COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATION
MINUTES
MINUTES: January 22, 2007
1:00 PM
LEGISLATION MEMBERS: Chair: Pinto; Legislators: Young, Rogowsky, Oros, Myers, Bronz, Burrows, Abinanti, Maisano
IN ATTENDANCE: CEO: K. Pasquale, A. Neuman, B. Randolph; CA: L. Cipollo; GUESTS: S. Sommavilla, R. Mac Laughlin, L. Siegel; BOL STAFF: B. Bochow, S. Bass, B. DeSoye, M. Amodio, R. Pezzollo, R. Peligrino, A. Ettere
With a quorum present, the Committee on Legislation was called to order at 1:10 p.m.
(Burrows, Oros) move the minutes of October 16, 2006 & November 20, 2006. Motion passed 5-0.
ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION:
2007 JOINT STATE LEGISLATIVE PACKAGE
Chair Pinto moved to delete County Executive Items 4, 8, 12, 24, 25, 26, 30, and 32. Legislator Burrows seconded the motion. Legislator Young asked that the motion be amended to remove item 8 as part of the proposed deletions for further discussion. Chair Pinto and Legislator Burrows amended their motion and second to remove items 4, 12, 24, 25, 26, 30, 32. Amended motion passed 8-0.
2. Amending the current pistol permit process
Judge J. Emmett Murphy, Supreme Court Judge from the 9th Judicial District in Westchester County, sat with the Committee on Legislation to share his experiences with the current pistol permit issuing process. He stated that when reviewing a case, a judge gets the entire package of an applicant, which includes the history of their past applications. He went on to talk about the role of the Department of Public Safety in the process and the information forwarded to judges for final approval of the permit. Judge Murphy then spoke in general about his opposition to the County Executives proposal to amend the pistol permit process.
Karen Pasquale, Senior Assistant to the County Executive, continued her presentation of the County Executive’s suggested Joint State Legislative Program for 2007.
New Items for 2007
10. Prohibit the use of mobile phones and wireless devise by drivers less that 18 years of age
□ This law would drivers under the age of eighteen years from using hand-held or hands-free mobile telephone or wireless devise while operating a motor-vehicle.
11. Change license requirements for young drivers to give them more experience and save lives
□ This law would amend the vehicle and traffic law to increase the number of supervised driving hours required prior to the issuance of a class DJ or class MJ license from twenty to fifty hours.
*Item 12 was deleted earlier in the meeting.
13. Prohibit zone pricing
□ This law would prohibit the use of zone pricing (defined as “arbitrary price differences within the same marked area based on what consumers are likely to pay or where the effect is to injure competition”) as a marketing device for gasoline.
Property Tax Relief Priorities
14. Cap county costs under the Pre-K program
□ This proposal would limit county property taxpayer liability for the cost of the 4410 preschool education program (Pre-K Program).
15. Require the State Education Department to pay for all excess committee on preschool special education administrative costs
□ The proposal would amend the Education Law to have the State Education Department assume 100% of the cost for excess school district Committee on Preschool Special Education administrative costs.
16. Eliminate the cap on state aid reimbursement for transportation of preschoolers with special needs
□ This would amend the Education Law to eliminate the State Education Department’s ceiling on state aid reimbursement for transportation costs under the Pre-K program.
17. Increase reimbursement for housing & medical care of state-ready inmates & state parole violators
□ This proposal would amend the Correction Law to provide increased reimbursement to counties for the housing of state-ready prisoners and parole violators.
18. Require 3rd party insurance reimbursement for early intervention services
□ This law would aid in the recouping of insurance monies to help county governments and New York State pay for the Early Intervention Program and reduce the burden of this program on property taxpayers.
19. Authorize counties to charge probation fees
□ This statewide proposal would allow counties to charge fees to offset costs incurred in providing probation services.
20. Increase radiological preparedness fees to counties with nuclear power plants
□ This legislation would offset local costs for radiological preparedness by requiring that the fee paid by the licensees of nuclear plants be increased to reflect the actual costs incurred by local governments associated with radiological preparedness
Public Safety & Consumer Protection Priorities
21. Enact a civil confinement law for sexually violent offenders
□ This law would provide a mechanism whereby sexually violent offenders who are likely to engage in repeated acts of sexual violence can be placed in a secure facility in lieu of release into the community.
22. Failure to register or verify address
□ This proposal suggests that both the correction law and penal law be amended to reflect the frequency with which a sexually violent predator or a level three sex offender must personally verify his/her address with a local law enforcement agency and increase the penalties for failure of a sex offender to register or verify an address.
23. Implement a dual track child protective program
□ This legislation would amend the social services law to allow for the establishment of a demonstration project implementing a dual track child protective services system.
*Items 24, 25, 26 deleted earlier in the meeting.
Legislative Initiatives
27. Permit pharmacists to vaccinate and nurses to dispense medications
□ This initiative would amend the education law to permit licensed and certified pharmacists to administer immunizations against influenza and pneumococcal disease and permit public health nurses to dispense prescription drugs and devices, other than controlled substances, in clinics operated under health department auspices.
28. Suspend liquor and lottery licenses for sale of alcohol to minors
29. Expand penalties for underage drinking
□ This proposal would enhance the penalties portions of the current Alcohol Beverage Control Law and Vehicle and Traffic Law.
*Item 30 deleted earlier in the meeting.
31. Expand the definition of summer day camps and improve counties’ ability to monitor day camps
*Item 32 deleted earlier in the meeting
The Committee agreed to meet on Thursday, January 25th at 10:30 a.m. to begin to address Legislators’ referrals to the 2007 Joint Legislative Package.
(Rogowsky, Abinanti) move to adjourn The Committee on Legislation. Motion passed 6-0. Committee on Legislation adjourned at 3:02 p.m.
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