Regular Session - May 8, 2024
3710
1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE
2
3
4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD
5
6
7
8
9 ALBANY, NEW YORK
10 May 8, 2024
11 11:27 a.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
3711
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 present to please
5 rise and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
6 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited
7 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Pastor
9 Luis Iván Echandía, of the Lutheran Church of the
10 Epiphany in Hempstead, New York, will deliver
11 today's invocation.
12 Pastor.
13 PASTOR ECHANDÍA: Divine Creator,
14 Father and Mother of us all: As we gather here
15 today to fulfill our duties to the people of our
16 great state, we humbly seek Your blessing and
17 guidance.
18 In this diverse assembly,
19 representing various beliefs and backgrounds, we
20 are reminded of the values of tolerance, unity,
21 and brotherhood among different ethnic groups.
22 Let us embrace our differences as strengths that
23 enrich our collective journey.
24 We invoke the spirit of Peace,
25 Shalom, Salam, Asha, Namaste, and the universal
3712
1 message of harmony and understanding that
2 transcends all divisions.
3 May our discussions be characterized
4 by respect and empathy, our decisions guided by
5 fairness and equity, and our actions reflect the
6 ideals of a united and inclusive society.
7 In Your name, we offer these prayers
8 for tolerance, unity and brotherhood.
9 Amen.
10 (Response of "Amen.")
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 reading of the Journal.
13 THE SECRETARY: In Senate, Tuesday,
14 May 7, 2024, the Senate met pursuant to
15 adjournment. The Journal of Monday, May 6, 2024,
16 was read and approved. On motion, the Senate
17 adjourned.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Without
19 objection, the Journal stands approved as read.
20 Presentation of petitions.
21 Messages from the Assembly.
22 The Secretary will read.
23 THE SECRETARY: Senator Salazar
24 moves to discharge, from the Committee on Health,
25 Assembly Bill Number 7961 and substitute it for
3713
1 the identical Senate Bill 7617, Third Reading
2 Calendar 387.
3 Senator Chu moves to discharge, from
4 the Committee on Codes, Assembly Bill Number 8425
5 and substitute it for the identical Senate Bill
6 8934, Third Reading Calendar 791.
7 Senator Krueger moves to discharge,
8 from the Committee on Environmental Conservation,
9 Assembly Bill Number 4943A and substitute it for
10 the identical Senate Bill 4414A, Third Reading
11 Calendar 816.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: So
13 ordered.
14 Messages from the Governor.
15 Reports of standing committees.
16 Reports of select committees.
17 Communications and reports from
18 state officers.
19 Motions and resolutions.
20 Senator Gianaris.
21 SENATOR GIANARIS: Good morning,
22 Mr. President.
23 On behalf of Senator Stavisky, on
24 page 48 I offer the following amendments to
25 Calendar Number 721, Senate Print 7808, and ask
3714
1 that said bill retain its place on the
2 Third Reading Calendar.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
4 amendments are received, and those bills will
5 retain their place on the Third Reading Calendar.
6 Senator Gianaris.
7 SENATOR GIANARIS: Can we now take
8 up previously adopted Resolution 1984, by
9 Senator Thomas, read its title and recognize
10 Senator Thomas.
11 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
12 Secretary will read.
13 THE SECRETARY: Resolution 1984, by
14 Senator Thomas, commemorating the
15 125th Anniversary of the Lutheran Church
16 of the Epiphany.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
18 Thomas on the resolution.
19 SENATOR THOMAS: Thank you,
20 Mr. President.
21 I rise to pay tribute to a cherished
22 cornerstone of our community in my Senate
23 district, the Lutheran Church of the Epiphany, as
24 it celebrates its remarkable 125th anniversary.
25 I want to recognize and thank
3715
1 Reverend Luís Echandía for doing the opening
2 prayer and for bringing members of your
3 congregation up to Albany here today.
4 Hey, Hempstead (waving)!
5 Throughout my tenure as
6 State Senator, I've had the privilege of meeting
7 and getting to know many of the dedicated members
8 of the Lutheran Church and have seen the positive
9 impact the church has on Hempstead firsthand.
10 For over a century it has remained a
11 place where people from all walks of life come
12 together to find solace, support and spiritual
13 nourishment. From its early days on farmlands to
14 the buzzing center of Nassau County that
15 Hempstead has become, the church has remained a
16 steadfast presence, offering solace, support and
17 a sense of belonging to generations of residents.
18 Whether through youth programs,
19 their commitment to social justice or their
20 unwavering support for those in need, the
21 Lutheran Church of the Epiphany has consistently
22 exemplified the best of what it means to be a
23 caring and compassionate community. They provide
24 shelter and food to those in need, offer
25 counseling and support during difficult times --
3716
1 or simply being a place where people can come
2 together in fellowship and prayer, the church has
3 been a beacon of hope and compassion in our town.
4 The church and its legacy of
5 service, compassion and community-building will
6 continue to inspire us for generations to come.
7 They have surely left a mark on Hempstead and
8 Nassau County. Therefore, it is with great honor
9 that I introduce this resolution commemorating
10 its 125th anniversary, and God bless.
11 Thank you, Mr. President.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
13 you, Senator Thomas.
14 (Applause from gallery.)
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: To our
16 guests, I welcome you on behalf of the Senate.
17 We extend to you all of the privileges and
18 courtesies of this house.
19 Please rise and be recognized.
20 (Standing ovation.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
22 resolution was adopted on March 19th.
23 Senator Gianaris.
24 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
25 let's move on to previously adopted
3717
1 Resolution 2348, by Senator Ramos, read that
2 resolution's title, and recognize Senator Ramos.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
4 Secretary will read.
5 THE SECRETARY: Resolution 2348, by
6 Senator Ramos, memorializing Governor Kathy
7 Hochul to proclaim May 1, 2024, as May Day in the
8 State of New York.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
10 Ramos on the resolution.
11 SENATOR RAMOS: Thank you,
12 Mr. President.
13 You know, on May 1st every year the
14 international community celebrates workers.
15 And the labor movement was actually
16 founded on this premise that workers have to
17 demand their own safety at their job sites.
18 Tired of being killed, injured and forced to work
19 in dangerous conditions, workers took to the
20 streets and organized to make demands of their
21 employers. This demand is the origin of child
22 labor laws, the workers' compensation system,
23 temporary disability insurance, and so many
24 safeguards that we rely on and have been working
25 on improving as a conference in this body.
3718
1 The reality is that despite all of
2 our efforts, trying to earn a paycheck is
3 steadily becoming more hazardous for New Yorkers
4 working in the private sector than ever before.
5 Since 2019, our workplace injury
6 rates have steadily increased at a rate of
7 roughly 25 percent higher than the national
8 average. Nearly 200,000 workers are injured
9 annually in New York. New York workplace
10 fatalities have averaged 250 annually over the
11 past decade, and more than 10 percent greater
12 than in the first decade of this century.
13 When you look closer at specific
14 sectors, the data is even more grisly. Nail
15 salon workers experience reproductive health
16 issues, pregnancy complications, and birth
17 defects at a rate significantly higher than the
18 national average. There's one injury for every
19 11 warehouse workers, and that number increases
20 every year in New York as well.
21 Immigrant workers, particularly
22 Latino workers, hold more than a third of the
23 jobs in these high-risk workplaces, and it has to
24 stop. An injured worker isn't an island. That
25 pain ripples into their entire community. It can
3719
1 drastically alter the course of a person's life.
2 So on this May Day, I'm humbly
3 asking this body to commit to this worker safety
4 agenda and a series of bills to strengthen
5 preventive worker safety and bolster existing
6 infrastructure: The Warehouse Worker Injury
7 Reduction Act, the Nail Salon Minimum Standards
8 Act, TEMP, the Retail Worker Safety Act, the Wage
9 Theft Deterrence Package, workers' comp reform,
10 and so much more.
11 I dedicate this resolution to a near
12 future where every worker can return home to
13 their family at the end of the day.
14 I vote aye. Thank you.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
16 you, Senator Ramos.
17 The resolution was previously
18 adopted on May 7th.
19 Senator Gianaris.
20 SENATOR GIANARIS: Now let's take
21 up previously adopted Resolution 1811, by
22 Senator Griffo, read that resolution's title, and
23 recognize Senator Griffo.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
25 Secretary will read.
3720
1 THE SECRETARY: Resolution 1811, by
2 Senator Griffo, memorializing Governor Kathy
3 Hochul to proclaim May 2024 as Lupus Awareness
4 Month in the State of New York.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
6 Griffo on the resolution.
7 SENATOR GRIFFO: Thank you,
8 Mr. President.
9 We have done this annually, and we
10 continue to try to raise awareness and to educate
11 people about lupus, which is a chronic
12 inflammatory autoimmune disease that affects over
13 5 million people across the globe -- over
14 1.5 million Americans, and 105,000 people here in
15 the State of New York.
16 Thousands of people are diagnosed
17 with lupus each year, the majority of them being
18 women and young people in the prime of their
19 lives. There's no cure, unfortunately, at this
20 stage, but the research continues. And
21 unfortunately we continue to lose thousands of
22 lives each year to lupus.
23 But there are many significant
24 initiatives and much work that needs to be done,
25 not only to raise awareness about this
3721
1 debilitating disease but hopefully one day to
2 find a cure.
3 I want to express my appreciation to
4 some of the individuals who are with us in the
5 gallery today, some of them my constituents who
6 have joined us, particularly Kathleen and
7 David Arntsen, who are here from the Lupus and
8 Allied Diseases Association, and Dr. Maria
9 Kontaridis, who is from the Masonic Medical
10 Research Institute in Utica, who are doing
11 extraordinary work in a number of ways. And yes,
12 Senator Gianaris, she is Greek.
13 Kathleen and David, along with their
14 organization, have been important advocates over
15 the years for those with lupus.
16 And Dr. Kontaridis is doing
17 extraordinary work with her talented team to
18 explore more and undertake the research on this,
19 and to hopefully help us find that cure that has
20 been so elusive.
21 Their efforts and those of other
22 organizations, such as other lupus agencies
23 across the State of New York, have improved the
24 quality of life for those suffering from lupus.
25 So I hope this resolution that we
3722
1 have done each and every year helps to raise that
2 awareness, create more interest, and to allow
3 them to allocate resources that are necessary not
4 only to talk about this disease, but to confront
5 this disease, and understanding the crippling
6 effects this disease has upon people's lives.
7 So I think that is an effort that we
8 have to undertake and will continue to do, and I
9 am hopeful that we will one day not only be able
10 to comfort people, but to find the cure that will
11 eliminate this autoimmune disease.
12 So with that, Mr. President, I know
13 Senator Parker and I have worked on this, and I
14 appreciate him and his work too in calling
15 attention and awareness. So I will yield now,
16 and then we can recognize the individuals in the
17 gallery, perhaps.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
19 you, Senator Griffo.
20 Senator Parker on the resolution.
21 SENATOR PARKER: Thank you,
22 Mr. President.
23 I rise to add my voice to
24 Senator Griffo. We have been partners in many,
25 many things, actually, but certainly this has
3723
1 been one of the most important things that we've
2 done.
3 If folks don't know, lupus is an
4 autoimmune disease that affects almost like --
5 actually it's about 2 million people nationwide,
6 and certainly represents several thousand here in
7 our great state.
8 This is a disease, as you've heard
9 from Senator Griffo, that is chronic, that in
10 fact has no cure at the moment, and in which
11 people are suffering great deals of discomfort
12 and pain.
13 One of the worst -- there's two
14 things that are really diabolical about this
15 condition, one of which is that it manifests
16 differently in different people. Right? And so
17 it's very difficult to kind of understand in that
18 way.
19 And then the second thing is that it
20 goes unnoticed and undetected for such a long
21 time. Even when people go to their doctor to
22 complain about the symptoms, oftentimes the
23 doctors don't know what to do about it. And in
24 fact, so much that when you -- the doctor that
25 you probably most often go to, if you
3724
1 unfortunately are suffering with lupus, is a
2 rheumatologist, right, to deal with the pain.
3 Not somebody who's actually trying to cure you,
4 but somebody who's just simply trying to give
5 you, you know, a remission from the discomfort
6 that you're having.
7 We have to do better. And I'm proud
8 to say that I have worked with several
9 organizations to do a number of things, including
10 put more money in the budget. And so we as a
11 State Legislature over the last five or six years
12 have significantly added the money in the budget
13 around lupus and around autoimmune diseases in
14 general.
15 But there's still a lot more that
16 needs to be done, a lot more research, a lot more
17 awareness. There are a lot of people across our
18 communities who are suffering with this. This is
19 also particularly a problem in Black and Latino
20 and Asian communities where you see
21 disproportionately higher incidences of lupus,
22 but also higher incidences of it being
23 misdiagnosed and underdiagnosed, which has
24 oftentimes cost people their lives.
25 And so I stand here in support of
3725
1 all those lupus warriors, those who many times
2 are adorning the purple butterfly, as they call
3 it. There's a malar rash that oftentimes
4 develops on the faces, at some point or another,
5 for about half of the people who experience
6 lupus. And they say it looks like a butterfly,
7 so that has become a symbol for lupus warriors
8 across the nation, banding together to support
9 one another through this agonizing disease.
10 So as I rise today, I call on all of
11 you to -- all of us to just kind of put our hands
12 to this, put our minds to this, put our energy
13 towards battling this disease, of really curing
14 something that we really should be able to figure
15 out, and to make sure that we give it both the
16 time and attention and, most importantly, the
17 resources that it needs in order for us to deal
18 with it.
19 I want to again thank Senator Griffo
20 for bringing this resolution to the floor, and
21 I'm looking forward to welcoming our guests.
22 Thank you, Mr. President.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
24 you, Senator Parker.
25 To our guests, I welcome you on
3726
1 behalf of the Senate. We extend to you all of
2 the privileges and courtesies of this house.
3 Please rise and be recognized.
4 (Standing ovation.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
6 resolution was previously adopted on
7 February 13th.
8 Senator Gianaris.
9 SENATOR GIANARIS: Let me just add,
10 Mr. President, that I hope Dr. Kontaridis had a
11 wonderful Easter. And I appreciate the work that
12 she and the whole team are doing up there.
13 At the request of the sponsors of
14 the resolutions we took up today, they are all
15 open for cosponsorship.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
17 resolutions are open for cosponsorship. Should
18 you choose not to be a cosponsor, please notify
19 the desk.
20 Senator Gianaris.
21 SENATOR GIANARIS: I have another
22 motion here.
23 On behalf of Senator Brisport, on
24 page 56 I offer the following amendments to
25 Calendar 826, Senate 7353, and ask that said bill
3727
1 retain its place on the Third Reading Calendar.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
3 amendments are received, and the bill will retain
4 its place on the Third Reading Calendar.
5 Senator Gianaris.
6 SENATOR GIANARIS: Please take up
7 today's calendar.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
9 Secretary will read.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 246, Senate Print 7555, by Senator Rhoads, an act
12 authorizing the Friendship Engine and Hose
13 Company to file an application for exemption from
14 real property taxes.
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, 55.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
3728
1 is passed.
2 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3 337, Senate Print 992B, by Senator Hoylman-Sigal,
4 an act to amend the Environmental Conservation
5 Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
9 act shall take effect December 31, 2025.
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 337, those Senators voting in the
17 negative are Senators Borrello, Griffo and
18 Oberacker.
19 Ayes, 52. Nays, 3.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 342, Senate Print 4198B, by Senator Comrie, an
24 act to enact the New York Wildlife Crossing Act.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
3729
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 7. 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 342, voting in the negative are
11 Senators Gallivan, Oberacker, Ortt and Stec.
12 Ayes, 51. Nays, 4.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 387, Assembly Bill Number 7961, by
17 Assemblymember Rosenthal, an act to amend the
18 Public Health 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.)
3730
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
2 Murray to explain his vote.
3 SENATOR MURRAY: Thank you,
4 Mr. President.
5 I'd like to rise to thank my friend
6 Senator Salazar for working on this with us.
7 We -- this actually will go very far
8 in saving lives. This was -- the need for this
9 bill was because of an unintended consequence of
10 a previous bill that also had very good
11 intentions but, because of the language in that
12 previous bill, it prohibited certain larger
13 counties such as my county, Suffolk, Nassau,
14 Westchester, from implementing policy that would
15 allow police, firefighters, EMS to carry with
16 them epinephrine injectors.
17 And as everyone knows, in a case of
18 anaphylactic shock, every single second counts.
19 So allowing this to happen now, by passing this
20 legislation today we will allow -- for example,
21 in Suffolk County, my good friend Suffolk County
22 Legislator Dominick Thorne has a bill that passed
23 that will now allow this to happen. So by
24 passing this, we can allow that to happen, and in
25 doing so will now save lives.
3731
1 So thank you, Senator Salazar, for
2 your help on this. And I urge everyone to please
3 vote yes.
4 Thank you.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
6 Murray to be recorded in the affirmative.
7 Announce the results.
8 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 56.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
10 is passed.
11 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
12 404, Senate Print 8138A, by Senator Sanders, an
13 act creating a temporary state commission to
14 study and investigate how to regulate artificial
15 intelligence.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 6. 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, 56.
3732
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
2 is passed.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 538, Senate Print 5331A, by Senator Harckham, an
5 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
7 last section.
8 THE SECRETARY: Section 4. 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 538, those Senators voting in the
17 negative are Senators Ashby, Borrello, Gallivan,
18 Griffo, Mattera, Murray, Oberacker, Ortt, Stec
19 and Tedisco.
20 Ayes, 46. Nays, 10.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
22 is passed.
23 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
24 637, Senate Print 3024B, by Senator Comrie, an
25 act to amend the Not-For-Profit Corporation Law.
3733
1 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
2 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: In relation to
11 Calendar 637, voting in the negative:
12 Senator Martinez.
13 Ayes, 55. Nays, 1.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
15 is passed.
16 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
17 791, Assembly Bill Number 8425, by
18 Assemblymember Bores, an act to amend the
19 Penal Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
21 last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
23 act shall take effect immediately.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
25 roll.
3734
1 (The Secretary called the roll.)
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
3 the results.
4 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 56.
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
6 is passed.
7 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
8 794, Senate Print 2820, by Senator Skoufis, an
9 act to amend the Highway Law.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
11 last section.
12 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. 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: In relation to
20 Calendar 794, voting in the negative:
21 Senator Brisport.
22 Ayes, 55. Nays, 1.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
24 is passed.
25 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
3735
1 803, Senate Print 4636, by Senator May, an act to
2 amend the General Municipal Law.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
4 last section.
5 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
6 act shall take effect on the 60th day after it
7 shall have become a law.
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 803, voting in the negative:
15 Senator Palumbo.
16 Ayes, 55. Nays, 1.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
18 is passed.
19 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
20 804, Senate Print 6244A, by Senator Thomas, an
21 act authorizing the Town of Hempstead to transfer
22 ownership of certain parkland to the Village of
23 Freeport.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
25 a home-rule message at the desk.
3736
1 Read the last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 6. 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, 56.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
13 816, Assembly Bill Number 4943A, by
14 Assemblymember Epstein, an act to amend the
15 Environmental Conservation Law.
16 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
17 last section.
18 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. 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: In relation to
3737
1 Calendar 816, voting in the negative:
2 Senator Oberacker.
3 Ayes, 55. Nays, 1.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
5 is passed.
6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
7 852, Senate Print 5728A, by Senator Harckham, an
8 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
10 last section.
11 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
12 act shall take effect on the 120th day after it
13 shall have become a law.
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, 56.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
21 is passed.
22 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
23 853, Senate Print 7086B, by Senator Harckham, an
24 act to amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
3738
1 last section.
2 THE SECRETARY: Section 70. 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, 57.
10 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
11 is passed.
12 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 854,
13 Senate Print 8356A, by Senator May, an act to
14 amend the Environmental Conservation Law.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
16 last section.
17 THE SECRETARY: Section 5. This
18 act shall take effect one year after it shall
19 have become a law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
21 roll.
22 (The Secretary called the roll.)
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
24 May to explain her vote.
25 SENATOR MAY: Thank you,
3739
1 Mr. President.
2 Last year my district expanded to
3 include four Finger Lakes. And I found that,
4 when I went to community meetings or door to
5 door, the number-one issue on people's minds was
6 water quality. And the number-one threat to
7 water quality that they were concerned about was
8 harmful algal blooms.
9 Harmful algal blooms threaten
10 drinking water, they threaten recreation and
11 tourism, they're dangerous to animals and human
12 health and generally to the quality of life in
13 and around lakes and other water bodies. And
14 even though they're visible and often smelly,
15 there is actually a lot we don't know about
16 harmful algal blooms, or HABs, in New York State.
17 So this bill, the Harmful Algal
18 Bloom Monitoring and Prevention Act, or HABMAP,
19 will give us tools to understand, to monitor and
20 to study harmful algal blooms and to create a
21 database and a grant program for municipalities
22 to work on preventing and mitigating HABs.
23 So on behalf of my district and all
24 of us who represent beloved water bodies or
25 shorelines, I thank my colleagues for supporting
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1 this bill, and I vote aye.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
3 May to be recorded in the affirmative.
4 Senator Webb to explain her vote.
5 SENATOR WEBB: Thank you,
6 Mr. President.
7 I rise also to support this
8 legislation. Thank you, Senator May, for
9 bringing forth this important legislation.
10 Over the summer we had an
11 opportunity to do a tour of Cayuga Lake, which is
12 in my district in Tompkins County, which is one
13 of the largest Finger Lakes in the region. And
14 this lake provides drinking water to over
15 100,000 people across the region and is also a
16 very popular summer destination for residents and
17 tourists who visit the lake for recreation,
18 swimming and boating, just to name a few
19 activities.
20 The health of the lake has most
21 certainly been impacted by climate change,
22 warming temperatures, extreme weather, all of
23 which increase runoff into the lake. And as
24 Senator May already alluded to with regards to
25 harmful algal blooms, these continue to increase
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1 in this particular water body and others as well.
2 And it poses significant health risks to people
3 and animals through ingestion, also skin contact
4 and also inhalation.
5 And so this legislation will ensure
6 that the DEC develops a program to actually
7 standardize data collection on this issue, but
8 also doing analysis and establishing an
9 interagency HABs fund and grant program to
10 support the critical efforts of municipalities,
11 intermunicipal organizations to monitor,
12 evaluate, prevent and mitigate harmful algal
13 blooms.
14 Again, I thank Senator May for her
15 leadership on this very important public health
16 and environmental issue, and I also thank the
17 Majority Leader for bringing this package of
18 environmental bills to the floor.
19 I vote aye, and I encourage my
20 colleagues to do the same.
21 Thank you.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
23 Webb to be recorded in the affirmative.
24 Senator Mannion to explain his vote.
25 SENATOR MANNION: Thank you,
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1 Mr. President.
2 I want to thank Senator May for her
3 advocacy on this issue. It's just so critical
4 that we have a better coordinated process out
5 there.
6 We're fortunate to have really
7 experts in the field as it relates to harmful
8 algal blooms, our changing climate and beyond.
9 And I want to take a minute to
10 commend our local lake associations, our small
11 municipalities and our higher ed institutions in
12 working with all entities of government to make
13 sure that we are preemptively addressing this
14 issue. Really, they are the frontlines. And in
15 my conversations, and I'm sure in Senator Webb's,
16 Senator May's and others, is that they are
17 looking for assistance, they are looking for the
18 state to be there to just make their advocacy
19 even more efficient.
20 So I commend Senator May for this.
21 I look forward to the good actions that are going
22 to happen from the good of this bill.
23 Thank you, Mr. President. I proudly
24 vote aye.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
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1 Mannion to be recorded in the affirmative.
2 Announce the results.
3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 58.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
5 is passed.
6 Senator Gianaris, that completes the
7 reading of today's calendar.
8 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
9 Mr. President.
10 On behalf of Majority Leader
11 Stewart-Cousins, I hand up the following
12 committee assignment of the Majority Conference
13 and ask that it be filed in the Journal.
14 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
15 handup is received and shall be filed in the
16 Journal.
17 SENATOR GIANARIS: Is there any
18 further business at the desk?
19 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: There is
20 no further business at the desk.
21 SENATOR GIANARIS: Let me remind my
22 colleagues on the Majority side we are going
23 immediately into the Majority Conference Room for
24 some conference activity.
25 And with that, I move to adjourn
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1 until Monday, May 13th, at 3:00 p.m., with the
2 intervening days being legislative days.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Majority
4 members will return to conference for conference
5 activity.
6 On motion, the Senate stands
7 adjourned until Monday, May 13th, at 3:00 p.m.,
8 with the intervening days being legislative days.
9 Hey, Julián.
10 (Whereupon, at 11:56 a.m., the
11 Senate adjourned.)
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