July 2008 Column - Much Accomplished In Legislative Session But More To Do

News from

Senator Stachowski

July 2008

Much Accomplished In Legislative Session But More To Do

The 2008 legislative session was one that endured both a change in the Governor’s office and the majority leader position in the Senate, but there were some very noteworthy achievements. In fact, Governor Paterson has called the 2008 session “one of the most productive legislative sessions in a generation.” There is still work ahead for us, but let’s look at some of the achievements of 2008.

The brownfields clean-up legislation, which Senate Democrats pushed all session, will be a big boost to the environment in many communities across the state as well as a catalyst to attract new jobs to areas in my 58^th District. These sites once housed factories or gas stations that are now contaminated, vacant, off the tax rolls and without the facilities for new jobs or affordable housing.

This legislation is the first step to getting blighted properties back online. It will put people back to work and generate money for the state and local community to fund important public services.

Similarly, more needs to be done to protect our communities from the mortgage foreclosure crisis gripping our economy, but we did pass the foreclosure protection bill that moves us toward the goal of keeping families in their homes.

The foreclosure protection bill will address the subprime mortgage foreclosure crisis that prompted 50,000 foreclosures in New York State last year. Homeowners facing foreclosure will now get notices explaining their situation and be provided a list of counselors who can help them try and keep their homes.

The legislation will also strengthen and expand laws to crack down on predatory lenders and establish standards for lenders and brokers to prevent borrowers from being placed in unaffordable loans.

Another bill passed includes legislation to protect children from dangerous toys. This legislation will make it easier for consumer groups to have federally recalled toys to be taken off the shelves and prevent serious injuries to our children.

Other bills include protecting nurses from crippling mandatory overtime. This practice can lead to exhausted nurses who are unable to perform at the high standards required for such a critically important profession.

These are some of the notable bills that were passed, but issues such as skyrocketing property taxes were ignored by Senate Republicans. In fact, Senate Republicans choose to leave town instead of working with our Democratic Conference to create legislation that would help combat global warming and protect New Yorkers from Tier 4 drug prices. These are some of the issues that I look forward to working on with Governor Paterson that affect the 58th District.

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For Information:

Bob Koshinski or Dennis Kozuch
716.826.3344.