SERINO PUSHES TERM LIMITS FOR LEGISLATIVE LEADERSHIP

ALBANY, NY—Senator Sue Serino (R, C, I—Hyde Park) announced that a piece of critical legislation aimed at reforming ethics in state government passed in the Senate again today. The bill, which Serino co-sponsors, (S. 1229) would place term limits on leadership positions in the Senate and Assembly and limit the number of consecutive years a legislator can serve as a committee chair or party leader.

“You don’t need to look all that hard to know that absolute power corrupts absolutely in Albany,” said Senator Serino. “If we want to get to the root of corruption in the Capitol, that starts with ensuring that legislative leaders are not handed the reins of power indefinitely.”

The bill, which is sponsored by Senator Joe Griffo (R, C, I—Rome), would limit the tenure of the Temporary President of the Senate, Speaker of the Assembly, and leaders of both houses to eight years. Legislative committee chairs would also be limited to serving no more than eight consecutive years.

The measure is consistent with the Senate Rules, which Senator Serino has supported each year since taking office and the bill itself has passed with her support each year since 2015.

Serino continued saying, “It is incomprehensible to me that the Assembly has failed to pass this critical piece of legislation year after year. We have a duty to restore the public’s faith in their government and this is a commonsense step we can take to send a clear message that ‘business as usual’ is no longer going to fly.”

The bill will once again be sent to the Assembly where it is sponsored by Assemblywoman Sandy Galef.

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