Leader Kolb in the News
STATE COURT OF APPEALS GOT IT WRONG: THE CAYUGA INDIAN NATION IS NOT ABOVE THE LAW
Legislative column from Assembly Republican Leader Brian M. Kolb (R,I,C-Canandaigua)
Regular readers of this weekly legislative column are well aware of my firm belief that all of our laws must be applied and enforced equally. In the United States of America, no individual or group is above the law – nor is anyone below it. The fair, impartial application of the law without fear or favor is one of the most bedrock concepts of our entire legal system. This is reflected in the age-old expression “justice is blind.”
NYS COURT OF APPEALS RULING GOT IT WRONG
While justice may be blind, it can also be imperfect. A clear example of this was the State Court of Appeals ruling this past Tuesday, May 11, that the Cayuga Indian Nation could continue operating above the law and refuse to collect the taxes on cigarettes sold on Native American lands to non-Native American Indians. In the case of Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Cayuga County Sheriff David S. Gould, our State Court of Appeals, New York’s “court of last resort,” ruled 4-3 in favor of the Cayuga Indian Nation. I, and many other New York taxpayers, strongly disagreed with their decision.
A growing coalition of citizens and businesses who believe in the rule of law have been calling for the collection of these taxes for well over a decade, only to have our pleas fall on deaf ears. The total state revenue that could be generated through the lawful collection of taxes on cigarette sales made on Native American lands to non-Native American Indians could total upwards of $600 million for cash strapped New York State.
COLLECTING THE TAXES COULD GENERATE $600 MILLION IN REVENUE
When you stop to consider that New York is facing a cash crunch and a $9.05 billion budget deficit, you quickly realize that if the state actually enforced the collection of these taxes, it would go a long way toward reducing its fiscal shortfall. Instead of closing parks, stiffing construction contractors, laying off teachers, furloughing public employees, cutting essential services or hiking taxes on middle class families and businesses, wouldn’t it make more sense for state government to enforce the law and collect the taxes? Clearly it would, which is why a few months ago I publicly called on Governor Paterson to ensure regulations were in place to allow the collection of these taxes to move forward. The Governor said the necessary regulations would be enacted by July and I am going to hold him to that promise!
LEADER KOLB: STATE COURT OF APPEALS GOT IT WRONG, CAYUGA INDIAN NATION IS NOT ABOVE THE LAW
STATEMENT FROM NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER BRIAN M. KOLB (R,I,C-CANANDAIGUA):
“I strongly disagreed with today’s 4-3 ruling by the State Court of Appeals that will allow the Cayuga Indian Nation to continue its policy of refusing to collect taxes on its sales of cigarettes to non-Native American Indians. This decision undercuts efforts to ensure a fair and level playing field for all businesses, not just a select few. A fundamental premise of our judicial system is that our laws must be applied on an equal basis. Today’s decision runs contrary to this principle and sends a message that the Cayuga Indian Nation gets a pass and can operate above New York’s laws. I agree wholeheartedly with Judge Pigott’s dissenting opinion that affirmed New York’s power to collect the taxes on cigarettes sold on Native American lands to non-Native American Indians. The Court should have heeded Judge Pigott’s well-reasoned dissent that was based firmly in the law and its equal application.”
LEADER KOLB: GOVERNOR PATERSON’S PROPOSED FURLOUGHS DO LITTLE TO SHRINK THE SIZE AND COST OF STATE GOVERNMENT OVER THE LONG-TERM
STATEMENT FROM NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER BRIAN M. KOLB (R,I,C-CANANDAIGUA):
“Governor Paterson’s inclusion of furloughs in today’s latest emergency budget extender does little to shrink the size and cost of state government on a long-term basis. Furloughing workers will not fix the significant structural imbalances that have produced a $9.05 billion budget shortfall and a late State Budget that is now 40 days past due. New York needs real solutions to its financial crisis, solutions like consolidating and merging State Agencies, preventing Medicaid fraud, collecting taxes on the sales of cigarettes made on Native American lands to non-Native American Indians, and capping state government spending. These are the specific solutions to reduce the size and cost of state government that I have previously proposed and will continue urging the Governor and my fellow Legislative Leaders to act upon.”
ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER BRIAN KOLB: ALBANY ON-THE-RECORD COULD BE THE START OF SOMETHING SPECIAL – NEW YORK NEEDS MORE PUBLIC FORUMS ON REFORMING OUR BROKEN STATE GOVERNMENT
STATEMENT FROM NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER BRIAN M. KOLB (R,I,C-CANANDAIGUA):
“I was proud to take part in today’s ‘Albany On-The-Record’ forum and outline my strong support for reforming New York’s broken state government. Our Assembly Republican Conference and I have been leading the charge for meaningful governmental, fiscal, budgetary and ethical reforms to clean up the scandals, corruption and financial mismanagement that have come to define Albany. A ‘People’s Convention to Reform New York,’ which our Conference and I are championing – and 2,200 New Yorkers have supported at www.reformny.org – could make many of the reforms discussed today a reality. Albany On-The-Record may be the start of something special – but it cannot be the last word on reform. We need more of these public forums that will empower taxpayers to join the fight to take back their state government.”
ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER BRIAN KOLB: GOVERNOR PATERSON FIDDLES WHILE NEW YORK’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY BURNS
STATEMENT FROM NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER BRIAN M. KOLB (R,I,C-CANANDAIGUA):
“Governor Paterson continues to make construction contractors play an unnecessary and costly waiting game by not including state funding for certain road and bridge projects in his emergency budget extenders. The Governor’s refusal means necessary infrastructure work, and New York’s struggling economy, will remain stuck on the road to nowhere. Last week, our Assembly Republican Conference offered an amendment that would have restored the state funding held by the Governor. Today, we did so again and urged the Governor to stop fiddling while New York’s construction industry burns. The Governor’s inclusion of federal funding in today’s extender is only a drop in the bucket since much of that money is merely a pass through. Our Conference stands with construction workers and businesses in calling on the Governor to stop playing these games and release all of the overdue state funding.”
LEADING THE FIGHT FOR A FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE, ON-TIME STATE BUDGET: A TIMELINE OF ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN ACTION
Legislative column from Assembly Republican Leader Brian M. Kolb (R,I,C-Canandaigua)
Three weeks and counting – that is how long New York has been without the 2010-11 State Budget which was due back on April 1. Instead of action, taxpayers have gotten excuses from the Democratic leadership in both houses of the state Legislature and Governor Paterson. Their excuses are many and, frankly, they are unconvincing. Let’s be perfectly clear: New Yorkers don’t want excuses from politicians in Albany as to why the 2010-11 State Budget is late. What they want are real solutions that will move this stalled process forward and get the budget done.
ASSEMBLY REPUBLICANS: PUSHING FOR GREATER ACCOUNTABILITY & TRANSPARENCY IN STATE GOVERNMENT
Real solutions are exactly what our Assembly Republican Conference and I have continually offered to close the state’s $9.05 billion budget deficit and reform New York’s broken budget process. Not only have we publicly offered our ideas, but we have also called for action plans and timetables as part of our ongoing push for greater accountability and transparency in state government. I want to share with you a timeline of what Assembly Republicans have been doing for well over a year to solve New York’s fiscal crisis and deliver the on-time, fiscally responsible State Budget that taxpayers deserve.
A TIMELINE OF CALLING, AND VOTING, FOR FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
March 31, 2009: Our entire Assembly Republican Conference voted against the 2009-10 State Budget and warned that its dramatic increase in spending was fueled by non-recurring federal stimulus monies, that it eliminated middle class property tax relief and added $8.5 billion in new taxes and fees;
July 19, 2009: As state revenues continued their dramatic decline and New York’s unemployment climbed to a 26-year high, I called on Governor Paterson to convene a series of public Legislative Leaders’ meetings to deal with the exploding state budget deficit;
October, 2009: Our Assembly Republican Conference submitted a series of “conversation starters” on the Deficit Reduction Plan (DRP) to Governor Paterson and other Legislative Conferences that would achieve over $3 billion in budgetary savings when fully implemented. Some of our ideas included the extensive consolidations and mergers of State Agencies;
LEADER BRIAN KOLB, ASSEMBLY REPUBLICANS CONTINUE THE FIGHT TO RESTORE STATE FUNDING FOR CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTORS
Assembly Republicans offer amendment to emergency budget extender to restore state funding for safer roads and bridges, prevent further loss of construction jobs
(Albany, NY ) – Assembly Republican Leader Brian M. Kolb (R,I,C-Canandaigua) and Members of the Assembly Republican Conference kept up their pressure on Governor David Paterson to reverse his much-criticized decision to withhold state funding from construction contractors, a move that has already cost New York hundreds of construction jobs and is delaying a growing number of road and bridge projects.
Yesterday, Kolb and the Assembly Republicans offered an amendment to the emergency budget extender the Governor submitted for Assembly approval. In absence of the 2010-11 State Budget, now 19 days past due, the Governor has provided three such extenders, none of which contained state funding for new or ongoing construction projects. Even though the Assembly Republican amendment was defeated by a vote of 92-49, several Members of the Democrat Majority actually crossed party lines to vote for the Republican proposal. An official roll call of yesterday’s vote on the Republican amendment is attached with this press release.
Last week, Kolb and Assemblyman David G. McDonough (R,C,I-Merrick), the Ranking Republican Member on the Transportation Committee, called on the Governor to restore the funding. They were joined by leading voices representing construction contractors, including Marc Herbst, Executive Director of the Long Island Contractors’ Association, Inc.; Denise Richardson, Managing Director of the General Contractors Association of New York; Ross Pepe, President of the Construction Industry Council of Westchester and the Hudson Valley; and Kenneth L. Warner, Executive Director, UNICON – Unions and Businesses United in Construction.
“Yesterday, the Assembly voted on an emergency budget extender submitted by the Governor that again failed to include state funding for construction contractors, many of whom have been forced to stop work and lay off employees. Every day that passes without state funding in the construction pipeline is another day contractors cannot get back in what is a very limited window of opportunity for these infrastructure projects to move forward,” Kolb said.
“The Governor’s refusal to provide state funding for important infrastructure projects is adding to the ranks of more than 800,000 unemployed New Yorkers. Our Conference will continue applying pressure and offering amendments to future budget extenders to get this funding restored and prevent further job losses in New York’s construction industry. This should be a non-partisan effort; more Members of the Majority should have supported our common sense amendment yesterday,” Kolb stated.
“ROAD TO NOWHERE”: GOVERNOR PATERSON’S DECISION TO STOP PAYMENTS TO CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTORS HURTS NEW YORK’S ECONOMY, MAKES ROADS AND BRIDGES UNSAFE FOR MOTORISTS
Legislative column from Assembly Republican Leader Brian M. Kolb (R,I,C-Canandaigua)
As readers know by now, the 2010-11 State Budget is late. In fact, the budget is actually 15 days past due, with no end in sight. Without a budget in place, emergency budget extenders – legislation that provides temporary funding for basic operations of state government on a weekly or bi-weekly basis – are required. Emergency budget extenders are not something new – since this year’s late State Budget marks the 21st time since 1985 that New York’s spending plan has been late, extenders have been routinely enacted to avoid a state government shut down in the absence of a budget.
CONTROVERSIAL DECISION BY GOVERNOR PATERSON IS COSTING JOBS
What is different about this year’s budget extenders – two of which have already been enacted since New York’s April 1 fiscal deadline was missed – is Governor Paterson’s inclusion of a very controversial provision that stopped state payments to construction contractors. This halting of state payments by the Governor affects new construction projects and also some that are currently in the pipeline. Many of these projects include much-needed repair, renovation and resurfacing for New York’s roads, bridges and other critical infrastructure.
These are very big, very necessary, construction projects that our state’s aging infrastructure system needs. The projects also provide good-paying jobs and have a positive spin-off effect on the local economies where they are located. After all, construction workers need places to eat, purchase gas for their vehicles, along with countless other goods and services that are the backbone of local economies.
GOVERNOR’S ACTIONS MEAN FEWER JOBS, UNSAFE ROADS
In response to the Governor stopping state payments, work on over a dozen construction projects is now on hold. Some construction contractors have been forced to lay off workers due to insufficient funds to meet payrolls, and others have begun taking legal action against the state to get the money restored and the contracts honored. All told, over $600 million in construction projects are currently on hold, with more notifications and layoffs expected in the coming weeks.
People’s Convention Forum in Binghamton
Binghamton, NY – Is Albany working for you?
That was the question Assembly Republican Leader Brian M. Kolb (R,I,C-Canandaigua) asked when he spoke at a luncheon at the Binghamton Club for members of the Governmental Affairs Committee of the Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce, where he discussed support for a “People’s Convention to Reform New York,” and described how it could deliver the positive change that New Yorkers of all political parties – and regions – have been demanding. Kolb was joined and introduced by his colleague, Assemblyman Cliff Crouch (R,I-Guilford), who serves as the Ranking Republican Member on the Assembly’s Agriculture Committee.
The People’s Convention to Reform New York is a grassroots, non-partisan reform effort to empower citizens so they can take back their state government and, in the process, chart a positive, new direction for New York. Some of the issues that could be considered during a People’s Convention include fiscal reforms like a property tax and state spending cap, debt reform, along with a ban on “backdoor” borrowing and unfunded mandates. Governmental reforms such as initiative and referendum, an independent Legislative Redistricting Commission, term limits for Legislative Leaders, ethics reform and a succession plan for state offices could also be considered as part of a People’s Convention.
Kolb also discussed his non-partisan legislation, “The People’s Convention to Reform New York Act,” Assembly Bill A.9157. If enacted, the bill would put the question of whether New York should convene a “People’s Convention” on the 2010 ballot; by law, this question automatically goes before voters in 2017. The non-partisan measure would move up the opportunity for reform by seven years, accelerating the state’s ability to enact long overdue and much-needed changes. The legislation specifically requires that any elected official seeking to run as a delegate for, or serve in, the People’s Convention must first resign their office.
“There is a growing feeling among New Yorkers that their state government has stopped working for them – that it’s grown too costly, unresponsive and disconnected from the lives of those it was supposed to serve. It is time New Yorkers took their state government back – it begins by convening a ‘People’s Convention,’ which is the first step toward restoring accountability,” Kolb said.
“It is increasingly apparent that New Yorkers want real reform in Albany, especially given the late state budget,” said Crouch. “Genuine ideas to improve our state government like a ‘People’s Convention to Reform NY’ resonate with the constituents in my district and all across the state. Citizens are asking for ideas and results and I am very glad Leader Kolb traveled to Binghamton to report on the positive ideas being advanced by our Conference to make government work for the people again.”
Crouch represents the 107th Assembly District, which contains Broome, Chenango, Delaware and Ulster counties. Kolb’s 129th Assembly District is located in the Finger Lakes region and contains Cayuga, Cortland, Onondaga, Ontario and Seneca counties. For further details on the People’s Convention to Reform New York, go to www.reformny.org, and follow Assembly Republican Leader Brian Kolb on Twitter and Facebook.
ON “TAX DAY,” ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER BRIAN KOLB CALLS FOR AN END TO NEW YORK STATE’S OVER TAXATION OF MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES AND BUSINESSES
STATEMENT FROM NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY REPUBLICAN LEADER
BRIAN M. KOLB (R,I,C-CANANDAIGUA):
“Today is ‘Tax Day’ which brings into sharp relief the fact that New Yorkers still endure one of America’s highest and most crushing tax burdens. In fact, according to the non-partisan, independent Tax Foundation, the average New Yorker has to work 113 days this year just to pay their share of federal, state and local taxes. That means 113 days of hard work just to pay for the costs of big government. New York State ranks third highest in our nation in terms of days worked just to pay taxes: only New Jersey and Connecticut place higher. This week, and throughout the past year, there have been countless taxpayer tea parties and grassroots rallies all across New York, urging Albany to reduce spending and make tax relief a top priority. Our Assembly Republican Conference has heard and championed that very message of fiscal responsibility. We continue fighting for a property tax cap and state spending cap, along with delivering real tax relief for New York’s overtaxed, overburdened middle class families and businesses that have been forgotten by Albany.”
