addabbo, an act to amend the
20 Correction Law;
21 Senate Print 6622A, by
22 Senator Hinchey, an act to allow Brian
23 Laurange Jr. to be eligible to take the
24 civil service exam;
25 Senate Print 6722A, by
6069
1 Senator Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, an act authorizing
2 United Church of God Seventh Day to receive
3 retroactive real property tax exempt status;
4 Senate Print 6807A, by
5 Senator Hinchey, an act in relation to making
6 eligible for provisional appointment and
7 authorizing Paul Strobel to take the competitive
8 civil service examination;
9 Senate Print 6814, by
10 Senator Rivera, an act to amend the
11 Public Health Law;
12 Senate Print 6896, by
13 Senator Hinchey, an act to amend the Tax Law;
14 Senate Print 6919A, by
15 Senator Rolison, an act to amend the Tax Law;
16 Senate Print 7021, by
17 Senator Kennedy, an act to amend the
18 Public Authorities Law;
19 Senate Print 7070, by
20 Senator Borrello, an act to amend the
21 Highway Law;
22 Senate Print 7077A, by Senator Ortt,
23 an act to amend Chapter 584 of the Laws of 1996;
24 Senate Print 7095A, by
25 Senator Breslin, an act to amend the
6070
1 Insurance Law;
2 Senate Print 7212, by
3 Senator Krueger, an act to amend the
4 Military Law;
5 Senate Print 7218, by
6 Senator Hinchey, an act to amend the
7 Public Officers Law;
8 Senate Print 7219, by
9 Senator Hinchey, an act to amend the
10 Not-For-Profit Corporation Law;
11 Senate Print 7251, by
12 Senator Cooney, an act to amend the
13 Executive Law;
14 Senate Print 7253A, by
15 Senator Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, an act in relation
16 to establishing the Island Park LIPA power plant
17 tax assessment reserve fund;
18 Senate Print 7273, by
19 Senator Parker, an act to amend the
20 Civil Service Law;
21 Senate Print 7274, by
22 Senator Parker, an act to amend the
23 Mental Hygiene Law;
24 Senate Print 7289A, by
25 Senator Gounardes, an act to amend the
6071
1 General Municipal Law;
2 Senate Print 7292A, by Senator Ryan,
3 an act granting retroactive Tier 4 membership in
4 the New York State and Local Employees'
5 Retirement System;
6 Senate Print 7434A, by
7 Senator Rolison, an act to amend the
8 Public Officers Law;
9 Senate Print 7505, by
10 Senator Bailey, an act to amend the
11 Criminal Procedure Law;
12 Senate Print 7527, by Senator Chu,
13 an act to amend the Education Law;
14 Senate Print 7531, by
15 Senator Martinez, an act to amend the
16 Highway Law;
17 Senate Print 7534, by
18 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
19 Judiciary Law;
20 Senate Print 7537, by
21 Senator Stewart-Cousins, an act to amend the
22 Village Law;
23 Senate Print 7538, by
24 Senator Skoufis, an act to amend the Village Law;
25 Senate Print 7539, by Senator Ramos,
6072
1 an act to amend the Civil Practice Law and Rules;
2 Senate Print 7548, by Senator Myrie,
3 an act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law;
4 Senate Print 7550, by
5 Senator Stewart-Cousins, an act to amend the
6 Election Law.
7 All bills reported direct to third
8 reading.
9 SENATOR GIANARIS: Move to accept
10 the report of the Rules Committee.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: All those
12 in favor of accepting the report of the
13 Rules Committee please signify by saying aye.
14 (Response of "Aye.")
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Opposed,
16 nay.
17 (No response.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
19 Rules Committee report is accepted.
20 Senator Gianaris.
21 SENATOR GIANARIS: Can we please go
22 back to messages from the Assembly.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
24 Secretary will read.
25 THE SECRETARY: Senator Krueger
6073
1 moves to discharge, from the Committee on
2 Judiciary, Assembly Bill Number 6672A and
3 substitute it for the identical Senate Bill 586A,
4 Third Reading Calendar 1673.
5 Senator Addabbo moves to discharge,
6 from the Committee on Labor, Assembly Bill
7 Number 4676A and substitute it for the identical
8 Senate Bill 1554B, Third Reading Calendar 1732.
9 Senator Skoufis moves to discharge,
10 from the Committee on Finance, Assembly Bill
11 Number 1528A and substitute it for the identical
12 Senate Bill 1723A, Third Reading Calendar 1733.
13 Senator Mayer moves to discharge,
14 from the Committee on Local Government,
15 Assembly Bill Number 2793A and substitute it for
16 the identical Senate Bill 2328A, Third Reading
17 Calendar 1737.
18 Senator Parker moves to discharge,
19 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
20 Number 4956 and substitute it for the identical
21 Senate Bill 4546, Third Reading Calendar 1741.
22 Senator Kennedy moves to discharge,
23 from the Committee on Budget and Revenue,
24 Assembly Bill Number 4868 and substitute it for
25 the identical Senate Bill 4649, Third Reading
6074
1 Calendar 1744.
2 Senator Kennedy moves to discharge,
3 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
4 Number 5052C and substitute it for the identical
5 Senate Bill 4830C, Third Reading Calendar 1746.
6 Senator Comrie moves to discharge,
7 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
8 Number 5970 and substitute it for the identical
9 Senate Bill 5712, Third Reading Calendar 1748.
10 Senator Mattera moves to discharge,
11 from the Committee on Local Government,
12 Assembly Bill Number 5792 and substitute it for
13 the identical Senate Bill 5819, Third Reading
14 Calendar 1749.
15 Senator Ryan moves to discharge,
16 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
17 Number 4275 and substitute it for the identical
18 Senate Bill 5980, Third Reading Calendar 1752.
19 Senator Kennedy moves to discharge,
20 from the Committee on Consumer Protection,
21 Assembly Bill Number 4796A and substitute it for
22 the identical Senate Bill 6303A, Third Reading
23 Calendar 1755.
24 Senator Rivera moves to discharge,
25 from the Committee on Health, Assembly Bill
6075
1 Number 5042 and substitute it for the identical
2 Senate Bill 6814, Third Reading Calendar 1766.
3 Senator Hinchey moves to discharge,
4 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
5 Number 7200 and substitute it for the identical
6 Senate Bill 6896, Third Reading Calendar 1767.
7 Senator Hinchey moves to discharge,
8 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
9 Number 6725 and substitute it for the identical
10 Senate Bill 7218, Third Reading Calendar 1774.
11 Senator Cooney moves to discharge,
12 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
13 Number 5683 and substitute it for the identical
14 Senate Bill 7251, Third Reading Calendar 1776.
15 Senator Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick moves
16 to discharge, from the Committee on Rules,
17 Assembly Bill Number 5142B and substitute it for
18 the identical Senate Bill 7253A, Third Reading
19 Calendar 1777.
20 Senator Parker moves to discharge,
21 from the Committee on Mental Health and
22 Developmental Disabilities, Assembly Bill
23 Number 793 and substitute it for the identical
24 Senate Bill 7274, Third Reading Calendar 1779.
25 Senator Rolison moves to discharge,
6076
1 from the Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill
2 Number 7478A and substitute it for the identical
3 Senate Bill 7434A, Third Reading Calendar 1782.
4 Senator Hoylman-Sigal moves to
5 discharge, from the Committee on Rules,
6 Assembly Bill Number 7669 and substitute it for
7 the identical Senate Bill 7534, Third Reading
8 Calendar 1786.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: So
10 ordered.
11 Senator Gianaris.
12 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
13 let's take up the supplemental calendar, please.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
15 you, Senator Gianaris.
16 Again, the bill sponsors will have
17 five minutes to explain -- as Senator Gianaris
18 explained yesterday, bill sponsors have
19 five minutes and everybody else will have two
20 minutes to explain their vote.
21 The Secretary will read.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1671, Senate Print 365B, by Senator Thomas, an
24 act to amend the General Business Law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
6077
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
8 Thomas to explain his vote.
9 SENATOR THOMAS: Thank you,
10 Mr. President.
11 I will not take five minutes to do
12 this.
13 I've been working on this bill for
14 the past five years, and it's finally on the
15 floor after many roundtables, hearings,
16 negotiations from all sides to make this right,
17 to make this work here in New York.
18 What does this bill do? This is the
19 New York Privacy Act. This bill gives you the
20 right to control what information you share and
21 who can access it when you use the internet. It
22 is important to protect privacy on the internet
23 for everyone, because their personal information
24 and data can be used to do anything possible.
25 And that's the world that we live in.
6078
1 And this bill, this bill creates
2 consumer rights for us. All right? This phone
3 that we have right here, it collects so much data
4 on all of us. It's collected, it's shared, it's
5 sold, it's used for so many different things --
6 to manipulate us, to direct us in one direction.
7 And now we have rights that other states, other
8 states in the continental United States have in
9 protecting our data, the European Union has.
10 So let me just quickly go down the
11 list of the rights that New Yorkers will have
12 once this passes and is signed into law.
13 The right to notice. So if you get
14 onto a website, a pop-up will show up asking you
15 for different permissions as to what needs to be
16 shared.
17 A right to opt out.
18 A right to opt in for sensitive
19 information, like biometric information.
20 A right to portable data. For
21 example, if you have pictures on Shutterfly and
22 you want to move that data to another site, you
23 now have the right to do that.
24 A right to access. Basically, a
25 right to know what Google has on you, for
6079
1 example.
2 A right to correct information, like
3 a credit report. Because the things that the
4 internet knows about you, it might be something
5 that is not true.
6 And of course a right to deletion.
7 This is monumental. New Yorkers
8 deserve data privacy, and I am so proud to vote
9 in the affirmative.
10 Thank you, Mr. President.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
12 Thomas to be recorded in the affirmative.
13 Announce the results.
14 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
15 Calendar 1671, those Senators voting in the
16 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello, Brisport,
17 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Mattera,
18 Murray, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo,
19 Rolison, Scarcella-Spanton, Stec, Tedisco, Weber
20 and Weik.
21 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
23 is passed.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 1673, Assembly Bill Number 6672A, by
6080
1 Assemblymember Epstein, an act to amend the
2 Civil Practice Law and Rules.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
11 the results.
12 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1729, Senate Print 721, by Senator Serrano, an
17 act to create a temporary state commission to
18 study and make recommendations concerning the
19 incidence of asthma in the Borough of the Bronx
20 in New York City.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
22 last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 6. This
24 act shall take effect immediately.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
6081
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
4 the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
7 is passed.
8 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
9 1730, Senate Print 955, by Senator Cooney, an act
10 to amend the Vehicle and Traffic Law.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
12 last section.
13 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
14 act shall take effect immediately.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
19 the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
22 is passed.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 1731, Senate Print 1163A, by Senator Sanders, an
25 act to acknowledge the fundamental injustice,
6082
1 cruelty, brutality and inhumanity of slavery in
2 the City of New York.
3 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Lay it
5 aside.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1732, Assembly Bill Number 4676A, by
8 Assemblymember Woerner, an act in relation to
9 creating a temporary commission to conduct a
10 comprehensive study on the current utilization of
11 paid family leave.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
13 last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
17 roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
20 the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
23 is passed.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 1733, Assembly Bill Number 1528A, by
6083
1 Assemblymember Woerner, an act to establish a
2 youth development agriculture technology
3 challenge.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
5 last section.
6 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
7 act shall take effect immediately.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
9 roll.
10 (The Secretary called the roll.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
12 the results.
13 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
14 Calendar Number 1733, voting in the negative:
15 Senator Walczyk.
16 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1734, Senate Print 1724A, by Senator Harckham, an
21 act to amend the Vehicle and Traffic Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
23 last section.
24 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
25 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
6084
1 shall have become a law.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar Number 1734, those Senators voting in
9 the negative are Senators Borrello, Gallivan,
10 Griffo, Oberacker and Ortt.
11 Ayes, 57. Nays, 5.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 1735, Senate Print 1780A, by Senator Bailey, an
16 act to incentivize the purchase of local produce
17 in supermarkets and grocery stores through the
18 FreshConnect program.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
23 shall have become a law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
25 roll.
6085
1 (The Secretary called the roll.)
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
3 the results.
4 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1736, Senate Print 2237A, by Senator Rivera, an
9 act to amend the Social Services Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
11 last section.
12 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Lay the
14 bill aside.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1737, Assembly Bill Number 2793A, by
17 Assemblymember Otis, an act to amend the
18 General Municipal Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6086
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1738, Senate Print 2407, by Senator Bailey, an
8 act to amend the Agriculture and Markets Law.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
10 last section.
11 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
12 act shall take effect immediately.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
14 roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
17 the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
19 Calendar Number 1738, voting in the negative:
20 Senator Walczyk.
21 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
23 is passed.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 1740, Senate Print 3144D, by Senator Mannion, an
6087
1 act to amend the Retirement and Social Security
2 Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
11 Mannion to explain his vote.
12 SENATOR MANNION: Thank you,
13 Mr. President.
14 I rise today to speak, you know, in
15 support of this bill. Retirees who worked in the
16 public sector currently can make about 35 --
17 exactly up to $35,000 in additional income in
18 working in a -- you know, a similar public-sector
19 employment position. But as we know, there are
20 great challenges across this state in workforce,
21 particularly in law enforcement but also in the
22 world of education, in transportation, and other
23 sectors.
24 So the intent of this bill is to
25 make sure that we can fill our workforce gaps
6088
1 that are out there. And we need to continue to
2 provide these services; the challenges that exist
3 are even greater. And I proudly vote aye.
4 Thank you.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
6 Mannion to be recorded in the affirmative.
7 Announce the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
9 Calendar Number 1740, voting in the negative:
10 Senator Ortt.
11 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 1741, Assembly Bill Number 4956, by
16 Assemblymember Solages, an act to amend the
17 Social Services Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
19 last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
21 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
22 shall have become a law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6089
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar 1741, those Senators voting in the
5 negative are Senators Borrello, Martins,
6 Oberacker, Tedisco and Walczyk.
7 Ayes, 57. Nays, 5.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 1742, Senate Print 4548, by Senator Parker, an
12 act to amend the Social Services Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect immediately.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
21 the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6090
1 1743, Senate Print 4561A, by Senator Gonzalez, an
2 act to amend the Social Services Law.
3 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Lay it
5 aside.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1744, Assembly Bill Number 4868, by
8 Assemblymember Peoples-Stokes, an act to amend
9 the Tax Law and the State Finance Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
11 last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1745, Senate Print 4817A, by Senator Addabbo, an
24 act to amend the Racing, Pari-Mutuel Wagering and
25 Breeding Law.
6091
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
2 last section.
3 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
4 act shall take effect immediately.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
6 roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
9 the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
11 Calendar Number 1745, voting in the negative:
12 Senator Skoufis.
13 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
15 is passed.
16 THE SECRETARY: And also
17 Senator Krueger.
18 Ayes, 60. Nays, 2.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1746, Assembly Bill Number 5052C, by
23 Assemblymember Woerner, an act to amend the
24 Public Authorities Law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
6092
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
10 Calendar 1746, voting in the negative are
11 Senators O'Mara, Ortt and Walczyk.
12 Ayes, 59. Nays, 3.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1747, Senate Print 5448A, by Senator Jackson, an
17 act to amend the Executive Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
19 last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
21 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
22 shall have become a law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6093
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
2 Jackson to explain his vote.
3 SENATOR JACKSON: Thank you,
4 Mr. President.
5 My colleagues, I rise in support of
6 my bill, S5448A, the use-of-force reporting bill,
7 which will require the Division of Criminal
8 Justice Services to report to the Federal Bureau
9 of Investigation's national use-of-force data
10 collection program.
11 In times like these, it is our
12 responsibility as elected representatives to
13 listen to the voices of our constituents and to
14 take decisive action. The use-of-force reporting
15 bill embodies the principles of transparency,
16 accountability and equality that lie at the core
17 of our democratic values. By requiring the
18 reporting of use-of-force incidents we have taken
19 a crucial step towards addressing the structural
20 issues that have plagued our law enforcement
21 agencies for far too long.
22 Transparency is the cornerstone of
23 our accountable institutions, and our law
24 enforcement agencies should be no exception.
25 Without accurate and comprehensive data of
6094
1 use-of-force incidents, we cannot fully
2 understand the scope of the problem at hand. By
3 centralizing this information in a national
4 database, we create an invaluable resource for
5 policymakers, researchers, and communities to
6 analyze, identify patterns, and develop
7 evidence-based solutions.
8 Critics may argue that this
9 reporting requirement imposes an unnecessary
10 burden on all law enforcement agencies. However,
11 we must remember that this bill does not seek to
12 vilify or denigrate the honorable work performed
13 by the majority of our dedicated officers.
14 On the contrary, Mr. President, it
15 provides an opportunity for us to identify the
16 areas of improvement to ensure that our
17 law enforcement agencies are equipped with the
18 necessary tools, training and resources to
19 protect and serve their communities effectively.
20 Moreover, by enforcing a culture of
21 transparency, we can rebuild trust within law
22 enforcement and the communities they serve.
23 Accountability and trust go hand in hand, and the
24 use-of-force reporting bill represents a vital
25 step towards restoring faith in our justice
6095
1 system.
2 Communities that have been
3 marginalized and disproportionately affected by
4 the excessive use of force deserve nothing less
5 than our unwavering commitment to justice and
6 equality.
7 In conclusion, Mr. President, I ask
8 each and every one of my esteemed colleagues to
9 vote aye on this piece of legislation. Let us
10 demonstrate our commitment to fairness,
11 transparency, and the pursuit of a more just
12 society.
13 Thank you, Mr. President. I vote
14 aye.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
16 Jackson to be recorded in the affirmative.
17 Announce the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
19 Calendar 1747, those Senators voting in the
20 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
21 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
22 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
23 O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Tedisco,
24 Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
25 Ayes, 42. Nays, 20.
6096
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
2 is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 1748, Assembly Bill Number 5970, by
5 Assemblymember Aubry, an act in relation to
6 directing the Department of Health to conduct a
7 study relating to the opening of a public
8 hospital in southeast Queens.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
10 last section.
11 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
12 act shall take effect immediately.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
14 roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
17 the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1749, Assembly Bill Number 5792, by
23 Assemblymember Stern, an act to amend Chapter 431
24 of the Laws of 2018.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
6097
1 a home-rule message at the desk.
2 Read the last section.
3 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
4 act shall take effect immediately.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
6 roll.
7 (The Secretary called the roll.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
9 the results.
10 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 1750, Senate Print 5909B, by Senator Rivera, an
15 act to amend the Public Health Law and the
16 Tax Law.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
18 last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
20 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
21 shall have become a law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6098
1 the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
3 Calendar 1750, those Senators voting in the
4 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
5 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
6 Martins, Murray, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
7 Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk,
8 Weber and Weik.
9 Ayes, 43. Nays, 19.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 1751, Senate Print 5963A, by Senator Liu, an act
14 to amend the Education Law.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
16 last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect on the first of July.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
23 Liu to explain his vote.
24 SENATOR LIU: Mr. President, thank
25 you very much.
6099
1 I am very happy to support this
2 particular bill, and I plan to vote yes for it.
3 As we have all seen and read about these last few
4 years, this global pandemic has seen a concurrent
5 secondary virus, that of anti-Asian hate and
6 bigotry. And many of us have proposed solutions
7 to combat that hate and bigotry.
8 Of the many solutions, one long-term
9 way to eradicate hate and bigotry is by educating
10 people. The fact is that Asian-Americans are
11 still largely invisible in our society here. We
12 are seen as either the "Yellow Peril" on one
13 extreme, to the model minority. And however
14 terrible or good, no stereotype is ever benign
15 and certainly not positive in any way.
16 The only way to really make our
17 community less invisible in the coming years and
18 generations is to start teaching our kids in our
19 public schools that Asian-Americans have been
20 part of this country, we helped build this
21 country. We have had our struggles as well as
22 successes. And that we are American like anybody
23 else.
24 And for that reason, Mr. President,
25 I encourage my colleagues to vote yes, and I
6100
1 certainly do as well. Thank you.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
3 Liu to be recorded in the affirmative.
4 Senator Chu to explain her vote.
5 SENATOR CHU: Thank you,
6 Mr. President.
7 I rise to explain my vote and
8 discuss the importance of including AAPI history
9 into New York curricula.
10 As we have seen over the last three
11 years, Asian-Americans throughout the state and
12 our country have been the subject of intense
13 anti-Asian hate and extreme violence and racist
14 rhetoric. This is in part due to the lack of
15 knowledge and understanding of Asian-American
16 history, particularly in light of the COVID-19
17 pandemic.
18 We as a legislative body have the
19 opportunity to combat this hate by including
20 Asian-American, Native Hawaiian and
21 Pacific Islanders history in our public schools
22 curriculum. By including our history in schools,
23 New York State can take charge in dispelling the
24 intolerance and negative stereotypes surrounding
25 Asian-Americas.
6101
1 As I represent a large population of
2 Asian-American families, protecting and
3 reflecting the history of my constituents and my
4 students is one of my high priorities.
5 I would like to thank Senator Liu
6 for his strong advocacy on this issue, and I'm
7 extremely proud to be a cosponsor of this
8 legislation.
9 For all these reasons, I vote aye.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
11 Chu to be recorded in the affirmative.
12 Senator Martins to explain his vote.
13 SENATOR MARTINS: Mr. President, I
14 rise to support this bill.
15 I want to thank Senator Liu for
16 proposing it and carrying it forward.
17 I too have large Asian-American
18 communities in my district, strong communities
19 with pride, and rightfully so.
20 Mr. President, we've said on this
21 floor many times when discussing policy that
22 there is no place for hate anywhere in New York
23 State, certainly none when it's directed at any
24 community, let alone the Asian community.
25 I want to take the opportunity to
6102
1 recognize the need in our educational system that
2 we take a moment to recognize not just the
3 richness of the culture, the history -- that in
4 many ways, frankly, dates back significantly
5 before our European history -- but take the
6 opportunity to recognize it, reinforce it in our
7 education system. And I'm happy to vote aye.
8 Thank you, Mr. President.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
10 Martins to be recorded in the affirmative.
11 Senator Jackson to explain his vote.
12 SENATOR JACKSON: Thank you,
13 Mr. President.
14 First I want to thank my colleague
15 Senator John Liu for putting forward this
16 legislation. Obviously I think, in my opinion,
17 our school system should communicate a wide range
18 of people that are in our school system so that
19 everyone knows.
20 And for myself, this is personal for
21 me because John Liu and I, when we joined the
22 City Council, we joked that we had one and a half
23 Asians in the City Council. And so you say,
24 Well, who is that half? Well, that's me. My
25 father was Eddie York Chu, an Asian man that was
6103
1 only about five foot tall and only weighed about
2 95 pounds soaking wet.
3 And let me just say this to you,
4 that my dad -- no one messed with my father
5 because if they messed with my father, they
6 messed with me and my brothers and sisters. And
7 no one wanted to mess with my dad when he was
8 coming from Chinatown, taking the train, the
9 No. 4 train up to Tremont Avenue in the Bronx.
10 So I wholeheartedly support this
11 bill about including Asian-American history into
12 our school system.
13 John, thank you for your bill.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
15 Jackson to be recorded in the affirmative.
16 Announce the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1752, Assembly Bill Number 4275, by
22 Assemblymember Barrett, an act requiring a
23 multi-agency study on the issues impacting the
24 continuum of caregiving in the State of New York.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
6104
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 1753, Senate Print 6093, by Senator Harckham, an
14 act authorizing the Carmel Central School
15 District to offer a separate referendum on the
16 question of term limits for members of the
17 Carmel Central School District board of
18 education.
19 SENATOR LIU: Lay it aside for the
20 day.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
22 will be laid aside for the day.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 1754, Senate Print 6130A, by Senator Parker, an
25 act to amend the Election Law.
6105
1 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Lay it
3 aside.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 1755, Assembly Bill Number 4796A, by
6 Assemblymember Magnarelli, an act to amend the
7 General Business Law.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
9 last section.
10 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
11 act shall take effect on the 60th day after it
12 shall have become a law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
14 roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
17 the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1756, Senate Print 6409A, by Senator Liu, an act
23 to amend the Real Property Tax Law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
25 last section.
6106
1 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
2 act shall take effect immediately.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
4 roll.
5 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
7 the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1757, Senate Print 6504A, by Senator Chu, an act
13 to amend the Public Health Law.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
15 last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
17 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
18 shall have become a law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
23 Chu to explain her vote.
24 SENATOR CHU: Mr. President, again
25 I would like explain my vote on this important
6107
1 legislation.
2 Currently over 30,000 older
3 New Yorkers are diagnosed with dementia, and the
4 number is expected to grow rapidly in the coming
5 years. While research and best practices to best
6 assist these individuals have become more
7 available, there is a need for outreach and
8 education amongst the public.
9 This bill will ensure that
10 Alzheimer's and dementia diseases will be
11 recognized under the state's healthcare and
12 wellness education outreach program. This
13 program will ensure that families have the
14 adequate support to provide the best quality of
15 life for their loved one with this disease.
16 For those reasons I vote aye, and I
17 encourage all my colleagues to do so.
18 Thank you.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
20 Chu to be recorded in the affirmative.
21 Announce the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6108
1 1758, Senate Print 6527A, by Senator Murray, an
2 act authorizing the Grace Gospel Church of
3 Suffolk to file an application for retroactive
4 real property tax exemption.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
6 last section.
7 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
8 act shall take effect immediately.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
10 roll.
11 (The Secretary called the roll.)
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
13 the results.
14 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
15 Calendar Number 1758, voting in the negative:
16 Senator O'Mara.
17 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1759, Senate Print Number 6535, by
22 Senator Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, an act in relation
23 to authorizing the Shulamith School for Girls to
24 file with the County of Nassau assessor an
25 application for a retroactive real property tax
6109
1 exemption.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
3 last section.
4 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
5 act shall take effect immediately.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
7 roll.
8 (The Secretary called the roll.)
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
10 the results.
11 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
12 Calendar Number 1759, voting in the negative:
13 Senator O'Mara.
14 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
16 is passed.
17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
18 1760, Senate Print 6569A, by Senator Myrie, an
19 act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
21 last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
23 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
24 shall have become a law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
6110
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
4 Myrie to explain his vote.
5 SENATOR MYRIE: Thank you,
6 Mr. President.
7 Last October, along with the chair
8 of the Housing Committee, Senator Kavanagh, we
9 held a hearing on deed theft. And we heard
10 harrowing, heartbreaking stories about
11 individuals, in many cases our most vulnerable,
12 being taken advantage of by entities stealing
13 what little equity and wealth they had.
14 This is a problem that
15 disproportionately affects Black homeowners, and
16 even more so geographically in Southeast Queens
17 and central and East Brooklyn. Along with the
18 Attorney General and many other stakeholders, we
19 listened to feedback, we spoke to victims, we
20 spoke to law enforcement. And we determined that
21 it was important for us to send a message to
22 anybody going after our homeowners: Deed theft
23 is unacceptable, and if you break the law you
24 will be prosecuted.
25 Now, I take our ability to create
6111
1 new crimes in this Legislature very seriously. I
2 think any time we do that, it should be of sober
3 mind and it should be informed by the data. And
4 I believe that we have all of those elements
5 present for us to make deed theft officially in
6 this state a crime.
7 We should not allow people to steal
8 wealth, and do it disproportionately against
9 communities of color, without standing up to
10 them. So I am proud to sponsor this bill.
11 I want to publicly thank
12 Adriele Douglas, our counsel, for her work on
13 this bill. I'd like to thank the
14 Attorney General's office for their work as well.
15 And my hope is that our colleagues
16 will support this and that we will get it across
17 the finish line in the Assembly as well.
18 I proudly vote in the affirmative.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
20 Myrie to be recorded in the affirmative.
21 Senator Cleare to explain her vote.
22 SENATOR CLEARE: Thank you,
23 Mr. President.
24 And I want to thank Senator Myrie
25 for bringing this important legislation forward.
6112
1 And it had an impact on Harlem as
2 well, and particularly for our seniors and older
3 New Yorkers who were being taken advantage of.
4 And as chair of the Aging Committee,
5 I'm greatly concerned, especially for people --
6 and Black people who worked so hard to have a
7 home in the first place, to be able to maintain
8 and keep it. And to have it stolen from them,
9 and in their golden years, I think this is an
10 especially despicable crime.
11 And I thank you for bringing this
12 legislation forward. And I proudly vote aye.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
14 Cleare to be recorded in the affirmative.
15 Announce the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1761, Senate Print 6617, by Senator Addabbo, an
21 act to amend the Correction Law.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
23 last section.
24 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
25 act shall take effect immediately.
6113
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
2 roll.
3 (The Secretary called the roll.)
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
5 the results.
6 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
7 Calendar Number 1761, those Senators voting in
8 the negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
9 Gallivan, Griffo, Martins, Oberacker, Rhoads,
10 Walczyk and Weber.
11 Ayes, 54. Nays, 8.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 1762, Senate Print 6622A, by Senator Hinchey, an
16 act to allow Brian Laurange Jr. to be eligible to
17 take the civil service examination.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
19 a home-rule message at the desk.
20 Read the last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6114
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar Number 1762, voting in the negative:
5 Senator Brisport.
6 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1763, Senate Print 4329A, by Senator Sepúlveda,
11 an act in relation to authorizing the
12 Commissioner of Motor Vehicles to enter into
13 reciprocity agreements with other states.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
15 last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 6. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
22 Sepúlveda to explain his vote.
23 SENATOR SEPÚLVEDA: Thank you,
24 Mr. President, for allowing me to explain my
25 vote.
6115
1 This legislation enables New York
2 State to enter driver's license reciprocity
3 agreements with other states, countries,
4 provinces or territories. Such agreements will
5 allow for recognition and exchange of valid
6 driver's licenses between jurisdictions,
7 benefiting both New Yorkers residing abroad and
8 foreign nationals residing in New York.
9 Importantly, the bill ensures that
10 the licensing and skill requirements necessary to
11 obtain a driver's license in each jurisdiction
12 are comparable. This guarantees that license
13 holders from any other jurisdiction will meet the
14 same high standards and adhere to the same rules
15 and regulations as New York driver's license
16 holders, and maintain the security and
17 confidentiality of the New York driver's license
18 information system. The safety of our roads
19 remain paramount.
20 This bill has the potential to
21 foster economic growth, international
22 cooperation, and the safety of our citizens. Let
23 us embrace the opportunity to open our arms to
24 the world and forge a new partnership that
25 benefits New York residents here and abroad.
6116
1 I want to extend my heartfelt thanks
2 to the distinguished members of the New York
3 State Assembly, Assemblyman Phil Ramos and
4 Assemblyman Manny De Los Santos, and
5 Congressman Adriano Espaillat, for their valuable
6 contributions and support to advancing this bill.
7 I'm grateful for their partnership in this
8 endeavor.
9 Furthermore, I wish to acknowledge
10 the collaborative efforts that have shaped this
11 legislation, including the conversations with
12 technicians from the Taiwan Embassy, led by the
13 Honorable Ambassador James Lee. They've been
14 instrumental in shaping the provisions of this
15 bill.
16 Equally important are the
17 discussions we had with technicians from the
18 Dominican Republic, particularly Director Hugo
19 Beras of INTRANT, which is the Dominican Republic
20 version of the DMV. Their insights and expertise
21 have been invaluable.
22 I would also like to express my deep
23 gratitude to Senator John Liu for his leadership
24 and unwavering support throughout the development
25 of this bill. And I would also be remiss if I
6117
1 did not thank Senator Tim Kennedy, chair of our
2 Transportation Committee, for his support in
3 advancing this bill to the floor.
4 Additionally, I want to extend my
5 deepest appreciation to Leader Andrea
6 Stewart-Cousins. As many of you know, I've
7 brought many international visitors to this
8 chamber, and she has always made them feel
9 welcome and opened the door. Her leadership has
10 been instrumental in working with the
11 international community, fostering collaboration
12 and ensuring that our great state remains a
13 beacon of progress and inclusivity.
14 Thank you. I vote aye.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
16 Sepúlveda to be recorded in the affirmative.
17 Senator Kennedy to explain his vote.
18 SENATOR KENNEDY: Thank you,
19 Mr. President.
20 I just want to take a moment, first
21 of all, to thank our leadership, Andrea
22 Stewart-Cousins, for bringing this bill to the
23 floor, and to Senator Sepúlveda, who is a
24 long-time champion of this initiative and a
25 number of others.
6118
1 We've worked for the last several
2 years on this bill. We have seen consul general
3 after consul general -- from Taiwan, the
4 Dominican Republic, and other countries -- come
5 here looking for the authorization, looking for
6 that reciprocity for their driver's licenses, and
7 having the bureaucracy of state government
8 getting in the way.
9 This clears the way for the DMV to
10 give that ability for reciprocity. And again, I
11 want to thank the bill's sponsor for making this
12 happen, and all of those supporters, long-time
13 supporters, for their persistence and their
14 efforts in getting this done.
15 With that, Mr. President, I vote
16 aye.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
18 Kennedy to be recorded in the affirmative.
19 Announce the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
21 Calendar 1763, those Senators voting in the
22 negative are Senators Borrello,
23 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
24 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Palumbo,
25 Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
6119
1 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
2 Ayes, 42. Nays, 20.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
4 is passed.
5 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6 1764, Senate Print Number 6722A, by
7 Senator Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, an act authorizing
8 United Church of God Seventh Day to receive
9 retroactive real property tax exempt status.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
11 last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1765, Senate Print 6807A, by Senator Hinchey, an
24 act in relation to making eligible for
25 provisional appointment and authorizing
6120
1 Paul Strobel to take the competitive civil
2 service examination.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
4 a home-rule message at the desk.
5 Read the last section.
6 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
7 act shall take effect immediately.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
9 roll.
10 (The Secretary called the roll.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
12 the results.
13 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
14 Calendar Number 1765, voting in the negative:
15 Senator Brisport.
16 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1766, Assembly Bill Number 5042, by
21 Assemblymember Hevesi, an act to amend the
22 Public Health Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6121
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 1767, Assembly Bill Number 7200, by
12 Assemblymember Shrestha, an act to amend the
13 Tax Law.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
15 a home-rule message at the desk.
16 Read the last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect immediately.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
23 the results.
24 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
25 Calendar 1767, those Senators voting in the
6122
1 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
2 Harckham, Helming, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
3 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo,
4 Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis, Tedisco and
5 Webb.
6 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1768, Senate Print 6919A, by Senator Rolison, an
11 act to amend the Tax Law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
13 a home-rule message at the desk.
14 Read the last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect immediately.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
18 roll.
19 (The Secretary called the roll.)
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
21 the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
23 Calendar 1768, those Senators voting in the
24 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
25 Harckham, Hinchey, Kennedy, Lanza, Mannion,
6123
1 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo,
2 Rhoads, Scarcella-Spanton, Skoufis and Webb.
3 Ayes, 46. Nays, 16.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1769, Senate Print 7021, by Senator Kennedy, an
8 act to amend the Public Authorities Law.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
10 last section.
11 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
12 act shall take effect immediately.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
14 roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
17 Kennedy to explain his vote.
18 SENATOR KENNEDY: Yeah, thank you,
19 Mr. President.
20 This bill simply allows for
21 individuals that utilize paratransit services on
22 the MTA to get a recertification for their
23 services provided by their physician.
24 Today they have to go through a
25 long, arduous process of going out into the
6124
1 community to a specific site, where they are
2 evaluated and ultimately given that particular
3 notation. What this will allow is by their own
4 physician's letter, to continue the services that
5 they are already being provided.
6 This is happening in the upstate
7 agencies. This allows for parity in the
8 downstate MTA region as well.
9 Appreciate our conference's support,
10 and the leader for bringing this to the floor.
11 With that, Mr. President I vote aye.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
13 Kennedy to be recorded in the affirmative.
14 Announce the results.
15 Senator Krueger to explain her vote,
16 excuse me.
17 SENATOR KRUEGER: Thank you. Very
18 briefly.
19 I rise to thank Senator Kennedy for
20 bringing this bill to the floor and recognizing
21 that in the MTA region we do have a procedure
22 where you must go to a specific approved
23 physician to get the evaluation done.
24 But the concept that you then have
25 to go back to one of these locations just for
6125
1 renewal has become a serious problem for my
2 district. My borough is Manhattan. It has no
3 offices that people can go to for this work. So
4 you're asking people who you've already
5 recognized as suffering from a disability that
6 limits their ability to use mass transit, and
7 telling them they may have to travel multiple
8 boroughs away just to get reupped, so to speak,
9 for a benefit they've already been evaluated for
10 and approved for.
11 So I really appreciate this
12 legislation.
13 Thank you, Mr. President.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
15 Krueger to be recorded in the affirmative.
16 Announce the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1770, Senate Print 7070, by Senator Borrello, an
22 act to amend the Highway Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6126
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar Number 1770, voting in the negative:
9 Senator Brisport.
10 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 1771, Senate Print 7077A, by Senator Ortt, an act
15 to amend Chapter 584 of the Laws of 1996.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
19 act shall take effect immediately.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
21 roll.
22 (The Secretary called the roll.)
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
24 the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
6127
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
2 is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 1772, Senate Print 7095A, by Senator Breslin, an
5 act to amend the Insurance Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 17. This
9 act shall take effect immediately.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
11 roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
14 the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
16 Calendar Number 1772, voting in the negative:
17 Senator Griffo.
18 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
20 is passed.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1773, Senate Print 7212, by Senator Krueger, an
23 act to amend the Military Law and the New York
24 State Urban Development Corporation Act.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
6128
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
8 the results.
9 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
10 Calendar Number 1773, voting in the negative:
11 Senator Brisport.
12 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1774, Assembly Bill Number 6725, by
17 Assemblymember Tague, an act to amend the
18 Public Officers Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
20 last section.
21 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
22 act shall take effect immediately.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
24 roll.
25 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6129
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
2 the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar Number 1774, voting in the negative:
5 Senator Brisport.
6 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
8 is passed.
9 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
10 1775, Senate Print 7219, by Senator Hinchey, an
11 act to amend the Not-For-Profit Corporation Law.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
13 last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
17 roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
20 the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
22 Calendar Number 1775, voting in the negative:
23 Senator Skoufis.
24 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
6130
1 is passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 1776, Assembly Bill Number 5683, by
4 Assemblymember Zebrowski, an act to amend the
5 Executive Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
9 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
10 shall have become a law.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
12 roll.
13 (The Secretary called the roll.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
15 the results.
16 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 1777, Assembly Bill Number 5142B, by
21 Assemblymember Brown, an act relating to
22 establishing the Island Park LIPA power plant tax
23 assessment reserve fund.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
25 last section.
6131
1 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
2 act shall take effect immediately.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
4 roll.
5 (The Secretary called the roll.)
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
7 the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1778, Senate Print 7273, by Senator Parker, an
13 act to amend the Civil Service Law.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
15 last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
22 the results.
23 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
24 Calendar 1778, those Senators voting in the
25 negative are Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick,
6132
1 Martins, Murray, Oberacker, Rhoads, Walczyk and
2 Weik.
3 Ayes, 55. Nays, 7.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 1779, Assembly Bill Number 793, by
8 Assemblymember Hunter, an act to amend the
9 Mental Hygiene Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
11 last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
13 act shall take effect immediately.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
15 roll.
16 (The Secretary called the roll.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 1780, Senate Print 7289A, by Senator Gounardes,
24 an act to amend the General Municipal Law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
6133
1 no home-rule message at the desk.
2 Senator Liu.
3 SENATOR LIU: Lay it aside
4 temporarily.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
6 will be laid aside temporarily.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1781, Senate Print 7292A, by Senator Ryan, an act
9 granting retroactive Tier 4 membership in the
10 New York State and Local Employees' Retirement
11 System.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
13 last section.
14 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. This
15 act shall take effect immediately.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
17 roll.
18 (The Secretary called the roll.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
20 the results.
21 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
23 is passed.
24 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
25 1782, Assembly Bill Number 7478A, by
6134
1 Assemblymember Levenberg, an act to amend the
2 Public Officers Law and the Village Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
11 the results.
12 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1783, Senate Print 7505, by Senator Bailey, an
17 act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
19 last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
21 act shall take effect immediately.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6135
1 the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
3 Calendar 1783, those Senators voting in the
4 negative are Senators Borrello,
5 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
6 Lanza, Martinez, Martins, Mattera, Murray,
7 Oberacker, O'Mara, Rhoads, Tedisco, Walczyk,
8 Weber and Weik.
9 Ayes, 45. Nays, 17.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 1784, Senate Print 7527, by Senator Chu, an act
14 to amend the Education Law.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
16 last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect immediately.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
23 the results.
24 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
6136
1 is passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 1785, Senate Print 7531, by Senator Martinez, an
4 act to amend the Highway Law.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
6 last section.
7 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
8 act shall take effect immediately.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
10 roll.
11 (The Secretary called the roll.)
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
13 the results.
14 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
15 Calendar Number 1785, voting in the negative:
16 Senator Brisport.
17 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 1786, Assembly Bill Number 7669, by
22 Assemblymember Bores, an act to amend the
23 Judiciary Law.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
25 last section.
6137
1 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
2 act shall take effect immediately.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
4 roll.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar Number 1786, voting in the negative:
9 Senator Oberacker.
10 Ayes, 61. Nays, 1.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
12 is passed.
13 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
14 1787, Senate Print 7537, by
15 Senator Stewart-Cousins, an act to amend the
16 Village Law and the General Municipal Law.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
18 last section.
19 THE SECRETARY: Section 10. This
20 act shall take effect January 1, 2024.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
22 roll.
23 (The Secretary called the roll.)
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
25 the results.
6138
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar Number 1787, those Senators voting in
3 the negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
4 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
5 Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, O'Mara,
6 Ortt, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk,
7 Weber and Weik.
8 Ayes, 43. Nays, 19.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1788, Senate Print 7538, by Senator Skoufis, an
13 act to amend the Village Law.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
15 last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
22 Skoufis to explain his vote.
23 SENATOR SKOUFIS: Thank you very
24 much, Mr. President.
25 This bill seeks to address, as did
6139
1 the last bill we just took up, serious
2 shortcomings in the village incorporation law.
3 This section of law was developed
4 and enacted in the 1800s, when we had far, far,
5 far fewer people living in New York State. And
6 500 individuals, which is the current threshold
7 in law that are required to form a village, was a
8 much bigger deal than it is now in a state of
9 about 20 million people.
10 And in fact what we've seen in some
11 places, including in Orange County, an active
12 situation in Orange County, is this section of
13 law has been weaponized, and the intent of the
14 village incorporation law has been twisted and
15 perverted. In Orange County's case, there was an
16 annexation that took place about eight or nine
17 years ago, and one particular family -- that was
18 a large landowner in the initial annexation
19 application -- was, from their perspective, cut
20 out of the final negotiated annexation that
21 ultimately took place. And so they were left in
22 the town.
23 This family, these landowners,
24 instead of working in good faith with zoning
25 boards, with planning boards, with the local town
6140
1 municipality, they decided, because they didn't
2 get the upzoning that they were looking for, to
3 develop lots and lots more homes that they could
4 sell for lots and lots more money. They decided,
5 well, screw you to the village that they didn't
6 get annexed into, and screw you to the town that
7 they were left in, not getting the zoning from,
8 we're going to just create our own village and
9 thus control our own zoning.
10 This had nothing to do with local
11 residents, as is traditionally the case, seeking
12 better services. It's not about local residents
13 who were looking for more responsive government.
14 This was an aggrieved developer who used the
15 current law to respond in a hostile manner to the
16 town and to the community that did not give him
17 what he was looking for.
18 And so these bills look to address
19 those types of situations by raising the minimum
20 population required to form a village to 2,000,
21 up from 500; delete the section of law that
22 allows a petitioning process by a landownership,
23 as opposed to by the number of individuals, the
24 percentage of the individuals needed to form a
25 village; and, importantly, require a financial
6141
1 analysis before there is a referendum.
2 You have far too many situations
3 where voters walk into a voting booth and don't
4 know the full implications of what creating a
5 village will actually look like. And you don't
6 have to look too far into the past -- out at
7 Mastic Beach, on Long Island, we saw just this:
8 A very tiny eventual village community decided to
9 incorporate and then they realized, we can't
10 handle this. We are not financially sustainable.
11 And so just several years after incorporating,
12 they decided to dissolve.
13 That's why we need this legislation
14 as well as the legislation we just passed prior
15 to this bill.
16 I want to sincerely thank the
17 Majority Leader, who has worked with me on this
18 issue for five sessions now. We started working
19 on this in 2019. And I'm really grateful to her
20 and staff for finally being able to navigate this
21 very complicated set of issues with me.
22 And with that, I vote yes.
23 Thank you, Mr. President.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
25 Skoufis to be recorded in the affirmative.
6142
1 Senator Martins to explain his vote.
2 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you,
3 Mr. President.
4 I rise to oppose this legislation.
5 As I said, I'll be voting no. I have 44 villages
6 in my district, Mr. President, probably more than
7 any other Senator here in this body. Some of
8 them have less than 2,000 residents. They've
9 been around for decades. They're formed,
10 operating well, providing services, but have less
11 than the 2,000 that this bill would require as a
12 threshold, as a minimum threshold.
13 Frankly, Mr. President, I don't know
14 why sometimes we have things that happen in our
15 individual districts that we're upset about, but
16 then think that the solution is to provide a
17 statewide change to the law that imposes a fix
18 for everybody, especially in areas where you
19 don't need a fix.
20 There are communities that we
21 represent, they've been around for a long time,
22 there's a process that has been there literally
23 for over a hundred years, the sponsor is right.
24 But it works. And I will trust the local
25 communities and I will trust those people who are
6143
1 on the ground, I will trust our villages, I will
2 trust our towns and our town supervisors to make
3 those decisions locally, because they understand
4 not only the zoning but the topography on the
5 ground, and the economics on the ground.
6 And the idea that we come back time
7 and again and think that the solution is here in
8 Albany and not in our local communities is a
9 mistake. I'll be voting no.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
11 Martins to be recorded in the negative.
12 Senator Lanza to explain his vote.
13 SENATOR LANZA: I'm voting no.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
15 Lanza will not explain his vote.
16 (Laughter.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
18 the results.
19 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
20 Calendar 1788, those Senators voting in the
21 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
22 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Gonzalez,
23 Griffo, Helming, Lanza, Martins, Mattera,
24 Murray -- (pause).
25 Sorry. Again, in relation to
6144
1 Calendar 1788, those Senators voting in the
2 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
3 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Gonzalez,
4 Griffo, Helming, Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray,
5 Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads,
6 Rolison, Salazar, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber
7 and Weik.
8 Ayes, 39. Nays, 23.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1789, Senate Print 7539, by Senator Ramos, an act
13 to amend the Civil Practice Law and Rules.
14 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Lay it
16 aside.
17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
18 1790, Senate Print 7548, by Senator Myrie, an act
19 to amend the Criminal Procedure Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
21 last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 9. This
23 act shall take effect on the 60th day after it
24 shall have become a law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
6145
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
4 Myrie to explain his vote.
5 SENATOR MYRIE: Thank you,
6 Mr. President.
7 One of the greatest powers that we
8 have as government is depriving someone of their
9 liberty. And we have made a determination as a
10 society that that deprivation only comes after a
11 conviction.
12 The problem is we have a wrongful
13 conviction issue here in the State of New York.
14 In fact, New York has the third most wrongful
15 convictions in the entire country. And this
16 problem is compounded because 98 percent of our
17 adjudications don't go to trial -- that's not how
18 our criminal justice system works -- they are
19 adjudicated by a guilty plea.
20 And the way that our laws are
21 written now is that if you plead guilty, even if
22 you are innocent, you have no mechanism to prove
23 that innocence.
24 And this isn't just hypothetical.
25 Most of us are familiar with the Exonerated 5,
6146
1 formerly known as the Central Park 5, where five
2 young men pled guilty to crimes they did not
3 commit.
4 But it's not just the Exonerated 5.
5 One of my constituents, a man named Roger Clark,
6 was also wrongfully convicted. And three years
7 ago he marched into my office and he said,
8 "Senator, I have a bill for you. I left too many
9 people inside who are innocent but had no
10 mechanism to prove that innocence in our laws."
11 So the Challenging Wrongful
12 Conviction Act, what we are about to vote on
13 today, is about upholding the very core premise
14 of our legal system. And that is if you are
15 innocent, you should not be incarcerated.
16 That is not a radical proposition.
17 That's not out of step with what most New Yorkers
18 think. That's exactly how our legal system
19 should work.
20 And if you are innocent, spending a
21 single minute inside of a correctional facility
22 is one minute too long.
23 So with the passage of this bill
24 today, we are sending a strong signal to
25 New Yorkers that we are going to, one, save
6147
1 taxpayer money by not having innocent people in
2 jail who shouldn't be there; but, two, we will
3 now do the moral thing. We will say: If you did
4 not do the crime, you should not be doing any
5 time.
6 So I encourage all my colleagues to
7 vote for this bill, and I look forward to sending
8 this to the Governor's desk for her signature.
9 Mr. President, I'll be voting yes.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
11 Myrie to be recorded in the affirmative.
12 Senator Jackson to explain his vote.
13 SENATOR JACKSON: Thank you,
14 Mr. President.
15 I wanted to speak on this bill
16 because I've read over and over again stories
17 about people, you know, pleading guilty to
18 certain matters in order to basically survive for
19 their families. With respect to, you know, the
20 family depends on them in order to pay the rent
21 and buy the food and all of the things necessary
22 to live.
23 And I've read even as of yesterday,
24 I think, in all of the papers in New York City --
25 the New York Times, the Post, the Daily News,
6148
1 about our DA Alvin Bragg and his wrongful
2 conviction unit are releasing approximately
3 200 people that were found guilty for several
4 things that they may have been arrested for.
5 And part of that was that the police
6 and/or detectives that were involved in this, was
7 in my opinion, based on what I've read, they were
8 dirty as can be as far as having substance
9 abuse -- not substance abuse, having drugs and
10 things like that. And as a result of all of the
11 investigation that the DAs have, they basically
12 released several hundred people out of
13 correctional facilities.
14 So I wholeheartedly support this
15 wrongful conviction bill. So many people are
16 convicted wrongfully. And some you hear it say:
17 No matter what, I'm innocent, and I'm just trying
18 to prove my innocence. And they will live saying
19 how innocent they are, and they will basically do
20 their time rather than pleading guilty.
21 So I strongly support this bill, and
22 I vote aye.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
24 Jackson to be recorded in the affirmative.
25 Announce the results.
6149
1 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
2 Calendar Number 1790, those Senators voting in
3 the negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
4 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
5 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
6 O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
7 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
8 Ayes, 41. Nays, 21.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 1791, Senate Print Number 7550, by
13 Senator Stewart-Cousins, an act to amend the
14 Election Law.
15 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Lay it
17 aside.
18 Senator Liu, that completes the
19 reading of today's supplemental calendar.
20 SENATOR LIU: Mr. President, please
21 go to the reading of the controversial calendar.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
23 Secretary will ring the bell.
24 The Secretary will read.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6150
1 817, Senate Print 3024A, by Senator Comrie, an
2 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
4 Ashby, why do you rise?
5 SENATOR ASHBY: Thank you,
6 Mr. President. Will the sponsor yield?
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
8 sponsor yield for some questions?
9 SENATOR COMRIE: Yes.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
11 sponsor yields.
12 SENATOR ASHBY: Through you,
13 Mr. President. In my district we have
14 approximately 55 state-regulated cemeteries, not
15 including municipal and religious cemeteries.
16 These cemeteries, and thousands of others like
17 them in every district of the state, would now
18 face competition from a new type of corporation
19 outlined in this legislation. This new type of
20 corporation would not have to follow the same
21 laws and regs as existing cemeteries.
22 Understanding that, could you
23 explain the purpose of creating a new type of
24 land easement in New York State that a cemetery,
25 in all other ways, doesn't have to adhere to the
6151
1 same consumer protections and cemetery land
2 protections as under current state law?
3 SENATOR COMRIE: I'm sorry,
4 Senator Ashby, we have not done anything to
5 change the current consumer protections or any
6 limits or do anything to create an opportunity to
7 impede the standards that have been already set.
8 This A print only requires that the
9 Cemetery Board and the Division of Cemeteries
10 within the Department of State approve the
11 memorial lands facility permits issued by DEC.
12 This is going to be done through the regular
13 resources.
14 And this is only going to be done
15 for nonprofit entities that are going to be
16 solely for disposition of cremated remains. It
17 is not going to allow for anyone be able to do
18 cremation or to do any other type of disposition.
19 This is only for the disposition of cremated
20 remains.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
22 sponsor continue to yield?
23 SENATOR COMRIE: Yes.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
25 sponsor yields.
6152
1 SENATOR ASHBY: Being that memorial
2 land facilities are already in New York State and
3 they're regulated cemeteries, by definition and
4 operation, it's our understanding that more of
5 these types of low-cost and natural burial
6 locations are currently under development.
7 Why does this bill not assist in
8 those efforts but rather change course to allow
9 non-cemeteries to operate in competition with
10 existing nonprofit cemeteries?
11 SENATOR COMRIE: Senator Ashby, we
12 are not creating opportunities for people to
13 become final disposition locations or to be able
14 to start crematories or dispositions.
15 This is solely to allow for memorial
16 land facilities that already exist to apply to
17 DEC and get a permit under DOS so that they can
18 handle the disposition of cremated remains
19 solely.
20 This is not to create any other
21 opportunities for people to be able to develop
22 their own disposition opportunities. This is
23 only for someone that is -- this is only to
24 create for facilities that already exist,
25 memorial lands or other locations that were
6153
1 deemed acceptable that would have the -- to
2 comply with all existing zoning laws that have
3 all of the DEC, DOH and DOS additional
4 regulations to be able to handle the disposition
5 only of already cremated remains.
6 SENATOR ASHBY: Will the sponsor
7 yield?
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
9 sponsor yield?
10 SENATOR COMRIE: Yes.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 sponsor yields.
13 SENATOR ASHBY: It's my
14 understanding that a for-profit company selling
15 this concept of memorial forests recently went
16 out of business in other states --
17 SENATOR COMRIE: Am I the only --
18 I'm having problems hearing, Senator. Is it just
19 me or -- I'm sorry.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
21 Ashby, could you -- if you could repeat the
22 question so that Senator Comrie -- we had a
23 little bit of difficulty hearing you.
24 SENATOR ASHBY: Will do,
25 Mr. President.
6154
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
2 you.
3 SENATOR ASHBY: It's my
4 understanding that a for-profit company selling
5 this concept of memorial forests recently went
6 out of business in another state. And other
7 states as well.
8 What would happen to the remains
9 buried in these new types of burial locations
10 that are being utilized as cemeteries but have
11 none of the protections of regulated cemeteries
12 if they went out of business?
13 SENATOR COMRIE: Again,
14 Senator Ashby, this would be only for
15 not-for-profit locations. They would be subject
16 to the same conditions and protections of any
17 other cemeteries.
18 As you know, we've been working
19 hard, and I've been working hard since I've been
20 chair, to work with the nonprofit cemeteries and
21 all cemeteries to make sure that they can have
22 opportunities to stay in business, to have
23 alternate opportunities to raise funds, if that's
24 an opportunity.
25 Also we put together a disposition
6155
1 fund. These locations would come under all of
2 those same opportunities if they went out of
3 business.
4 But again, we're only doing
5 nonprofit, not for-profit locations. So a
6 for-profit location would not be eligible for
7 this opportunity.
8 SENATOR ASHBY: Will the sponsor
9 yield?
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
11 sponsor yield?
12 SENATOR COMRIE: Yes.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
14 sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR ASHBY: An online
16 advertisement for the burial services as
17 permitted by this bill provides an offer of
18 $4,900 per interment of human remains. My
19 district cemeteries provide interment of cremated
20 remains for many times lower than this price.
21 This is clearly not a lower-cost option for
22 consumers.
23 Is there a reason pricing is not
24 being reviewed by existing state regulators?
25 SENATOR COMRIE: Senator Ashby,
6156
1 you're looking at the older version. It's not in
2 our A print.
3 Again, we are focusing on not
4 allowing for-profit cemeteries. So that person
5 that did that advertisement is doing it outside
6 the scope of the law and is doing it illegally.
7 SENATOR ASHBY: Thank you,
8 Mr. President.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
10 you, Senator Ashby.
11 Are there any other Senators wishing
12 to be heard?
13 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
14 closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
15 Read the last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
22 Comrie to explain his vote.
23 SENATOR COMRIE: I want to thank
24 Senator Ashby for raising those issues so that we
25 can all remind the public that whatever you read
6157
1 in the paper, whatever you might see as an
2 advertisement, you need to check to make sure
3 that those ads are -- and those advertisements
4 are within the law.
5 When, you know, we're dealing with
6 something as final disposition for loved ones, we
7 need to make sure that we're going to do
8 everything we can to protect the families, to
9 protect the communities, and also working to
10 protect those institutions that we've been
11 working with, the cemeteries throughout the
12 state, doing things necessary so that they can
13 stay in business.
14 So I want to thank Senator Ashby for
15 bringing this to the fore because, again, only
16 nonprofits are eligible for this. They have to
17 be subjected to all existing requirements for
18 handling cremated remains. They must have a
19 conservation easement. They must comply with all
20 local zoning laws. And they must meet all
21 regulations that are done by DEC, DOH and DOS.
22 And this is not, again, not to allow
23 for for-profit opportunities.
24 Thank you, Mr. President.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
6158
1 Comrie to be recorded in the affirmative.
2 Announce the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
4 Calendar 817, those Senators voting in the
5 negative are Senators Ashby, Chu, Helming,
6 Martinez, Mattera, Murray, Myrie, Oberacker,
7 O'Mara, Ortt, Rhoads, Rolison, Tedisco, Walczyk,
8 Weber and Weik.
9 Ayes, 46. Nays, 16.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 1267, Senate Print 885B, by Senator Hinchey, an
14 act to amend the Multiple Residence Law.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
16 Borrello, why do you rise?
17 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
18 would the sponsor yield for a question.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
20 sponsor yield?
21 SENATOR HINCHEY: I do.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
23 sponsor yields.
24 SENATOR BORRELLO: Thank you.
25 Through you, Mr. President.
6159
1 So many municipalities already have
2 registries to deal with short-term rentals. This
3 is certainly a hot topic across New York State.
4 But how would those -- this bill impact those
5 existing registries? And why is this bill
6 necessary if they already have the ability to
7 create these short-term rental laws anyway?
8 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
9 Mr. President, this bill does not impact the
10 current registration systems by municipalities
11 that they already have.
12 But in my district, across the
13 41st -- and across the state -- one of the
14 biggest issues and complaints and asks for help
15 that I receive from our municipalities is with
16 the proliferation of short-term rentals. Many of
17 them have their own registry but they can't
18 enforce it. Many of them are actually spending
19 taxpayer dollars on a third party to manage a
20 registration system where, if there was a state
21 registration system, they'd be able to use those
22 tax dollars on almost anything else. And so --
23 and other municipalities don't want to be in the
24 business of managing a registration system
25 themselves.
6160
1 And so what we're doing here with
2 this bill is making it easier for municipalities
3 to understand the proliferation of short-term
4 rentals across their community. There will be a
5 statewide registration system. If you are a
6 municipality that has your own, you keep it. But
7 if you don't want to have a registration system
8 or you don't have one already, you can use the
9 state's.
10 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
11 will the sponsor continue to yield.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
13 sponsor continue to yield?
14 SENATOR HINCHEY: I do.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
16 sponsor yields.
17 SENATOR BORRELLO: Thank you for
18 that answer.
19 But, you know, we have things like
20 code enforcement, zoning. They're all different
21 at the local level. What benefit is there to
22 having a state database? What data are you going
23 to collect then?
24 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
25 Mr. President. Something we talk about in this
6161
1 chamber a lot is the housing crisis that we are
2 facing. And I can speak to my district, but we
3 know that this is happening across our state,
4 especially in high-tourism areas, that housing
5 that has typically been used for local
6 homeownership or local renters for people to live
7 in their communities is actually being turned
8 into full-time vacation rentals. That's housing
9 stock that exists today that is no longer housing
10 stock for local community members.
11 So one of the points of this bill is
12 just to provide some transparency at the state
13 level to understand the growth of our short-term
14 rental market and how many housing units have
15 actually been taken off the market to become
16 these vacation rentals, instead of being used by
17 actual folks who will live full-time in the
18 communities, have their kids in schools, have
19 homes where they can live near where they work.
20 And it's also to help those
21 municipalities, again, who may not want their own
22 registration system.
23 We are not, in this bill, getting
24 into caps. We're not getting into the details
25 about what is best for each municipality. We
6162
1 agree that's left up to the municipalities
2 themselves. This is just helping, one, provide
3 some transparency, helping provide the
4 enforcement, and also providing some funding for
5 those municipalities and some transparency.
6 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
7 will the sponsor continue to yield.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
9 sponsor yield?
10 SENATOR HINCHEY: Yes, I will.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 sponsor yields.
13 SENATOR BORRELLO: So it's my
14 understanding that if a municipality already has
15 a registry, that they can opt out of the state
16 system. And in fact the people that are using
17 their homes for short-term rentals can decide do
18 they want to be in the state system or the local
19 system.
20 So how are you going to capture
21 accurate data without having a consistent choice?
22 In other words, if people can be in one, not the
23 other, if a municipality can opt out, how are you
24 going to collect any accurate data to address
25 some of the issues you just brought up?
6163
1 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
2 Mr. President. The registration system -- so
3 basically we are actually encouraging folks, if
4 there is a local registry, to register with their
5 local municipality. That municipality quarterly
6 will send their registration system to the state
7 for that holistic view.
8 So there actually is -- you will be
9 able to see it in the whole-state capture that
10 will be sent quarterly. But they can choose
11 which one they'd like.
12 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
13 will the sponsor continue to yield.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
15 sponsor yield?
16 SENATOR HINCHEY: I do.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
18 sponsor yields.
19 SENATOR BORRELLO: So they're going
20 to send in information, but then therefore are
21 you going to essentially set a standard that's
22 going to be mandated for those local registries
23 so that you have consistent data? Or are they
24 going to send you data that's not consistent with
25 the data that's being collected at the state
6164
1 level?
2 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
3 Mr. President, that will be decided by the
4 Department of State. Those regulations and rules
5 will be promulgated. So the Department of State,
6 as they're setting up the registry, will send to
7 the municipalities the information that they
8 need.
9 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
10 will the sponsor continue to yield?
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
12 sponsor yield?
13 SENATOR HINCHEY: I do.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR BORRELLO: So how is the
17 state going to implement this? You just brought
18 this up that, you know, they're going to have
19 rules promulgated, you may actually now -- you're
20 going to allow them to potentially mandate
21 changes to local registries. But there's no
22 funding to provide -- provided with this, so
23 there's, you know -- how are they going to manage
24 this?
25 We've got, you know, dozens of
6165
1 different registration systems across the state,
2 many municipalities, and no funding for this. Is
3 that correct?
4 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
5 Mr. President, I think there's a couple of
6 different angles and questions in there. So I'll
7 start with the first one.
8 So the Department of State we
9 believe has funding to be able to start this
10 system. Obviously there is a lead-up period, I
11 believe it's 120 days before it kicks in. But
12 additionally, there is a fee collected with every
13 registration, so that is one level of funding.
14 We'll also be able, should this pass
15 both houses, be able to, should the Department of
16 State need it, provide funding in the budget.
17 That will be a discussion that we have in this
18 chamber and in the Legislature should it be
19 needed.
20 But also, again, the municipalities,
21 many of them, as you've said, are already doing
22 this. And so actually what we could be doing is
23 saving them funding if we're operating it from
24 the state.
25 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
6166
1 will the sponsor continue to yield.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
3 sponsor yield?
4 SENATOR HINCHEY: I will.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6 sponsor yields.
7 SENATOR BORRELLO: So right now,
8 subdivision 2 of Section 21 states that any
9 short-term rental host shall be subject to
10 Article 28 and 29 of the Tax Law.
11 So what taxes will be applicable?
12 And how much, on average, would those taxes cost
13 the owners of these properties?
14 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
15 Mr. President. First and foremost, the taxes are
16 on the folks that are renting it, not on the
17 owners.
18 But that's actually a really
19 important component of the bill is the tax piece.
20 Right now a municipality, a county, the only way
21 that they can collect taxes is through entering
22 into a direct agreement with a short-term-rental
23 platform. There's no transparency into how much
24 that county or that town is actually owed. It's
25 all data that is proprietary from the
6167
1 short-term-rental platform.
2 So what we're actually doing in this
3 bill is creating transparency so that the
4 municipalities and counties can actually get the
5 money that we know that they're owed from
6 short-term rentals.
7 Also, if you're a county that
8 doesn't have an occupancy tax, you actually
9 cannot collect any tax from the short-term
10 rentals right now. I know I have a county --
11 there are many, especially in our smaller and
12 rural counties, that don't have occupancy taxes.
13 So they may be high-tourism markets, but since
14 they don't have an occupancy tax, they're not
15 actually getting any of the taxes because they
16 can't opt into those agreements with the
17 short-term-rental platforms.
18 So what this bill is doing is
19 creating a sales tax component that's standard
20 across the board that would be up to and
21 consistent with the local sales tax, state and
22 local sales tax for collection. Which will make
23 sure that our municipalities are actually getting
24 all of the money that they are owed for hosting
25 and having these short-term rentals, and will be
6168
1 a new type of revenue stream, actually, for these
2 communities.
3 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
4 will the sponsor continue to yield.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
6 sponsor yield?
7 SENATOR HINCHEY: Yes, I will.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
9 sponsor yields.
10 SENATOR BORRELLO: So right now if
11 you're a municipality that's chosen not to have
12 any kind of a hotel/motel bed tax, occupancy tax,
13 essentially this is going to force a new tax on a
14 municipality where the -- you know, whether it be
15 by permissive referendum, which is what happened
16 in my county many years ago, or action of their
17 legislature.
18 You're now saying: You're going to
19 collect a new tax, whether you want to or not; is
20 that correct?
21 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
22 Mr. President, you're only taxed on the
23 hotel/motel tax if it already exists. We're not
24 creating a new mandated occupancy tax for
25 communities and municipalities that don't have
6169
1 it. That's not happening.
2 The only thing we're creating in
3 here is the standard sales tax across the board.
4 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
5 will the sponsor continue to yield.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
7 sponsor yield?
8 SENATOR HINCHEY: I will.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
10 sponsor yields.
11 SENATOR BORRELLO: So this bill
12 calls for homeowners to maintain an insurance
13 policy for the value of the dwelling plus
14 $300,000 in liability insurance. I mean, I think
15 that's -- that sounds rather excessive. Keep in
16 mind that a lot of these rental properties have
17 been handed down, you know, for generations.
18 They may not have a mortgage on it. And the
19 value of, say, a cabin or something might be kind
20 of low. But it might be sitting on very valuable
21 property. So now you've got to have, you know, a
22 home that's going to be insured for maybe, you
23 know, a half a million dollars that isn't really
24 worth that much, the structure itself, and now an
25 additional $300,000, even if you only rent it
6170
1 maybe a few times a year. Isn't that going to be
2 excessive for those people?
3 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
4 Mr. President. The short-term rentals that
5 exist, anyone renting their property already has
6 to have insurance. So we're not actually
7 imposing anything that folks already don't have
8 to do.
9 And I also want to mention there are
10 other states that have this type of regulation.
11 There are other states that have this type of
12 proposal. And we're actually being much more
13 generous. For instance, in Massachusetts they
14 require a million dollars' insurance. We're only
15 requiring 300,000.
16 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
17 will the sponsor continue to yield.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
19 sponsor yield?
20 SENATOR HINCHEY: I do.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
22 sponsor yields.
23 SENATOR BORRELLO: You know, there
24 are -- property taxes are high in New York State.
25 And I know many, many people that live in their
6171
1 house most of the time, but they rent it out a
2 few times a year because they live in a vacation
3 area. The place where I live, it's very
4 common -- maybe four times a year or something
5 like that.
6 So you're saying that those people
7 are now going to have to have insurance on their
8 home to the full value, which is what the law
9 says, plus liability insurance of $300,000 just
10 so they can rent it a few times a year?
11 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
12 Mr. President. Right now, regardless of how
13 often you rent your home or a building or a home
14 that you own, if it's on one of the
15 short-term-rental platforms, you still have to
16 have that insurance. That's why the
17 short-term-rental platforms provide their own
18 insurance.
19 So that would -- it doesn't matter
20 what time or how often or how frequently you're
21 renting it. You just have to do that now, and we
22 don't change anything.
23 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
24 Will the sponsor continue to yield.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
6172
1 sponsor yield?
2 SENATOR HINCHEY: I do.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
4 sponsor yields.
5 SENATOR BORRELLO: But this applies
6 to people that aren't on those short-term-rental
7 platforms, like Airbnb and VRBO. This would be
8 anyone that's renting their home and is currently
9 subject to, say, a bed tax. So, you know, those
10 people don't have to currently.
11 In fact, I will tell you that in the
12 community that I live in, many people own a
13 cottage, they have a summer home, they rent it
14 out. Very, very few use those because the demand
15 is high and they don't need to.
16 So you're now saying to those folks
17 that are not participating in a short-term-rental
18 company are going to have to meet these standards
19 and pay those additional costs, aren't we?
20 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
21 Mr. President. The vast majority of homeowner
22 insurance does not cover what happens to your
23 home should you be renting it. And so not having
24 some type of insurance if you're renting it,
25 whether it's one weekend for a fishing tournament
6173
1 or a concert or, you know, multiple weeks a year
2 in a vacation town -- or anywhere, for that
3 matter -- you're taking the risk.
4 So actually requiring people to have
5 insurance is both protecting the folks who are
6 coming into the community that you're inviting
7 into your home, and protecting the homeowner from
8 something that may happen.
9 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
10 will the sponsor continue to yield?
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
12 sponsor yield?
13 SENATOR HINCHEY: I do.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR BORRELLO: So the short
17 answer is yes, we're going to require those folks
18 that aren't currently doing that, even if they're
19 not utilizing a platform like VRBO or Airbnb, to
20 now carry those larger costs. Even if it's, you
21 know -- we're mandating now an additional cost,
22 an additional insurance that we didn't previously
23 on someone's property.
24 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
25 Mr. President, we are requiring that people who
6174
1 are bringing folks into the community or renting
2 out their home have insurance. We think it's the
3 safest thing to do.
4 And again, we're being actually much
5 more generous than other states across our
6 country have done in the same situation.
7 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
8 on the bill.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
10 Borrello on the bill.
11 SENATOR BORRELLO: Senator Hinchey,
12 thank you very much.
13 I understand we're trying to fill
14 some gaps here. But, you know, what this bill
15 really does, it goes well beyond just saying
16 we're going to fill in those gaps.
17 And one of the last things that I
18 did when I was county executive in
19 Chautauqua County was to negotiate a deal with
20 Airbnb because they weren't paying, and that
21 wasn't fair. You have hotels, motels, you have
22 people that rent their cottages and so forth that
23 aren't going through one of these
24 short-term-rental companies, you know, that are
25 paying that tax. And the others, because they
6175
1 went through VRBO or Airbnb or one of these
2 others, weren't. So that wasn't fair.
3 But we negotiated with Airbnb and we
4 got them to pay the tax so that it was a level
5 playing field. That was a solution that most
6 municipalities took as a way to level that
7 playing field.
8 But what we're doing here now is
9 we're essentially saying, you know, if you own a
10 home and you live in it most of the time and rent
11 it out for a fishing tournament or a golf
12 tournament or you rent it out, you know, four
13 times, five times a year in what we refer to as
14 the shoulder season -- you know, like right now,
15 where we are, most people don't have to use those
16 short-term rentals because they have a long list
17 of people that come back year after year after
18 year, and they don't need to use them, they have
19 a long list of clients.
20 But they do, in that shoulder
21 season -- the early season, the late season --
22 they may want to use VRBO or an Airbnb. And now
23 they're going to be subject to all of these
24 additional costs.
25 So what that unintended consequence
6176
1 to me is, they're just not going to register.
2 They're not going to register because they're not
3 going to want to pay maybe an extra couple
4 thousand dollars a year in taxes, in insurance
5 costs and taxes, to collect a couple thousand
6 dollars in return. So I think this will drive
7 people underground, essentially.
8 Now we're talking about enforcement,
9 how we're going to need a bigger enforcement in
10 order to do this. But then you talk about the
11 idea that really the underlying issue here is we
12 don't have enough affordable housing. Somehow --
13 what I heard from the sponsor was by making
14 things like this I guess more difficult, that
15 maybe people will just choose to do long-term
16 rentals and not short-term rentals.
17 And I have a problem with that.
18 People have a right to use their property as they
19 wish. And if the goal here is to somehow
20 encourage or penalize so we have long-term
21 rentals and not short-term rentals, that's I
22 don't think -- it's fundamentally unfair and is
23 really a violation of their right to use their
24 property as they wish.
25 So while I understand the intent and
6177
1 I'm sure some good will come of this, there are a
2 lot of unintended consequences. So I'll be
3 voting no.
4 Thank you.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
6 you, Senator Borrello.
7 Senator Helming, why do you rise?
8 SENATOR HELMING: Mr. President, I
9 rise to ask the sponsor of the bill a few
10 questions.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
12 sponsor yield?
13 SENATOR HINCHEY: I will.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR HELMING: Thank you,
17 Senator Hinchey.
18 I had the opportunity to ask a
19 number of questions on this bill during our
20 Housing Committee meeting. The intent of the
21 bill is something that I support. Like you, I
22 represent many rural communities, and the
23 municipalities are looking for some direction and
24 some help.
25 But as I stated during committee, I
6178
1 have a number of questions about some of the bill
2 language. It just doesn't make sense to me. It
3 seems duplicative in many areas.
4 But I wanted to go back and ask you
5 a question about the municipalities. I think
6 what I heard you acknowledge is that there will
7 be some expense to the municipalities. Can you
8 expand upon that? What do you estimate the cost
9 to be to a municipality?
10 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
11 Mr. President. There should be no expense to
12 municipalities. If they're choosing to have
13 their own registration system, which many of them
14 are, that's an expense that they're taking on.
15 We're not requiring them to do that.
16 We're creating a statewide registry,
17 so actually with the intent to hopefully save
18 them money so that they don't have to have their
19 own registry should they not want to.
20 SENATOR HELMING: Thank you.
21 Through you, Mr. President, if the sponsor will
22 continue to yield.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
24 sponsor yield?
25 SENATOR HINCHEY: I will.
6179
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
2 sponsor yields.
3 SENATOR HELMING: So the way I
4 understand it is that municipalities right now
5 with their own registry, there's not a
6 requirement that they have to report to the
7 Department of State or any state agency. So with
8 this bill, will that change?
9 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
10 Mr. President, yes. They don't have to report to
11 the Department of State because this doesn't
12 exist yet.
13 So what we're saying is, once a
14 quarter, to send their registry so that we have
15 the holistic view of the short-term-rental market
16 across the state. But that is just in the form
17 of an email. There's no -- that could be an
18 email, right?
19 And those regulations will be
20 promulgated by the Department of State, but
21 there's not an additional cost associated.
22 I also want to add that this
23 legislation is enthusiastically supported by
24 NYSAC, NYCOM and the Association of Towns.
25 SENATOR HELMING: Through you,
6180
1 Mr. President, if the sponsor will continue to
2 yield.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
4 sponsor yield?
5 SENATOR HINCHEY: I will.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
7 sponsor yields.
8 SENATOR HELMING: So I would argue
9 that there is a cost to the municipality to be
10 able to generate that report.
11 And also did you say that it is
12 possible that the Department of State will be
13 promulgating rules or regulations or whatever and
14 that the municipalities who have existing
15 registries may have to now comply with the state
16 format?
17 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
18 Mr. President, that was not the intention of what
19 I said.
20 The regulations are just how they
21 set up their system, so how the communication,
22 how they'll work with municipalities. Although
23 those communication streams already exist, just
24 not necessarily with the sending of their
25 registration list. But they -- our local
6181
1 municipalities communicate with our state
2 government all the time.
3 But they will not be promulgating
4 rules on local registries -- that's very clearly
5 written in the bill. If municipalities want to
6 have their own registry, their own system, all of
7 that stays with the local municipality.
8 SENATOR HELMING: Through you,
9 Mr. President, if the sponsor will continue to
10 yield.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
12 sponsor yield?
13 SENATOR HINCHEY: Sure.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR HELMING: Senator Hinchey,
17 within this legislation is there any requirement
18 for personal data to be collected by anyone,
19 whether it's the host, the owner, any other
20 platform? And if there is personal data that's
21 required to be collected, can you explain exactly
22 what that is?
23 SENATOR HINCHEY: (Conferring.)
24 Through you, Mr. President, yes, we're collecting
25 some information. I'm not entirely clear if
6182
1 you're asking about the guests or the hosts.
2 But we are collecting some
3 information. Any personal information like names
4 and locations are sent to the state, but that is
5 confidential. Should it ever be -- it's all
6 redacted, or the private information is redacted.
7 But on the municipality side, it's
8 important, especially for first responders, to
9 know where there are short-term rentals or
10 vacation homes. That's one of the things we hear
11 the most, actually, from our municipalities.
12 But all of the private information
13 is redacted.
14 SENATOR HELMING: Through you,
15 Mr. President, if the sponsor will continue to
16 yield.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
18 sponsor yield?
19 SENATOR HINCHEY: I will.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
21 sponsor yields.
22 SENATOR HELMING: Senator Hinchey,
23 you had mentioned the housing crisis, and I think
24 I heard something about how this bill will help
25 us address the crisis. Were you suggesting that
6183
1 there's language in this bill that will create
2 more housing opportunities for people other than
3 the short-term stays?
4 SENATOR HINCHEY: Through you,
5 Mr. President, no, of course not. This is a bill
6 for a registry.
7 But what's happening in the
8 communities that I represent and across the state
9 is that housing that has typically been used for
10 full-time residents is being bought by sometimes
11 folks from the community, much more oftentimes
12 folks from outside of the community, and turning
13 them into lucrative rentals -- therefore, taking
14 housing stock off of the market.
15 I also want to be clear. This is
16 not an anti-short-term-rental bill at all. It's
17 been incredibly important for our local
18 economies, for tourism. It's how many of our
19 small businesses and our Main Streets survived
20 through the pandemic.
21 But because there is this shift,
22 because there is a massive amount of
23 traditionally normal local housing being taken
24 off the market into vacation rentals, effectively
25 hotels, we are losing a lot of housing stock.
6184
1 And so one of the things that's
2 incredibly important that this bill will do is
3 provide that transparency so that we know what it
4 looks like across the state, and it will actually
5 be able to help our municipalities decide what
6 they need to do, how much more housing they'll
7 need to build to fix the crisis.
8 If they want to put on their own
9 caps, which many of them are doing, they can,
10 with this information of knowing how many
11 short-term rentals are in their backyards.
12 We're actually seeing, across the
13 state, many municipalities just blocking
14 short-term rentals altogether because they don't
15 have a handle on it. And before they can create
16 their own registry or anything else, they're
17 saying: Full stop, no more short-term rentals,
18 we need to understand what's happening to our
19 housing in our communities today.
20 This bill will help that by
21 providing the information municipalities need.
22 SENATOR HELMING: Thank you.
23 Through you, Madam President, on the
24 bill.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
6185
1 Helming on the bill.
2 SENATOR HELMING: As I stated
3 earlier, I think there are some really good
4 components of this bill, but I think there's a
5 lot that needs to be worked on.
6 What I hear from people in my
7 district -- and I represent a district that
8 tourists visit quite often -- and from the people
9 who live there, is that they are concerned about
10 environmental impacts of some of these short-term
11 rentals, right, short-term rentals in our rural
12 areas that are often on septic systems, and the
13 rentals -- the number of people exceed what the
14 septic system was designed to be able to handle.
15 So that's one of the concerns. But
16 I don't see that addressed in this legislation
17 anywhere.
18 And the other thing, when it comes
19 to the housing crisis, I agree that we have a
20 crisis. I have a number of bills to help address
21 the housing crisis. But using short-term-rental
22 data, mandating that people provide personal
23 information when they're going out to rent a unit
24 for a night or a couple of nights, I don't agree
25 with that at all.
6186
1 Like I said, it's tough. There are
2 some good aspects of this bill. But I still
3 think that it needs more work.
4 Thank you, Madam President.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
6 you.
7 Are there any other Senators wishing
8 to be heard?
9 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
10 closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
11 Read the last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 12. This
13 act shall take effect on the 120th day after it
14 shall have become a law.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
16 roll.
17 (The Secretary called the roll.)
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
19 Krueger to explain her vote.
20 SENATOR KRUEGER: Thank you.
21 I rise to proudly support
22 Senator Hinchey's bill. I've worked with her and
23 the staff on this bill over multiple years,
24 because I come from the City of New York where
25 we've had an enormous amount of experience now
6187
1 dealing with the short-term rental issues, many
2 of which have caused serious problem for our
3 communities and our residents.
4 And frankly I have spoken with
5 people from not just around this country, but
6 around the world at this point, comparing notes
7 about different issues that arise based on the
8 volume, the kind of community you're living in,
9 whether you're living a hundred people in one
10 building or whether you are living in private
11 houses.
12 I think the real strength of this
13 bill is the recognition that there are different
14 communities with different issues throughout the
15 State of New York, and this gives them -- again,
16 it's their decisions -- the choice to participate
17 in a model that will allow them to get their arms
18 around what is happening, to set their own
19 standards for their community, recognizing what
20 they need.
21 But at least to have the information
22 about what is happening. Because right now, you
23 may not have any idea, if you're a local
24 official, what is going on in your own community.
25 I have gotten calls from upstate communities over
6188
1 the years saying, "Somebody's rented out a house
2 next door and is having parties for 500 people.
3 What do I do about it?"
4 I'm like, "Well, call the local
5 police." Well, they don't know what the rules
6 are or why this is happening. They don't know
7 anything about this.
8 There are cities throughout this
9 country and whole states who have implemented
10 laws. Some look like ours, some don't. New York
11 City's implemented many layers now, at this
12 point, to try to get our arms around this, and
13 has also created our own registration system.
14 And while it may not be true that in
15 most parts of the state large quantities of
16 residential housing is being taken off the market
17 by these providers -- who aren't actually members
18 of the community themselves -- in New York City
19 we estimate that up to 20,000 apartments are no
20 longer available for the residents of New York
21 City because they have been turned into permanent
22 short-term rentals, in violation of the law.
23 And yes, we have a housing crisis in
24 New York City. And yes, I want those 20,000
25 units back on the rental market so that people
6189
1 who live in New York City and are having enormous
2 trouble finding housing or staying in their
3 housing can use that housing. But --
4 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: How do
5 you vote, Senator Krueger?
6 SENATOR KRUEGER: But our bill is
7 stricter for New York City, and I totally believe
8 that this is absolutely the right decision for
9 the rest of the state.
10 I vote aye, Madam President.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
12 you.
13 Senator Krueger to be recorded in
14 the affirmative.
15 Senator Skoufis to explain his vote.
16 SENATOR SKOUFIS: Thank you very
17 much, Madam President.
18 And I first want to acknowledge I
19 know just how much work and effort and energy the
20 sponsor put into this legislation. I
21 congratulate her on getting this bill to the
22 floor today.
23 There are many elements of this bill
24 that I support. The exception that I take is
25 that my preference would be that we take a
6190
1 holistic view on the home-sharing issue. Yes,
2 there are legitimate, real challenges that exist
3 to many neighbors, to some communities when the
4 existing law is abused by unscrupulous hosts. No
5 question about it.
6 However, there are some communities
7 that severely overregulate home sharing to the
8 point where it's impossible to even exist. And
9 for many individuals, working-class, middle-class
10 families, home sharing is a financial lifeline
11 them. You might have a senior citizen or a
12 couple who maybe will rent out their house for a
13 week or two or three at a time in a given year,
14 over the course of the entire year, to help pay
15 the bills for the other 49, 50 weeks that they
16 are living in that house.
17 And so while, yes, I support
18 addressing the challenges that communities face
19 in this hand, I also think at the same time, with
20 the other hand, we have to address the legitimate
21 challenges that this industry faces and the hosts
22 face to ensure that this lifeline continues in a
23 way in all communities, not just those
24 communities that do not overregulate.
25 So for that reason, I'll be a no on
6191
1 this bill. Thank you.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
3 Skoufis to be recorded in the negative.
4 Senator Borrello to explain his
5 vote.
6 SENATOR BORRELLO: Thank you,
7 Madam President.
8 You know, I'm very fortunate to live
9 in a rural area, a beautiful rural area that
10 fortunately a lot of people like to come and
11 visit. But it comes at a cost.
12 You know, I have many neighbors of
13 mine, friends, who have a house on the beach that
14 their grandfather bought 50, 60 years ago. And
15 now, because of the increase in the value of that
16 house, their property taxes have become so
17 burdensome that the only way that they can
18 continue to own that house is by renting that out
19 a few weeks of the year in order to help cover
20 that high cost of property taxes and insurance.
21 So now we're going to say to those
22 folks who are just able to hang on to that house
23 that's been in their family for in some cases
24 generations: You're going to spend more money to
25 have a full-value insurance on that house, even
6192
1 though you don't really need it, and an
2 additional $300,000 in liability insurance.
3 That's going to mean that some
4 people will have to say, We're going to have to
5 sell that house because I can no longer afford to
6 do this, because the offset won't be enough. And
7 I just think that's fundamentally unfair.
8 This was supposed to be about
9 correcting the VRBO, Airbnb, you know, I guess
10 issue that we had where they were going to not
11 pay those hotel/motel taxes and unfairly compete
12 with hotels and motels and people that are
13 following the rules.
14 This bill just goes far beyond that,
15 and it's going to have that type of consequence
16 on people that are hanging on to those homes only
17 because they can rent them out a few weeks a
18 year. So I'll be a no.
19 Thank you.
20 SENATOR MURRAY: Senator Borrello
21 to be recorded in the negative.
22 Senator Rhoads to explain his vote.
23 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
24 Madam President.
25 Much as my colleagues
6193
1 Senator Borrello and Senator Skoufis, there
2 certainly are some good points to this bill, but
3 it also does some harm. And I kind of think, you
4 know, coming into this chamber, I think rule
5 number one should be, just as physicians, do no
6 harm. And then we can take it from there and try
7 and do some good.
8 The concern that I have is that it's
9 making it unaffordable for people to be able to
10 engage in occasional rentals, simply because of
11 the insurance requirements that are included in
12 this bill. You are now requiring that they carry
13 not just liability insurance, if there's an
14 accident on their property involving a renter,
15 but you're requiring that they carry full
16 property damage insurance for the full value of
17 their home. Right?
18 In many instances you have
19 individuals who may be fortunate enough not to
20 have a mortgage, they don't have a bank requiring
21 that they carry a certain amount of coverage.
22 They may only carry replacement cost, what it
23 will cost to actually reconstruct their home if
24 there's a fire, heaven forbid.
25 But now you're requiring the full
6194
1 value of their home. So that's going to be a
2 cost, particularly in the area where I live, of
3 several thousand dollars a year that you're now
4 imposing which offers no benefit to the person
5 who's renting the home but is a tremendous
6 cost -- no benefit to the person who's actually
7 renting the home from the owner, but is a
8 tremendous cost to the owner.
9 And so while the bill does some
10 good, and I understand the reason, I'll be voting
11 no because of the harm that it does. And I hope
12 that we can revisit the issue if in fact this
13 does pass.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
15 Rhoads to be recorded in the negative.
16 Senator Martins to explain his vote.
17 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you,
18 Madam President.
19 You know, you've heard me say it
20 before here in the chamber: Very rarely does the
21 solution to our state's problems lie here in
22 Albany. More often than not, we should trust our
23 local communities to make decisions that they
24 deem appropriate. If there is an issue in the
25 local community, our mayors, our supervisors, our
6195
1 local boards certainly are capable of handling
2 that.
3 We are fortunate enough to live in a
4 state, Madam President, where we have beautiful
5 areas where people would like to visit. On
6 Long Island we have great areas where people do
7 have homes, sometimes they use those homes
8 seasonally, and from time to time they may want
9 to rent it, a weekend or a week at a time, as has
10 been cited, frankly sometimes just to make ends
11 meet and to pay the bills.
12 We're not talking about Airbnb or
13 VRBO or any of the other organized platforms that
14 are out there. We're talking about people in
15 their own homes being able to make decisions for
16 themselves. And because they want to rent the
17 home for a few days and they have the option to
18 do that today, the State of New York will once
19 again require them to register, to provide
20 information, to intrude into their lives. For
21 the sole purpose of not only collecting a fee,
22 but also collecting information and regulating
23 the lives of every New Yorker in this state.
24 Madam President, when is enough
25 enough? When do we say stop? Allow our local
6196
1 communities to make those decisions for
2 themselves, allow our local homeowners, who
3 sometimes are just trying to make ends meet,
4 allow them the opportunity to rent their homes
5 even if it's for a couple of days.
6 We just had a PGA event in Rochester
7 not too long ago. We'll have one next year in
8 Bethpage on Long Island. And you know what they
9 do there, those members of the community that
10 live around the golf course? For that week
11 during the PGA, they rent their homes for that
12 week. And then they're going to be forced to
13 register with the state just for the benefit of
14 living in that same community.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: How do
16 you vote?
17 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
18 I vote no.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
20 you. Senator Martins to be recorded in the
21 negative.
22 Senator Hinchey to explain her vote.
23 SENATOR HINCHEY: Thank you,
24 Madam President.
25 Before my comments, I want to say a
6197
1 huge thank you to Nayram Gasu, Brian Coffin on my
2 team -- my entire team, for that matter --
3 Senator Krueger, Senator Kavanagh, and of course
4 our wonderful Majority Leader for all of the work
5 and commitment to this bill, for helping bring
6 all of the stakeholders to the table so that we
7 could really address an issue that is pervasive
8 across our state.
9 To address a couple of points. On
10 the comments about insurance, as someone who has
11 actually rented my home to help pay my rent, I
12 always opted into the insurance because I think
13 it was important to protect my property.
14 In my community, one of -- some of
15 the biggest issues we have with short-term
16 rentals is that people come up often from the
17 city, they have never used a fireplace, but to
18 get to having that bucolic dream that you see in
19 many Hallmark movies, when it's snowing, you come
20 up for the winter, you build a beautiful roaring
21 fire. Oftentimes you may not open the flu. And
22 so houses that are rented for a weekend or a week
23 and you think that you're providing someone a
24 gift of visiting our community, you may lose
25 everything.
6198
1 And so I think the conversation
2 about requiring insurance is an important one,
3 because not only does it protect the people who
4 are coming into our communities, but it protects
5 the homeowners and their property.
6 As we talk about municipalities, I
7 want to just read a couple of points of people
8 who support this bill. As I said, NYCOM, the
9 Association of Towns, and NYSAC. We also have
10 the New York State Hospitality and Tourism
11 Association, New York State Tourism Industry
12 Association, Ski New York, This is Cooperstown,
13 Sullivan County Visitors Association, Visit
14 Schoharie County, Albany County Convention &
15 Visitors Bureau/Discover Albany, the American
16 Hotel and Lodging Association, the Regional
17 Office of Sustainable Tourism, Saratoga
18 Convention and Tourism Bureau, and many others.
19 These are representative of across the state,
20 from municipalities and our tourism industries.
21 This bill goes very far in making
22 sure that there is ample space for municipalities
23 to do whatever they deem appropriate or necessary
24 for their communities. We are only providing
25 support and help where they have asked us. We
6199
1 are helping with enforcement. Many of them have
2 their own local registries, but they cannot
3 actually enforce it. We are helping. The
4 state's role is to help our municipalities when
5 they ask us to.
6 We're also making sure that they are
7 receiving the funds that they are owed from
8 hosting these short-term rentals.
9 And so I'm incredibly proud of this
10 bill. As I said, I'm incredibly proud of the
11 entire team who worked on this so diligently.
12 And I said, we worked with everyone, including
13 booking platforms, who came to the table to work
14 with us on this and make sure it was a bill that
15 worked for everyone.
16 So I am excited to pass this bill on
17 the floor. I feel honored to carry it, and I
18 thank my colleagues. Those of you who are voting
19 in favor of it, thank you for voting for it.
20 And with that, Madam President, I
21 vote aye. Thank you.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
23 Hinchey to be recorded in the affirmative.
24 Announce the results.
25 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6200
1 Calendar Number 1267, those Senators voting in
2 the negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
3 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
4 Lanza, Martinez, Martins, Mattera, Murray,
5 Oberacker, Ortt, O'Mara, Palumbo, Rhoads,
6 Rolison, Skoufis, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber
7 and Weik.
8 Ayes, 39. Nays, 23.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
10 is passed.
11 There's a substitution at the desk.
12 The Secretary will read.
13 THE SECRETARY: Senator Sanders
14 moves to discharge, from the Committee on Rules,
15 Assembly Bill Number 7691 and substitute it for
16 the identical Senate Bill 1163A, Third Reading
17 Calendar 1731.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
19 substitution is so ordered.
20 The Secretary will read.
21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
22 1731, Assembly Bill Number 7691, by
23 Assemblymember Solages, an act to acknowledge the
24 fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and
25 inhumanity of slavery in the City of New York.
6201
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
2 O'Mara, why do you rise?
3 SENATOR O'MARA: Yes,
4 Madam President, will the sponsor yield for a few
5 questions.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Will the
7 sponsor yield?
8 SENATOR SANDERS: Madam President,
9 a point of personal privilege.
10 I certainly will, but first I had to
11 thank God for the opportunity to have this
12 conversation in here. As a child of a
13 sharecropper and a domestic worker, one born in
14 the Hammel Houses and a Senator, it says
15 something good about New York and America.
16 We're about to have an American
17 conversation, my friends. People feel strongly
18 about justice on both sides. Both people want to
19 see something great happen. There's nobody who
20 is mean and evil. There's folk who are trying to
21 get to someplace great, trying to make America a
22 better place.
23 Having said that, absolutely I
24 yield, Madam President.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
6202
1 O'Mara, the sponsor will yield.
2 SENATOR O'MARA: Yes, thank you,
3 Senator Sanders. And I agree. This is going to
4 delve into a very dark era of American history,
5 for sure.
6 But the issue of reparations is one
7 that's been discussed for many years now. And
8 the State of California I believe is the only
9 state that I think has moved in this direction
10 that you're proposing in your bill here today.
11 Can you tell us how this bill
12 follows what they did in California? Did you use
13 California as a template? How does this follow
14 the California -- or how does this differ from
15 how California got into this process?
16 SENATOR SANDERS: Madam President,
17 through you, California is a great state.
18 However, we're in the Empire State. And while we
19 may learn many things from California, we think
20 that we can do things our own way here.
21 We're going to do a New York
22 process, which is to take nothing from
23 California. If California did well for the
24 Californians, very good. But we're going to do
25 something in an Empire way in this state, sir.
6203
1 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
2 Senator.
3 Madam President, will the Senator
4 continue to yield.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Will the
6 sponsor yield?
7 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
9 sponsor yields.
10 SENATOR O'MARA: Senator Sanders,
11 in this bill to set up this commission, in
12 Section 3, paragraph 2, the commission is
13 directed to examine the extent to which the
14 federal government, as well as state and local
15 governments of New York, contributed to the issue
16 at hand of slavery, of discrimination, of what
17 part -- what role they played in that.
18 So is it the purpose of this
19 commission to come back with findings on what the
20 federal government's role was there and what they
21 think the federal government should be
22 responsible for?
23 And also picking out what local
24 government's role was in that and identifying
25 that specifically, whether it's at the county
6204
1 level or the town level? Are they going to pick
2 out specific local governments and explain?
3 Because I'm sure all the local governments, going
4 through the history and looking, handled this in
5 a variety of different ways.
6 So what is the intent of this as far
7 as what the impact would be -- really, I guess,
8 the crux of my question is what's the ultimate
9 impact of this on local governments.
10 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
11 Madam President. While it may be interesting to
12 delve into what the federal government is doing
13 or should do, as New York State Senators we will
14 confine our jurisdiction to where our
15 jurisdiction is, and that is New York State.
16 The commission of course must
17 examine the role and legacy of slavery, what it
18 has done, and especially the lingering effects
19 and what, if anything, should be done to
20 ameliorate that, sir.
21 SENATOR O'MARA: Through you,
22 Madam President, if the Senator will continue to
23 yield.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
25 sponsor yield?
6205
1 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR O'MARA: Well, I'll just
5 follow up again on the local governments, I
6 guess, because the bill in the section I read
7 specifically states to examine the role of local
8 governments in this.
9 But then -- so is it not intending
10 this commission to come up with any remedies that
11 we're going to put upon local governments for
12 this? Or are the remedies going to be just the
13 state's responsibility?
14 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
15 Madam President. The commission must study the
16 history of the entire process, sir, in New York
17 State. The commission has to look at not simply
18 local government, it will have to look at local
19 businesses, it will have to look at individual
20 acts, it will have to look at the history and the
21 economics that have led us to this point.
22 And at that point the commission
23 would try to decide how to fix it, if you wish.
24 How to make sure that this part of the American
25 experiment in New York State is made correct. A
6206
1 more perfect union, you may add.
2 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
3 Senator.
4 Madam President, if the Senator will
5 continue to yield.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
7 sponsor yield?
8 SENATOR SANDERS: I'm just having
9 fun, Madam President. Absolutely.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
11 sponsor yields.
12 SENATOR O'MARA: Senator, in
13 Section 3, paragraph 8, it directs the commission
14 to recommend appropriate remedies and
15 reparations.
16 Does that mean that the committee is
17 bound to find that there needs to be reparations?
18 It's directing them to come up with them.
19 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
20 Madam President. The short answer is no, sir.
21 A fair commission will have the
22 ability to look at the situation and come up with
23 what it believes is an appropriate answer. That
24 answer may please many people or may not please
25 people, but we should not handcuff a commission.
6207
1 We should have a fair commission on this issue.
2 SENATOR O'MARA: Through you,
3 Madam President, if the Senator will continue to
4 yield.
5 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Will the
7 sponsor yield?
8 The sponsor yields.
9 SENATOR O'MARA: I agree with that
10 completely, Senator, except I don't think the
11 language says that.
12 The language says the commission
13 shall recommend appropriate remedies and
14 reparations. It doesn't say if they find it's
15 appropriate. It says they shall recommend
16 appropriate remedies and reparations.
17 So I don't see how the commission
18 has the ability, under this language, to come
19 back and say no remedies, no reparations.
20 So what's the intent here?
21 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
22 Madam President. May I draw your attention to
23 that word "appropriate," sir. That word implies
24 that there may be no -- none at all. The word
25 "appropriate" should take in your -- your
6208
1 consideration.
2 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
3 Senator.
4 Madam President, will the Senator
5 continue to yield.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
7 sponsor yield?
8 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
10 sponsor yields.
11 SENATOR O'MARA: I appreciate that
12 clarification on that. I still disagree with the
13 technicality of the language and think this
14 requires them to come back with findings in that
15 order.
16 But further in Section 3,
17 paragraph 8, it says that they will determine the
18 amount of compensation and who shall be eligible
19 for such compensation. Senator, is -- I don't
20 see anywhere in this bill that says the
21 commission can consider who should be
22 excluding -- excluded from paying those
23 reparations or -- or that didn't have involvement
24 in the perpetuation of slavery in New York and
25 the -- and the results that followed.
6209
1 So why doesn't it -- why don't you
2 include that they should be considering also who
3 should be excluded from the costs of this?
4 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
5 Madam President. I'll answer you two different
6 ways, sir. The first way that I would say is to
7 go back to that word "appropriate," because it
8 may answer that.
9 But I'd answer you another way, and
10 I would suggest to you that everyone has
11 benefited from slavery. That any time a person
12 has walked on a literal road, you have benefited
13 from whoever built the road. Any time that you
14 have crossed a bridge, you have benefited from
15 whoever built the bridge. Any time you went to a
16 court or hospital -- all of these things,
17 everyone has benefited from it.
18 You may say you may not have
19 benefited as much. That's a worthy conversation.
20 But everyone has benefited from the labors of
21 people that have gone before. You -- well, there
22 may be an exception to what I just said. The
23 people who built the road, the slaves in this
24 sense, may be the ones who didn't benefit from
25 all of these things. So -- but besides them, I
6210
1 would argue that anyone who is here in New York
2 has benefited from it regardless to what time you
3 have come here. You may have gotten here
4 10 minutes ago. But if you walked down that
5 road, you benefited.
6 So if your question was who
7 benefited or who should, I trust that you'll take
8 that into account.
9 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
10 Senator.
11 Madam President, if the Senator will
12 continue to yield.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
14 sponsor yield?
15 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
17 sponsor yields.
18 SENATOR O'MARA: Is it also in the
19 purview of this commission, and your intent of
20 this legislation, that the commission should take
21 into consideration whether the person to receive
22 compensation just got here 10 minutes ago?
23 Not -- how long they've been in the state and
24 been held back or suffered from that? Is the
25 commission supposed to take that type of balance?
6211
1 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
2 Madam President. I certainly hope so, sir. I do
3 believe that there -- just as I was saying, there
4 are levels of benefit or harm, if you wish. And
5 I trust that wise men and women who are on a
6 commission will sit and work these things out,
7 sir. But it's a good point that you raise.
8 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
9 Senator.
10 Madam President, if the Senator will
11 continue to yield.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
13 sponsor yield?
14 SENATOR SANDERS: I absolutely
15 yield.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
17 sponsor yields.
18 SENATOR O'MARA: Just a question on
19 the -- on what might be the fiscal impact of this
20 to the state -- and certainly that's not in this
21 bill -- and whether the commission is going to
22 come back with an overall figure or individual
23 figure.
24 I don't see any requirement in here
25 that the commission consider the fiscal ability
6212
1 of the state to pay for whatever they might come
2 up with. And we've certainly seen in California
3 they came up with $5 million a person.
4 How should the commission take into
5 account the fiscal ability of the state in making
6 recommendations on this?
7 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
8 Madam President. Again, California is a
9 magnificent state. And if those who choose to
10 live there live there, I -- I think that they've
11 done a great job for California.
12 However, we will not tell the
13 commission what their outcome is in advance. We
14 have to have faith that if we find wise men and
15 women and we put them in a place, that they will
16 understand that they live in the real world, that
17 money is not an unlimited thing. And we do
18 things a little different in New York than other
19 places, sir.
20 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
21 Senator.
22 Madam President, if the Senator will
23 continue to yield.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
25 sponsor yield?
6213
1 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR O'MARA: You agree with me,
5 then, that there is no language in here that
6 would require the commission to actually consider
7 the fiscal ability of the state to pay, or
8 whatever recommendations there might be of a
9 local government to pay.
10 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
11 Madam President, I agree that we did not tell the
12 commission what to do. That we agreed that the
13 commission would be an independent body and would
14 determine, based on its understanding, what
15 should happen from there, sir.
16 SENATOR O'MARA: And through you,
17 Madam President, if the Senator will continue to
18 yield.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Will the
20 sponsor yield?
21 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
23 Senator yields.
24 SENATOR O'MARA: Again, the report
25 that comes out of this commission is not going to
6214
1 be binding in any legislation that might follow
2 this, is that accurate to say?
3 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
4 Madam President. The report should have a moral
5 background. It should have a reasonableness to
6 it. But the job of the Legislature is to
7 legislate. We are not taking -- just as we're
8 not telling the commission what to do, we will
9 not allow any commission to tell us what to do.
10 We will act as legislators.
11 SENATOR O'MARA: Through you,
12 Madam President, if the Senator will continue to
13 yield.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
15 sponsor yield?
16 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
18 sponsor yields.
19 SENATOR O'MARA: Well, I'm glad to
20 hear that, Senator Sanders, because in recent
21 years it's been, in my opinion, far too common
22 where we have been delegating final
23 determinations to an outside entity that's going
24 to be appointed. Whether that's congestion
25 pricing that's coming, whether that was the CLCPA
6215
1 and the Climate Action Council plan that came
2 out.
3 In other words, things that will
4 automatically take effect on this commission's
5 findings. That's not what's going to happen
6 here. Everything's got to come back to us for
7 legislation to be drafted on how we're going to
8 respond to the recommendations of this
9 commission.
10 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
11 Madam President. Like yourself, sir, I did not
12 sign up to throw the powers of the Senate or
13 Legislature away. I signed up to be a
14 representative of the people of New York State.
15 And as such, we will -- I will not be part of
16 anything that just throws that power away.
17 There are times when commissions
18 should be given authority to make those
19 decisions. But this one is going to be made by
20 the Legislature.
21 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
22 Senator.
23 Madam President, if the Senator will
24 continue to yield.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
6216
1 sponsor yield?
2 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
4 sponsor yields.
5 SENATOR O'MARA: Senator, just on I
6 guess some of the specifics of the makeup of the
7 committee and the required meetings. There's
8 only appointments in here from the Governor, the
9 Speaker of the Assembly, and the Temporary
10 President of the Senate. So the majorities of
11 the Legislature and the Governor, all of one
12 party in this state.
13 There's no Minority Conference
14 appointments to this.
15 And as this commission's findings,
16 you know, potentially will impact local
17 governments, including the City of New York,
18 there's no appointments on here particularly in
19 the interests of the local governments either, is
20 that correct?
21 SENATOR SANDERS: No.
22 SENATOR O'MARA: And why not?
23 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
24 Madam President. As you may know, I always favor
25 to have minority parties involved. But this
6217
1 legislation was drafted with two things in mind.
2 The first, that our partners in the Assembly, of
3 course, have their own way of doing things and we
4 are not going to tell them what to do.
5 But we also were following the
6 standards set by 40 years of Republican rule when
7 the Republicans were in charge of the Senate.
8 This is the way it was done for 40 years, and we
9 are following the protocol that you guys set.
10 SENATOR O'MARA: Through you,
11 Madam President, if the Senator will continue to
12 yield.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
14 sponsor yield?
15 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
17 sponsor yields.
18 SENATOR O'MARA: There are many
19 examples of commissions and committees that have
20 been set up over the past 40 years, and during
21 the reign of the Republican Party, that did have
22 Minority Conference appointments to those and
23 were a requirement. Yet you didn't require that
24 here. So when the Republicans controlled this
25 chamber there were -- yes, there were instances
6218
1 where they weren't included. And that was wrong.
2 And it should continue to be wrong today.
3 But we hear a lot from your side of
4 the aisle "What you did was wrong." I can tell
5 you, there's I think four of us over here that
6 were here then, and we were not in leadership.
7 So how long do two wrongs make a right in this
8 chamber?
9 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
10 Madam President. Two wrongs never make a right,
11 sir.
12 My personal view of course is mine.
13 I am bound by working with the Assembly and by
14 working on protocol here. But I assure you every
15 way that I can, I will always say we should have
16 some representation.
17 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
18 Senator.
19 Madam President, if the Senator will
20 continue to yield.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
22 sponsor yield?
23 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
25 sponsor yields.
6219
1 SENATOR O'MARA: There's language
2 in here after the appointments that the first
3 meeting of the commission will take place
4 180 days after the effective date of this act,
5 which takes effect immediately. So in 180 days
6 from the passage and the signing of the Governor,
7 whenever -- whenever that gets around -- that
8 there will be hearings.
9 There's no end date in this as to
10 what date the commission has to report by, is
11 there?
12 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
13 Madam President. First I'd like to draw your
14 attention that the word is within 180 days, which
15 means that they would of course -- or should or
16 could start work immediately. If it was my will,
17 they would start work from day one. I can't tell
18 a commission what to do.
19 And there is a end date in it, sir.
20 It is one year, I believe -- one year after the
21 date of the first meeting, sir.
22 SENATOR O'MARA: Can you show me --
23 through you, Madam President, can you show me
24 where that is? Because I certainly overlooked
25 that.
6220
1 SENATOR SANDERS: Paragraph C of
2 Section 3. Oh, let's see. Where is this? The
3 last sentence? Okay. It says on 32, if you can
4 find it, sir. It says the -- and the Governor no
5 later than one year after the date of the first
6 meeting of the commission held pursuant to --
7 blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. We'll have
8 somebody walk it to you in a moment or two, sir.
9 SENATOR O'MARA: All right. I just
10 didn't see it in here, so -- within -- within a
11 year.
12 Through you, Madam President, if the
13 Senator will continue to yield.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
15 sponsor yield?
16 SENATOR SANDERS: Absolutely.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
18 sponsor yields.
19 SENATOR O'MARA: This legislation
20 requires the commission to conduct hearings and
21 sessions as it's described, but it doesn't
22 identify -- that I see here -- how many hearings
23 there should be or where they should be
24 throughout the State of New York.
25 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
6221
1 Madam President. Since members of the commission
2 must represent geographic areas of the state, I
3 suspect that each area would want a hearing in
4 their area.
5 On a personal level, I would love
6 dozens of hearings, if I could. I would suggest
7 that to them, and I'm sure that you will also,
8 sir.
9 SENATOR O'MARA: Through you,
10 Madam President, if the Senator will continue to
11 yield.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
13 sponsor yield?
14 The sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR O'MARA: The actual
16 language about the geographic representation says
17 "to the extent possible." So it's not required
18 that these appointees be from geographically
19 diverse areas of the state.
20 How can we assure that that's
21 actually going to happen with these appointees?
22 SENATOR SANDERS: Through you,
23 Madam President. It is a great desire to reflect
24 the greatness of this great state by picking
25 people from all over. However, there may be a
6222
1 case where talent is needed, an economist of one
2 type or another, that comes from the same place
3 that some other talent comes from.
4 It is really up to the people who
5 appoint -- the Governor, this Legislature and the
6 Assembly -- to make sure that that happens, sir.
7 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you.
8 Through you, Madam President, if the
9 Senator will continue to yield.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Does the
11 sponsor yield?
12 SENATOR SANDERS: The Senator
13 yields.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR O'MARA: I think, Senator,
17 that concludes the questions I have. I just want
18 to thank you for answering some of the specifics
19 I had on the makeup and responsibilities of this
20 commission. So thank you.
21 SENATOR SANDERS: Madam President,
22 will the -- you're not the sponsor. Will the
23 questioner yield for a question?
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
25 O'Mara, do you yield for a question?
6223
1 SENATOR O'MARA: Sure.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
3 Senator yields.
4 SENATOR SANDERS: Sir, we here in
5 New York State are suffering from a smog that has
6 come from all over out of Canada, caused by some
7 wildfires. I will -- I don't believe that you
8 set that fire. I don't believe that you had
9 anything to do with that fire. However, you are
10 feeling the effects of that fire. That smog has
11 drifted over and has poisoned the atmosphere.
12 I would suggest that you see slavery
13 as such. That you didn't set the fire, you
14 didn't do anything -- you weren't there when that
15 fire was set. However, the smog of injustice, of
16 Jim Crow, of genocide, of murder, of mayhem
17 lingers in the air.
18 Now, some would say that, wait a
19 minute, I have no responsibility here. I had
20 nothing to do with it. I would say that we
21 have -- and I'm sure you would agree that we have
22 a responsibility as Americans to do something
23 about these things. That smog that has drifted
24 over and it clouds us is such that you can't say,
25 well, I just got here 5 minutes ago and therefore
6224
1 I will do nothing about the smog because I just
2 got here 5 minutes ago.
3 I would suggest that every American
4 has the right and the responsibility to do
5 something to get the smog of injustice cleared
6 up. And I'm hoping that everyone joins in and
7 says, You know what, we may not have had a
8 personal hand in it, but we refuse to let the
9 lingering effect of this horror cloud the
10 American experience. This thing is too sacred
11 for this type of stuff. We all are going to do
12 something about it, because we all are Americans.
13 We can't cherry-pick our history.
14 We can't decide that I wasn't there so I had
15 nothing to do it. I wasn't there, I had nothing
16 to do with that. No, my friends, this is a
17 package deal. Once you become an American, you
18 take the history, the good, the bad and whatever
19 else is there, and you say that we're going to do
20 something about it if we are true Americans.
21 Now, if we want to be one of those
22 part-time Americans, if you want to say I can
23 pick this and pick that because I wasn't here,
24 then that's a different story.
25 Thank you, Madam President for that.
6225
1 I -- I --
2 SENATOR O'MARA: Thank you,
3 Senator Sanders.
4 SENATOR SANDERS: I withdraw the
5 question. I think it was a question -- I
6 withdraw the question.
7 (Laughter.)
8 SENATOR O'MARA: I appreciate that.
9 Thank you.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
11 you.
12 Are there any other Senators wishing
13 to be heard?
14 Seeing and hearing none, the debate
15 is closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
16 Read the last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
18 act shall take effect immediately.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Call the
20 roll.
21 (The Secretary called the roll.)
22 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
23 Jackson to explain his vote.
24 SENATOR JACKSON: Thank you,
25 Madam President.
6226
1 I rise in support of S1163, a bill
2 that holds tremendous significance in our pursuit
3 of justice and equality. This bill, the New York
4 State Community Commission on Reparations
5 Remedies, serves as a crucial step towards
6 acknowledging the grave injustices inflicted upon
7 the African-American community throughout
8 history.
9 Slavery, an institution stained with
10 fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality,
11 inhumanity, has left an indelible mark on the
12 City of New York and the State of New York.
13 Acknowledging this dark chapter of our history is
14 not an easy task, but it is a necessary one if we
15 are to build a more equitable and just society.
16 The impact of these forces are not confined to
17 the past, but continue to reverberate through the
18 lives of individuals and communities here today.
19 This bill provides an opportunity
20 for us to examine these painful legacies,
21 understand their present-day impact on
22 individuals of African descent, and make
23 determinations regarding compensation. The
24 commission will play a vital role in assessing
25 these impacts and making determinations regarding
6227
1 compensation, seeking to address the persistent
2 inequalities and injustices faced by people of
3 African descent.
4 This bill is not about dwelling on
5 past wrongs, it is about acknowledging them and
6 taking decisive action to heal the wounds of
7 history. Reparations are not a mere financial
8 transaction. They represent a commitment to
9 equality, justice, and the pursuit of a more
10 equitable future.
11 Let us stand united in solidarity,
12 recognizing our shared responsibilities to
13 rectify the profound injustices inflicted upon
14 African-American communities, and forge a more
15 inclusive and just society for all.
16 And I thank Andrea Stewart-Cousins,
17 our Majority Leader of the New York State Senate,
18 Senator James Sanders Jr., and Senator Jabari
19 Brisport. And as a member of the New York State
20 Black, Puerto Rican, Latino and Asian Caucus and
21 of the New York State Black Legislative
22 Task Force, as a Black man, I proudly vote aye.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
24 Jackson to be recorded in the affirmative.
25 Senator Bailey to explain his vote.
6228
1 SENATOR BAILEY: Thank you,
2 Madam President.
3 Land of the free, home of the brave,
4 built on labor that was not paid. July 4, 1827,
5 was more than just Independence Day in New York
6 State, it was a day that my people, Black
7 people -- yes, my people, Black people, gained
8 our independence here.
9 Now, some would say, as
10 Senator Sanders so eloquently said about the smog
11 of injustice and then not being at fault, I don't
12 think we're laying the fault to anyone. But
13 let's look at the vestiges of slavery that last
14 to this day. Plessy versus Ferguson, separate
15 but equal. When it wasn't separate but equal.
16 Segregation. Black codes. Jim Crow Laws.
17 Racially restrictive covenants. Redlining.
18 Let's dig a little bit deeper.
19 Abject poverty. Lack of adequate funding. Lack
20 of hope. Lack of respect. From the vestiges of
21 slavery.
22 Freedom ain't free, we always say.
23 But we love to talk about things that we got
24 because of things that were free. Free labor
25 from my people that came here through the
6229
1 Middle Passage, taken to a land that they didn't
2 intend to come from -- come to, but they made the
3 best of it. We sure have in this 400-plus years.
4 It's hard to get 400-plus years in two minutes,
5 Madam President, so I'm going to speed it up.
6 But I think about my
7 great-great-great-grandmother Sylvia Richardson
8 Holder, who was born into slavery in
9 Johnson County, North Carolina. And I saw a
10 picture the other day that I had never seen
11 before, of her showing her master's grandson the
12 cabin she lived in. That's America. That's
13 just -- that's not a theoretical person, that's
14 my great-great-great-grandmother. In my
15 bloodline.
16 The vestiges of slavery are very
17 real, Madam President. And I'm so appreciative
18 of New York State for finally taking a step
19 forward to examine what I believe we already
20 know, that it has affected us in a major way.
21 Two wrongs don't make a right. But
22 I thank Senator Sanders and Leader
23 Stewart-Cousins for continuing this fight.
24 I vote aye, Madam President.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Thank
6230
1 you.
2 Senator Bailey to be recorded in the
3 affirmative.
4 Senator Comrie to explain his vote.
5 I would just like to remind everyone
6 that you have two minutes to explain your vote.
7 The sponsor has five minutes.
8 SENATOR COMRIE: Am I the sponsor,
9 Madam President?
10 (Laughter.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Just for
12 the record, Senator Sanders is the sponsor.
13 SENATOR COMRIE: The way you said
14 it made me ask, so.
15 This is a proud moment in New York
16 State, and I hope that everybody recognizes that.
17 It's a time and an opportunity where we need to
18 acknowledge that New York State had a key element
19 and key role and responsibility in shaping how
20 slavery happened throughout the country. It's
21 time that we recognize as being done what has
22 been done, and what is still being done, to
23 discriminate people in New York State.
24 Reconciliation and recognition is
25 key to the ability of a people, of a country, of
6231
1 a nation, of a state to acknowledge all of its
2 ills, all of its pluses, all of its minuses. I
3 pray that this commission will look at this with
4 open eyes, open hearts, and get feedback from
5 every person that's interested in seeing this be
6 done in a positive way.
7 This is an opportunity to bring our
8 state to a better positive level, to create
9 information and to share resources and to
10 acknowledge history, to be able to face our
11 future, to find dignity, and to bring relief. To
12 bring an opportunity to acknowledge the realities
13 of what's happening to people to this day, where
14 we still have less than 2 percent of our Black
15 children going to elite schools in this state.
16 Where we still have people that are living in
17 areas in this state that were designed and they
18 were put in because they knew that those areas
19 were either radioactive, high water tables, or
20 negative areas.
21 This is an opportunity for the state
22 to grow. I'm proud to vote for this. I want to
23 thank Andrea Stewart-Cousins and all of the
24 members of the Democratic Conference who embrace
25 this bill.
6232
1 I vote aye, Madam President.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
3 Comrie to be recorded in the affirmative.
4 Senator May to explain her vote.
5 SENATOR MAY: Thank you,
6 Madam President.
7 And I want to thank the sponsor and
8 my colleagues for this really historic vote
9 today.
10 In 1934 my grandparents bought a
11 modest home. They had little income or credit,
12 but they were able to get a mortgage because the
13 federal government insured mortgages as part of a
14 Depression-era effort to promote homeownership.
15 This enabled them to participate in the greatest
16 wealth-building opportunity of the 20th century.
17 And 60 years later, they left their five
18 grandchildren enough to make down payments on
19 houses of our own.
20 If my grandparents had been Black,
21 or even if they had had Black neighbors, they
22 would have been denied this opportunity and the
23 ability to build generational wealth.
24 Over recent decades we've seen
25 policies that have amplified the inequality that
6233
1 came from denying Black Americans the right to
2 build wealth through homeownership. Capital
3 gains taxes on home sales have been cut to the
4 bone. Inheritance taxes have been cut to the
5 bone.
6 I am proud of my grandparents and
7 deeply grateful for what they left me and for my
8 ability to buy a home. But I do not want my
9 prosperity to be at the cost of people who
10 have -- deserve every bit as much as I was given
11 and every bit as much opportunity to participate
12 in the American dream.
13 I am here to support this effort,
14 and I hope that we can have a more level playing
15 field moving forward.
16 I vote aye.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
18 May to be recorded in the affirmative.
19 Senator Cleare to explain her vote.
20 SENATOR CLEARE: Thank you,
21 Madam President.
22 I proudly rise in support of this
23 bill. I want to thank Senator Sanders, the
24 conference, Senator Brisport, and everyone who
25 poured into this to get to this day.
6234
1 I'm a cosponsor. I have advocated
2 for reparations or actions towards reparations
3 since day one in office. Today gives me great
4 pride. I'm proud of a lot of things we did in
5 this chamber, but I'm especially proud of this.
6 Reparations or making amends are
7 good for the heart, the soul, the body politic.
8 Reparations are necessary to facilitate
9 healing -- not only of those wronged, but for
10 society in total.
11 Slavery is America's original sin.
12 And there is something about an original sin that
13 sticks around until the end of time, unless we
14 make amends. The lasting legacy of slavery and
15 of Jim Crow Laws, of redlining, voter
16 suppression, and every other successor of slavery
17 and racism only compound the reparations that are
18 needed, warranted, and as a precondition of
19 equality.
20 The plight faced by Black people in
21 this country is painfully distinct from all
22 others. Slavery may have officially ended in
23 New York around July 4, 1827, but equality did
24 not reign the next day.
25 This bill takes a very responsible
6235
1 and judicious approach and will rely upon
2 history, research, and facts to examine all of
3 the interrelated issues with care. I often brag
4 about part of the district I represent, Harlem.
5 It is the mecca, to me, of the Black Diaspora.
6 This bill is needed and demanded by
7 many in my Senate district who feel that amends
8 must be made, reparations provided, before we do
9 anything else as a public body. I wholeheartedly
10 agree with them, and I stand with them.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
12 Cleare --
13 SENATOR CLEARE: I proudly vote aye
14 on this, and I thank our leader, Senator Cousins,
15 for bringing this to the floor. And thank you,
16 thank you, thank you, Senator Sanders.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
18 Cleare to be recorded in the affirmative.
19 Senator Parker to explain his vote.
20 SENATOR PARKER: Madam President,
21 let me add my voice to those who are
22 congratulating our leader, Andrea
23 Stewart-Cousins, and the sponsor of this
24 legislation, my colleague James Sanders, and all
25 these who have been toiling in the vineyards
6236
1 around making sure that this bill happened.
2 This -- it seems like it's just
3 something that might have come up for some
4 people, but Senator Sanders indicated he's been
5 working on this for 30 years. And there's been a
6 number of members who have been working on this.
7 This didn't begin with just the work on this
8 bill, but there was a work towards getting a
9 majority and getting a critical mass of people
10 who would actually vote. And so to all those who
11 are going to vote yes on this bill today, I thank
12 you.
13 That this particular issue, the
14 peculiar institution of the enslavement of
15 African people must be addressed in this country.
16 Must be. You can't call yourself a country of
17 life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and
18 not look at the injustices that have happened to
19 African-Americans in a way that has almost never
20 happened in the history of the world.
21 That when we talk about the word
22 "enslavement," like even in other countries, you
23 know, there's been servitude, but it wasn't till
24 you got to America that you had chattel slavery.
25 Right? As an African-American studies professor
6237
1 I always teach people that chattel, like cattle,
2 equals property.
3 The notion that when you as a Black
4 person try to look up your history, you can't
5 even look in the census records. You have to go
6 to the warehouses and the manufacturing records
7 and the shipping records, because your people
8 were brought here literally as pieces of
9 property.
10 And we only begin in this moment to
11 recognize that and take some assessment and
12 hopefully the beginning of some accountability.
13 And so I vote aye on this bill
14 because this commission will address issues not
15 just in this state, but really a national problem
16 that has become the underpinning of all the
17 wealth and the glory and all the things that we
18 think of when we think of how great America is,
19 begins with the original sin of the enslavement
20 of African people.
21 And so I vote aye. I thank my
22 coalition for voting aye. I thank the sponsors.
23 And I'm looking forward to seeing the results of
24 this commission's work.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
6238
1 Parker to be recorded in the affirmative.
2 Senator Myrie to explain his vote.
3 SENATOR MYRIE: Thank you,
4 Madam President.
5 I also join in thanking our Majority
6 Leader. Thank you to Senator Brisport, who has
7 been doing a lot of work in this area.
8 But a very special thanks to
9 Senator Sanders, who as you just heard has been
10 working on this issue for decades. And when he
11 talks about American values, it's not an exercise
12 in this chamber. This is a man that put on a
13 uniform to defend this country. And this, what
14 is he doing today, is also a defense of this
15 country. Our true ideals, true equality.
16 And before we start
17 mischaracterizing what reparations will be, and
18 without predisposing the outcome of the
19 commission, I want to make clear that reparations
20 can include world-class hospitals for Black
21 communities. Reparations can include world-class
22 schools for Black communities. It should include
23 world-class economic opportunity for Black
24 communities.
25 This is about investment into what
6239
1 was stolen. We want a share of that too, period.
2 I proudly vote in the affirmative.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
4 Myrie to be recorded in the affirmative.
5 Senator Webb to explain her vote.
6 SENATOR WEBB: Thank you,
7 Madam President. I rise to explain my vote.
8 And I want to thank Senator Brisport
9 for your efforts, and of course Senator Sanders.
10 You know, when we talk about the
11 history of slavery and abolition in the
12 United States, our narratives tend to preserve an
13 imaginary geographical boundary between the North
14 and the South, and the misconception that slavery
15 was an institution practiced only in the American
16 South. And while the abolition movement did grow
17 in the North and many enslaved people traveled
18 here in search of freedom, it is also the case
19 that slavery and its aftermath are woven into the
20 history of New York and still has present-day
21 implications and impacts.
22 Madam President, enslaved people
23 were forced to work in bondage in our state as
24 early as the 1620s, when the Dutch colonial
25 settlers built communities along the Hudson River
6240
1 with the labor of enslaved Africans. New York
2 did not abolish slavery until 1827. However,
3 disenfranchisement, bigotry, discrimination and
4 disparities persisted in the wake. Even when
5 slavery was technically illegal, it was still
6 common in many parts of our state, and Black
7 New Yorkers lived with its after-effects,
8 including but not limited to segregation,
9 Jim Crow Laws, systemic racism, all of which
10 impact our communities today.
11 In my own district where I
12 represent, in District 52, there's a cultural
13 intersection where in the City of Binghamton
14 there's a step that -- there's a mark that
15 signifies the Underground Railroad, and then
16 right across the street you had the KKK that used
17 to hold rallies there, that cultural clash.
18 And so as many of my colleagues have
19 noted, the legacy of slavery and systemic racism
20 in New York is experienced by Black people in
21 many ways, whether it is through the ongoing
22 effects of generational poverty, voter
23 suppression, disproportionate rates of
24 incarceration, Black maternal health outcomes,
25 limited access to reproductive care, and the list
6241
1 goes on.
2 By passing this legislation and
3 establishing the New York State Community
4 Commission on Reparation Remedies, we have the
5 opportunity to acknowledge the fundamental
6 injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of
7 slavery in the State of New York and begin to
8 right the wrongs of history.
9 To take this integral step,
10 Madam President, would be, as Dr. Maya Angelou
11 said so eloquently, bringing the gifts that my
12 ancestors gave --
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
14 Webb?
15 SENATOR WEBB: I proudly vote aye.
16 As I close, Madam President, I'm the
17 dream and the hope of the slave. I encourage us
18 all to rise together and vote in favor of this
19 legislation.
20 Again, thank you, Senator Brisport.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
22 Webb to be recorded in the affirmative.
23 SENATOR WEBB: Thank you,
24 Senator Sanders.
25 I proudly vote aye. Thank you.
6242
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
2 Brisport to explain his vote.
3 SENATOR BRISPORT: Thank you,
4 Madam President.
5 In the U.S., slavery and its legacy
6 are often talked about as though they are
7 strictly a Southern issue. Senator Webb
8 mentioned this earlier. This unfortunately could
9 not be further from the truth. While communities
10 in Africa were being destabilized by having
11 members abducted, New York banks were profiting
12 by selling those community members on Wall
13 Street. While enslaved Black people throughout
14 the Atlantic were having their labor stolen,
15 New York-based companies like Domino Sugar were
16 profiting off of it.
17 Given how much of New York's wealth
18 was generated by the slave economy, how much
19 New York perpetuated the slave economy, and that
20 New York remains one of the most segregated and
21 unequal states in the nation, it is only right
22 that our state actively work to repair the damage
23 it has done to the Black community.
24 Beyond reparations being a moral
25 obligation, they are also necessary for any hope
6243
1 of building an equitable future. For every $100
2 in accumulated white family wealth, Black
3 families hold just $5.04. That massive wealth
4 gap is the direct result of generations of stolen
5 wealth and opportunity. And on a broad scale, it
6 is virtually insurmountable without reparations.
7 This commission is an opportunity
8 for New York to practice the kind of restorative
9 justice that allows for real healing. It also
10 represents decades of work by incredible
11 community groups like the December 12th Movement,
12 N'COBRA, and the Institute of the Black World.
13 It's deeply unfortunate that these groups were
14 removed from the commission at the 11th hour in
15 this bill, despite their essential role in
16 getting us to this point.
17 But I am very proud to have worked
18 with them and former Assemblymember Charles
19 Barron in fighting for this commission, and have
20 seen through those efforts their extraordinary
21 degree of collective expertise and wisdom on the
22 subject of reparations.
23 If the state truly wishes to repair
24 the harm it has caused, that effort must be
25 guided not by the state that has caused the harm,
6244
1 but by the community that it harmed. I will
2 continue to advocate for the appointments to this
3 commission to be drawn from the community groups
4 that have led the fight on reparations when no
5 one else would give it the time of day.
6 If done right, this commission can
7 set a stage for a new era of racial equity.
8 I vote aye.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
10 Brisport to be recorded in the affirmative.
11 Senator Harckham to explain his
12 vote.
13 SENATOR HARCKHAM: Thank you,
14 Madam President.
15 I'm going to thank Majority Leader
16 Andrea Stewart-Cousins. I want to thank
17 Senator Sanders, Senator Brisport, a number of
18 people for their work.
19 As somebody who has no other
20 marketable skills than the gift of gab, words are
21 failing me at this time. But I felt it was
22 important that I rise to support and say that
23 I'll be voting for this measure, not only because
24 this is about being on the right side of history,
25 it's so central to all of the issues that we deal
6245
1 with.
2 As Senator Myrie spoke of, the
3 inequities in education, in healthcare, in
4 housing, in employment, in wealth. And these
5 were caused by decades of deliberate policies
6 stemming back to slavery. And so this original
7 sin, as Senator Sanders said, is at the essence
8 of everything we do in this chamber.
9 And I want to close with a quick
10 story to bring this to my district. Ten minutes
11 from where I raised my daughters, New York State
12 has a park, the John Jay Homestead. John Jay was
13 central in the founding of our country and very
14 much in New York State. He was a slave owner.
15 He was a slave owner in Northern Westchester.
16 And so to my constituents -- and I
17 think many of my constituents will applaud this.
18 But to those who think this is some kind of woke
19 experiment, I urge you to go learn our history in
20 Northern Westchester, because we are part of that
21 original sin, and we have the responsibility to
22 rectify it.
23 I vote aye.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
25 Harckham to be recorded in the affirmative.
6246
1 Senator Brouk to explain her vote.
2 SENATOR BROUK: Thank you,
3 Madam President.
4 Being Black in America is to live
5 every day through the legacy of slavery. We live
6 it in our communities. I happen to represent one
7 of the most segregated areas and neighborhoods in
8 the United States. We live it in job interviews,
9 where we are faced with both implicit and
10 incredibly overt racism. We even live it, as
11 I've said so many times, while giving birth in a
12 country where it is more dangerous for Black
13 women to give birth than it is for many other
14 women.
15 Being Black in America means that
16 you never get to forget the origins of this
17 country, the racist origins of this country. And
18 while there are other states and other
19 legislative bodies who are working tirelessly to
20 erase that history, to deny the work that Black
21 bodies did to build this country, here in
22 New York, and today in this state, we're doing
23 the exact opposite.
24 New York will atone for the actions
25 it took perpetuating slavery, and for the sin of
6247
1 slavery. And with the work of this commission,
2 we will finally take the action to repair the
3 damage that has been done to Black people in this
4 country and in this state. For those reasons, I
5 vote aye.
6 And I'm grateful to our leader and
7 my colleagues for bringing this forward.
8 Thank you.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
10 Brouk to be recorded in the affirmative.
11 Senator Mannion to explain his vote.
12 SENATOR MANNION: Thank you,
13 Madam President.
14 My father lost his father at a young
15 age. And he soon after that dropped out of
16 school at the age of 16, got a job at New York
17 Central Railroad, and got his GED. And that job
18 that he was in for 42 years provided our family
19 with a great basis to take an upward trajectory.
20 And I sit in this chamber today largely as a
21 result of that job.
22 One of the benefits of my father
23 working for the railroad was that we could take
24 the train at a reduced rate to Florida, which we
25 would do on occasion. And another benefit was I
6248
1 got to meet the engineer. I got to go to the
2 caboose. I got to talk with the people that
3 worked on the train. And my father opened a door
4 one time and I walked into a room, and it was a
5 room full of porters, Black men in the same room.
6 And we had a nice conversation, I'm sure.
7 And I don't remember much from when
8 I was 12, but I remember this. I said, "Dad, why
9 are all the Black men together?" And he said,
10 "That's the only job they could get."
11 That was 1980. I vote aye.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
13 Mannion to be recorded in the affirmative.
14 Senator Kennedy to explain his vote.
15 SENATOR KENNEDY: Thank you,
16 Madam President.
17 First I want to thank our Majority
18 Leader, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, for bringing this
19 bill to the floor today.
20 I want to thank my colleague
21 Senator Sanders for carrying this historic piece
22 of legislation, and all of my colleagues for
23 supporting this important bill.
24 This is a historic occasion here in
25 New York. We are once again leading the nation
6249
1 on an issue where we need to lead. We are once
2 again recognizing that our country was founded on
3 systemic racism when people were stolen from
4 their homelands, divided from their families, and
5 sold to the highest bidder all across this
6 country -- including here in New York, the
7 Empire State.
8 What we're oftentimes clouded by
9 history with is our role in preserving the Union,
10 which was so magnificent in and of itself that we
11 forget about our dark past, that for 50 years
12 since the founding of this country, New York
13 State played a pivotal role in the slave trade.
14 Now we can play a pivotal role in recognizing
15 that dark history in our country and righting the
16 wrongs and the injustices that came with it and
17 that still exist today because of it.
18 This opportunity we have to put
19 forward a commission to right those wrongs and to
20 help pave the way for action on a higher level,
21 on a federal level -- once and for all, promoting
22 an advancement of what's right, starting here in
23 New York State.
24 Madam President, in honor of
25 Zebulon Strong, my great-great-great-great-
6250
1 grandfather-in-law -- I married up, everybody --
2 (Laughter.)
3 SENATOR KENNEDY: -- who was an
4 abolitionist in College Hill on the Ohio River
5 down outside of Cincinnati, I vote aye.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
7 Kennedy to be recorded in the affirmative.
8 Senator Krueger to explain her vote.
9 SENATOR KRUEGER: Thank you,
10 Madam President.
11 I'm sure everyone has said this in
12 some way during this debate. Those who don't
13 read history, who don't remember history, are
14 destined to repeat history. And that I believe
15 is the most important part of the assignment from
16 this bill.
17 But I was thinking about how this is
18 such a universal issue, even though it's specific
19 to reparations and the impact of slavery on Black
20 Americans. And I was reminded of this poem that
21 I think we all know.
22 "First they came for the socialists,
23 and I did not speak out -- because I was not a
24 socialist.
25 "Then they came for the trade
6251
1 unionists, and I did not speak out -- because I
2 was not a trade unionist.
3 "Then they came for the Jews, and I
4 did not speak out -- because I was not a Jew.
5 "Then they came for me -- and there
6 was no one left to speak for me."
7 I think today on the floor of this
8 chamber we speak for everyone when we say we
9 won't forget and we will do what we need to do as
10 a country to heal ourselves on behalf of
11 African-Americans.
12 So thank you, Madam President. I
13 proudly vote yes.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
15 Krueger to be recorded in the affirmative.
16 Senator Gounardes to explain his
17 vote.
18 SENATOR GOUNARDES: Thank you,
19 Madam President.
20 I too rise to thank Senator Sanders
21 and all my colleagues. And we've heard a lot
22 more about legacy, the legacy of slavery, the
23 terrible stain of slavery.
24 When you think about legacy, it's
25 the lasting mark you make on the world, right?
6252
1 It's a name that lasts forever, that lives
2 forever. When we think about legacy in New York,
3 think about all of the names that we give to our
4 streets and our buildings. How many streets in
5 New York have been named after famous men, famous
6 people, and they had a great legacy. And we look
7 back at them and say, wow, they were civic
8 leaders, they were military leaders, they were
9 famous people, they were important people. And
10 they were also slavers.
11 General Richard Montgomery from
12 Montgomery Place in Park Slope and
13 Montgomery Street in Crown Heights -- documented
14 slave owner.
15 John Chambers, the namesake of
16 Chambers Street, where our Education Department
17 is headquartered, played a role in the
18 Slave Conspiracy Trials of 1741 -- documented
19 slave owner.
20 Lee Avenue in Williamsburg, named
21 after Richard Henry Lee and Francis Lightfoot
22 Lee -- slave owners.
23 Berkeley Place in both Senator
24 Myrie's and my district, named for a minister, a
25 man of God, George Berkeley, who enslaved several
6253
1 people to work on his plantation in Rhode Island.
2 William Furman, of Furman Street --
3 documented slave owner.
4 Delancey Street, named after
5 Lieutenant Governor of New York James Delancey --
6 owned a slave named Othello, and he presided over
7 the Slave Conspiracy Trials.
8 The Wyckoff family in
9 Senator Salazar's district -- 128 slaves they
10 owned.
11 So when you think about legacy and
12 how we decide to remember people, we remember all
13 these famous people and their families. We give
14 them plaques, we give them street names, and we
15 forget the role that they played in our nation's
16 terrible dark stain, original sin, the dark side
17 of that history which was their involvement in
18 the slave trade.
19 So I'm thankful that we're having
20 this discussion. I'm thankful that we're opening
21 up this debate. And let's really look at the
22 entire legacy of slavery and its connection to
23 New York and the people we choose to honor and
24 remember, and how we choose to remember and honor
25 them.
6254
1 And for that, I proudly vote aye.
2 Thank you.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
4 Gounardes to be recorded in the affirmative.
5 Senator Liu to explain his vote.
6 SENATOR LIU: Thank you,
7 Madam President.
8 I want to thank my old friend
9 James Sanders, who has been fighting on this
10 issue since he had a full head of hair, decades
11 ago.
12 (Laughter.)
13 SENATOR LIU: And we have a new
14 warrior, Jabari Brisport, who has really taken up
15 the charge on this issue.
16 You've been fighting for this longer
17 than Jabari's been alive.
18 (Laughter.)
19 SENATOR LIU: But it is so -- it's
20 such a serious emphasis on why this issue is not
21 going to go away. And none of us can pretend
22 that it could ever go away, until it's properly
23 addressed and redressed.
24 Jabari held an informational session
25 a few weeks ago. One of the academics made a
6255
1 very clear statement that nobody has been able to
2 refute. The academic statement was Blacks will
3 never be able to catch up unless there are
4 reparations.
5 I'm not an academic, I'm not a
6 scholar. But I could see it with my own eyes. I
7 could see how Black people suffer economically.
8 You know, Madam President, in the
9 interests of full disclosure, I'm not Black.
10 (Laughter.)
11 SENATOR LIU: But I could see it
12 with my own eyes. I could see a fellow
13 professional in Manhattan needing to spend more
14 time and therefore more expense to get to the
15 same business meeting that I'm trying to get to,
16 because no cab will stop to pick him up.
17 I could see the additional expense
18 that my African-American constituents have to
19 bear to get the same medical care at the same
20 hospital that other constituents don't have to
21 bear.
22 So the economic disparity is not an
23 academic concept. I could see it in real life.
24 And so, Madam President, as I vote yes on this
25 resolution, I will also -- you know, people have
6256
1 said that this is a national issue. But again,
2 in New York, this is where the basis of slavery
3 was first founded.
4 And I will only add that the idea of
5 reparations, while it may seem foreign, actually
6 I would like to point out that slave reparations
7 have already been paid and continue to be paid in
8 modern times.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
10 Liu?
11 SENATOR LIU: Those reparations
12 were paid to the slave owners, not the slaves
13 themselves.
14 Thank you, Madam President. I vote
15 yes.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
17 Liu to be recorded in the affirmative.
18 Senator Hoylman-Sigal to explain his
19 vote.
20 SENATOR HOYLMAN-SIGAL: Thank you,
21 Madam President.
22 I rise in strong support of this
23 bill and want to thank, along with my colleagues,
24 Senator Sanders and Senator Brisport.
25 If anybody wants to know why
6257
1 representation matters, it's on display this
2 evening here in this Senate chamber. The voice
3 that we are giving to the pain and suffering of
4 centuries of despair for Black Americans can
5 begin to be addressed through this commission
6 that will be established by this legislation.
7 I have to think that Frederick
8 Douglass, whose name is emblazoned on the walls
9 of this Capitol, would be proud of his fellow
10 New Yorkers for taking action tonight.
11 I proudly vote aye.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
13 Hoylman-Sigal to be recorded in the affirmative.
14 Senator Sanders to close.
15 SENATOR SANDERS: Thank you,
16 Madam President.
17 Everyone has spoken well. They've
18 spoken so well that I'll tell you a parable. Two
19 runners started out running, and each one
20 trained, one Black, one white. They trained
21 well. They got to the starting line. Right
22 before the bullet was fired, some folks grabbed
23 the Black guy and put chains around him, made
24 sure he was well bound shackled his legs. Fired
25 the gun; the race starts. They go, the Black guy
6258
1 hobbles, jumps, does all kinds of stuff, but he
2 simply can't keep up. He's so far behind.
3 Other people saw the situation,
4 white and Black. They said, Wait a minute, stop
5 the race. They run out there and break the
6 chains on the Black guy and say, Now the race can
7 start.
8 The race begins again. The Black
9 guy is so wounded, so many bruises and broken
10 this and broken that. He tries incredibly, but
11 is so far apart, it just can't happen.
12 My friends, the people who jumped
13 out there during and tried to stop this, that was
14 the Civil War. Fifty thousand New Yorkers died
15 in the Civil War trying to end the horror that is
16 slavery -- 50,000, most of them white. Got out
17 there and fought and put their blood on the line.
18 Four hundred thousand New Yorkers were wounded.
19 This is not simply a Black issue,
20 this is an American issue. May I remind you of a
21 Republican who had a feeling on this one. You
22 may have heard of him. His name was
23 Abraham Lincoln. He stood up on this one, and he
24 said -- in one of the places he spoke, he said --
25 and that's the spirit that I'm hoping that we get
6259
1 out of this one, my friends -- "With malice
2 toward none, with charity for all, with firmness
3 in the right as God gives us to see the right,
4 let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to
5 bind up the nation's wounds."
6 I want to thank Andrea
7 Stewart-Cousins, I want to thank Jabari, I want
8 to thank everybody who has played a role, large
9 and small, on this.
10 Mr. President, I -- Madam President,
11 I would say that I was doing this simply for God
12 and my ancestors. I'm in favor. But I'm going
13 to do it a little different. I'm going to say
14 that I'm voting not only for them, but I'm voting
15 for those 50,000 Americans who died to end this
16 madness that is slavery and would put their life
17 on the line again to ensure that the stain, this
18 horrible stain, this legacy that lingers on this
19 nation -- they would put their lives on the line
20 again to end it.
21 So I'm going to stop, in the spirit
22 of that true Republican, Abraham Lincoln, who
23 said -- well, thank you, Madam President. Thank
24 you, everyone. God bless you, America. It's not
25 finished. Let's do it right.
6260
1 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
2 Sanders to be recorded in the affirmative.
3 Announce the results.
4 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
5 Calendar Number 1731, those Senators voting in
6 the negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
7 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
8 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
9 O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
10 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
11 Ayes, 41. Nays, 21.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The bill
13 is passed.
14 Senator Gianaris.
15 (Lengthy applause.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
17 Gianaris.
18 SENATOR GIANARIS: Madam President,
19 we've been at it for several hours today, and we
20 have several more to go, so I think this would be
21 a good time just to take five minutes to stand at
22 ease, let people stretch their legs, visit the
23 lounge, do whatever they need to do, and come
24 back recharged for the rest of the evening.
25 So can we stand at ease for five
6261
1 minutes.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
3 Senate will stand at ease until 8:35.
4 (Whereupon, the Senate stood at ease
5 at 8:25 p.m.)
6 (Whereupon, the Senate reconvened at
7 8:35 p.m.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The Senate
9 is back in session.
10 Senator Gianaris.
11 SENATOR GIANARIS: Okay, thank you,
12 Madam President.
13 We're back at it. Let's move on to
14 Calendar 1736, by Senator Rivera.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
16 Secretary will read.
17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
18 1736, Senate Print 2237A, by Senator Rivera, an
19 act to amend the Social Services Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
21 Murray, why do you rise?
22 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you,
23 Madam President. Would the sponsor yield for a
24 few questions, please.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
6262
1 Rivera, do you yield?
2 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes, ma'am.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
4 sponsor yields.
5 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you.
6 Senator Rivera, today we're taking
7 up a bill regarding expanding healthcare
8 insurance. Who will that expansion cover?
9 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
10 Madam President. Indeed, Senator Murray, today
11 we're actually taking an incredibly important
12 step in the State of New York, one that has
13 already been taken by a few states around the
14 country, and hopefully one that will be taken by
15 many other states.
16 The reality is, through you,
17 Madam President, that there are hundreds of
18 thousands of New Yorkers -- and these are
19 New Yorkers. They might be undocumented folks,
20 but they are New Yorkers. They are our
21 neighbors, they are friends, they are coworkers,
22 hundreds of thousand of them, who currently do
23 not have a way to actually -- unless they can
24 afford it out of their own pocket, they cannot
25 afford to have health insurance.
6263
1 And so this bill would actually ask
2 the federal government, ask the state to go seek
3 a federal waiver that will actually -- as I said
4 earlier, Madam President, has already been
5 granted to two states -- which would actually
6 allow us to use federal money to extend the
7 Essential Plan to undocumented New Yorkers.
8 And the important part here to
9 understand, Madam President, is that this is a
10 win/win/win all around. We have, again, hundreds
11 of thousands of New Yorkers who right now,
12 because they are humans, will get sick. And to
13 the tune -- just in 2021, Madam President, we
14 spend, in emergency Medicaid -- because these
15 folks get sick, so they go to the emergency room.
16 Just in 2021, we spent over a billion dollars in
17 emergency Medicaid.
18 So we're saying, Madam President,
19 that not only will these folks be able to get
20 health coverage, they will be able to have the
21 Essential Plan extended to them, but we will be
22 able to save money. This will cost the state no
23 money, it will cost the state no money, and will
24 actually guarantee coverage for these
25 individuals.
6264
1 So it's a long answer,
2 Senator Murray -- through you, Madam President --
3 but I believe it is important to kind of set the
4 context. Those are the folks who will benefit
5 from this.
6 SENATOR MURRAY: Madam President,
7 would the sponsor continue to yield.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
9 continue to yield?
10 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes,
11 Madam President.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
13 Senator yields.
14 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you.
15 Do you have an estimate as to how
16 many new individuals will be covered?
17 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
18 Madam President. The number of folks who live --
19 who reside in the State of New York, undocumented
20 folks, is kind of a hard number to pin down.
21 We're not exactly sure the -- there are
22 different -- hold on one second. I know I had
23 some -- we're talking about between -- depending
24 on the -- depending on the -- on who's making the
25 calculations, we're talking over 200,000 folks.
6265
1 There's some calculations that put it up to
2 360,000 people.
3 But ultimately we're talking about
4 hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who
5 currently don't have any type of coverage. And
6 if we get -- if we seek this waiver and we get it
7 from the federal government, as I will -- spoiler
8 alert, they already told us they'd give us the
9 waiver, but I'll get to that later -- we would
10 actually be able to provide healthcare coverage
11 for them.
12 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you.
13 Madam President, would the sponsor
14 continue to yield.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
16 continue to yield?
17 SENATOR RIVERA: I will.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
19 sponsor yields.
20 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you. Thank
21 you, Senator Rivera.
22 I remember a few weeks back, during
23 the budget debate, I believe this issue came up.
24 And I believe when we discussed it, there was a
25 price tag put at about 1.7 billion. Would that
6266
1 be accurate? To fully cover everyone. Would
2 that be accurate?
3 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
4 Madam President. It's actually the --
5 Senator Murray is correct, that there was a
6 conversation about this during the budget. But
7 the price tag is actually really interesting, and
8 I want to underline this.
9 Doing this will cost the state no
10 money. This might be crazy. You might think, is
11 that possible? And indeed it is. You see,
12 because of the Affordable Care Act that was
13 passed a few years ago, back in 2015 there was
14 something called the Basic Health Plan or the
15 Essential Plan, depending on what state we're
16 talking about. And what that does is that the
17 federal government actually provides federal
18 money to states to extend coverage to certain
19 populations within that state.
20 And the waiver that we would seek,
21 if this -- when this bill passes and the Governor
22 signs it into law, the waiver that we would seek
23 would be a way to ask the federal government,
24 hey, can we use some of this Essential Plan money
25 to actually extend coverage to undocumented
6267
1 folks. So it actually would not cost us
2 anything.
3 And in turn, we're talking within
4 the next five years -- the waiver period is a
5 five-year period, and we think that -- the
6 estimates of how much money would come to the
7 state would be between 53 and 54 billion dollars.
8 That is what is projected to come to the state
9 from the federal government.
10 And if we seek this waiver and we
11 get it, as I hope that we will, every single cent
12 of that would be -- could be used to cover
13 undocumented folks. Not all of it would be, but
14 it could be.
15 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you.
16 Madam President, would the sponsor
17 continue to yield.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
19 continue to yield?
20 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes,
21 Madam President.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
23 sponsor yields.
24 SENATOR MURRAY: So I'm familiar --
25 and I'm going to use Washington State. That was
6268
1 one of the states that has successfully done
2 this. I'm going to use that as the example.
3 Because my understanding is that every penny was
4 not covered by the federal government. In fact,
5 there were 105,000 undocumented individuals who
6 did not qualify for the money from the federal
7 government. Therefore, Washington State had to
8 step in with $55 million out of their pocket per
9 year. Well, that's the number so far.
10 So my understanding is that we may
11 not get every single person covered by the
12 federal funds. Can you speak to that, please?
13 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
14 Madam President. We actually -- seeing that the
15 situation might occur that there might be some
16 parts of the population that are not -- that we
17 would not be able to cover, the language in the
18 bill actually allows the commissioner some
19 flexibility, so that we would not be on the hook
20 for those individuals.
21 SENATOR MURRAY: Through you,
22 Madam President, will the sponsor continue to
23 yield.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
25 continue to yield?
6269
1 SENATOR RIVERA: I will.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR MURRAY: So if the federal
5 government does not cover everyone, are we
6 leaving them without coverage? Or are we -- is
7 the state stepping up to fill that void?
8 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
9 Madam President, we already do. It's called
10 Emergency Medicaid.
11 What we're trying to say here is
12 that in the eventuality that there might be some
13 of this population that is not covered, that --
14 for whom we could not extend the Essential Plan,
15 if they wind up in an emergency room, they're
16 still going to get taken care of, and we're still
17 going to pick up the tab.
18 But hopefully what we're able to do
19 here is to extend it to this entire population,
20 or at least to a very big chunk of it, so that,
21 again, it would not cost the state anything.
22 SENATOR MURRAY: Madam President,
23 would the sponsor continue to yield.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
25 continue to yield?
6270
1 SENATOR RIVERA: I do.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you.
5 And you had mentioned earlier that
6 it is a five-year approval process. As we know,
7 it's the federal government and administrations
8 change and things change, policies change. Are
9 we prepared for the eventuality -- if in fact it
10 changes to the point where, say, we get the
11 approval but then things change and it's pulled
12 back, are we prepared to foot the bill in that
13 event?
14 SENATOR RIVERA: First of all,
15 Madam President, the way that waivers work is
16 that they're basically like a contract. So if we
17 get the five-year waiver, it would actually go
18 through the -- it would be -- basically it would
19 be covered -- we would be -- there would be no
20 issue within that five-year period.
21 If, God forbid, we have another
22 administration on the national level, then we
23 would have to seek another one after the five
24 years.
25 SENATOR MURRAY: Madam President,
6271
1 will the sponsor continue to yield.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
3 continue to yield?
4 SENATOR RIVERA: I do.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
6 sponsor yields.
7 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you.
8 And under the waiver, is every
9 New Yorker now going to be covered?
10 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
11 Madam President, I believe that maybe
12 Senator Murray is referring to the New York
13 Health Act, which hopefully we will be discussing
14 much like this one day. And that will indeed
15 cover every single New Yorker.
16 The current proposal that we're
17 talking about would have certain categories and
18 limitations as far as age and other such
19 categories. So unfortunately it would not cover
20 everyone.
21 But through you, Madam President, I
22 am indeed very focused -- this is a very
23 important step, but I am very focused on securing
24 healthcare coverage -- not insurance, but
25 healthcare coverage to every single New Yorker
6272
1 regardless of who they are.
2 SENATOR MURRAY: Through you,
3 Madam President, will the sponsor continue to
4 yield.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
6 continue to yield?
7 SENATOR RIVERA: I do.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
9 sponsor yields.
10 SENATOR MURRAY: I appreciate that.
11 I just wanted to confirm that the
12 bill that we're talking about today is simply
13 covering coverage for undocumented individuals.
14 Correct?
15 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
16 Madam President, that is the -- the bill that
17 we're talking about today is to extend -- to seek
18 a change to the waiver proposal from the federal
19 government to include undocumented folks in the
20 population, yes.
21 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you.
22 Madam President, on the bill,
23 please.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
25 Murray on the bill.
6273
1 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you,
2 Senator Rivera, I appreciate that.
3 First let me say this. I also
4 appreciate your efforts in this. You
5 obviously -- you have a big heart. I know you
6 care and you want to help everyone, and I
7 appreciate that.
8 The problem is this. We do not have
9 unlimited resources. As I said, we had just
10 debated the budget a few weeks ago, and the
11 budget was set at $229 billion, which I believe
12 is a bit excessive myself. But many bills that
13 come through here on the fiscal note have those
14 three famous letters behind them: TBD, to be
15 determined.
16 But we don't have that behind our
17 budget. Why? Because we do not have an infinite
18 amount of resources. We have a finite amount.
19 How do I know this also? Because during the
20 budget process we fought to make sure that
21 schoolchildren who are hungry would be fed in
22 school. We knew the amount we needed, but we
23 didn't get there. We made a choice, a tough
24 choice, but we made a choice that about
25 80 percent will get fed. But there's 20 percent
6274
1 that won't.
2 So again, when you have finite
3 resources, you have to make tough choices. I
4 personally would have chosen to make sure every
5 child got fed. But I digress.
6 When you have these finite
7 resources, you have to make tough choices. As
8 we've discussed, even if this bill were to pass
9 today, there would be New Yorkers who would not
10 have coverage. They still wouldn't be covered.
11 Legal, law-abiding, tax-paying citizens who would
12 not have health coverage.
13 Now, we can get into the whole
14 undocumented or illegal immigrant argument, but
15 I'd like to go with this. The fact of the matter
16 is we have a legal process for immigrants to come
17 to this country. And if they don't do it that
18 way legally, through that process, then they've
19 broken the law.
20 When we continue to say, Well, you
21 shouldn't have done it but we're going to give
22 you this or give you that, I can't help but say
23 we're encouraging more activity like this. Now,
24 I know we have a legal process because, if I was
25 not here last night, I was going to be at the
6275
1 Middle Country Library at a new citizenship
2 program, which is one of my favorite programs to
3 attend.
4 It is amazing to greet new citizens
5 and to welcome them. And by the way, not once
6 did I say "Welcome, immigrant." I give them a
7 hug and I say, "Welcome, my fellow American
8 citizen, welcome." Because they've done it
9 right. There is a legal process. And it may be
10 long, it may be arduous and difficult and
11 sometimes expensive, but there's a legal process
12 to do it right, and they did it.
13 But there's also a process to do it
14 wrong. And if we continue to spend our resources
15 on those that haven't done it properly, then that
16 means there are less for those that have done it
17 properly.
18 And so while I understand if I could
19 wave a magic wand and we had all the resources in
20 the world, there'd be no one hungry, no one sick,
21 we would take care of everyone. But as I said,
22 we're here to make tough choices. And sometimes
23 those choices mean, as we did in the budget with
24 those kids -- regretful, but we had to make the
25 choice.
6276
1 And if I have to use these
2 resources -- because again, as we went through
3 the program and we discussed this, while it was
4 pitched that the federal government will pick up
5 every penny, actually they may not, as happened
6 in Washington State. And the answer that
7 Senator Rivera gave was that we would end up
8 footing the bill just through the process we're
9 doing, Emergency Medicaid. So we would pay at
10 the emergency rooms or something. But it's the
11 taxpayers that are paying bill.
12 And again, we do not have unlimited
13 resources. So might I suggest we focus our
14 intention on fixing -- and I know it's a federal
15 process, I get that. I get that. But the money
16 we're talking about is coming from the federal
17 government. Perhaps if the federal government
18 took that money and focused on fixing the broken
19 immigration system to stop the flow of
20 thousands -- of the thousands and thousands who
21 are coming over not the right way -- maybe if we
22 did that, fixed the system, maybe we could help
23 those, everyone that are here doing it right day
24 by day, abiding by our laws and doing it right.
25 So I have to make a choice. That's
6277
1 who I'm here fighting for, the ones that are
2 doing it right. And for that reason, I'll be
3 voting no.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Are there
5 any other Senators wishing to be heard?
6 SENATOR MARTINS: Yes,
7 Madam President.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Yes, okay.
9 There are other Senators wishing to be heard.
10 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
11 I was wondering if the sponsor would
12 yield for a few questions.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Will you
14 yield, Senator Rivera?
15 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes, ma'am.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
17 Senator yields.
18 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
19 Through you, Madam President. Would
20 you tell us the population that would be covered
21 by this bill?
22 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
23 Madam President, I was pretty sure we discussed
24 it thoroughly in the question and answer before.
25 But to answer again, the bill would
6278
1 tell the state to seek a federal waiver which
2 will allow for federal money to cover a
3 population of undocumented folks in the State of
4 New York. So these are New Yorkers who are
5 undocumented folks -- who do not have a permanent
6 status, I should say -- and they would then have
7 the eligibility to have the Essential Plan be
8 extended to them.
9 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
10 Madam President, through you, if the
11 sponsor would continue to yield.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
13 continue to yield?
14 SENATOR RIVERA: Will do.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
16 sponsor yields.
17 SENATOR MARTINS: You used the term
18 "New Yorkers" for undocumented workers. I was
19 wondering if you could give me a definition of
20 that and include whether, in your opinion -- or
21 in your bill -- it includes a residency
22 requirement, a period of time within which they
23 would have to be here and how they would
24 establish that for the satisfaction of being able
25 to obtain these benefits.
6279
1 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
2 Madam President, I do use the term "New Yorkers."
3 I do. These are undocumented folks in the State
4 of New York.
5 I do not use, with all due respect
6 to some of my colleagues who like to use the term
7 "illegals" or things of that nature -- I do not
8 use such terminology. Not only because I think
9 that these folks are people first, but also
10 because I think that if someone is a resident
11 here, if someone is a worker here, if somebody is
12 a neighbor here, even if they don't have
13 documents, that they are New Yorkers.
14 Certainly thousands of people who I
15 represent and who are our constituents as well,
16 who live all across the state, who don't have
17 documents, are New Yorkers.
18 Now, as it relates to the standards
19 set in the bill, the -- it basically would
20 establish that the Department of Health would be
21 able to establish the criteria for who would be
22 eligible.
23 Now, if somebody is an undocumented
24 person, as it relates to how long they have been
25 residing here -- if you would allow me one
6280
1 second.
2 Through you, Madam President, it
3 would be -- basically the regulations state that
4 the Commissioner of Health would be able to
5 establish the criteria of who is a resident of
6 the State of New York. So there's no specific
7 timeline as to what that entails, but the
8 Department of Health and the Commissioner of
9 Health would have the authority to be able to
10 determine that.
11 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
12 through you, if the sponsor would continue to
13 yield.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
15 continue to yield?
16 SENATOR RIVERA: I do.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
18 sponsor yields.
19 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
20 Madam President, through you.
21 I certainly didn't use any terms in
22 describing, I just merely asked for a
23 clarification on what it meant to be a New Yorker
24 under this bill for purposes of the undocumented
25 individual in New York.
6281
1 My concern, and hopefully you can
2 answer that question, is if we leave it up to an
3 agency to make that determination, then it could
4 be as little as 15 minutes or as long as 15 years
5 or longer.
6 So I'm just questioning whether or
7 not, in this bill, if there is going to be a
8 required tie to the State of New York for someone
9 to establish the ability to access funds for a
10 program that I don't think many people are going
11 to argue about other than who's going to be
12 entitled to get it.
13 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
14 Madam President. The fact is that this is what
15 we do for everything.
16 The authority already rests in the
17 agencies, in the executive agencies who have to
18 establish a standard of residency. That already
19 exists. The authority to determine how long it
20 -- a person would be -- would have to live in the
21 state to be considered a resident is already --
22 that authority already exists.
23 I remember back when I originally
24 arrived in New York in 1998, I was an
25 out-of-state -- and I went to CUNY, CUNY Graduate
6282
1 Center, and I was -- and I had to pay an
2 out-of-state tuition. After a year of residing
3 in the State of New York, I was then able to pay
4 in-state tuition, which was certainly a lot less.
5 And that was a determination that at that time,
6 at some point in the past, the authority existed
7 for the City University of New York to make that
8 determination.
9 So in a very similar way, authority
10 already exists in state agencies to make
11 determinations of residency.
12 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
13 through you, if the sponsor would continue to
14 yield.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
16 continue to yield?
17 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
19 sponsor yields.
20 SENATOR MARTINS: I think you're
21 referring to the residency requirement that we,
22 as a state, require for being able to access
23 lower tuition, through either CUNY or the SUNY
24 system, which I believe is a year.
25 And that's precisely,
6283
1 Madam President, what I'm asking, is if CUNY has
2 a year as a predicate to establish residency in
3 order to get the lower tuition, is there a
4 requirement for a similar period in order to
5 access benefits under this bill?
6 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
7 Madam President. Bottom line is that the -- this
8 exists by regulation, not legislation.
9 So in other words, the authority to
10 determine what is a period that determines
11 eligibility for what a resident -- for what a
12 resident is, again, it already exists in state
13 agencies.
14 So this would not be anything
15 different than what we are currently doing,
16 basically in every other program in the State of
17 New York that requires residency to be able to be
18 received.
19 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
20 through you, if the sponsor would continue to
21 yield.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Will you
23 continue to yield?
24 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
6284
1 sponsor yields.
2 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
3 So perhaps not being familiar with
4 those residency requirements per se and, you
5 know, how they would apply to this particular
6 bill, perhaps the sponsor can give me some
7 examples -- give us some examples of how those
8 regulations are applied in other instances so at
9 least we'd have an idea of how perhaps they'd be
10 applied here.
11 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
12 Madam President. The same -- the residency
13 requirements, for example, that exist currently
14 for the Essential Plan. This would be -- I think
15 it's -- I'm trying to determine -- I mean, I
16 think I know where the -- where Senator Martins
17 is trying to go, in that it would be maybe,
18 perhaps, the preference of my colleague to have a
19 particular time period be already in the
20 legislation. That certainly is a choice. Not
21 one that we're going to make.
22 Because I believe that there already
23 exists the -- there are, again, while I might not
24 have a -- outside of the one that I just
25 mentioned related to the Essential Plan, while I
6285
1 might not have another example of -- I've never
2 worked in a state agency, I've never worked
3 managing how benefits are determined for X or Y
4 program.
5 But again, the authority to
6 determine the residency -- if there is a
7 residency requirement for a particular program,
8 it exists in the authority of those executive
9 agencies. It does so already. This changes
10 nothing.
11 And although certainly it might be
12 the preference of my colleague to have a time
13 period clocked into the bill, that is not
14 something that this bill has and not something
15 that we envision doing.
16 SENATOR MARTINS: I want to thank
17 my colleague for that answer. I appreciate it.
18 Madam President, if the Senator
19 would continue to yield.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
21 continue to yield?
22 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
24 sponsor yields.
25 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
6286
1 So, you know, in terms of
2 determining perhaps the impact of a bill such as
3 this, not having a time frame within which to
4 categorize the group that would be impacted by
5 it, are we -- would it be fair to say that we
6 should assume that there is no residency
7 requirement to access these benefits and, as a
8 result, anyone who comes to New York and is here
9 would have access to those benefits?
10 SENATOR RIVERA: Madam President,
11 through you. No. You have to -- you have to
12 have a place where you reside. You have to have
13 a phone, you know, a bill for your cable. You
14 have to show your address based on your lease, or
15 who you send your check to every month for
16 payment.
17 I mean, there's -- it -- I -- no.
18 This is not something that -- it's -- these
19 questions are confusing, Madam President, I must
20 admit, because again, we're not trying to do
21 anything different than what is already done in
22 basically every program that requires residency.
23 You come in, it's like, Hey, how you doing,
24 Madam President? Oh, Shelley, Shelley's your
25 name? Okay, Shelley, where do you live, Shelley?
6287
1 Oh, let me see that. Oh, you got proof of where
2 you live? Oh, there you go. Oh, Con Ed, okay,
3 you pay Con Ed. Oh, you've got your bill there,
4 you've got your phone bill there? Okay, you are
5 a resident of the State of New York. Here's the
6 evidence. We've determined it, and now you get
7 to have access to X, Y or X. So ...
8 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
9 through you, if the sponsor would continue to
10 yield for a few more questions.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
12 Rivera, do you continue to yield?
13 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes, ma'am.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
15 Senator yields.
16 SENATOR MARTINS: So -- and I will
17 ask questions about that, because I do want to
18 make sure we all understand -- and perhaps I
19 don't and so I'm hoping to get some clarity. I
20 appreciate the sponsor's patience in answering
21 these questions.
22 But if someone seeks help, and these
23 benefits in particular, and does not have a place
24 where they reside, doesn't have a lease, can't
25 produce a lease, can't produce evidence of where
6288
1 they reside, will they be denied benefits?
2 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
3 Madam President, if the requirements that are
4 established by the commissioner require such
5 things, then the person would not be eligible.
6 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
7 through you, if the sponsor would continue to
8 yield.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
10 continue to yield?
11 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
13 sponsor yields.
14 SENATOR MARTINS: I think we also
15 talked about utility bills and things of the
16 like.
17 Is there anything that you can tell
18 us, as the sponsor of the bill, that would be a
19 requirement for someone to be able to access
20 these benefits? Because I don't know -- I don't
21 know, and perhaps other people here in the room
22 don't, but I'm hoping you can give me some
23 answers on what is it that the Department of
24 Health or anyone who's overseeing this program is
25 going to require to establish residency?
6289
1 SENATOR RIVERA: Madam President,
2 through you. Once again, I am not the
3 Commissioner of Health, nor will I be when this
4 bill goes into effect.
5 The authority to determine
6 requirements of residency are established at the
7 agency level -- oh, please hold. How do I prove
8 residency for Medicaid in New York? From our --
9 thank you, madam. From our New York State
10 website. Examples of proof include pay stubs
11 with addresses, lease covering the date of
12 application, signed letter from a landlord, rent
13 receipt or mortgage statement, tax
14 statements/bills, current bill or other
15 statements, school letter, report card,
16 postmarked envelope, driver's license with
17 current address, magazine -- (singing) and a
18 partridge in a pear tree.
19 Bottom line, Madam President, there
20 is all sorts of things that already exist. I'm
21 not sure -- there's a phrase in Spanish
22 {Spanish}, you're trying to get the fifth leg of
23 the cat. The cat just has four legs.
24 (Laughter.)
25 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
6290
1 through you. I assure you, we're not trying to
2 find a fifth leg on any cat.
3 But if the sponsor would continue to
4 yield.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
6 continue to yield?
7 SENATOR RIVERA: Sure.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
9 sponsor yields.
10 SENATOR MARTINS: You know, the
11 concern I have -- and I do appreciate that -- is
12 if someone does not have, as I mentioned earlier,
13 a lease, a report cart, a utility bill, a cable
14 bill, a phone bill -- would we say no and that
15 they're not able to access this coverage and
16 they're not going to have access to healthcare
17 through this bill?
18 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
19 Madam President, if -- I share the concern that
20 you have about not every New Yorker having access
21 to healthcare, which is why I hope that you will
22 become a cosponsor of the New York Health Act,
23 which would actually resolve all of these issues,
24 because we would just have to establish residency
25 with any those, and then that person would be
6291
1 eligible for coverage.
2 What we're saying is that in this
3 particular instance, if a person -- if the series
4 of requirements are created and established by
5 the administration and that person does not meet
6 them, then they would not have this access
7 accessible to them.
8 They would then receive
9 Emergency Medicaid. Which is, Madam President, I
10 would remind you, what we already do, to the tune
11 of over a billion dollars. In -- as a matter of
12 fact, just in 2021, over $250 million of that is
13 actually from the counties themselves.
14 So the answer is these folks would
15 be -- if they don't have -- if they don't have
16 this as a -- if they don't meet the eligibility
17 requirements for this, then they would receive
18 Emergency Medicaid. Which just means, hey,
19 you're sick, you're in the hospital and you're
20 gonna to die, so we're gonna take care of you.
21 SENATOR MARTINS: I want to thank
22 the sponsor for that answer.
23 Madam President, through you, if the
24 sponsor will continue to yield.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
6292
1 Rivera, do you continue to yield?
2 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
4 Senator yields.
5 SENATOR MARTINS: I just -- I have
6 to ask the question. I have to. You know, so if
7 I am a New York resident and I don't have
8 healthcare and I can't establish that I have a
9 utility bill, a lease, a report card, a credit
10 card bill, whatever it happens to be, can I make
11 application through this program and receive
12 healthcare benefits as a result?
13 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
14 Madam President, it depends on the situation of
15 the individual. If we're talking about you, as
16 an example, if you are a citizen and you don't
17 have -- and you meet certain requirements of
18 criteria as far as income, you already are
19 eligible for certain things.
20 There's -- so it just -- I don't
21 think I understand the question, Madam President.
22 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
23 I will rephrase it if the sponsor would allow me
24 to continue to ask.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
6293
1 continue to yield?
2 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes, ma'am.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
4 sponsor yields.
5 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
6 So if I am a New Yorker and I don't
7 have healthcare coverage and I want to access
8 coverage through this program, and I have proof
9 of residency in the ways that we've described --
10 the lease, the utility bill, the cable bill, the
11 report card, you know, the partridge in a pear
12 tree I think the sponsor mentioned as well -- if
13 I have those proofs as a resident of New York,
14 regardless of immigration status, do I have
15 access to the benefits of this bill?
16 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
17 Madam President, currently in order to be
18 eligible for the Essential Plan, the applicant
19 must reside in New York State -- we already
20 talked about residency. Number two, be age 19 to
21 64. Number three, not eligible for Medicaid or
22 child health insurance plan. Number four, not
23 eligible for minimum essential coverage or is
24 eligible for an employer-sponsored plan that is
25 not affordable. Or five, have a household income
6294
1 at or below 250 percent federal poverty level --
2 a household of one is $36,450 and a household of
3 four is 75,000 -- but above 138 percent of
4 federal poverty level, household of one is
5 $20,120 and household of four is $41,400.
6 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you. I
7 appreciate that.
8 Madam President, through you, if the
9 sponsor would continue to yield.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
11 continue to yield?
12 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
14 sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
16 So if I am a resident of New York
17 and I -- I am eligible for Medicaid, because I'm
18 a resident of New York and I meet all of those
19 income requirements and I check some of those
20 boxes, is my eligibility for Medicaid on par with
21 what you're recommending or what you're
22 legislating through this bill? Is it more, less,
23 the same?
24 What is the difference between a
25 New Yorker who meets the requirements of all of
6295
1 those elements you just mentioned and access to
2 Medicaid, and someone who is here accessing
3 benefits through this plan?
4 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
5 Madam President. We would hope that as relates
6 to coverage that that person receives, and the
7 access that they have, that there would be no
8 difference.
9 However, I must clarify that there
10 is a difference between Medicaid and the
11 Essential Plan. What we're talking about here is
12 the extension of the Essential Plan, potentially,
13 to a population that currently doesn't have
14 access to anything.
15 As far as coverage, as far as what
16 they have access to, again, I would hope that if
17 you have two individuals, the only difference
18 between them, both of them having, I don't know,
19 cancer but -- or both of them having a broken leg
20 or both of them being diabetic, but one of them
21 being an undocumented person and the other one
22 being just a citizen, that the coverage that we
23 get to them is the same.
24 So I would hope that that is what
25 we're trying to achieve. Which we would and we
6296
1 will when we get the New York Health Act -- which
2 again through you, Madam President, I hope
3 Senator Martins becomes a cosponsor of.
4 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you to the
5 sponsor for that.
6 Madam President, through you, if the
7 sponsor would continue to yield.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
9 continue to yield?
10 SENATOR RIVERA: Yuppers.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
12 sponsor yields.
13 SENATOR MARTINS: So if I have a
14 person who's here -- let's say they're here for a
15 short period of time, they are able to meet the
16 requirements of this coverage, but they are
17 entitled, they're entitled to the same coverage
18 as that which is going to be provided by this
19 bill? Or would this bill provide less coverage
20 to that undocumented worker who can -- resident
21 who can provide the proofs that you mentioned
22 earlier?
23 SENATOR RIVERA: I still think that
24 there's -- through you, Madam President. I still
25 think that there's a search for that fifth leg.
6297
1 It ain't there, by the way.
2 There seems to be a suggestion --
3 and I'm trying to understand, because the answer
4 to the question is simple. The coverage should
5 be the same. What we're all trying to achieve,
6 Madam President, is that everyone, regardless of
7 who they are, have access to primary care, are
8 able to get their shots, are able to be able to
9 get checkups, are able to get their teeth looked
10 at, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. That's what
11 we're trying to achieve.
12 It seems to -- the line of
13 questioning seems to suggest that there's a
14 concern -- which is a canard -- that extension of
15 benefits will lead to, all of a sudden, people
16 like raining on a particular state if there's a
17 particular thing that is extended as far as -- as
18 far as -- you know, as far as programs.
19 This has happened in the State of
20 New York before. There have been conversations
21 about, well, we don't want to expand Medicaid
22 because if we do, all of a sudden we'll get all
23 these people. And the amount of folks that have
24 actually -- this has never been the case. It is,
25 again, a canard. Now, I'm not sure if that is
6298
1 what the line of questioning is going towards,
2 but I would -- I think that that's where it's
3 going. And again, it has never happened before
4 and I do not envision that this will actually --
5 that this will actually occur when we achieve
6 this.
7 But to go back to answer the
8 question as was asked, the goal here is to
9 provide the level of access to be the same -- not
10 through the same program, because Medicaid and
11 the Essential Plan are two different things --
12 but the same amount of care. That is the goal.
13 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
14 And Madam President, that word
15 "canard" is such a great word. We don't hear it
16 as often as we should. So I want to thank the
17 sponsor for using it not once but twice.
18 Through you, Madam President, if the
19 sponsor would continue -- three times. If the
20 sponsor would continue to yield.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
22 Rivera, do you continue to yield?
23 SENATOR RIVERA: Indeed.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
25 sponsor yields.
6299
1 SENATOR MARTINS: There is a
2 reference in the bill to the commissioner being
3 required to enroll at least 240,000 individuals
4 into this program. Can you speak to the purpose
5 of that requirement, the timing for that
6 requirement? Within which time frame would they
7 have to or the commissioner have to enroll
8 240,000 people?
9 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
10 Madam President. The number is there because of
11 various -- we consider this kind of a middle
12 ground in the -- as far as how many folks are
13 here that are potentially eligible for this, as
14 we talked about earlier, it's really hard to
15 determine the exact number. And this is kind of
16 like shooting kind of for the middle as far as
17 the folks -- the amount of folks that -- and as
18 far as the timing, there is no specifics on the
19 timing.
20 And again, we don't necessarily
21 believe that we will achieve that. There is a
22 requirement for the commissioner to attempt this.
23 But we're not even sure if we're going to get to
24 that amount.
25 Madam President, I will point to the
6300
1 fact that there is basically -- I don't think
2 there's any social entitlement program that you
3 can mention that has all of the folks who are
4 eligible for it signing up for it. And in this
5 case in particular, we are talking about a
6 population which we feel is likely to feel that
7 they don't -- they might not want to approach
8 government. They might not want to make their
9 presence known.
10 So the likelihood that we would hit
11 that number is -- I mean, it would be nice if we
12 did because that would mean 240,000 individuals
13 that would have access to some sort of
14 healthcare.
15 But again, the requirement in there
16 is a goal for the administration and a goal for
17 the commissioner. The timeline is not specified,
18 and it's not necessarily going like -- it's not
19 necessarily like there's going to be a penalty
20 for the commissioner if they are not able to
21 achieve it. But the goal is to actually shoot
22 for that number since we believe that in between
23 the -- you know, as I said earlier, figuring out
24 how many folks exactly fit this category is kind
25 of a broad stroke. This is kind of shooting for
6301
1 the middle.
2 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
3 Madam President, through you, if the
4 sponsor would continue to yield.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
6 continue to yield?
7 SENATOR RIVERA: I will.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
9 sponsor yields.
10 SENATOR MARTINS: Would it be a
11 shock if there was actually a requirement in this
12 bill that uses the word "shall," shall enroll
13 240,000 individuals? Would that shock anyone?
14 Would that be a surprise? Not a target, not
15 about we're going to try and get there, not
16 something aspirational, but a direction in the
17 bill that says that you -- that the commissioner
18 shall enroll 240,000 people, nearly a quarter of
19 a million people, into this program?
20 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
21 Madam President. Was the question would it be --
22 SENATOR MARTINS: Would that shock
23 you to know that in this bill it's not
24 aspirational, it's actually a requirement, and it
25 shall?
6302
1 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
2 Madam President, it does not shock me that the
3 word "shall" is in there.
4 But I still insist the likelihood
5 that we will reach that -- we would love to reach
6 that. Matter of fact, it's -- part of it has to
7 do with the fiscal. We believe that that is the
8 sweet spot that would actually make -- that
9 actually would make this -- {coughing}.
10 If somebody would get me a bottle of
11 water, because this frigging smoke is still
12 messing with me.
13 Through you, Madam President. So it
14 would be -- it would make the fiscal work better
15 if we were able to achieve that 240,000. But
16 again, it does not -- we're talking about -- so
17 it does not surprise me, is the answer to the
18 question, that the word is in there.
19 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
20 Madam President, through you, if the
21 sponsor would continue to yield.
22 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
24 Rivera, are you okay to continue?
25 (Off the record.)
6303
1 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
2 we can take a quick break if --
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: No, it's
4 all right.
5 Senator Rivera, do you yield?
6 SENATOR RIVERA: We're good. Keep
7 going.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
9 yield?
10 SENATOR RIVERA: I do.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
12 Senator yields.
13 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
14 So there's a requirement -- whether
15 it's a sweet spot or whatever, there is a
16 requirement in this bill that the commissioner
17 shall enroll 240,000 individuals. Can you tell
18 me what the time frame is within which the
19 commissioner is to enroll 240,000 people? I'm
20 assuming it's not a week; I'm assuming it's not
21 six months. I'm hoping it's more than a year.
22 But I don't -- can you tell me, in
23 your sense, what and how long the commissioner
24 has to enroll these 240,000 people in the
25 program?
6304
1 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
2 Madam President, there is an earlier part of the
3 bill -- and we could actually point to the
4 paragraph, if you'd like, that actually refers to
5 what would trigger this particular part of the
6 bill.
7 We're saying that the
8 commissioner -- through you, Madam President --
9 that the commissioner has to -- as we discussed
10 earlier, has the ability to set the criteria for
11 limitations as far as who is eligible for the
12 program. And we're saying, and we'll get you the
13 actual paragraph where there is stated, the part
14 that you're referring to, on the "shall," does
15 not trigger unless the requirements that are set
16 by the commissioner actually make it so.
17 Give me one second.
18 On page 5, paragraph 9, subpart
19 (a) -- I think that's the thing. Because I don't
20 know about the subparts and the paragraphs and
21 what have you. We're talking about page 5 --
22 okay? And "the Commissioner of Health may place
23 limitations on enrollment to ensure that the
24 costs associated with rendering services to this
25 population do not exceed the revenues anticipated
6305
1 to be transferred to the 1332 State Innovation
2 Program Fund."
3 So in other words, it is clearly
4 stated that the commissioner has the ability to
5 say, Hold on, based on the calculations that
6 we're making and the numbers of people that we're
7 enrolling, we'd only be able to cover to this
8 many people.
9 So the commissioner can actually set
10 the parameters to limit, to cap, the number of
11 people that would actually be eligible for it, to
12 be able to hit that -- to be able to not exceed
13 the amount of money that we would receive from
14 the federal government to cover the population.
15 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
16 through you, if the commissioner -- if the
17 sponsor would continue to yield.
18 SENATOR RIVERA: Madam President,
19 through you. Not a commissioner, but as a
20 Senator, I will indeed yield.
21 SENATOR MARTINS: And I want to
22 thank Senator Krueger for coming to the rescue.
23 Thank you.
24 (Laughter; inaudible exchange.)
25 SENATOR MARTINS: No, thank you.
6306
1 And thank you, Senator Rivera.
2 But the very next sentence in that
3 same paragraph, I think you may have stopped a
4 little too early. It says that in establishing
5 any limitations pursuant to the subdivision,
6 which includes the line you just read, the
7 Commissioner of Health shall enroll at least
8 240,000 individuals and -- and -- may enroll
9 additional individuals as reasonably practicable
10 while ensuring continual coverage for such
11 additional individuals based on current and
12 anticipated 1332 State Innovation Program Fund
13 reserves.
14 So the way I read it -- and I'm
15 going to ask you how you read it -- that sets a
16 baseline of 240,000, which the commissioner can
17 actually get more people if they have more funds,
18 but not less than 240,000.
19 I don't think that that's what this
20 says. Do you?
21 SENATOR RIVERA: I read it
22 differently, Madam President. In determining
23 eligibility, just to start the paragraph off --
24 and for those of you tuning in at home, did you
25 think we were going to take this deeper dive?
6307
1 Yes, we are. Reading Rainbow with you.
2 "In determining eligibility for
3 residents of the state that are ineligible for
4 the basic health programs under 42 U.S.C.
5 Section 18051 on the basis of immigration
6 status," right, "the Commissioner of Health may
7 place limitations on enrollment." So that's the
8 first part of the sentence. That's the
9 operational part that says may limit "to ensure
10 that the costs associated with rendering services
11 to this population do not exceed the revenues
12 anticipated." I read it earlier, right?
13 And you are correct, it goes on,
14 "pursuant to Section 98-d of the State Finance
15 Law. In establishing any limitations pursuant to
16 this subdivision the Commissioner of Health shall
17 enroll" -- so basically, based on the limitations
18 that were set -- the first sentence is important
19 because that one supersedes the second one. Yes,
20 it does. Yes, it does.
21 And it says "may," "may" and
22 "shall." The commissioner may establish
23 limitations based on whether we can afford it or
24 not. The power is right there. And if the
25 limitations are such that if he believes that we
6308
1 can actually achieve -- that we can actually
2 afford it, 240,000 is the goal. And, further, if
3 we can afford that too.
4 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
5 Madam President, through you, if the
6 sponsor would continue to yield.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
8 continue to yield?
9 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
11 Senator yields.
12 SENATOR MARTINS: You know, I have
13 nothing but respect for the sponsor, and I
14 appreciate that. But I -- in reading this,
15 Madam President, I'm struck. Because the first
16 line says "may" and sets certain criteria, and
17 the next line says "in establishing those
18 limitations," obviously referring to the previous
19 line. So referring to the line that the sponsor
20 referred to that also said "shall enroll at least
21 240,000."
22 So yes, we are acknowledging there's
23 a limitation, but it then goes on to say, in
24 establishing that limitation it's at least
25 240,000. And so the language is right there.
6309
1 Can we at least agree that that's what this says?
2 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
3 Madam President, we can agree that the sentence
4 is right there.
5 And, kids, again, Section 9, page 5,
6 right there. So yes, we can agree that that's
7 what the sentence says.
8 Now, we are interpreting it
9 differently, and that's perfectly fine. Again,
10 Madam President, through you. That the -- my
11 colleague might -- might choose to say that
12 that -- that what that means is that there
13 shall -- that -- that the commissioner has to do
14 240,000.
15 I will insist that because of the
16 way that that is structured -- and I will point
17 to the fact that the gentleman who wrote it, this
18 knucklehead right here -- and you can put that on
19 the record. Tony Kergaravat is a knucklehead.
20 You can put that on there.
21 In the best way possible, this --
22 this will hold up to scrutiny. In all
23 seriousness, we're talking about may set the
24 criteria. Based on whether we can afford it or
25 not. And if we can, then they shall go for the
6310
1 240,000. And if we can afford more, we should go
2 for more than that.
3 I believe that that's what it says.
4 And I believe that that's how it would be
5 interpreted.
6 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you,
7 Madam President. Through you, if the sponsor
8 would continue to yield.
9 SENATOR RIVERA: Will do.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Excuse me,
11 Senator Martins. Just to remind you, you are
12 approaching your 30-minute cap on questions.
13 SENATOR MARTINS: Am I?
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: You are.
15 SENATOR MARTINS: Where did the
16 time go, Madam President?
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: I am just
18 reminding you, Senator Martins.
19 SENATOR MARTINS: Madam President,
20 on the bill.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
22 Martins on the bill.
23 SENATOR MARTINS: Thank you.
24 First of all, I want to thank the
25 sponsor for answering all of those questions and
6311
1 your patience in doing so.
2 Madam President, in a state that has
3 the luxury of having a $239 billion budget,
4 comparatively, and as generous as we are as a
5 state, as reflected in the policies that we
6 accept here, through that budget process and
7 otherwise, I find that our state is and our
8 residents are quite generous in their approach
9 not only to healthcare but to any number of
10 items.
11 And I'm concerned that sometimes
12 when we in our generosity open the front door,
13 that we're not quite sure how many people are
14 actually going to answer the call and show up. I
15 think we have recent history where by the Mayor
16 of New York City's estimate, 77,000 people showed
17 up at our front door when we declared the state
18 to be a sanctuary state and we declared the city
19 to be a sanctuary city.
20 And so when we make decisions on
21 policy, as well intentioned as they are, I think
22 we have to think broader than the immediacy and
23 those great and well intentions may actually turn
24 out to be more than we can bear.
25 I found it especially discouraging
6312
1 when the Mayor of New York City commented that
2 the number of migrants that arrived in New York
3 City would break the back of the City of
4 New York, a city that has a budget of over
5 $100 billion, and yet when 77,000 migrants showed
6 up there, we were not able to actually afford the
7 generosity that we have portrayed to the world.
8 And so when we look at bills such as
9 this and we want to signal to the world just how
10 generous we are in welcoming everyone here, I
11 think it's laudable. But I also think that we
12 need to be very careful as to where those limits
13 are and how much that is going to cost the
14 taxpayers of our great state. Because yes, we
15 are a generous state. Our residents are
16 extraordinarily generous. And there are people
17 in this chamber who are more than willing to be
18 very generous with the taxpayers' money in
19 distributing it in ways that sometimes we can't
20 afford.
21 So I appreciate and thank the
22 sponsor for his answers. I have read the bill,
23 and I am certainly concerned about what this is
24 going to cost the taxpayers of our state and what
25 it means for us going forward. So I will be
6313
1 voting no.
2 Thank you, Madam President.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Thank you
4 Senator Martins.
5 Senator Stec, why do you rise?
6 SENATOR STEC: Madam President,
7 I've heard enough. Thank you.
8 (Laughter.)
9 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
10 Helming, why do you rise?
11 SENATOR HELMING: Thank you,
12 Madam President. If the sponsor will continue to
13 yield to a couple of questions.
14 SENATOR RIVERA: Absolutely.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
16 sponsor yields.
17 SENATOR HELMING: We're just
18 getting warmed up, right? Through you,
19 Madam President. Senator Rivera -- if the
20 sponsor will yield --
21 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Yes, he
22 said he will yield.
23 SENATOR HELMING: All right.
24 Senator Rivera, I listened to the
25 discussion back and forth about the whole "shall"
6314
1 or "may," and it sounds to me like there is a cap
2 based on the financial piece of this, right, to
3 how many people can be enrolled.
4 Is that correct?
5 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
6 Madam President. So a cap -- basically what the
7 language of the bill says is that a cap is
8 authorized.
9 There were earlier versions of the
10 bill that did not have a cap attached to it. We
11 thought that -- the current version of the bill
12 does, because we thought that it would be
13 important to kind of set -- that paragraph right
14 there that we were reading back and forth did not
15 exist in the earlier versions of the bill.
16 And it actually has -- again, it
17 says make sure that we can afford it, but shoot
18 for 240,000 and -- because we think that that is
19 about the sweet number -- that's the sweet spot
20 of the number of people that we can get.
21 But again, it is -- we're unsure
22 that we can actually reach that number. We're
23 not even sure that we're going to be able to get
24 to that number. But yes.
25 SENATOR HELMING: Through you,
6315
1 Madam President, if the sponsor will continue to
2 yield.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
4 continue to yield?
5 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
7 sponsor yields.
8 SENATOR HELMING: So I'm just
9 wondering if there's a cap, a maximum, whatever
10 you want to call it. Can you explain to me,
11 then, how it works for continuous enrollment?
12 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
13 Madam President, if -- if the -- I'm not sure I
14 understand the question.
15 SENATOR HELMING: So through you,
16 Madam President. The way I read the bill, it
17 says that continuous enrollment for enrollees
18 shall be allowed.
19 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
20 Madam President. The language that you're
21 referring to, that my colleague is referring to,
22 just basically says that there is -- as opposed
23 to being a period of enrollment, that there's a
24 consistent -- that there's a continuous
25 enrollment. So that's the -- so basically
6316
1 somebody can enroll at different times of the
2 year.
3 SENATOR HELMING: Thank you.
4 Through you, Madam President, if the
5 sponsor will continue to yield.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
7 continue to yield?
8 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
10 sponsor yields.
11 SENATOR HELMING: So this -- this
12 is what I'm trying to figure out. And the hour's
13 late, and maybe I'm just missing it. But
14 basically there is some sort of cap. We're
15 really hoping to enroll 240,000 people,
16 potentially more. We're going to have an open
17 enrollment, people can apply whenever they want.
18 But the bill also -- my
19 understanding is it states that anyone who
20 applies shall be -- payment shall be or they
21 should be enrolled retroactive to the first day
22 of the month in which the individual was
23 determined eligible.
24 So if you reach that cap, if you
25 reach that limit, what do you do with all these
6317
1 people who have since enrolled and have been
2 determined eligible?
3 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
4 Madam President, the language that my colleague
5 points out is language that exists basically in
6 every type of program of this sort. It's just --
7 basically refers to the date of the actual
8 person's enrollment having been the first of,
9 month of the day that they are enrolling.
10 I'm not sure -- I don't -- I don't
11 know what the -- it's normal language that's
12 included in basically any program that does this
13 in the state already.
14 SENATOR HELMING: Through you,
15 Madam President. Again, I don't understand how
16 you can say that. You're --
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
18 Helming, are you asking if the sponsor would
19 yield?
20 SENATOR HELMING: Yes.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Will you
22 yield?
23 SENATOR RIVERA: Sure.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
25 sponsor yields.
6318
1 SENATOR HELMING: How you say that
2 there is a cap, a maximum number based on -- the
3 way I understand it is how much funding is
4 available. But yet you're saying to people, hey,
5 apply anytime you want, and you will be eligible
6 from the date.
7 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
8 Madam President, apologies. One of my colleagues
9 thought that apparently we're going to be here
10 for a while, so he brought me two more bottles.
11 And I say that's fine, make it tea next time,
12 sir.
13 To respond -- through you,
14 Madam President -- I don't believe that this
15 is -- if you have a -- if there is -- there is a
16 goal, as we talked about before, of 240,000.
17 We're basically saying that the commissioner
18 establishes the parameters, makes sure that they
19 calculate so that they don't --
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Excuse me.
21 Can we have some order?
22 Thank you.
23 Go ahead, Senator Rivera.
24 SENATOR RIVERA: Thank you,
25 Madam President.
6319
1 (Whispering.) Just waiting for
2 them.
3 SENATOR HELMING: Senator Rivera,
4 thank you.
5 SENATOR RIVERA: Ah, I was just
6 about to --
7 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
8 Rivera, do you want to complete the answer?
9 SENATOR RIVERA: Just -- so again,
10 Madam President, just very quickly, I don't think
11 that there's anything obscure or strange about
12 that language. It is included basically in every
13 other program.
14 And I don't believe that -- that it
15 would -- that the way that it is written would
16 mean that, you know, we close our eyes -- we open
17 our eyes and we have 240,000; we close our eyes
18 and open them up again and we have 10,000 more
19 people enrolled. I don't think that that's what
20 would happen here.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Are there
22 any other Senators -- there are. There continue
23 to be other Senators.
24 Senator Rhoads, why do you rise?
25 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
6320
1 Madam President. Will the sponsor yield to a few
2 questions.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
4 Rivera, do you yield?
5 SENATOR RIVERA: Now that I have
6 all these bottles, I sure will.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
8 Senator yields.
9 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you very
10 much, Madam President, Senator Rivera.
11 We just spoke about a monetary cap.
12 Do you know the amount of the monetary cap, the
13 funds that are actually available for the
14 program?
15 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
16 Madam President, the -- this is actually
17 determined on a year-by-year basis depending upon
18 how many people are actually enrolled.
19 The way that this works -- because
20 again, I want to just make sure that we underline
21 this. This is no state funding. We're talking
22 strictly about federal money. And it's federal
23 money that's available to every other state as
24 well, that was established for the Affordable
25 Care Act.
6321
1 And we're basically saying that if
2 you are -- if we are -- and the way that we've
3 done it in the State of New York is because we
4 are running our program effectively, then the
5 plus, the surplus -- because there's almost
6 $10 billion currently in a surplus that we have
7 already.
8 Now, we're not going to use that
9 money to cover the undocumented population. That
10 has been clearly established. But going forward,
11 in the next five years we envision that we will
12 get between 53 and 54 billion dollars for the
13 Essential Plan, and this could be used to cover
14 this population.
15 SENATOR RHOADS: But we don't
16 know -- will the sponsor continue to yield?
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
18 continue to yield?
19 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
21 sponsor yields.
22 SENATOR RHOADS: So, for example,
23 in 2023, this year, do we know how much in
24 federal funds is available?
25 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
6322
1 Madam President, no, because this doesn't happen
2 until 2024.
3 So we don't have -- regardless of
4 what the surplus would be this year, it would not
5 be available to us. It would only be available
6 in a prospective manner once we get the waiver
7 approved.
8 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
9 continue to yield.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
11 continue to yield?
12 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
14 sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
16 Senator Rivera.
17 How is this surplus created?
18 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
19 Madam President. Again, this is something that
20 happens with the Affordable Care -- the
21 Affordable Care Act went into effect particularly
22 when the Basic Health Plan or the Essential Plan
23 started working in April 2015. The arrangement
24 was that a state gets federal money to make sure
25 that you sign people up for the Essential Plan or
6323
1 the Basic Health Plan. And you get either tax
2 credits or, if you extend the Essential Plan, you
3 actually -- basically you get money for the
4 number of people that you are enrolling on a
5 year-to-year basis.
6 Now, this happens -- every state has
7 this deal available to them as far as federal
8 money. So this money that has accrued --
9 $10 billion so far and we believe between 53 and
10 54 billion dollars in the next five years if the
11 federal waiver is approved -- this money would
12 accrue because of the number of people that we
13 would enroll to the Essential Plan on a rolling
14 basis between now and five years from now.
15 SENATOR RHOADS: Will he continue
16 to yield?
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
18 continue to yield?
19 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
21 sponsor yields.
22 SENATOR RHOADS: Earlier in this
23 debate I believe you indicated that there are
24 certainly tens of thousands if not more
25 New Yorkers who currently do not have health
6324
1 coverage who are here in the state legally. Is
2 there a reason why, if there are surplus funds,
3 there is not a greater effort to get them to
4 enroll so that they can be provided health
5 coverage?
6 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
7 Madam President, that's actually quite
8 interesting that you mention it, because the fact
9 is that as the federal government -- because I
10 haven't even gotten to talk about the federal
11 letter, but I just will take the opportunity now.
12 We asked the federal government just
13 a couple of months ago, during the conversation
14 in the budget, the Governor sent -- because of
15 the push of particularly the Leader, but
16 certainly the Leader and the Speaker, to send a
17 letter to the federal government saying, Hey,
18 could you clarify how we could use this money?
19 We as a Legislature sent another
20 follow-up letter, and the Department of Health --
21 I'm sorry, Health and Human Services of the
22 federal government responded to us and told us
23 that trust funds -- regarding your question,
24 Section 1331 of the ACA limits the use of the
25 Basic Health Plan trust funds to reducing the
6325
1 premiums of cost sharing or providing additional
2 benefits for eligible individuals enrolled in the
3 BHP, standard health plan.
4 So in other words, the money that we
5 currently have could potentially be used -- if
6 those -- if the category of folks here, people
7 that are here legally but don't have a status,
8 right -- these are folks that you were mentioning
9 that -- through you, Madam President, that my
10 colleague was mentioning. If those folks are
11 eligible now, we could actually extend to them --
12 we could use this, we could use this money to
13 actually cover the premium or cost sharing or
14 provide additional benefits for those eligible
15 populations.
16 The population that we're talking
17 about right now are folks that for -- that money
18 would not -- they would not be eligible for, and
19 it would be money coming in the future. And that
20 money, then, as clarified in the rest of the
21 letter, would be -- it would be available to us
22 for this new -- for this other population, which
23 is an undocumented group of folks.
24 SENATOR RHOADS: Through you,
25 Madam President, will the sponsor yield to
6326
1 another question.
2 Thank you for that answer, by the
3 way.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
5 Rivera, do you continue to yield?
6 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
8 sponsor yields.
9 SENATOR RHOADS: If the existing
10 surplus funds that we have can be used to provide
11 coverage for New Yorkers that are here legally in
12 the state, if you do get New Yorkers who are
13 signing up legally in the state, will that not
14 deplete future surpluses?
15 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
16 Madam President. First of all, we have already
17 used some of this money -- not enough, in my
18 view. But in any event, we have used some of
19 this money to extend services or additional
20 benefits to eligible populations.
21 This would be future money that
22 could be partly used to cover an undocumented
23 population. And actually it's one of the things
24 that happens -- we talk about this all the
25 time -- through you, Madam President: Money is
6327
1 fungible in our state.
2 So if we use the $10 billion, which
3 again is just sitting there right now, if we use
4 some of it to cover populations that are
5 currently eligible and use the money that's
6 coming in, the new money that's coming in to
7 cover the undocumented populations that are
8 currently not eligible for anything, we could
9 actually balance it out and potentially not only
10 cover the 240,000, but cover more.
11 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
12 Senator.
13 Will the sponsor continue to yield.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
15 continue to yield?
16 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
18 sponsor yields.
19 SENATOR RHOADS: Please correct me
20 if I'm -- if I'm wrong. My understanding is that
21 the federal dollars cannot be used because the
22 federal government has determined that coverage
23 is not available to those who are undocumented,
24 those that are here illegally. Is that correct?
25 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
6328
1 Madam President, that is correct only as it
2 refers to the surplus that we already have in the
3 bank.
4 The waiver that we are seeking would
5 be to make sure that money that comes in the
6 future for surpluses can be used to serve this
7 population.
8 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
9 continue to yield.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
11 continue to yield?
12 SENATOR RIVERA: I sure will.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
14 sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
16 Senator Rivera.
17 Have you received any assurance from
18 the federal government, has the state received
19 any assurance from the federal government that in
20 fact those future funds can -- I can tell from
21 the dance you have an answer -- that those future
22 funds can be used in that manner?
23 SENATOR RIVERA: Funny you ask,
24 Madam President. Through you, Madam President,
25 funny that my colleague asks.
6329
1 On June 6th of 2023, Chiquita
2 Brooks-LaSure, who is the administrator for the
3 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in
4 Washington, D.C., responded to a request to
5 that -- for that -- to that question. And the
6 answer, sir, is yes.
7 To give it to you in technicalese:
8 "We note, however, that there is no prohibition
9 on using Section 1332 waiver pass-through funding
10 to fund state affordability programs (such as
11 state subsidies) under the waiver plan for health
12 insurance coverage for individuals not lawfully
13 present, so long as the waiver plan meets the
14 Section 1332 statutory guardrails."
15 In short -- through you,
16 Madam President -- we indeed can. Right here,
17 black and white.
18 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
19 yield?
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
21 continue to yield?
22 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
24 sponsor yields.
25 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
6330
1 Senator Rivera.
2 United States Code -- 42 U.S.C.
3 Section 18051 specifically prohibits those funds
4 from being used for those whose immigration
5 status -- for those who do not have an
6 immigration status within the country.
7 Under what authority did the
8 commissioner indicate that we were permitted to
9 violate that section of the United States Code?
10 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
11 Madam President. This is not the commissioner.
12 This is the feds. And the feds are saying that
13 if we grant the waiver -- and they're saying if
14 they do, you can use that money. There would be
15 no law breaking. They're the ones that told us
16 that we can use that money.
17 So this is not some conspiracy
18 thing. We're talking about, in black and white,
19 you can use that money. No laws will be broken.
20 Here we go.
21 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
22 continue to yield.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
24 continue to yield?
25 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
6331
1 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
2 sponsor yields.
3 SENATOR RHOADS: Who was the author
4 of the letter?
5 SENATOR RIVERA: I'm going to --
6 could someone give me a bad boy. I'm going to
7 walk it over to the gentleman right here.
8 This is from the Department of
9 Health and Human Services. The person who signed
10 it is Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, who is the
11 administrator for the Centers for Medicare &
12 Medicaid Services.
13 If you have a copy of the letter,
14 could you walk it over to the Senator?
15 Exhibit A. Through you, Madam President.
16 So that is the person who signed the
17 letter. And this -- and I will -- and through
18 you, Madam President, I will say that this letter
19 is a response to two letters that were produced,
20 one from the Governor and one from the
21 Legislature.
22 This letter right here that has
23 about 60 -- that is signed both by the sponsor of
24 this bill in the Assembly as well as the chair of
25 the Health Committee in the Assembly, and 60-plus
6332
1 of my colleagues both in the Senate and the
2 Assembly, went to the federal government back on
3 May 19th.
4 So as a follow-up to the
5 conversation that we had during the budget, the
6 Governor's office sent a letter -- thank you,
7 Madam Governor, for sending that letter. As a
8 follow-up, the Legislature sent this one on
9 May 19th. And on June 6th we got the response
10 from the federal government saying, hey, we can.
11 Oh, and by the way, I should mention
12 the State of Washington as well as Colorado have
13 already received this permission from the waiver.
14 So they're already doing it.
15 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
16 yield to another question.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
18 continue to yield?
19 SENATOR RIVERA: I will only yield
20 to 17 more questions, Madam President.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
22 Senator yields.
23 SENATOR RHOADS: We'll start the
24 clock (laughing).
25 Senator Rivera, this particular
6333
1 letter from the Department of Health and Human
2 Services -- and I note that this is not from the
3 Health and Human Services Secretary himself --
4 does not cite any legal authority for why
5 Health and Human Services is able to -- or why
6 the state is able to circumvent 42 U.S.C. Section
7 18051.
8 Other than the letter from the
9 Department of Health and Human Services, has the
10 state sought any further explanation as to why
11 the waiver and presumably the clear language of
12 the United States Code are in disagreement?
13 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
14 Madam President, that's how waivers work, bro.
15 The feds -- we ask permission from
16 them on normal, on just -- Medicaid, as most of
17 my colleagues know, is a program that works
18 basically fifty-fifty through state funds and
19 federal funds. State funds we can use in all
20 sorts of ways. Federal funds we can only use in
21 very specific ways. We have to ask for
22 permission, we have to ask for a waiver: Hey,
23 can we use this money for some other slightly
24 different purpose? That's how waivers work.
25 So this is not a violation of any
6334
1 law. It has actually, again, already been done
2 by the State of Washington as well as Colorado.
3 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
4 continue to yield.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
6 continue to yield?
7 SENATOR RIVERA: He's got 15 left,
8 Madam President.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
10 sponsor yields.
11 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
12 Senator Rivera.
13 It's been some time since I took
14 civics class in school. So is what we're saying
15 that the way things work is that Congress can
16 pass a law and the executive branch can simply
17 disregard it?
18 SENATOR RIVERA: Madam President,
19 no, that is not what we are saying.
20 What we are saying is that it is
21 within the authority of the Executive -- in this
22 case the federal government, the Department of
23 Health and Human Services -- it is within their
24 authority to say to a state, yes, you can use
25 this money in this way.
6335
1 Obviously it does not violate the
2 federal -- whatever federal law you're stating,
3 it does not violate it. It doesn't. It is
4 already being done. It is already operational.
5 It is not some pie-in-the-sky thing. It's
6 actually already happening.
7 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
8 continue to yield.
9 SENATOR RIVERA: Fourteen
10 questions, Madam President. Yes, I will.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
12 Rivera, you yield?
13 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
15 Senator yields.
16 SENATOR RHOADS: Madam President,
17 do I have -- since I already have pre-authority
18 for 14 questions, do I have to go through the
19 process of asking --
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Yes, you
21 have to ask. Sorry.
22 SENATOR RHOADS: Okay.
23 (Laughter.)
24 SENATOR RHOADS: Senator Rivera,
25 I'll go back, then, really to my original
6336
1 question. Which is, do we know how many
2 New Yorkers that are here legally, how many do
3 not have health coverage?
4 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
5 Madam President, we're hunting that number down.
6 There is a -- I don't know the exact number of
7 people who are -- the particular slice that my
8 colleague is asking about. But we will track
9 down that number.
10 I'm sure there's a point that you
11 want to make regardless of what the number is
12 while we look for it. You can ask for
13 permission, I'll grant it, and then you can ask
14 the next one.
15 In 2019, over 1 million individuals
16 throughout New York State did not have health
17 insurance. The majority of these people fall
18 between the ages of 19 and 64, are employed, and
19 earn below 400 percent of the federal poverty
20 level. Over half of these individuals reside in
21 New York City.
22 And the -- and it is the -- there is
23 a source attached there, but that's basically the
24 answer.
25 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
6337
1 continue to yield.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
3 continue to yield?
4 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
6 Senator yields.
7 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
8 Senator Rivera.
9 So my understanding, based on the
10 figures that you just told me, is that there are
11 a million New Yorkers who do not have health
12 coverage that are here in the state legally. Is
13 that correct?
14 SENATOR RIVERA: No,
15 Madam President. I'm saying that there are a
16 million folks -- I believe that the population
17 that we're talking about of undocumented folks
18 would be included within that million. So I
19 don't know exactly what the breakdown would be.
20 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
21 continue to yield?
22 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
23 continue to yield?
24 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
6338
1 sponsor yields.
2 SENATOR RHOADS: If they're
3 undocumented, how do we know how many there are?
4 SENATOR RIVERA: Madam President,
5 as -- if we transport ourselves back in time to
6 an hour ago, whenever we started this
7 conversation, I said then that making an exact
8 determination of how many undocumented folks are
9 in the State of New York is a very, very
10 difficult thing to do. There are different
11 calculations from different folks.
12 I don't have an exact number of how
13 many undocumented folks there are. The fact is
14 that many of them don't want to identify
15 themselves. We have to make some very educated
16 guesses as to how much -- or how many of these
17 folk are here.
18 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
19 continue to yield?
20 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
21 continue to yield?
22 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
24 sponsor yields.
25 SENATOR RHOADS: Would it be fair
6339
1 to assume, therefore, that out of the million --
2 which is the statistic that you just quoted -- we
3 have no idea how many of the undocumented
4 population are part of that million, if any?
5 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
6 Madam President, we estimate that it's about a
7 third of that.
8 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
9 continue to yield?
10 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
11 continue to yield?
12 SENATOR RIVERA: Yes.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
14 sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR RHOADS: And is there any
16 empirical evidence upon which that number is
17 based, or are we just guessing?
18 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
19 Madam President. It's -- it's -- bro, it's
20 calculation. We cannot count -- if we -- the
21 Census, which seeks to actually establish how
22 many folks are in the state or around the
23 country, right, that immense thing that happens
24 every 10 years, even that immense thing can't
25 establish every single person. We can't get to
6340
1 every single person. Not everybody wants to
2 answer a door, not everybody wants to actually
3 get a questionnaire.
4 So unfortunately I cannot tell
5 you -- I mean, if I was Professor X or something,
6 I probably could. But since I'm not, I cannot
7 tell you the exact number of undocumented folks
8 that are here. We have calculations, we have
9 estimates, et cetera.
10 Bottom line, we do know that
11 currently over a billion dollars is being spent
12 every year on Emergency Medicaid. So we know
13 that these individuals come into the emergency
14 rooms, have whatever happening with them, they
15 get taken care of, and we pay for that. And that
16 is a billion dollars.
17 And we take numbers based on that,
18 and we make some calculations and some
19 extrapolations, and that's how we come up with
20 some of our numbers. But again, can't give you
21 every single one of them.
22 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
23 continue to yield?
24 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
25 continue to yield?
6341
1 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR RHOADS: So I'm presuming
5 that the answer to the question -- and I say this
6 in depositions all the time to my client: "I
7 don't know" is a perfectly acceptable answer if
8 we don't know what the answer is. And that's
9 kind of, I think, what we -- what we've just
10 established.
11 But we do know, or at least
12 approximate, that the coverage for 240,000
13 individuals that you've alluded to as part of
14 this program as a target, is estimated to cost
15 about a billion dollars. Am I correct in those
16 figures?
17 SENATOR RIVERA: It would probably
18 be a little bit higher than that as far as the
19 overall cost. The cost of the Emergency
20 Medicaid -- Emergency Medicaid is about a billion
21 dollars back in 2021. We estimate that if we do
22 hit the 240,000 number, it would be something --
23 overall, to the system, it would be about
24 $1.7 billion.
25 SENATOR RHOADS: So almost -- will
6342
1 the sponsor continue to yield.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
3 continue to yield?
4 SENATOR RIVERA: Yup.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
6 sponsor yields.
7 SENATOR RHOADS: So of the
8 1 million individuals that we have, New Yorkers
9 who are here in New York legally, we have a total
10 surplus of -- I believe you said 10 billion?
11 SENATOR RIVERA: Through you,
12 Madam President. The numbers are starting to get
13 confusing, obviously. I'll start again.
14 The question that was asked -- at
15 some point the question was asked how many folks
16 in the State of New York, period, don't have
17 insurance. We believe that that is about a
18 million.
19 Of that, we estimate -- we
20 estimate -- estimate? Estimate. Estimate. We
21 make an estimate -- ha, ha, there you go. We
22 make an estimate that about a third of that is
23 folks who are undocumented.
24 And we believe that if we do this
25 right, as far as the implementation of this
6343
1 program, about 240,000 of those folks we can
2 actually identify, enroll and cover.
3 SENATOR RHOADS: Will the sponsor
4 continue to yield?
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
6 continue to yield?
7 SENATOR RIVERA: Unless he asks me
8 to do more math, the answer is yes.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
10 sponsor yields.
11 SENATOR RHOADS: Okay, thank you,
12 Madam President.
13 The issue that I have is -- and
14 perhaps you can reconcile this for me -- is that
15 let's assume that the numbers that you're giving
16 are accurate. There's a million who are not
17 covered in New York, that that includes roughly
18 one-third of that number being undocumented,
19 being those that are here illegally. Again, we
20 don't know the exact figures, but that's
21 approximately what it is.
22 You believe that the cost of
23 providing coverage per year for those that are
24 here illegally will be approximately
25 $1.7 billion. We know we have a $10 billion
6344
1 surplus.
2 At some point in time if we provide
3 coverage, are able to provide coverage for the
4 other two-thirds, at roughly a cost of
5 $3.5 billion, won't we eventually eat up the
6 surplus and then have to make a choice between
7 providing coverage to those who are here legally
8 and those who are not?
9 SENATOR RIVERA: A couple of
10 things, Madam President.
11 Number one, I thought that I was
12 very clear that I was not going to be asked to do
13 math. But I guess we're going to go in that
14 direction anyway.
15 Number two. The fact is that as we
16 stated clearly earlier, more than once, the
17 surplus that we currently have we cannot dip into
18 for the undocumented population. We can't. It
19 says so -- remember the letter? Black and white,
20 the letter.
21 So, hold on, then we're talking
22 about the -- as far as choosing, because I --
23 because I understand that some of my colleagues
24 might have this concern and be, like, we're
25 forgetting about Americans and we're taking care
6345
1 of these people. And I'm not saying you said
2 this. I'm not saying you said this. But I can
3 hear that there might be a concern there.
4 And what I'm trying to communicate
5 here is that if people will -- is we are already
6 spending over a billion dollars without giving
7 any type of like regular care to these folks. So
8 these folks are already here. They get sick.
9 They get flus, they get -- you know, they get
10 colds, they break legs, they have all these --
11 these things are already happening. We already
12 have this -- this -- this expense that we're
13 going into.
14 And what we're suggesting here is
15 that we have a way to get federal money so it
16 does not cost the state anything -- we actually
17 start saving money for the state, and providing
18 care to these folks. And giving them access to
19 the Essential Plan might actually give them
20 access to primary care, which means that they
21 would be healthier and it would cost the overall
22 system even less money.
23 So the concern here is, you know --
24 the math, again, was confusing, Madam President,
25 because I'm just not a math guy. But the bottom
6346
1 line here is we need to go with -- the reason we
2 need to pass this and we need to do this is
3 because these individuals are already living
4 here. We are already spending a whole lot of
5 money not to take care of them, but just to patch
6 them up when they get messed up.
7 And as opposed to that, we're saying
8 let's go get federal money, costing the state
9 nothing, and provide them primary care.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER:
11 (Inaudible.)
12 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
13 Senator Rivera.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Are there
15 any other Senators wishing to be heard?
16 UNIDENTIFIED SENATOR: No.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Thank you.
18 (Laughter.)
19 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Seeing and
20 hearing none, debate is closed.
21 The Secretary will ring the bell.
22 Read the last section.
23 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
24 act shall take effect on the same date and in the
25 same manner as Section 3 of Part H of Chapter 57
6347
1 of the Laws of 2023.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
6 Rivera to explain his vote.
7 SENATOR RIVERA: Thank you,
8 Madam President.
9 I want to thank all my colleagues
10 engaging in this conversation. I want to take a
11 couple of -- I'm not going to take, you know, a
12 whole bunch of time, but I will take a little bit
13 longer than the two minutes.
14 First of all, to thank all the
15 staffers that are here. They were like -- you
16 saw a good group of folks there. That's because
17 each one of them is smarter than I am, so I'm
18 glad to have them near me.
19 Certainly I don't know if my sponsor
20 from the Assembly is here, Jessica
21 Gonzalez-Rojas, to thank her as well.
22 But I want to just linger for a
23 second on why this is so important and so
24 essential. I started this whole conversation
25 talking about who we consider to be New Yorkers.
6348
1 I know that there's hundreds of thousands of
2 people who I represent, people who I'll never
3 meet, people who don't know who I am, and people
4 who might be even scared to identify themselves
5 to any person of authority in the neighborhoods
6 that they live in, you know, right next to me.
7 They're New Yorkers because they're
8 here, they are residents here, they work here.
9 By the way, to correct something
10 that was said by one of my colleagues earlier,
11 they pay taxes. Not only do undocumented people
12 pay sales taxes, but many of these folks have EIN
13 numbers. They pay state taxes, they pay federal
14 taxes -- to the tune, in 2019, Madam President,
15 of $3.6 billion. So these are folks who are
16 already giving back to the state.
17 But they don't have access to many
18 programs. They have access to basically no
19 programs. And when it comes to healthcare, they
20 have access to nothing except going to an
21 emergency room when they find themselves with a
22 pain in their stomach that they've had for the
23 last couple of weeks. Or they break a leg. Or
24 they've lost their voice for a week. Et cetera,
25 et cetera, et cetera.
6349
1 To this point, over a
2 billion dollars is spent every year for
3 Emergency Medicaid. This is something that we're
4 already doing, colleagues.
5 And I would point to the fact that
6 over $250 million of this right now goes to the
7 counties. Should you be interested, I have a
8 list of each one of the counties that each of you
9 represents and amount of money that each one of
10 your counties already puts into Emergency
11 Medicaid today. Suffolk County alone, in 2021,
12 almost $27 million of your taxpayer money right
13 now going to cover Emergency Medicaid for
14 individuals.
15 And I'm saying, let's figure out how
16 we can ask the federal government for money that
17 they're saying they're going to give us so that
18 we can extend coverage to them.
19 There's so much win here, folks.
20 There's so much win here. This is a win/win/win
21 all around. Not only will these individuals have
22 access to essential -- to the Essential Plan,
23 which will give them access to primary care, but
24 we will spend less money in the state.
25 And by extension, and this is the
6350
1 reason why the New York Health Act, which I will
2 not stop talking about until we get it frigging
3 done, is so important. Because healthcare is a
4 basic human right. We must seek that out. We
5 cannot continue down the path of taking
6 healthcare and making it a commodity where the
7 poor and the working-class folks don't have
8 access to what the wealthy have access to. We
9 have to move away from a system that does that.
10 This moves us down that road. And
11 it does so in an incredibly -- in a very
12 important way. We have the opportunity in this
13 state to not only be the third state in line to
14 get this, but to be the one that does it the
15 best. And I believe that we have to. I believe
16 that we must.
17 And I'm incredibly proud of the fact
18 that our conference continues to push the
19 envelope when it comes to these issues. We have
20 an opportunity -- and I would ask my colleagues
21 in the Assembly, and I would ask my colleague on
22 the second floor, to recognize the essential
23 nature of this. It's called the Essential Plan
24 for a reason, making sure that people have access
25 to healthcare. In this case, just access to
6351
1 insurance -- but we'll get past that eventually.
2 For the moment, access to insurance, which they
3 don't have access to now.
4 These are individuals who already
5 live in your districts. They are your neighbors,
6 they are your constituents, they are my
7 constituents, they are my neighbors. They're our
8 family members. And we want to make sure that we
9 can give them access to healthcare. This takes
10 us in that direction.
11 So let's get it done. I'm
12 incredibly proud to vote in the affirmative.
13 Thank you, Madam President.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
15 Rivera to be recorded in the affirmative.
16 Senator Jackson to explain his vote.
17 SENATOR JACKSON: Thank you,
18 Madam President.
19 And let me just thank
20 Senator Gustavo Rivera for his knowledge and
21 experience in dealing with this particular
22 matter.
23 So I support S2237A, a crucial piece
24 of legislation that represents an opportunity for
25 us to address injustice and ensure that every
6352
1 New Yorker, regardless of their immigration
2 status, has access to affordable medical care.
3 The pandemic has taught us a
4 valuable lesson. The strength and resilience of
5 our communities and workforce rely on the
6 well-being of every single member, particularly
7 the most vulnerable among us. No one should be
8 left behind with a life-threatening illness and
9 insurmountable financial burdens simply because
10 of a lack of access to healthcare.
11 Healthcare is a fundamental right.
12 You've heard it, we've heard it. And access to
13 affordable, high-quality care is a right that all
14 New Yorkers deserve. It is disheartening to
15 witness too many of our fellow New Yorkers being
16 denied opportunity and coverage, left uninsured
17 due to their immigration status. This is simply
18 unacceptable.
19 Expanding eligibility for the
20 Essential Plan, which Gustavo communicated about,
21 to individuals facing barriers to healthcare
22 coverage due to their immigration status is not
23 only a moral imperative but also a practical step
24 towards a healthier, more equitable society. By
25 providing comprehensive health coverage to all
6353
1 New Yorkers, regardless of their immigration
2 status, we will not only improve the lives of
3 individuals but also strengthen our entire
4 community.
5 Let us seize this opportunity to
6 ensure that everyone in our state can receive the
7 life-savings health coverage they need to stay
8 healthy and thrive. As a proud cosponsor of this
9 bill, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in
10 voting aye.
11 Thank you, Madam President.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
13 Jackson to be recorded in the affirmative.
14 Senator Krueger to explain her vote.
15 SENATOR KRUEGER: Thank you very
16 much.
17 I have to say some debates are more
18 enjoyable than others. I applaud Senator Gustavo
19 Rivera for having clearly some kind of cough and
20 continually enlivening the debate as well as
21 educating us by the debate.
22 And he said he's not a numbers guy,
23 but he actually did an excellent job with the
24 numbers. But I want to stick with that
25 perception.
6354
1 So even for my colleagues who think
2 this doesn't seem right, to give people who don't
3 have documented legal status here equal access to
4 healthcare, I would argue it's actually in our
5 best interests even if you don't think it's
6 supposed to be in their best interest.
7 We live here. Public health is a
8 crucial issue for all of us. And when some of us
9 don't have healthcare, we are far more likely to
10 be transferring the diseases we get to those
11 others around us.
12 I don't want us to have more public
13 health crises. I feel like we have more than we
14 can handle now. So I want people to have access
15 to healthcare and not get us sick.
16 And you know what? When we get
17 these federal funds -- not state funds, as
18 Gustavo pointed out over and over again -- that
19 money is going into our health system and our
20 hospital system. And everyone here will tell you
21 their stories about how they need more money in
22 their local hospitals, particularly if they are
23 serving rural or poor or inner-city communities.
24 So here's an opportunity to get
25 federal funds to help address the healthcare
6355
1 crisis we have. Every day we're getting up
2 saying, why isn't the federal government sending
3 us more money that we need? Here's a way that
4 they actually have to do it, for exactly what we
5 need, so that we all benefit for an increased
6 revenue stream into our state healthcare system,
7 not just the individuals getting the insurance.
8 So it's a win for our public health.
9 It's a win for all of our health. It's a win for
10 our healthcare system. And yeah, it's also the
11 right thing to do, to make sure that everyone
12 here actually has access to the healthcare they
13 need and deserve.
14 And let's not forget -- and I want
15 to thank him for pointing that out -- these are
16 tax-paying people. They may not have legal
17 status, but they pay taxes. They often work for
18 us for low wages. At least we can try to help
19 them stay healthy.
20 I vote yes, Madam President.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
22 Krueger to be recorded in the affirmative.
23 Senator Rhoads to explain his vote.
24 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
25 Madam President.
6356
1 My point simply is before we go and
2 take care of undocumented persons, we should
3 first be taking care of our own citizens.
4 What we heard during the debate is
5 that there are seven hundred -- assuming the
6 numbers are correct; neither of us are math
7 guys -- there are 700,000 New Yorkers who are
8 here legally who do not have health coverage.
9 That's simply a fact. We should be taking care
10 of those individuals if we have surplus funds.
11 If there are additional funds coming from the
12 federal government, these are the individuals
13 that we should be taking care of first before we
14 extend that generosity to others.
15 Secondly, we continue to spend money
16 as though it comes from nowhere. New York State
17 does not produce anything. Every dollar that we
18 spend is a dollar that comes from a business,
19 it's a dollar that comes from a resident, it's a
20 dollar that comes from someplace else here to
21 Albany, hopefully to be responsibly spent.
22 The fact that the money's coming
23 from the federal government doesn't mean that
24 it's not coming out of taxpayer money. Because
25 the federal government gets their money from the
6357
1 same place. So whether there are surplus funds
2 or not, it's still money that's coming out of the
3 taxpayer's pocket. Different pocket, but the
4 same pair of pants.
5 And lastly, because I know our time
6 is limited, I do find it somewhat interesting
7 that we're making the argument about wanting to
8 help hospitals, wanting to help particularly our
9 safety-net hospitals. We're -- not more than a
10 month ago, we just took, in the case of
11 Nassau County, we just took $7 million away from
12 them of federal dollars that was being passed
13 through the state. The state decided we were
14 going to steal it. That's $7 million in 2023.
15 That is $15 million in 2024, $30 million in 2025.
16 And repeat that at every county across the state
17 in Medicaid dollars that we have decided to steal
18 and keep for the State of New York that should
19 have been passed to our counties.
20 So for a variety of reasons, I will
21 be voting no, Madam President. And if we are
22 truly interested in making sure that we have help
23 to our counties and help to our safety-net
24 hospitals, let's actually provide them the direct
25 assistance when we have the opportunity to, not
6358
1 through providing coverage to others when we
2 haven't taken care of our own.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
4 Rhoads to be recorded in the negative.
5 Senator Webb to explain her vote.
6 SENATOR WEBB: Thank you,
7 Madam President.
8 I want to thank Senator Rivera for
9 bringing this important legislation to the floor,
10 and of course the Majority Leader.
11 Passing this legislation, very
12 simply, will improve health outcomes for all
13 New Yorkers. It will save our state millions of
14 dollars. This legislation uses surplus funds to
15 expand our Essential Plan to provide coverage to
16 New Yorkers whose income is below 250 percent of
17 the poverty levels, and extend essential coverage
18 to hundreds of thousands of uninsured New
19 Yorkers.
20 And as has been said by
21 Senator Rivera and other colleagues of mine,
22 there are federal dollars to help cover the cost
23 of this expansion.
24 For state and local governments,
25 this legislation means a combined savings of
6359
1 $400 million that is spent each year in
2 Emergency Medicaid coverage for people who don't
3 have healthcare coverage. Emergency Medicaid is
4 a costly alternative for routine preventative
5 care.
6 Since Emergency Medicaid is already
7 supported under our current state budget, this
8 legislation will support the delivery of more
9 comprehensive and preventative services to avoid
10 unnecessary and expensive hospitalizations. And
11 this will also ensure that our commitment as a
12 state to expanding and improving upon our
13 healthcare system for all New Yorkers is actually
14 fully actualized.
15 I proudly vote aye, and I encourage
16 my colleagues to do the same.
17 Thank you, Madam President.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
19 Webb to be recorded in the affirmative.
20 Senator Chu to explain her vote.
21 SENATOR CHU: Thank you,
22 Madam President.
23 I would like to share my personal
24 experience. About 18 years ago, when I was an
25 international student -- I came here as an
6360
1 international student. That's my legal status.
2 I did not have insurance. So one day I got flu.
3 I was in my master's degree. I couldn't go see a
4 doctor because I could not afford.
5 And two years after I graduated from
6 my master's degree, I found a job, I have
7 insurance, I got covered. And then at the time I
8 was a newspaper reporter. And I remember in the
9 very early stage I covered the news, a very sad
10 story. An immigrant family, the father found out
11 he was in the last stage of his cancer. And
12 within three months that's all he has for his
13 family, with two young kids.
14 That's the moment I realized in this
15 country, without the legal status of your
16 immigrant status, insurance to support your
17 family is your security net.
18 So I really would like to thank my
19 colleague Senator Rivera for bringing this
20 legislation, it's so important for immigrant
21 families. This is our security net to support
22 our families so that they can feel safe, they can
23 be healthier, they can support their family.
24 So I proudly vote aye. Thank you,
25 Madam President.
6361
1 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
2 Chu to be recorded in the affirmative.
3 Senator Brisport to explain his
4 vote.
5 SENATOR BRISPORT: Thank you,
6 Madam President.
7 My father emigrated here from
8 Guyana, in South America, in 1969 on a student
9 visa and lived here undocumented for about
10 20 years.
11 Our undocumented neighbors make our
12 communities stronger in each and every one of our
13 districts. And it's a pleasure to pass
14 legislation that can make their lives a little
15 more simpler and a little better.
16 And yes, Senator Rivera, let's also
17 pass the New York Health Act.
18 I proudly vote aye.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
20 Brisport to be recorded in the affirmative.
21 Announce the results.
22 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
23 Calendar 1736, those Senators voting in the
24 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
25 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
6362
1 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
2 O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
3 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
4 Ayes, 41. Nays, 21.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The bill
6 is passed.
7 Senator Gianaris.
8 SENATOR GIANARIS: Madam President,
9 just to give my colleagues a sense of what
10 remains before us tonight, it is almost 10:15.
11 We have more four debates.
12 We are then going to break for party
13 conferences. We're then going to have a
14 Rules Committee meeting. We're going to take up
15 our Rules agenda on the floor. And then of
16 course any debates that our colleagues want to
17 have will be considered at that time.
18 So we can be here as long as we
19 choose to be. Everyone of course is entitled to
20 ask questions and take time within the rules.
21 But efficiency would be great.
22 So with that, let's move on to the
23 next bill, please.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
25 Secretary will read.
6363
1 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
2 1743, Senate Print 4561A, by Senator Gonzalez, an
3 act to amend the Social Services Law.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
5 Borrello, why do you rise?
6 SENATOR BORRELLO: Madam President,
7 will the sponsor yield for a question.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Senator
9 Gonzalez, do you yield?
10 SENATOR GONZALEZ: I do,
11 Madam President, thank you.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
13 Senator yields.
14 SENATOR BORRELLO: Through you,
15 Madam President. Senator Gonzalez, this would
16 require any temporary housing unit -- this would
17 be obviously for people that have recently been
18 released from prison or for a code blue or for
19 any kind of a shelter, that those temporary
20 housing units would have to provide high-speed
21 broadband. Is that correct?
22 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
23 Madam President. Yes, that's correct.
24 But I'd like to note that if the,
25 you know, temporary housing shelter or runaway,
6364
1 you know, program for youths, if they aren't able
2 to provide it, there aren't punitive measures,
3 because we do not want to discipline these
4 shelters.
5 And there is a two-year window where
6 they have a year to opt in, because it is a
7 opt-in program, and a year to actually provide
8 internet after that.
9 SENATOR BORRELLO: Madam President,
10 will the sponsor continue to yield.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
12 continue to yield?
13 SENATOR GONZALEZ: I do.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR BORRELLO: It's my
17 understanding that this -- that the ConnectALL
18 program for broadband would provide the funding
19 to do this in perpetuity. In other words, it
20 would pay for the connection and for the service,
21 is that correct?
22 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
23 Madam President, yes, that is correct.
24 SENATOR BORRELLO: Madam President,
25 will the sponsor continue to yield.
6365
1 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
2 continue to yield?
3 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Yes, I do.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
5 sponsor yields.
6 SENATOR BORRELLO: So obviously,
7 then, the taxpayers are going to pay for this.
8 But, you know, there are many hotels
9 that act as temporary housing units. In fact,
10 where I come from, that's most of the temporary
11 housing. It's you know, local motels, hotels,
12 even chain hotels, you know, branded hotels.
13 So that means, then, as long as they
14 are acting as a temporary housing unit, that they
15 would be able to apply for and get taxpayer
16 funding to pay in perpetuity for their broadband
17 service, is that correct.
18 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
19 Madam President, that is correct.
20 And I would like to note that the
21 ConnectALL program was allocated $1.2 billion.
22 And while this program, you know, again, is
23 opt-in, so we then are assuming every hotel is
24 going to apply for reimbursement for this
25 program, we know that the federal government has
6366
1 continued to provide subsidies for broadband
2 access, including recently another hundred
3 million dollars this year.
4 So not only do we already have a
5 rather large pot of money to pull from -- because
6 this has been a priority for our state
7 government -- but we are actively getting
8 continuation in funding from the federal
9 government to subsidize this.
10 SENATOR BORRELLO: Madam President,
11 will the sponsor continue to yield?
12 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
13 continue to yield, Senator Gonzalez?
14 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Yes, I do.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
16 sponsor yields.
17 SENATOR BORRELLO: Well, that's
18 great. But the bottom line is the ConnectALL
19 program is to provide -- is to expand broadband.
20 And in rural areas like mine, it's still a big
21 problem. We still have huge gaps in broadband.
22 It impacts the ability for businesses to operate,
23 for people to work from home, for students to be
24 able to learn.
25 But now we're saying we're going to
6367
1 divert that funding so that a Holiday Inn Express
2 that also acts as a temporary housing unit will
3 now be able to have their broadband covered
4 forever through the ConnectALL program. Is that
5 correct?
6 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
7 Madam President, I wouldn't say that's a
8 completely accurate depiction of the program.
9 So for example, if that Holiday Inn
10 provides free internet as it is, they would
11 simply be required to also provide it for the
12 temporarily housed residents.
13 I would also add that it is in our
14 economic interest as a state to provide broadband
15 access to all unhoused individuals because, as we
16 know, internet is how folks not only seek jobs
17 but seek access to opportunities, plan their way
18 out and into a more stable environment.
19 And so actually studies show that
20 when we allow the unhoused or anyone who is, for
21 example, without work to have access to the
22 internet, it actually supports their pathway out.
23 So that we would not, in perpetuity, be
24 supporting them.
25 I would also add that -- you know, I
6368
1 echo my colleague's sentiments that we don't have
2 broadband everywhere in New York State. And as
3 chair of Internet and Technology, that's
4 certainly a priority for our committee.
5 That said, if broadband is being
6 expanded into rural areas in your district -- or
7 my colleague's district and others, what this
8 simply does is not only allow ConnectALL funding
9 to subsidize internet for low-income residents in
10 those rural areas, but then expand it to those
11 who would have been left out who are in shelters
12 or temporary housing.
13 SENATOR BORRELLO: Madam President,
14 will the sponsor continue to yield.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: Do you
16 continue to yield? Senator Gonzalez.
17 SENATOR GONZALEZ: I yield for more
18 questions, yes.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: You
20 continue to yield?
21 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Yes.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT MAYER: The
23 Senator yields.
24 SENATOR BORRELLO: Through you,
25 Madam President, thank you very much.
6369
1 Now, you say, well, if they're
2 providing free internet to their customers, then
3 they can just have to provide it to the
4 temporary -- the people that are being housed in
5 temporary shelter. But the reality is it's not
6 free, it costs money.
7 And the system, the infrastructure
8 for commercial broadband is expensive. So
9 they're now going to be able to say -- let's just
10 say the Holiday Inn Express is paying $5,000 a
11 month for broadband, high-speed broadband
12 throughout their -- you know, throughout their
13 facility. They are now going to be eligible to
14 pull that $5,000 a month for their entire
15 facility, because there's no way to really
16 distinguish that, and have it paid for by the
17 ConnectALL program.
18 Wouldn't that be correct?
19 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
20 Mr. President. So just, again, a point of
21 clarification. As mentioned before, this is just
22 for temporarily housed residents. So it would
23 not pay the entire internet bill for the hotel.
24 In addition, part of the ConnectALL
25 $1.2 billion dollars allocated is digital equity.
6370
1 So this is actually part of this already existing
2 program.
3 So again, only the few temporarily
4 housed residents would be who would be
5 reimbursed.
6 Two, it's also part of an existing
7 executive program.
8 And then, finally, I would just like
9 to add that OTDA would, if the costs were, you
10 know, out of the scope of what they deemed
11 reasonable, have to approve these requests. So
12 it is not an automatic approval. There is still
13 a process to monitor how much this is costing.
14 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
15 would the sponsor continue to yield.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
17 sponsor yield?
18 SENATOR GONZALEZ: I do.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
20 sponsor yields.
21 SENATOR BORRELLO: Yes. So let's
22 be clear about temporary housing. There are
23 hotels, motels, there are privately owned
24 properties that consistently always have someone
25 in there. I guess it's somebody who was
6371
1 originally released from prison, people who
2 are -- need temporary shelter, you know, through
3 social services. There are hotels who make in
4 some cases the majority of their money by housing
5 temporary.
6 So it's not like you're saying,
7 well, you know what, it's cold tonight, bring
8 somebody in for a couple of nights and then
9 they're gone. We're talking about places that
10 continually always have temporary housing clients
11 in there.
12 Therefore, they will be able to
13 apply to have their broadband paid for entirely
14 through the ConnectALL program, wouldn't they?
15 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
16 Mr. President. Yes, I would say that is exactly
17 the point of this legislation. We know that we
18 have a housing crisis. We know that there are
19 hundreds of thousands unhoused.
20 And what I would also say is in
21 New York City there's already a mandate to do
22 this. And the reason there's a mandate to do
23 this is because there was recently a -- or a
24 couple of years back a case against Legal Aid,
25 against New York City, because students, the
6372
1 100,000 homeless students that exist in New York
2 City, were not getting access to the internet
3 during the pandemic and getting an equal access
4 in education.
5 And what I am saying in this piece
6 of legislation is that that same care that we're
7 giving students and families and those unhoused
8 in New York City already, should also be extended
9 to the rest of the state. Because any student or
10 child or family that is struggling should also
11 have the right to internet, because we know that
12 the internet is the key to lifting folks out of
13 poverty. It's essential to finding work,
14 essential to applying for jobs.
15 So yes, it is a hundred percent in
16 the spirit of this program and in the economic
17 long-term interest of this state.
18 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
19 will the sponsor continue to yield.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
21 sponsor yield?
22 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Yes.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
24 sponsor yields.
25 SENATOR BORRELLO: Okay, so we've
6373
1 established that yes, if a Comfort Inn or a motel
2 is continually housing some temporary assistance
3 folks, then they can have their entire broadband
4 bill paid for courtesy of the taxpayers and the
5 ConnectALL program. We've established that.
6 But there are many places where
7 getting broadband is just not -- it's not
8 available. And that -- let's just say you do own
9 a facility that's housing temporary assistance,
10 and currently there is no broadband access. You
11 are now requiring them to have broadband access.
12 If they can't get it, what happens?
13 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
14 Mr. President. I would like to make a couple of,
15 again, reiterations of previous points.
16 First, as many of us know from
17 simply staying in hotels here, if you stay in a
18 hotel or a motel and you are accessing their
19 internet and it's paid, right, you are getting
20 charged directly to your specific room. So there
21 is a way to track who is accessing the internet
22 and how much it costs on a daily basis.
23 In addition, there are oftentimes a
24 free option. So for those hotels and motels that
25 have the free option, there would be no cost to
6374
1 the government.
2 What we are saying is not that we
3 are going to cover the entire broadband bill for
4 an entire hotel. What we are saying is for the
5 specific rooms and specific unhoused individuals
6 who are accessing -- which we know we can
7 track -- that that hotel or motel will be able to
8 apply for a reimbursement through OTDA and
9 through the ConnectALL funding.
10 So again, it is not the overall
11 bill. Yes, so I wanted to -- I wanted to
12 establish that.
13 And to the second point, and I just
14 want to -- I guess through you, Mr. President --
15 clarify, you are speaking about whether or not
16 it's required for shelters in areas that
17 currently do not have any broadband access. Is
18 that correct?
19 SENATOR BORRELLO: Yes.
20 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Great. So for
21 those areas, again, this is a mandate. But it
22 does say that there are exceptions. And those
23 exceptions would apply to those areas.
24 We are simultaneously, through
25 ConnectALL, building out infrastructure to bring
6375
1 broadband to areas, the 2 percent of New York
2 State that is not yet covered -- well, honestly,
3 more, because I don't think the numbers are
4 representative of the reality that a lot of folks
5 are living in.
6 And I would say that this is in the
7 same spirit. Because as we apply the majority of
8 that funding to continue to do that, what we are
9 simply saying is we're not suddenly prioritizing
10 shelters, we're saying it's everyone. Right?
11 Once we bring internet there, then not only can
12 low-income families receive it, but also those
13 who are unhoused in those areas.
14 Again, there is no punitive measure
15 in here that says if there isn't broadband access
16 that suddenly the shelter would be fined or
17 charged or not in compliance, because there are
18 exceptions.
19 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
20 will the sponsor continue to yield.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
22 sponsor yield?
23 SENATOR GONZALEZ: I do,
24 Mr. President.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6376
1 sponsor yields.
2 SENATOR BORRELLO: So there's not
3 going to be any fines or any -- so if they don't
4 do it, then there's really no consequences, is
5 that what you're saying?
6 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
7 Mr. President, there aren't.
8 Because we don't want to -- while we
9 certainly want to make this opportunity available
10 to everyone, we don't want to harm shelters that
11 are already struggling.
12 And so no, we thought that it would
13 be inappropriate to have any such enforcement
14 measure.
15 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
16 will the sponsor continue to yield.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
18 sponsor yield?
19 SENATOR GONZALEZ: I do.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
21 sponsor yields.
22 SENATOR BORRELLO: Okay, so what
23 we're saying, then, is that there isn't really
24 any consequence. But there is opportunity for
25 them to get that broadband service provided,
6377
1 again, through the ConnectALL program.
2 So would the -- what I mentioned
3 before about broadband not being everywhere,
4 there are certain situations where it's just
5 cost-prohibitive. So let's say you own a
6 facility that doesn't have access to broadband,
7 high-speed internet broadband. But for a million
8 dollars, we can get that buildout done from the
9 closest access point to that shelter.
10 Would they then be eligible to apply
11 and receive a million dollars from the ConnectALL
12 program to ensure that that broadband can be
13 delivered so they can fulfill the mandate of this
14 program?
15 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
16 Mr. President. Well, certainly, as I mentioned
17 before, there is a review process to make sure
18 that it is within reason in terms of cost. I
19 certainly do not foresee a situation where it
20 would cost something close to a million dollars.
21 What we're talking about is, yes, it
22 will cost millions to bring broadband access to
23 areas that don't have that infrastructure at all.
24 But that's exactly what ConnectALL funding is for
25 and why it was funded through the Executive and
6378
1 why it's continuing to be funded by the federal
2 government.
3 And so yes, while in an entirely new
4 area you would have millions, it would not cost
5 millions to then, once established infrastructure
6 is there and internet is available, to then bring
7 that -- connect that internet to that specific
8 shelter.
9 Instead, what they would need is,
10 for example, a modem and a router. Right?
11 That -- those are specific things that do cost
12 money, as well as of course the monthly cost to
13 continue to access the internet for those
14 unhoused individuals.
15 That being said, you know, this bill
16 is really nowhere close to, you know, for -- per
17 shelter. And, based on what we saw in New York
18 City, it would not be anywhere close to simply --
19 to a million dollars to simply connect one
20 shelter to internet in that area.
21 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
22 will the sponsor continue to yield?
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
24 sponsor yield?
25 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Yes,
6379
1 Mr. President.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR BORRELLO: So I didn't say
5 10 million, but a million dollars is actually
6 quite realistic when you look at areas where
7 infrastructure has to be built out and you'd have
8 to, you know, run cable, access to poles.
9 I mean, some of the utility
10 companies are charging as much as $10,000 just to
11 connect, you know, fiber optic cable to their
12 existing utility poles. So it's not unreasonable
13 to think that it could cost you a million dollars
14 to have to run some fiber optic infrastructure a
15 couple of miles from the closest access point to
16 where this shelter is.
17 But again, I -- I'm -- if we're
18 going to mandate it, why wouldn't -- you know,
19 why would the program be denied if they -- if
20 they need to require -- if this is a basic right,
21 as you describe it, to complete that
22 infrastructure to ensure that that shelter can
23 get that broadband access? Why would they deny
24 it?
25 SENATOR GONZALEZ: Through you,
6380
1 Mr. President. I again would like to reiterate
2 that because we have a ConnectALL program, this
3 bill is not -- is separate from that already
4 allocated money to pay for the buildout.
5 So you're mentioning phone poles in
6 this case. In some cases it will be laying fiber
7 optic, right. In other cases it may be satellite
8 access. Right? That is already being subsidized
9 by our government. This bill is simply carving
10 out a bit of that funding so that the shelters in
11 the area can benefit from the buildouts that are
12 already happening.
13 There would not -- I think -- I just
14 want to make sure that we're not getting the two
15 necessarily conflated. But I do hear my
16 colleague in that, yes, it will cost thousands to
17 continue to provide internet. But again,
18 internet is a right. Internet is needed for the
19 most marginalized and unhoused folks in our
20 state -- in order to access telehealth, in order
21 to access job opportunities, education, and more.
22 So because we've made this
23 commitment in New York City, I would like to see
24 us do the same for every person in the state.
25 SENATOR BORRELLO: Mr. President,
6381
1 on the bill.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
3 Borrello on the bill.
4 SENATOR BORRELLO: Senator
5 Gonzalez, thank you very much. Appreciate it.
6 You know, broadband is a problem, it
7 truly is, in New York State. My colleague
8 mentioned the 98 percent number, which is just
9 false. It's false. It was something that our
10 previous governor parroted because they used
11 census tracts to determine whether or not people
12 have access. So if one house in a census tract
13 has internet access, the entire census tract
14 counted. That's how they got to 98 percent.
15 But if you actually talk to
16 broadband providers and companies like Microsoft,
17 the real number of New Yorkers that are actually
18 covered by high-speed internet is about
19 65 percent. So still about one in three
20 New Yorkers do not have access to high-speed
21 internet.
22 The ConnectALL program,
23 Broadband for All -- you name it, we have all
24 these great programs. The problem is that, you
25 know, they're just not -- the funds are difficult
6382
1 to access at times. It's slow. And we have
2 problems like all of these barriers that New York
3 State puts in place, like the Department of
4 Transportation's requirements to have to resurvey
5 poles. And all these other fees, taxes, and
6 requirements that have really made the rollout of
7 broadband throughout New York State slow and
8 painful and expensive.
9 So now we're saying we're going to
10 provide this program. You know what? It sounds
11 like a great idea. I agree, people should have
12 access to the internet. I don't believe it's a
13 right. I think we have a lot of things we
14 consider to be a right. I don't -- I wouldn't
15 say it's that, but it certainly should be an
16 opportunity to provide that.
17 But now we're saying that, you know,
18 a Clarion Inn, a Motel 6, Holiday Inn Express is
19 going to be able to access those funds, which are
20 supposed to go to roll out broadband to areas of
21 this state that don't get it -- they're now going
22 to be able to take that and subsidize the entire
23 cost of their broadband service because they
24 happen to take temporary housing folks in.
25 We're going to say that we're going
6383
1 to use some of that infrastructure money to maybe
2 make sure that somebody who owns the facility
3 that doesn't have broadband access can provide --
4 can get funding so they can get that access to
5 their facility. And again, taking money away
6 from the infrastructure buildout.
7 So I understand this is
8 well-meaning, but there's just not enough
9 guardrails here, in my opinion, to ensure that
10 we're only providing funding to ensure that those
11 folks that need that internet access are getting
12 it. And the reality is there's no way to
13 distinguish that. There's no way to distinguish
14 it.
15 And since most temporary housing in
16 my district is provided by hotels, motels,
17 et cetera, this is just going to be another
18 taxpayer subsidy and not really getting to the
19 heart of what we need to do, which is to provide
20 internal access to as many New Yorkers as
21 possible.
22 So I'll be voting no, and I'll
23 encourage my colleagues to do the same.
24 Thank you.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Are there
6384
1 any other Senators wishing to be heard?
2 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
3 closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
4 Read the last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
6 act shall take effect immediately.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
8 roll.
9 (The Secretary called the roll.)
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
11 Parker to explain his vote.
12 SENATOR PARKER: Thank you,
13 Mr. President. Just to explain my vote on this
14 bill.
15 First, let me thank Senator Gonzalez
16 for joining the fight for what everybody needs.
17 Right? I mean, like right now we're in a
18 place -- there used to be a time in this state
19 where we would never put anybody in any kind of
20 housing without electricity, right, without gas,
21 without water. Well, broadband has become as
22 essential as those other -- as those other
23 utilities.
24 And so this bill says, let's look at
25 the least of those in our communities and let's
6385
1 make sure that they have at least the essentials.
2 And this is not an either-or proposition,
3 Mr. President. That we in fact need to do more
4 for everyone. There's parts of this state that
5 have fought to get built out and still have not
6 gotten built out. We have done a lot more to
7 move into that direction since the
8 Democratic Party has taken over the Majority in
9 this house. We're not quite there yet, but we're
10 still working on it.
11 And I rise to vote aye on this bill
12 and to encourage all my colleagues to vote aye,
13 because this is the right thing to do at the
14 right time. And there's more to be done in
15 coming sessions.
16 So thank you very much.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
18 Parker to be recorded in the affirmative.
19 Senator Martins to explain his vote.
20 SENATOR MARTINS: The right thing
21 to do at the right time for the right reason.
22 It's a great sentiment.
23 Mr. President, we have tens of
24 thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, if not
25 millions of families in New York State who just
6386
1 don't have the means to pay to maintain
2 utilities, access to the internet. So if we're
3 going to, in the largesse that is the generous
4 State of New York, if we're going to provide
5 resources, let's provide it to everybody. Let's
6 make sure everyone has access -- every child,
7 every family. Let's accept policies that are
8 going to help everyone across the board.
9 You know, it was mentioned earlier
10 that we had the opportunity during this last
11 budget to make sure that every child in New York
12 State in school had access to lunch, to a meal.
13 And we got to 80 percent. I don't know whether
14 that's because of any partisan majorities. I
15 know we got to 80 percent and we could have
16 gotten to a hundred. But the choice was made to
17 stop at 80 and not to go to a hundred.
18 Mr. President, I think we can do
19 better. I'll be voting no.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
21 Martins to be recorded in the negative.
22 Announce the results.
23 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
24 Calendar Number 1743, those Senators voting in
25 the negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
6387
1 Gallivan, Griffo, Helming, Martins, Mattera,
2 Murray, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Rhoads, Rolison,
3 Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
4 Ayes, 44. Nays, 18.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 1754, Senate Print 6130A, by Senator Parker, an
9 act to amend the Election Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
11 Walczyk, why do you rise?
12 SENATOR WALCZYK: I rise in hopes
13 that the sponsor would be willing to yield for
14 some questions.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
16 Parker, do you yield?
17 SENATOR PARKER: I do yield.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
19 sponsor yields.
20 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
21 Mr. President. Who requested this legislation?
22 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
23 Mr. President, no one requested this legislation.
24 This legislation came out of my
25 office in an attempt to start addressing some of
6388
1 the issues that we have around securing our
2 elections and making sure that they are properly
3 staffed and operating effectively and
4 efficiently.
5 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
6 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
7 yield.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
9 sponsor yield?
10 SENATOR PARKER: I do.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 sponsor yields.
13 SENATOR WALCZYK: The individuals
14 that can currently serve as a poll watcher,
15 they're qualified voters in a city or a county,
16 is that correct?
17 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
18 Mr. President, yes.
19 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
20 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
21 yield.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
23 sponsor yield?
24 SENATOR PARKER: I do.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6389
1 sponsor yields.
2 SENATOR WALCZYK: And those are
3 qualified voters in the city or the county in
4 which the election is happening, is that correct?
5 SENATOR PARKER: Yes.
6 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
7 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
8 yield.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
10 sponsor yield?
11 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
12 yields.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
14 sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR WALCZYK: Why would we
16 expand to -- why would we expand to attorneys
17 statewide?
18 SENATOR PARKER: So we want to
19 protect the right of voters. And the law, the
20 election law is the same throughout the state.
21 And so having someone who can serve in one county
22 and knows what to do in one county actually
23 wouldn't be different than what happened in
24 another county.
25 And it's particular -- in the case
6390
1 of this particular bill, we're now talking about
2 specifically attorneys, right, and bringing their
3 legal expertise more online to help voters.
4 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
5 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
6 yield.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
8 sponsor yield?
9 SENATOR PARKER: Yes.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
11 sponsor yields.
12 SENATOR WALCZYK: Do the attorneys
13 that are allowed in this bill have to be from the
14 city or the county in which the election is
15 happening in order to watch the polls there?
16 SENATOR PARKER: In the bill, they
17 don't.
18 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
19 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
20 yield.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
22 sponsor yield?
23 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
24 yields.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6391
1 sponsor yields.
2 SENATOR WALCZYK: Does this bill
3 have anything to do with the hotly contested
4 congressional races on Long Island and in the
5 Hudson Valley in the last cycle?
6 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
7 Mr. President, no. This has nothing to do with
8 that. In fact, this legislation predates that
9 incident by years, by six or seven years.
10 SENATOR WALCZYK: I noticed that it
11 hadn't passed in either house and is now on the
12 calendar --
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
14 Walczyk, are you asking the sponsor to yield?
15 SENATOR WALCZYK: I am,
16 Mr. President.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Would the
18 sponsor yield?
19 SENATOR PARKER: Yes.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
21 sponsor yields.
22 SENATOR WALCZYK: Would an attorney
23 from New York City be able to go to a polling
24 place on, say, Long Island or in the
25 North Country if this bill that you're proposing
6392
1 today becomes law?
2 SENATOR PARKER: Yes, they could.
3 But also an attorney from upstate could come down
4 and serve as a poll watcher in the city as well.
5 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
6 Mr. President, will the sponsor continue to
7 yield.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
9 sponsor yield?
10 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
11 yields.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
13 sponsor yields.
14 SENATOR WALCZYK: I did note your
15 statement earlier saying that the State Election
16 Law is the same all the way across New York
17 State. Is that true even for New York City?
18 There's no special election laws for New York
19 City, any attorney in upstate New York would
20 automatically know how New York City elections
21 are run?
22 SENATOR PARKER: There are for some
23 New York City local elections, but not for state
24 elections.
25 SENATOR PARKER: And through you,
6393
1 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
2 yield.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
4 sponsor yield?
5 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
6 yields.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
8 sponsor yields.
9 SENATOR WALCZYK: If poll workers,
10 our local poll workers, believe that an attorney
11 is intimidating to voters, what would the process
12 be for the local poll workers to have that
13 attorney that's from somewhere else in New York
14 State and in their polling place, what would the
15 process be to have them removed from the polling
16 site?
17 SENATOR PARKER: The same process
18 as it would be for any other person who was
19 serving as a poll worker and was -- felt like --
20 if that person felt like they were being
21 intimidated, they could -- they could report the
22 person to the Board of Elections. They can find
23 a local law enforcement officer. There's several
24 different means that they could turn to.
25 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
6394
1 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
2 yield.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
4 sponsor yield?
5 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
6 yields.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
8 sponsor yields.
9 SENATOR WALCZYK: Is it the local
10 board of elections that would certify a poll
11 watcher, or is it a political committee that
12 would be certifying the poll watchers statewide
13 to be able to travel to any polling location in
14 the state?
15 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
16 Mr. President. It could be either a political
17 organization or it can be a nonpartisan
18 organization that sponsors a poll watcher.
19 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
20 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
21 yield.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
23 sponsor yield?
24 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
25 yields.
6395
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
2 sponsor yields.
3 SENATOR WALCZYK: What experience
4 in election law will the attorneys that are able
5 to go statewide and watch polls across the
6 state -- what special experience in election law
7 will they have to demonstrate under this law?
8 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
9 Mr. President, they wouldn't have to demonstrate
10 any special knowledge of election law.
11 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
12 Mr. President, will the sponsor continue to
13 yield.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
15 sponsor yield?
16 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor does
17 yield.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
19 sponsor yields.
20 SENATOR WALCZYK: So an attorney
21 that's done, for example, a career in real estate
22 or wills would have the same ability as a local
23 poll watcher, they would be able to go to any
24 polling site and look over the shoulder to make
25 sure that anything's kosher in any location in
6396
1 New York State?
2 SENATOR PARKER: So through you,
3 Mr. President, right now anybody who serves as a
4 poll watcher doesn't have to show any
5 demonstration of knowledge of election law.
6 And so it -- so it wouldn't be any
7 different than any other person who's serving as
8 a poll watcher.
9 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
10 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
11 yield.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
13 sponsor yield?
14 SENATOR PARKER: Yes, I do.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
16 sponsor yields.
17 SENATOR WALCZYK: How many poll
18 watchers are currently allowed in each polling
19 site?
20 SENATOR PARKER: Through you --
21 through you, Mr. President, it's either two or
22 three per party.
23 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
24 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
25 yield.
6397
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
2 sponsor yield?
3 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
4 yields.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6 sponsor yields.
7 SENATOR WALCZYK: Yeah, that's my
8 understanding, three per candidate and one
9 actually in -- in the polling site, what they
10 call within the guardrails of the polling site.
11 What is the role of a poll watcher?
12 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
13 Mr. President, the role of a poll watcher is to
14 observe what's happening at the poll sites to
15 ensure that nothing nefarious is going on, that
16 things are operating smoothly, that people are
17 getting access to the polls.
18 And that -- you know, oftentimes
19 they're there, especially at the end of the
20 night, just to collect the numbers and kind of
21 know what's happening with the candidates.
22 But by and large, it's just to kind
23 of make sure there's a fair operation of the
24 polls.
25 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
6398
1 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
2 yield.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
4 sponsor yield?
5 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
6 yields.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
8 sponsor yields.
9 SENATOR WALCZYK: Yeah, I
10 largely -- largely agree with that principle.
11 Would you agree that their job is also to report
12 on those observations that they make to
13 inspectors, to the police, and to the Board of
14 Elections?
15 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
16 Mr. President, I agree with that.
17 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
18 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
19 yield.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
21 sponsor yield?
22 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
23 yields.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
25 sponsor yields.
6399
1 SENATOR WALCZYK: So if this bill
2 is enacted and out-of-town lawyers are able to go
3 to any polling site in the State of New York
4 within the guardrails and look over the shoulders
5 of voters and elections workers, will they have
6 the right to look over the shoulder of a voter
7 who is actively signing their name?
8 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
9 Mr. President. Poll watchers are not allowed to
10 watch -- to stand over people as they are casting
11 their votes. Right? There's a privacy -- in
12 fact, in the places I've been around the state --
13 and I've worked in a lot of poll sites across the
14 state -- most places have privacy booths now,
15 particularly. And so no one is allowed to
16 physically look over the shoulder of someone as
17 they're in fact watching.
18 They're there -- poll watchers
19 generally watch the operation. They're looking
20 for irregularities, but they're not necessarily
21 micromanaging what individual voters are doing.
22 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
23 Mr. President, will the sponsor continue to
24 yield.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
6400
1 sponsor yield?
2 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
3 yields.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
5 sponsor yields.
6 SENATOR WALCZYK: One of the stated
7 tasks of a poll watcher is actually to challenge
8 signatures. Would the out-of-town attorneys that
9 would be enabled by this legislation be able to
10 watch a voter while they're performing their
11 signature, was my question.
12 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
13 Mr. President. Poll watching -- poll watchers
14 and their ability to challenge is typically not
15 an on-the-spot -- like it's not the job of a poll
16 watcher to be like, aha, that's not your
17 signature, or you're not the person who -- like
18 that's -- they oftentimes watch things and they
19 can be witnesses in maybe a court case later on.
20 But their movement is not there to like
21 micromanage and be involved in that. Right?
22 And so if you have -- if you have
23 people who are attorneys, right, who have a
24 certain level of training and a certain level of
25 understanding of the law -- but also more
6401
1 importantly, part of the reason why we're
2 designating attorneys is that attorneys are
3 officers of the court and have taken certain
4 oaths in this state, and are trusted to handle
5 money, information. Right? So on and so forth.
6 That we also believe that we can
7 trust them to go someplace and be honest about
8 what they're observing in the context of the
9 operation of a particular election. Right?
10 And so that's kind of the role that
11 we are envisioning in the context of this
12 legislation, not one in which attorneys are
13 looking over voters' shoulders to see whether
14 it's the right signature or it's the right
15 person, and engaged in that kind of work.
16 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
17 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
18 yield.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
20 sponsor yield?
21 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
22 yields.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
24 sponsor yields.
25 SENATOR WALCZYK: One of the stated
6402
1 tasks by Board of Elections of a poll watcher is
2 to challenge -- or to give the poll watcher the
3 ability to challenge a signature if it doesn't
4 match.
5 But I -- would they also be able to
6 challenge someone on their residency if they're
7 one of these out-of-town attorneys that shows up
8 to a polling place? Within the guardrails of the
9 State of New York, could they ask the poll
10 workers or the voter themselves about where they
11 live, what their residency is, and whether that
12 matches the information from the Board of
13 Elections?
14 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
15 Mr. President. The abilities of poll watchers,
16 whether they're in a county, whether they're in
17 the county that they reside in or are registered
18 in, or whether in a different county, doesn't
19 change. Whether they're an attorney or whether
20 they are a layperson as a poll watcher, their
21 roles and responsibilities don't change.
22 So even if we don't pass this bill,
23 the ability for a poll watcher to challenge the
24 signature or the residency of a voter -- again,
25 which does not happen on the site at the polls.
6403
1 That's like -- that's not a thing, right? That
2 ability doesn't change. Right? Like they can
3 still do that.
4 And whether we allow attorneys
5 through this legislation to have that ability
6 outside of the county in which they're
7 registered, that's not going to change within the
8 context of the responsibilities of a poll
9 watcher.
10 SENATOR WALCZYK: Appreciate the
11 clarification.
12 Would the sponsor continue to yield?
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
14 sponsor yield?
15 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
16 yields.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
18 sponsor yields.
19 SENATOR WALCZYK: Will attorneys
20 that are from any location in New York State and
21 showing up to any polling site in New York
22 State -- not necessarily one that they reside in
23 or vote in, or even within their county -- will
24 they wear anything to signify that they are a
25 poll watcher from out of town, out of a different
6404
1 area of the state, but they're an official poll
2 watcher? Will they be wearing suits like most
3 attorneys do?
4 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
5 Mr. President. If we had an attorney who
6 traveled from Watertown, New York, for instance
7 and traveled to Brooklyn to observe and be a poll
8 watcher at a Brooklyn site, they would be there
9 and have the same credentials that any other poll
10 watcher would have at that time. And there would
11 be no special markings or indication, no scarlet
12 letter. They would just be there in whatever
13 capacity they were brought on for, for a
14 candidate or for a nonpartisan organization that
15 might be monitoring polls.
16 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
17 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
18 yield.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
20 sponsor yield?
21 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor
22 yields.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
24 sponsor does yield.
25 SENATOR WALCZYK: So there is a
6405
1 significant change in the precedent, not just by,
2 you know, allowing attorneys to be poll
3 watchers -- who currently, if they reside in the
4 city or in the county where that site is, they
5 currently could be a poll watcher if they're so
6 designated and go through the process -- but
7 we're opening it up to attorneys that can travel
8 the state.
9 Do you -- what do you think the
10 impact of having someone who voters and poll
11 workers are unfamiliar with? Polling sites can
12 be a pretty familiar place, if you get -- I know
13 that I've gone to the same polling place. Year
14 after year I see the same poll workers at every
15 election. They get kind of used to the faces.
16 What impact do you think having a
17 lawyer looking over the shoulders of them from an
18 area different from -- a different area of the
19 state, what impact will have that have on how
20 voters feel in their polling site?
21 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
22 Mr. President. Having been involved in electoral
23 politics for about 30 years, I'm not clear that
24 voters generally know even what a poll watcher
25 is, let alone being able to identify one when
6406
1 they walk into the polls.
2 And that may in fact be the
3 experience in the North Country, and I understand
4 that these communities are more intimate.
5 In a place like Brooklyn, which is
6 the third-largest city in the country, even at
7 the polls that you go to -- outside of people
8 knowing me because they've cast a vote for me --
9 like they don't really know everybody in the poll
10 site. Right? And so somebody who shows up from
11 even across the county, they might not know.
12 Right?
13 And so what we expect with the
14 implementation of this legislation is that more
15 people's rights will be protected because we now
16 have people who are officers of the court, people
17 who have pledged themselves to do -- to do good
18 things in this state, now paying more attention
19 to what happens in poll sites across the state.
20 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
21 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
22 yield.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
24 sponsor yield?
25 SENATOR PARKER: The sponsor yields.
6407
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
2 sponsor yields.
3 SENATOR WALCZYK: I'm sure the
4 sponsor is aware that New York State has the
5 highest number of lawyers per capita,
6 185,000 lawyers in New York State. So I'm sure
7 there will be no shortage of attorneys to be able
8 to send out to poll sites all over New York
9 State.
10 Is there a cap on how much political
11 committees can pay them, or do they have to
12 volunteer their time to be a poll watcher under
13 this legislation?
14 SENATOR PARKER: Through you,
15 Mr. President. There is no cap. There is no
16 provision under this legislation for that.
17 SENATOR WALCZYK: Thank you,
18 Mr. President.
19 Thank you for answering my
20 questions.
21 SENATOR PARKER: Thank you.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Are there
23 any other Senators wishing to be heard?
24 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
25 closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
6408
1 Read the last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
3 act shall take effect immediately.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
5 roll.
6 (The Secretary called the roll.)
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
8 Walczyk to explain his vote.
9 SENATOR WALCZYK: Thank you,
10 Mr. President.
11 We hear often a lot of rhetoric in
12 this chamber -- and I think it's great
13 consideration when we think about things like
14 voter intimidation and voter suppression. I hear
15 a lot of rhetoric about it. This is the first
16 bill that I've actually seen that could actually
17 have the impact of intimidating voters and
18 disenfranchising voters.
19 The presence of three suits,
20 attorneys looking lawyerly and looking over every
21 -- oh, is that your signature? This is the first
22 bill that I've seen that could actually
23 intimidate a voter in a polling site.
24 I have great experiences at my poll
25 site. I know the men and women; I get to see
6409
1 them at each election at work. On both sides of
2 the aisle I've gotten to know the poll workers
3 because I see them at least a couple of times a
4 year. It's a nice experience.
5 I can imagine how intimidating it
6 may be for some voters to walk into that same
7 polling site, especially if they're not as
8 familiar, and have a lawyer looking over their
9 shoulder to look at their signature and say,
10 "Well, I'm not sure that this matches up, I'm
11 going to report this to the Board of Elections."
12 And "Where did you say that you live?" And
13 "Actually, you can't be wearing that shirt in
14 here, that's considered electioneering, don't you
15 know, young man."
16 This is the first time I've seen an
17 attempt to put lawyers from any area in the state
18 and stick them at any polling site in New York
19 State to look over the shoulders of our locals at
20 boards of elections, who do a great job at
21 securing our elections and making voters actually
22 feel welcome in the polling place.
23 So for those reasons, and for many
24 more, I'll be voting no. Thank you.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
6410
1 Walczyk to be recorded in the negative.
2 Senator Parker to explain his vote.
3 SENATOR PARKER: Thank you,
4 Mr. President.
5 I rise to vote aye and encourage my
6 colleagues to vote aye as well on this
7 commonsense legislation that in fact does a
8 better job at actually expanding the people who
9 can help us make sure that elections are free,
10 fair and secure.
11 They're called poll watchers, not
12 voter interrupters. Poll watchers are not
13 literally allowed to interact with voters. It's
14 literally not -- they're not allowed to do that.
15 So a poll watcher, all they're allowed to do is
16 watch. If they see something that's irregular,
17 it is their job to report it to somebody who
18 works at the polls or to the board of elections
19 or even maybe law enforcement. But they are not
20 allowed to confront voters.
21 So this notion that you have, you
22 know, people interrupting voters while they're in
23 the midst of signing their name, or challenging
24 their address, just, again, simply is not a
25 thing. It's just not what happens, it's not what
6411
1 would happen.
2 This simply allows us to get more
3 qualified people into our poll sites, examining
4 what's happening, making sure that they're fair,
5 free and secure.
6 And I want to thank my colleagues
7 for understanding this bill and not -- and not
8 just how it works, but understanding the spirit
9 of what we're trying to get done here.
10 Thank you.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
12 Parker to be recorded in the affirmative.
13 Senator Borrello to explain his
14 vote.
15 SENATOR BORRELLO: Thank you,
16 Mr. President.
17 You know, this debate kind of
18 reminds me of the Warren Zevon song, "Send
19 Lawyers, Guns and Money." Because, you know
20 what, poll watching is supposed to be a
21 grassroots effort of local people that are going
22 to the polls to ensure that they have confidence
23 that whatever they're there for is being done
24 properly.
25 Now we're talking about sending
6412
1 lawyers from other parts of the state to descend
2 upon polling places. They're not going to do
3 this for free, okay? Lawyers are for hire. So
4 that means somebody somewhere is going to pay an
5 attorney that doesn't live in the community, that
6 doesn't know the people there, to come in and
7 watch -- and poll watch.
8 That disturbs me a great deal. This
9 is not the idea of grassroots local election
10 campaign integrity. This is about paying lawyers
11 to come in because the you-know-what has hit the
12 fan.
13 So I'll be voting no. Thank you.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
15 Borrello to be recorded in the negative.
16 Announce the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
18 Calendar 1754, those Senators voting in the
19 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
20 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
21 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
22 O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
23 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
24 Ayes, 41. Nays, 21.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
6413
1 is passed.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Calendar
3 Number 1789, Senate Print 7539, by Senator Ramos,
4 an act to amend the Civil Practice Law and Rules.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
6 Palumbo, why do you rise?
7 SENATOR PALUMBO: Thank you,
8 Mr. President. Will the sponsor yield for a few
9 questions, please.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
11 sponsor yield?
12 SENATOR RAMOS: Good evening,
13 Mr. President. Absolutely.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 sponsor yields. Good evening.
16 SENATOR PALUMBO: Thank you,
17 Mr. President.
18 And through you, this particular
19 bill makes some amendments to the CPLR, the
20 Business Corporation Law, and the
21 Limited Liability Company Law. And really the
22 crux of the first part here is that it adds a new
23 subsection to Section 6201 of the Civil Practice
24 Law and Rules regarding attachments.
25 Can the sponsor tell us why this is
6414
1 necessary to include this new provision?
2 SENATOR RAMOS: Absolutely.
3 Through you, Mr. President. Wage theft is
4 actually one of the biggest crimes that we don't
5 talk about often enough. And it's quite rampant
6 here in New York State. In fact, in 2022 alone,
7 $25 million in stolen wages were recovered in the
8 State of New York for 18,000 workers.
9 And so what we're seeking to do here
10 with this bill is create a rightful course of
11 action for workers to be able to recover their
12 lost wages, especially when settlements aren't
13 paid.
14 SENATOR PALUMBO: Will the sponsor
15 continue to yield.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
17 sponsor yield?
18 SENATOR RAMOS: I do.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
20 sponsor yields.
21 SENATOR PALUMBO: Thank you. And
22 through you, Mr. President.
23 So -- and we all certainly agree,
24 wage theft is a terrible thing. It's a crime.
25 It's a larceny. I know we've done a lot in
6415
1 New York to address that.
2 But this 6201, in attachment -- and
3 just in the interests of brevity, I'll just kind
4 of summarize it, and please correct me if the
5 sponsor thinks differently. That it's
6 essentially seizing property with a lien, putting
7 a court order on someone's property before you
8 receive a judgment. It's in advance of actually
9 winning your case.
10 It places this attachment on
11 property because you have a likelihood of
12 succeeding. And upon ultimately executing a
13 judgment, if you win, then you can obviously
14 seize that property. For example, like a house.
15 You can put a lis pendens on it, an order of
16 attachment. The court holds that property in
17 abeyance prior to resolution.
18 However, there's something called an
19 undertaking as well in an attachment, where you
20 basically put up a bond to ensure that if you
21 lose, that person will be made whole.
22 So my question to the sponsor is,
23 under 6201, this is simply because you have pled
24 a claim. You have not had your day in court.
25 You have not been able to exercise your due
6416
1 process rights. That if a cause of action is
2 based on wage claims, then you can in fact attach
3 property. Is that accurate?
4 SENATOR RAMOS: Well, we are
5 amending 6201 and adding an additional reason for
6 grounds for attachment, indeed.
7 And the claimant would have to
8 actually file a civil complaint for wage theft,
9 and that must be served in order to have the
10 authority secure a potential judgment.
11 SENATOR PALUMBO: Will the sponsor
12 continue to yield.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
14 sponsor yield?
15 SENATOR RAMOS: I do.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
17 sponsor yields.
18 SENATOR PALUMBO: Thank you.
19 Through you, Mr. President.
20 So then the logic behind that,
21 though, is -- of course it's just an accusation.
22 But this undertaking is an assurance that you're
23 not filing a frivolous claim. And further down
24 in the bill now, in Section 2, it actually
25 strikes an attachment -- it creates an exception
6417
1 under this new subsection 6, that when you look
2 at -- it's actually page 2, line 46,
3 "Undertaking": "Except where an order of
4 attachment is sought on the grounds specified in
5 subdivision 6 of Section 6201."
6 You had to file an undertaking of at
7 least $500 through the court. And then it later
8 on changes it, it strikes that exception section
9 and says no more than $500 to the court.
10 So can you tell me why we are
11 actually making an exception for this new
12 subsection so that if, God forbid, this person is
13 filing a claim that is not successful -- or even
14 a frivolous claim -- there's no way for the
15 person who the attachment is being affixed
16 against to be made whole.
17 SENATOR RAMOS: Through you,
18 Mr. President. My understanding is this side of
19 the aisle likes judicial discretion.
20 And actually here the judge would be
21 able to determine whether the worker pays $500,
22 pays less, or a payment isn't necessary. But
23 it's up to the judge to decide, based on the
24 merits of the case.
25 SENATOR PALUMBO: Will the sponsor
6418
1 continue to yield.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
3 sponsor yield?
4 SENATOR RAMOS: I do.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6 sponsor yields.
7 SENATOR PALUMBO: Thank you.
8 Through you, Mr. President. They actually cannot
9 require any undertaking at all, isn't that
10 accurate, under this bill?
11 SENATOR RAMOS: Through you,
12 Mr. President, no, they cannot. They can waive
13 it.
14 SENATOR PALUMBO: Will the sponsor
15 continue to yield?
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
17 sponsor yield?
18 SENATOR RAMOS: I do.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
20 sponsor yields.
21 SENATOR PALUMBO: And it indicates
22 that this attachment order, in the event you have
23 a wage theft claim, can be against the top
24 10 owners in a company, if it's an S corp or so,
25 under the Business Corporation Law, if it's a
6419
1 limited liability company. So whether it's a
2 corporation, a company, those entities -- you
3 immediately pierce the corporate veil and you can
4 go after the top 10 owners' personal assets, is
5 that accurate as well?
6 SENATOR RAMOS: Through you,
7 Mr. President, that is actually the current law.
8 SENATOR PALUMBO: Will the sponsor
9 continue to yield.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
11 sponsor yield?
12 SENATOR RAMOS: I do.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
14 sponsor yields.
15 SENATOR PALUMBO: Thank you,
16 Senator Ramos.
17 So in that regard, then, are these
18 10 so-called targets that are now personally
19 liable, despite the fact that they did it under
20 the corporate shell, does it have anything to do
21 with whether or not they fit those veil-piercing
22 categories, like they're underfunded, they're
23 undercapitalized or it was an intentional act?
24 Or is it just the current -- under
25 the current law, this is just adding this new
6420
1 subsection where they can just go after them
2 regardless of whether or not that particular
3 partner or member of the LLC was engaged in the
4 wage theft themselves?
5 SENATOR RAMOS: No, it's -- through
6 you, Mr. President, it's current law. So they
7 can't avoid accountability. That's the point.
8 SENATOR PALUMBO: Through you,
9 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
10 yield.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
12 sponsor yield?
13 SENATOR RAMOS: Yes.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR PALUMBO: So just so I'm
17 clear, to rephrase that a little bit. So if
18 there are -- if one of the owners is taking, say,
19 medical payments that should have been made,
20 taking a portion of someone's paycheck, that's a
21 crime, and they're charged with a crime. But the
22 other nine know nothing about it, had nothing to
23 do with it.
24 Under this bill, isn't it true that
25 the potential plaintiff, instead of just suing
6421
1 the company and ultimately satisfying a judgment
2 that way, they could arbitrarily pick one of
3 those remaining nine and attach their home, their
4 car, their property, their bank account prior to
5 even having a judgment in their favor? Isn't
6 that accurate?
7 SENATOR RAMOS: Through you,
8 Mr. President, that is accurate under the current
9 law. I don't know if there will be a question
10 about the bill.
11 SENATOR PALUMBO: Will the sponsor
12 continue to yield.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
14 sponsor yield?
15 SENATOR RAMOS: I do.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
17 sponsor yields.
18 SENATOR PALUMBO: And although you
19 did make some amendments and make some exemptions
20 under this bill to current law, there are no
21 exceptions to that law that you just described
22 under this bill regarding this new subsection,
23 correct?
24 SENATOR RAMOS: That's correct.
25 SENATOR PALUMBO: Okay. Thank you.
6422
1 Mr. President, on the bill.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
3 Palumbo on the bill.
4 SENATOR PALUMBO: Thank you,
5 Mr. President.
6 Now, I -- as I indicated to some of
7 our colleagues earlier, I debated this bill for
8 years, the underlying law, because I think it's a
9 really terrible idea for businesses.
10 Where I understand if you'd wanted
11 to do something like this incrementally and say,
12 well, if you can't execute a judgment under --
13 against the company or the corporation in the
14 event you're successful, then there are issues
15 and there is a body of law -- that's why we have
16 companies -- with respect to fraud,
17 undercapitalization, and what's called piercing
18 the corporate veil.
19 What this does is completely
20 circumvents the law -- and look, we agree, wage
21 theft is a bad thing, but this is even prior to
22 entry of a judgment. In a nutshell, or in a
23 vacuum, if you were to take someone who already
24 has a judgment and allow them to do this, it
25 would make more sense. But this is merely an
6423
1 accusation, no undertaking.
2 You can sue all 10 of the company
3 owners even if you just -- you know, like I say,
4 you know, sometimes I used to play a lawyer on
5 TV, you know, have a law degree, as do you,
6 Mr. President. We could say, you know what, I
7 can't stand that employer, I'm going to sue them
8 all.
9 I'm not even sure -- I may not even
10 have a claim. You can file lis pendens, you can
11 jam up the title. It's a lien, is what the
12 attachment is, to their property, to their car,
13 to their bank account -- without any recourse --
14 for the years and years and years it may take to
15 litigate your claim.
16 And if you're successful, then shame
17 on them. You were right. But you're not even
18 forced to try and execute against the company.
19 Particularly if you have a company with 10 or
20 more members, it's probably got some assets. And
21 typically you would seek to satisfy a judgment
22 with the company and then, if that's not
23 successful, as I said earlier, then maybe you
24 could go after them for some personal liability.
25 Or if it's an intentional act, you'd be able to
6424
1 sue them personally anyway.
2 So it's a little bit nuanced, but
3 this is just -- it's creating -- it would -- it
4 will create such a chilling effect on businesses.
5 And it's just broadcasting to the world, sadly --
6 like unfortunately I believe this body has been
7 doing for many, many years -- that why bother
8 running a business or investing in New York. You
9 can't even have your day in court, and your
10 assets will be frozen, under this bill, by simply
11 stating the claim.
12 You swear it out in a complaint, you
13 add that as a cause of action, and you can then
14 start attaching individuals' personal property.
15 And you get to pick and choose the ones you don't
16 like; the ones that you're friendly with, you
17 don't have to. But we're really going to really
18 stick it to this person who's trying to refinance
19 their house and now can't because there's an
20 order of attachment on it.
21 So I understand, it's a laudable
22 goal. We certainly want victims of wage theft to
23 get their judgments, to get paid and to execute
24 those judgments. I think we're all in agreement,
25 because wage theft is wrong.
6425
1 However, this is not the way to do
2 it. So as such, Mr. President, I'll be voting in
3 the negative and I urge my colleagues to do the
4 same.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Are there
6 any other Senators wishing to be heard?
7 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
8 closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
9 Read the last section.
10 THE SECRETARY: Section 11. This
11 act shall take effect on the 30th day after it
12 shall have become a law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
14 roll.
15 (The Secretary called the roll.)
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
17 Ramos to explain her vote.
18 SENATOR RAMOS: Thank you,
19 Mr. President.
20 You know, the only businesses that
21 should feel a chilling effect with hopefully this
22 new law are those businesses who are bad actors.
23 What we're seeking to do is actually level the
24 playing field for honest businesses that are
25 actually right now subsidizing those bad
6426
1 businesses.
2 And by the way, taxpayers are also
3 subsidizing these bad businesses because these
4 workers who aren't able to recover their lost
5 wages end up needing to depend on many of the
6 programs and services that we discuss here in
7 this chamber.
8 So quite frankly I'm very proud that
9 today here in the Senate we are sending a very
10 clear message that no human being should work for
11 free. It's been a big theme today, tonight. And
12 I'm very proud that this chamber is actually
13 taking action today in order to protect workers
14 and give them a rightful course of action so that
15 they can get every single dime that they are owed
16 for the work that they have performed.
17 And I have to say, for those who may
18 be watching at home at this -- at this late hour,
19 wage theft is really rampant. Whether you have
20 unpaid hours, overtime that hasn't been paid,
21 you're being paid less than the minimum wage, you
22 are being asked to perform work off the clock,
23 whether your employer is taking your tips or your
24 employer is not allowing you to take a meal or a
25 rest break. All of these are different forms of
6427
1 wage theft. And any worker who is experiencing
2 any of this should file a wage-theft claim with
3 the Department of Labor and start their process
4 so they can get their money.
5 Thank you, Mr. President.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
7 Ramos to be recorded in the affirmative.
8 Senator Rhoads to explain his vote.
9 SENATOR RHOADS: Thank you,
10 Mr. President.
11 There's no question that -- and I
12 hate to disagree with my -- with my colleague.
13 And I know that the bill is well-intentioned.
14 Wage theft is a serious problem. But you're
15 creating an even worse problem by altering the
16 balance in litigation.
17 What you've essentially done -- and
18 look, you know, I'm a plaintiff's attorney. As a
19 plaintiff's attorney, we know sometimes it's
20 possible -- not as much as we would -- you know,
21 we hope not much. It's possible that you have
22 frivolous claims. It's possible that you can
23 bring an action simply out of revenge when
24 there's no legitimate cause of action that's
25 behind it.
6428
1 And the idea of litigation being one
2 of balance, where there's consequences on both
3 sides -- yes, you can have some bad actors on the
4 other side. You can also have some bad actors on
5 the plaintiff side.
6 And so if you have a dispute with
7 your employer and you decide that the way to get
8 back at them is to file a claim, a wage theft
9 claim, you now have the ability to do that with
10 no consequences to you. You not only have the
11 ability to do that, but you have the ability to
12 attach the assets before you've proven your case.
13 You have the ability to attach the assets of
14 10 partners, up to 10 partners in that firm with
15 no consequences. And you could tie it up for
16 years in litigation.
17 So to Senator Palumbo's point, you
18 could have a partner, a 1 percent partner who is
19 now jointly and severally liable for any judgment
20 that may occur. Or if no judgment occurs, their
21 assets have been tied up for years in litigation
22 for no reason, without any consequence to the
23 plaintiff.
24 So yes, it's an important problem,
25 but this solution unfortunately goes too far, and
6429
1 I have to vote no.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
3 Rhoads to be recorded in the negative.
4 Announce the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6 Calendar 1789, those Senators voting in the
7 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
8 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Fernandez, Gallivan,
9 Griffo, Helming, Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray,
10 Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads,
11 Rolison, Stec, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
12 Ayes, 40. Nays, 22.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 1791, Senate Print 7550, by
17 Senator Stewart-Cousins, an act to amend the
18 Election Law.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
20 Walczyk, why do you rise?
21 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
22 Mr. President, I'm wondering if someone will be
23 willing to answer some questions.
24 SENATOR GIANARIS: That's me,
25 Mr. President.
6430
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
2 Gianaris yields?
3 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
4 SENATOR WALCZYK: This bill moves
5 the presidential primary date from June 2024 to
6 April 2, 2024. Is that correct?
7 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
8 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
9 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
10 yield.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
12 Senator yield?
13 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 sponsor yields.
16 SENATOR WALCZYK: What will that do
17 to the New York State Assembly, Senate,
18 Congressional local elections that are happening
19 next year?
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: Nothing.
21 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
22 Mr. President, will the sponsor continue to
23 yield.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
25 sponsor yield?
6431
1 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR WALCZYK: What will that do
5 to the timeline for the petitioning process for
6 those local elections next year? Or state
7 elections next year.
8 SENATOR GIANARIS: Nothing.
9 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
10 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
11 yield.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
13 sponsor yield?
14 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
16 sponsor yields.
17 SENATOR WALCZYK: So next year
18 could we anticipate that the petitioning period
19 will be somewhere from the end of February to
20 somewhere to the end of March, beginning of
21 April, with turn-in for petitions being at the
22 end of March, beginning of April for those State
23 Assembly, Senate, Congressional races?
24 SENATOR GIANARIS: Roughly
25 speaking, correct.
6432
1 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
2 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
3 yield.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
5 sponsor yield?
6 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
8 sponsor yields.
9 SENATOR WALCZYK: How will that
10 impact local boards of elections? If the
11 presidential primary election is happening on
12 April 2nd, at the same time local boards of
13 elections will be certifying that presidential
14 election, how will they be able to manage the
15 workload of also being able to qualify all of
16 those candidates for the ballots while petitions
17 are coming in?
18 SENATOR GIANARIS: Hopefully very
19 effectively.
20 SENATOR WALCZYK: I would agree.
21 Through you, Mr. President, would
22 the sponsor continue to yield.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
24 sponsor yield?
25 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
6433
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
2 sponsor yields.
3 SENATOR WALCZYK: Now, on this --
4 on this bill that is largely comprised of a deal
5 to move the presidential primary and how that
6 primary process is going to be going next year,
7 why is there included a piece about curing
8 absentee ballots?
9 Why is that appropriate in next
10 year's presidential primary conversation?
11 SENATOR GIANARIS: Because this is
12 a bill that relates to election laws. And so
13 long as we were amending our election laws, we
14 included additional provisions that were --
15 seemed like good ideas to fix some aspects of our
16 laws that needed improvement. That we have made
17 a lot of changes in the last four-plus years to
18 our election laws, and we always try and learn
19 from the experiences that we see and make things
20 better. And those provisions came from those
21 experiences.
22 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
23 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
24 yield.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
6434
1 sponsor yield?
2 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
4 sponsor yields.
5 SENATOR WALCZYK: One thing that
6 I've enjoyed about the Senate's process here is
7 that we have committees -- I happen to be the
8 ranker on the Elections Committee. There's a
9 committee process. And I would have expected to
10 see something about curing absentee ballots come
11 through as a stand-alone bill in the Elections
12 Committee so that we could discuss it in a
13 bipartisan way and decide how to move forward and
14 possibly even put a bill onto this floor.
15 Current law does not allow the board
16 of elections to accept a ballot that comes in a
17 week after the election, is that right?
18 SENATOR GIANARIS: I believe that's
19 not right. I think absentee ballots can be
20 received up to seven days after the election.
21 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
22 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
23 yield.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
25 sponsor yield?
6435
1 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
3 sponsor yields.
4 SENATOR WALCZYK: This bill will
5 allow that seven days after the election, if the
6 board of elections receives an absentee ballot
7 with no postmark, they'll still be able to accept
8 that. Is that correct?
9 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes. Because
10 oftentimes what we have learned is that the
11 postal service neglects to postmark an envelope
12 and just delivers it. And we certainly don't
13 want someone's vote not to be counted because of
14 an error from the U.S. Postal Service.
15 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
16 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
17 yield.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
19 sponsor yield?
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
22 sponsor yields.
23 SENATOR WALCZYK: The United States
24 Postal Service, as I understand your answer, is
25 failing to postmark absentee ballots that are
6436
1 mailed on or before Election Day, and those are
2 delivered sometimes a week after the election?
3 Am I understanding that right?
4 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes, you are.
5 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
6 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
7 yield.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
9 sponsor yield?
10 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 sponsor yields.
13 SENATOR WALCZYK: Do the
14 unpostmarked absentee ballots that are coming
15 into boards of elections sometimes a week after
16 the election, does that happen in great
17 frequency? How many absentee ballots are we
18 receiving in the State of New York that are not
19 postmarked?
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: No, I don't
21 believe it happens with great frequency. In
22 fact, since we changed the law, most absentee
23 ballots are counted on Election Night. There's
24 very few that come in in that seven-day period in
25 general.
6437
1 But I think, you know, if you're the
2 voter whose vote gets thrown in the trash because
3 somebody forgot to put a stamp on it at the
4 postal service, you'd still want your vote to be
5 counted.
6 SENATOR WALCZYK: And through you,
7 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
8 yield.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Does the
10 sponsor yield?
11 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
13 sponsor yields.
14 SENATOR WALCZYK: So the -- in
15 curing, the board of elections would have to mail
16 that absentee ballot that is not postmarked back
17 to the voter, call them three times, then mail
18 them an attestation. Is that correct?
19 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes. Although
20 the three times aspect of that is only if they
21 don't respond initially, of course.
22 SENATOR WALCZYK: Thank you. And
23 through you, Mr. President, would the sponsor
24 continue to yield.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
6438
1 sponsor yield?
2 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
4 sponsor yields.
5 SENATOR WALCZYK: And with that
6 attestation, the person receiving that would
7 swear that they sent the absentee ballot on or
8 before Election Day, is that correct?
9 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: And
11 through you, Mr. President, would the sponsor
12 continue to yield.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
14 sponsor yield?
15 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
17 sponsor yields.
18 SENATOR WALCZYK: Would that be
19 true even if the voter had mailed in or stuck in
20 the mailbox that absentee ballot that did not
21 receive a postmark after the polls had closed?
22 SENATOR GIANARIS: I'm trying to
23 understand the question. You mean they mailed
24 the ballot after the polls closed? Or it didn't
25 receive the postmark after the polls closed?
6439
1 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
2 Mr. President, I'll clarify the question if he'd
3 continue to yield.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: You may
5 clarify, Senator Walczyk.
6 SENATOR WALCZYK: Yeah, what I'm
7 asking is the attestation, will that require the
8 voter to swear that they mailed it on
9 Election Day or mailed it on Election Day before
10 the polls were closed?
11 SENATOR GIANARIS: Before the polls
12 closed.
13 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
14 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
15 yield.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
17 sponsor yield?
18 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
20 sponsor yields.
21 SENATOR WALCZYK: I would reference
22 page 11, lines 16 through 20. Provided,
23 however -- and this is the change in statute.
24 Provided however that further defect described in
25 paragraph that would be 7 of paragraph B of this
6440
1 subdivision, such affirmation shall also include
2 an attestation that the voter mailed the ballot
3 envelope on or before the day of the election.
4 This doesn't seem -- maybe I'm
5 missing it somewhere else in the bill. This
6 doesn't seem to include a time when the polls are
7 open at all. Is there one that I'm missing?
8 SENATOR GIANARIS: If I could ask
9 Senator Walczyk to repeat the question, please.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
11 Walczyk, could you clarify the question? Repeat
12 the question, please.
13 SENATOR WALCZYK: Yeah, the
14 question is basically this. Should boards of
15 elections be accepting mail-in absentee ballots
16 that are not postmarked and even the voter
17 themselves says, Yes, I mailed it on
18 Election Day, but it may have been after the
19 polls were closed, it may not have been, it's
20 irrelevant based on the new law that is proposed
21 this evening.
22 SENATOR GIANARIS: If I'm not
23 mistaken, this is within the cure process we're
24 talking about. So the board of elections has
25 already received the application -- or received
6441
1 the ballot, and there was something defective
2 ministerially in that process. So the board has
3 already received this ballot in a timely manner
4 and is now asking the voter to correct that.
5 SENATOR WALCZYK: Through you,
6 Mr. President, would the sponsor continue to
7 yield.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Will the
9 sponsor yield?
10 SENATOR GIANARIS: Yes.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 sponsor yields.
13 SENATOR WALCZYK: Yeah, by current
14 law and this bill, boards of elections would
15 receive that absentee ballot at some point after
16 Election Day, up to seven days after
17 Election Day. It doesn't have a postmark on it,
18 so they can't tell when it was mailed. They have
19 to mail that back to the voter, and then the
20 voter has to swear by an attestation back to the
21 board of elections that they mailed it on
22 Election Day.
23 What I'm asking is that -- am I
24 missing something in this law? Or when they
25 swear that do they have to also swear that they
6442
1 mailed it while the polls were actually open? Or
2 could they have mailed after the polls were
3 closed on Election Day?
4 SENATOR GIANARIS: The answer is
5 no, it doesn't require that. But I suppose you
6 are asking about a voter who somehow gets a
7 ballot not postmarked that he sent between 9 p.m.
8 and midnight on an Election Day, sent to the
9 board of election. That's some pretty wacky
10 election conspiracy theory you're spinning,
11 Senator Walczyk.
12 SENATOR WALCZYK: On the bill.
13 SENATOR GIANARIS: If somebody --
14 if somebody had wanted to cheat in an election,
15 there's easier ways to do it than hoard your
16 ballots between 9 p.m. and midnight and try and
17 send it without a postmark, hope the postal
18 service doesn't stamp it, so then when it has to
19 be cured you can sneak in the attestation that
20 doesn't mention the hours to get an extra vote
21 in. My opinion.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
23 Walczyk on the bill.
24 SENATOR WALCZYK: Thank you,
25 Mr. President.
6443
1 Yeah, I mean you could call it a
2 wacky conspiracy theory, but it's our job to
3 ensure that there's trust in our elections, and
4 I've even heard some rhetoric this evening
5 talking about securing election sites and making
6 sure that people have the full faith in the
7 process.
8 So when a bill that's about moving
9 presidential primary dates includes a piece about
10 curing errors in absentee ballots that were
11 mailed with no postmark up to midnight of
12 Election Day, by swearing of one voter, I get a
13 little curious. You could call it a conspiracy
14 theory, but what we should do -- if you wanted to
15 do this properly, if you wanted to say, okay,
16 well, we don't want to disenfranchise voters; the
17 United States Postal Service sometimes makes the
18 mistake and doesn't postmark a ballot and the
19 board of elections receives it sometimes a week
20 after Election Day. And if they do, then they're
21 going to send that ballot back to the voter and
22 that voter is going to swear to the board of
23 elections that they did indeed vote on Election
24 Day -- that should also include them swearing
25 that they voted while the polls were open. It's
6444
1 that simple.
2 This isn't just an error. I mean,
3 it's one of the reasons that I'm going to be
4 voting against this bill, but it's not just an
5 error that is a little clerical. It's an error
6 that tells people if you stick a ballot into a
7 mailbox, it doesn't matter whether it gets
8 postmarked and it doesn't matter whether you did
9 it after the polls were closed, we're going to
10 make sure that that vote counts.
11 It shouldn't count. When the polls
12 are closed, the polls are closed. And we
13 shouldn't allow somebody to swear that they sent
14 it in at 11:59, after the polls were closed, and
15 the results were already reported on the local
16 news, but their ballot still counts. That
17 doesn't make sense.
18 And it's not a conspiracy theory.
19 That's the law that we're voting on tonight.
20 So I'd urge my colleagues to vote
21 no. Thank you, Mr. President.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Are there
23 any other Senators wishing to be heard?
24 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
25 closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
6445
1 There is a substitution at the desk.
2 The Secretary will read.
3 THE SECRETARY: Senator
4 Stewart-Cousins moves to discharge, from the
5 Committee on Rules, Assembly Bill Number 7690 and
6 substitute it for the identical Senate Bill 7550,
7 Third Reading Calendar 1791.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
9 Secretary will read.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 1791, Assembly Bill Number 7690, by
12 Assemblymember Heastie, an act to amend the
13 Election Law.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
15 last section.
16 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
17 act shall take effect immediately.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
22 Gianaris to explain his vote.
23 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
24 Mr. President.
25 I appreciate the questions. Senator
6446
1 Walczyk, as usual, is very thorough in his
2 questioning.
3 But I do want to say another word
4 about his last round of questioning, because the
5 notion that somebody -- I'm not even sure what
6 advantage -- a potential voter in that scenario
7 would have to wait to see the results and run out
8 of their house at 10 o'clock at night to throw a
9 ballot in the mailbox and hope the postal service
10 doesn't stamp it so that they can then later
11 defraud the board of elections by attesting to
12 something they didn't do.
13 Like why wouldn't that person just
14 vote during Election Day? What would be the
15 value of waiting to that last two-or-three-hour
16 window just to cheat the law?
17 But, you know, like I said, it's
18 great -- their job is to try and poke holes in
19 our proposals. This proposal has no holes. And
20 so I encourage all my colleagues to vote for this
21 bill. Which, by the way, half of it was
22 sanctioned by the RNC as well as the DNC.
23 And so I encourage everyone to vote
24 yes so we can have our presidential primary at a
25 time where we can maximize our delegate influence
6447
1 in the process next year.
2 Thank you, Mr. President.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
4 Gianaris to be recorded in the affirmative.
5 Announce the results.
6 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
7 Calendar 1791, those Senators voting in the
8 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello,
9 Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming,
10 Lanza, Martins, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker,
11 O'Mara, Ortt, Palumbo, Rhoads, Rolison, Stec,
12 Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber and Weik.
13 Ayes, 41. Nays, 21.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
15 is passed.
16 Senator Gianaris, that completes the
17 reading of the controversial calendar.
18 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
19 if we could return to Calendar 1780, which was
20 laid aside temporarily several hours ago. I
21 believe we have received the home rule we were
22 waiting for. And can we take that up, please.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
24 a home-rule message at the desk.
25 The Secretary will read.
6448
1 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
2 1780, Senate Print 7289A, by Senator Gounardes,
3 an act to amend the General Municipal Law.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
5 last section.
6 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
7 act shall take effect immediately.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
9 roll.
10 (The Secretary called the roll.)
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
12 the results.
13 (Pause; discussion off the record.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
15 is on the supplemental calendar, Calendar Number
16 1780.
17 Announce the results.
18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 62.
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
20 is passed.
21 SENATOR GIANARIS: At this time,
22 Mr. President, we're going to break for brief
23 party conferences to conference the upcoming
24 Rules agenda. It is just before 11:30. We will
25 call a meeting of the Rules Committee for 11:59.
6449
1 (Laughter.)
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
3 respective party conferences will break for a
4 conference, and a Rules Committee meeting will be
5 called at 11:59 p.m.
6 SENATOR GIANARIS: The Senate
7 stands at ease.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
9 Senate will stand at ease.
10 (Whereupon, the Senate stood at ease
11 at 11:30 p.m.)
12 (Whereupon, the Senate reconvened at
13 11:57 p.m.)
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 Senate will come to order.
16 Senator Gianaris.
17 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
18 pursuant to Senate Rules, I move that we stay in
19 session past the hour of midnight.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: So
21 ordered.
22 SENATOR GIANARIS: The Senate will
23 stand back at ease.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
25 Senate will stand back at ease.
6450
1 (Whereupon, the Senate stood at ease
2 at 11:58 p.m.)
3 (Whereupon, the Senate reconvened at
4 2:15 a.m.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6 Senate will return to order.
7 Senator Gianaris.
8 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President, I
9 believe there's a report of the Rules Committee
10 at the desk. Can we take that up, please.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 Secretary will read.
13 THE SECRETARY: Senator
14 Stewart-Cousins, from the Committee on Rules,
15 reports the following bills:
16 Senate Print 266A, by
17 Senator Rivera, an act to amend the
18 Public Health Law;
19 Senate Print 288C, by Senator May,
20 an act to amend the Environmental Conservation
21 Law;
22 Senate Print 513B, by
23 Senator Thomas, an act to amend the
24 Education Law;
25 Senate Print 961, by Senator Bailey,
6451
1 an act to amend the Criminal Procedure Law;
2 Senate Print 1039A, by
3 Senator Jackson, an act to amend the
4 Civil Service Law;
5 Senate Print 1045, by
6 Senator Cooney, an act to amend the
7 General Municipal Law;
8 Senate Print 1082, by
9 Senator Comrie, an act to amend Chapter 696 of
10 the Laws of 1887;
11 Senate Print 1139, by Senator Ortt,
12 an act to amend Chapter 20 of the Laws of 1985;
13 Senate Print 1580, by Senator Ortt,
14 an act to amend Chapter 363 of the Laws of 1982;
15 Senate Print 1581, by Senator Ortt,
16 an act to amend Chapter 19 of the Laws of 1985;
17 Senate Print 2985C, by
18 Senator Kavanagh, an act to amend the
19 General Municipal Law and the Local Finance Law;
20 Senate Print 3505B, by
21 Senator Skoufis, an act to amend the Town Law;
22 Senate Print 5372A, by
23 Senator Harckham, an act to amend the
24 Military Law;
25 Senate Print 5394A, by
6452
1 Senator Harckham, an act to amend the
2 Military Law;
3 Senate Print 5400, by
4 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
5 Real Property Law;
6 Senate Print 5653, by
7 Senator Jackson, an act to amend the
8 Retirement and Social Security Law;
9 Senate Print 5678, by
10 Senator Gounardes, an act to amend the
11 Administrative Code of the City of New York;
12 Senate Print 5814A, by Senator Weik,
13 an act to authorize the Town of Islip, County of
14 Suffolk, to discontinue as parklands and lease
15 certain lands;
16 Senate Print 5849, by
17 Senator Jackson, an act to amend the Retirement
18 and Social Security Law;
19 Senate Print 6027, by Senator Weber,
20 an act to amend the Highway Law;
21 Senate Print 6169A, by
22 Senator Cleare, an act to amend the Election Law;
23 Senate Print 6309A, by
24 Senator Martins, an act in relation to
25 authorizing the County of Nassau assessor to
6453
1 accept an application for real property tax
2 exemption;
3 Senate Print 6500, by
4 Senator Kennedy, an act to amend the
5 Criminal Procedure Law;
6 Senate Print 6598, by
7 Senator Jackson, an act to amend the
8 Retirement and Social Security Law;
9 Senate Print 6681, by
10 Senator Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, an act to amend
11 the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law;
12 Senate Print 6706, by
13 Senator Rhoads, an act to amend the Highway Law;
14 Senate Print 6714B, by
15 Senator Thomas, an act in relation to
16 establishing the New York State Organized Retail
17 Crime Task Force;
18 Senate Print 6877, by
19 Senator Gounardes, an act to amend the
20 Administrative Code of the City of New York;
21 Senate Print 6993A, by Senator Ryan,
22 an act to amend the Alcoholic Beverage Control
23 Law;
24 Senate Print 7356, by
25 Senator Stavisky, an act to amend the
6454
1 Education Law;
2 Senate Print 7362A, by
3 Senator Cooney, an act to amend the
4 General Municipal Law;
5 Senate Print 7395C, by
6 Senator Weber, an act in relation to authorizing
7 the assessor of the Town of Ramapo, County of
8 Rockland, to accept an application for a real
9 property tax exemption;
10 Senate Print 7493, by Senator May,
11 an act to amend the Tax Law;
12 Senate Print 7533A, by
13 Senator Hinchey, an act to amend the
14 Agriculture and Markets Law;
15 Senate Print 7549A, by
16 Senator Thomas, an act relating to a temporary
17 in rem foreclosure moratorium;
18 Senate Print 7551A, by
19 Senator Myrie, an act to amend the
20 Criminal Procedure Law;
21 Senate Print 7552, by
22 Senator Addabbo, an act to amend the
23 Education Law;
24 Senate Print 7553, by
25 Senator Thomas, an act to amend the
6455
1 General Business Law;
2 Senate Print 7559, by
3 Senator Scarcella-Spanton, an act to amend the
4 Retirement and Social Security Law;
5 Senate Print 7561, by
6 Senator Hoylman-Sigal, an act to amend the
7 Executive Law;
8 Senate Print 7562, by
9 Senator Gianaris, an act to amend Part D of
10 Chapter 59 of the Laws of 2023;
11 Senate Print 7563, by
12 Senator Sanders, an act to amend the New York
13 State Charter;
14 Senate Print 7564, by Senator Myrie,
15 an act to amend the Election Law;
16 Senate Print 7575, by
17 Senator Jackson, an act implementing an agreement
18 between the state and an employee organization;
19 Senate Print 7576, by
20 Senator Jackson, an act to amend the
21 Civil Service Law;
22 Senate Print 7579, by
23 Senator Kennedy, an act to amend the
24 Executive Law;
25 Senate Print 1991, by
6456
1 Senator Jackson, an act to amend the
2 Retirement and Social Security Law;
3 Senate Print 6361, by Senator Brouk,
4 an act to amend the Education Law and the
5 Retirement and Social Security Law.
6 All bills reported direct to third
7 reading.
8 SENATOR GIANARIS: Move to accept
9 the report of the Rules Committee.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: All those
11 in favor of accepting the report of the
12 Rules Committee signify by saying aye.
13 (Response of "Aye.")
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Opposed,
15 nay.
16 (No response.)
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The Rules
18 Committee report is accepted.
19 Senator Gianaris.
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
21 at this time we're going to take up a Concurrent
22 Resolution that was on one of the earlier
23 calendars. I believe it's at the desk.
24 Please take that up.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6457
1 Secretary will read.
2 THE SECRETARY: Resolution 477, by
3 Senator Krueger, Concurrent Resolution of the
4 Senate and Assembly concerning the rescission of
5 all previous requests by the New York State
6 Legislature or either house thereof for a
7 convention under Article V of the United States
8 Constitution.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
10 question is on the resolution.
11 The Secretary will call the roll.
12 (The Secretary called the roll.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
14 the results.
15 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 41. Nays,
16 21.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
18 resolution is adopted.
19 Senator Gianaris.
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
21 is there any further business at the desk?
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
23 no further business at the desk.
24 SENATOR GIANARIS: I move to
25 adjourn until Friday, June 9th, at 11:00 a.m.
6458
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: On
2 motion, the Senate stands adjourned until Friday,
3 June 9th, at 11:00 a.m.
4 (Whereupon, at 2:20 a.m., the Senate
5 adjourned.)
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