Editorial

In Albany, a pretty good year

Posted

The state legislative session came to an end on June 17, and legislators have a lot of accomplishments to hang their hats on. There are, however, some notable things that did not get done.

The Legislature passed 663 bills this session. Many of them dealt with issues that most New Yorkers are unlikely to ever be aware of. But there were also many high-profile bills that became law this year.

Foremost among the achievements of the session is the first steps taken to combat the corruption for which, sadly, Albany has become only too well known. The Legislature passed a law that would revoke the pensions of elected officials and policy makers who are convicted of corruption. New Yorkers were clamoring for the law after it was revealed that former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, both of whom were convicted of corruption, would still receive their state pensions.

Both houses of the Legislature also wrote letters to Congress calling for a constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, which has led to an increase in money flooding into political races — something many people believe paves the way to more corruption.

The Legislature also took action to help low-wage earners and other workers this session. The Assembly and Senate passed a $15 minimum wage that will be phased in over several years, and created one of the strongest paid family leave programs in the country. Starting in 2018, employees will be eligible for 12 weeks of paid time off to care for newborns or ailing family members.

With heroin overdoses now the leading cause of accidental deaths in New York state, the Legislature passed a series of bills to combat the problem. The measures seek to limit the amount of opioids that doctors can prescribe for pain, and to make it easier for addicts to receive treatment to help them overcome their habits. The state government has also earmarked $200 million in next year’s budget to help fight the scourge of heroin.

Another action worth praising is the state’s putting an end to the Gap Elimination Adjustment, which was costing Long Island school districts money. Eliminating the practice of limiting state aid for schools in order to offset the state’s budgetary shortfalls will now give districts their own budgetary breathing room, especially at a time of low inflation and the resulting tight tax caps.

However, there were areas in which the Legislature could have done more. Even taking away the pensions of those found guilty of corruption isn’t a done deal: In order for the measure to become a constitutional amendment, legislators will have to pass a law next year to put it before voters in a referendum. Nonetheless, they have taken a good first step.

But they did not pass laws to eliminate an election funding loophole that allows people to make virtually unlimited anonymous political donations through shadow limited liability companies, or LLCs.

They also refused to take up legislation that would have banned outside income for themselves. Implementing such a measure would make sure legislators aren’t beholden to anyone besides their constituents. But it’s hard to get people to approve what would effectively be their own pay cut.

Compared with years past, when Albany was mired in gridlock and nothing was accomplished, this year’s legislative session was practically a marathon of passage of laws both low- and high-profile. But we’re still holding out hope that the men and women we send to Albany will listen to us, and pass much more strict anti-corruption laws next session.