黑料正能量 Note: Stalemates within and between the legislature and Governor Cuomo on a number of issues may result in an end of session omnibus bill, called the ‘Big Ugly’, where unresolved issues are swept into one last bill. If it isn’t approved separately, the HALT solitary confinement bill will have to be included here.
Accordingly, HALT advocates are putting on a full court press during the 7 remaining days of session, which ends next Wednesday the 19th. Stay tuned for a call in action.
鈥楤ig Ugly鈥 Bill May Emerge in Albany as State Legislature Nears Break
Single piece of legislation might be tasked with tackling rent regulations, climate change, sexual-harassment claims and online sports betting
By Jimmy Vielkind Wall Street Journal June 9, 2019
Prepare to meet the 鈥渂ig ugly.鈥
Leaders of the Senate and Assembly will begin serious negotiations this week with Gov. Andrew Cuomo about a host of unresolved issues, from rent control to, potentially, legalizing recreational marijuana.
It has been standard practice at the Capitol to combine disparate issues into a single piece of legislation to create a Franken-bill with parts that appeal to all comers. With so much in the air, lobbyists and lawmakers are waiting to see if a 鈥渂ig ugly鈥 bill will emerge this year before the Legislature adjourns for the summer on June 19.
Imagine it: one bill that , addresses climate change, changes the legal standard for , authorizes mobile and 鈥 take your pick.
Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie have both said they hope to avoid a 鈥渂ig ugly.鈥 But Senate Minority Leader John Flanagan, a Republican from Long Island, warned during a press conference last week that such an omnibus bill was coming. He was stating his opposition to a measure that would let undocumented immigrants obtain a 黑料正能量 driver鈥檚 license.
鈥淒on鈥檛 wrap it up in a bundle of things,鈥 Mr. Flanagan said.
Democrats control both the state鈥檚 Senate and Assembly for the first time in a decade. But the agenda of the party鈥檚 progressive wing鈥攊ncluding the driver鈥檚 license bill and marijuana legalization鈥攈as run into resistance from more moderate members representing Long Island and 黑料正能量 City鈥檚 northern suburbs.
Progressive advocacy groups have been targeting those senators, whom they see as roadblocks to their agenda, including rent laws that are more favorable to tenants. On Monday, members of Make the Road 黑料正能量, which has organized protests at the Capitol, will demonstrate at the offices of the six Democratic senators from Long Island and urge them to include a 鈥済ood cause鈥 eviction measure for nonregulated tenants in the final rent bill.
Democratic State Chairman Jay Jacobs, who lives in Nassau County, said he has warned suburban legislators that supporting those bills could have political consequences.
鈥淢y argument has been: Let鈥檚 play the long game, not the short game,鈥 Mr. Jacobs said in an interview. Gains in the suburbs helped Democrats win the Senate majority.
Mr. Cuomo made a similar argument in a Friday public-radio interview, but both he and Mr. Jacobs said their efforts weren鈥檛 coordinated.
The rent laws expire on June 15, which is viewed as the deadline for action.