Murphy named to Senate leadership post

ALBANY, NY - State Senator Terrence Murphy announced today he had been selected by the Senate Majority Conference to serve as the chairperson of the Senate Administrative Regulations Review Commission, or ARRC. This assignment put the freshman Senator in a powerful position to combat overregulation, with investigative oversight of all State agency mandates and regulations that affect local governments and businesses and hinder economic development. 

"In Westchester and the Hudson Valley, where nine state mandates account for seventy-five cents of every tax dollar we spend, unfunded mandates from the State have been the bane of our existence and mandate relief has been a punch line instead of a serious undertaking," Senator Murphy said. "I'm humbled and honored to join the Senate leadership team and my goal as chair of the Commission will be to provide legitimate, substantive results that can finally end the crushing burden of unfunded mandates on local governments and the regulations that drive up the cost of doing business in New York State," Senator Murphy said. 

As chair of the ARRC, which has its own full-time staff, Murphy will be responsible for the review of all state agency regulations for the Legislature, as well as for implementing the complex State Administrative Procedure Act (SAPA). "New York State has over 750,000 regulations on businesses and local governments, most of which are outdated, redundant, duplicative, unduly burdensome or completely unnecessary," he said. 

"During my time in local government I held numerous press conferences and forums calling for mandate relief and a procedure whereby businesses and local governments can challenge onerous unfunded mandates," Murphy said. "It's time for mandates to go. As chair I will kick start the discussion on the pros and cons of repealing the MTA payroll tax, turning the tables to mandate that State agencies consider affordability and a town's ability to pay on issues like MS-4 stormwater regulations, and require two-thirds legislative approval for State agency regulations that exceed a certain cost to businesses or local governments." 

Senator Murphy will also serve as member on the powerful committees on Banks, Ethics, Labor, Health and Investigations and Government Operations. He was also named to the Local Government and Mental Health committees. 

"I'm honored by the display my colleagues have placed in me by selecting me to serve on the Ethics Committee," Murphy said. "As a chiropractor, I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work on the Health Committee, and as the son of a blue collar union leader, I'm excited to be sitting on the Labor Committee. These assignments will help me move legislation that will give everyone the opportunity to succeed."