5/19/12

Rick Karlin

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Knocking-donors-out-of-politics-3570307.php

A coalition of campaign finance reform supporters has mined election data to get personal to promote public financing of electoral campaigns.

Members of the FairElectionsNY coalition will gather at eight locations Saturday and then hit the streets for a petition drive in support of public financing for political campaigns.

That’s happening in mostly Republican state Senate districts, including the 43rd District served by Sen. Roy McDonald, a Saratoga Republican.

In addition to their petitioning, FairElectionsNY members will release lists of top political donors to Senate races who also serve on the state Business Council. They say this should illustrate how corporate contributions represent undue influence in politics.

“Our communities, our children, our families, and our economy can no longer withstand the overwhelming weight of influence that CEO campaign contributions have over our electoral process,” said Ivette Alfonso, president of Citizen Action of New York, which is part of the FairElectionsNY coalition.

But Business Council officials believe they are being targeted because they opposed certain parts of a campaign finance bill that has moved forward in the Democratic-led Assembly but failed to advance in the Republican Senate.

“These guys are protesting people that disagree with them on policy issues,” said Ken Pokalsky, government affairs director at the Business Council. “They are doing this to support their agenda, which is fine, but let’s take it for what it is.”

The Business Council, Pokalsky added, hasn’t taken as stance on campaign finance reform per se.

But they opposed the part of an Assembly bill that would have used penalties from securities law violations to fund public campaigns.

“We’ve always opposed tying penalty income to spending programs,” Pokalsky said.

Public sector unions are also major political donors, even though they haven’t been targeted by the FairElectionNY coalition, he added.

Saturday’s activities appear to have some symmetry, at least in terms of the political and economic battles lines that are raging in the background.

The FairElectionsNY coalition, for example, includes the United Auto Workers and Communications Workers of America unions as well as Common Cause and Citizen Action.

CWA has been locked in a contract dispute with Verizon. The telecom giant is named by FairElectionsNY as major Business Council member and Senate campaign contributor.

Verizon gave $391,000 to various Senate candidates since January 2010, records show.

Other big Senate donors who participate in the Business Council include cable TV giant Time Warner and AT&T, a major communications company.

Among individuals who are on the Business Council board of directors, Syracuse real estate developer Michael Falcone was the biggest Senate giver with a total of $24,850.

All told, companies and individuals affiliated with the Business Council gave $1.9 million to Senate candidates or committees, said Charlie Albanetti of Citizen Action. Of that, $1.3 million went to Republicans or Republican committees.

The petition drive also appears to be targeting at least three GOP senators who face special challenges due to the their support for Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s successful push last year for a gay marriage bill.

The Capital Region’s McDonald, for example, is facing a primary challenge by Saratoga County Clerk Kathy Marchione. Much of her backing comes from Republican activists who are upset that McDonald supported gay marriage.

Petitioners are scheduled to meet at 11 a.m. Saturday at Christ Church United Methodist, 35 State St., Troy.

Participants also will be in the districts represented by GOP senators Stephen Saland in the Hudson Valley and Mark Grisanti in Buffalo. Both voted for gay marriage, along with James Alesi of Rochester, who is not running for re-election.

Other districts targeted for petitioning include those of Senate GOP Majority Leader Dean Skelos and Kemp Hannon, Long Island; Tom Libous of Binghamton; and Marty Golden of Brooklyn.

The only Democrats who will get petitioners in their districts are Martin Malave Dilan of Brooklyn and Syracuse’s David Valesky, who is a member of the Senate Independent Democratic Conference. The IDC doesn’t always fall in line with the rest of the Democratic minority conference.

Albanetti said the petitioning was scheduled for particular districts. “Those are districts where we have lots of supporters,” he said.

5/18/12

Joseph Spector

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20120518/NEWS01/305180036/Campaign-reform-sought?nclick_check=1

On May 2, Gov. Andrew Cuomo went on a radio show and railed against the influence of money in politics: “The power of money in this Capitol is unbelievable.”

That night, he went to Buffalo and reportedly raised $450,000 at a $5,000 a-person fundraiser for his re-election in 2014.

Cuomo says regularly that he wants to reform the state’s porous campaign finance system. At the same time, he has mastered the current one.

Good-government groups said Cuomo’s ability to raise money and harness the power of big-money donors through the Committee To Save New York, a lobbying group, illustrates the problem with New York’s lax system.

“He’s playing by the present rules, and he’s doing well under these rules,” said Lawrence Norden, deputy director of the Brennan Center For Justice, a public-policy group at the New York University School of Law. “And he’s saying these rules are bad for New York, and we should change these rules.”

Cuomo and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, have indicated they would like to reform the campaign-finance system before the legislative session ends in June. Yet a major overhaul appears increasingly unlikely, reform groups said.

In his State of the State address in January, Cuomo said New York should create a public-financing system based on the one in New York City, which advocates said has worked well. But Cuomo hasn’t introduced his own bill, telling reporters last month he would rather seek compromise with legislative leaders.

“You can take the public-relations track of appearing to do something and I can put out my bill and rant and rave about it — or I can actually try to get something done,” Cuomo said. “And I’m trying to actually get something done.”

Silver introduced legislation last month that would allow qualified candidates for state office to receive matching contributions of $6 for every $1 they raise on contributions of up to $250. The goal would be to encourage small donors to contribute, give candidates more money to compete and limit the influence of big donors on the system.

Bill Mahoney, research coordinator for the New York Public Interest Research Group, said Silver’s proposal is a positive step.

The measure would take effect in 2014 for the state comptroller seat, then 2016 for the state Legislature and 2018 for governor and attorney general. Candidates who participate in the system would have a contribution limit of $2,000 per contributor. It would limit how much in public funds would be available for each race, with the highest being $12 million for each candidate for governor.

Cuomo spent $28 million on his campaign in 2010 through donations. Rochester billionaire Tom Golisano spent $75 million of his own money on his failed 2002 gubernatorial campaign, a state record.

State law allows an individual to give $60,800 to a statewide candidate — the highest among states with a limit, though about a dozen states have no limit on individual contributions. Presidential candidates can receive $5,000 from an individual.

Mahoney said Silver’s bill wouldn’t stop big-money influence, but it would be curtailed.

“It would help to empower the voices of people who can’t afford to spend the millions of dollars a year that groups, like the Committee to Save New York and various public employee unions, can spend,” Mahoney said.

The public-financing system would be funded through a volunteer check-off of $5 on people’s tax returns, a 10 percent surcharge on fraud recoveries and state aid. Estimates have indicated that the program could cost the state $20 million to $50 million a year.

Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Nassau County, said the state doesn’t have the money for a public-financing system. He pegged the cost at $200 million.

“I’d rather take that money, put it into education, and certainly many taxpayers throughout the state do not want to see their money going to individuals who they may not support,” Skelos told reporters last month.

If campaign-finance reform isn’t passed this session, advocacy groups said they will make it a top issue in the November elections, when all 213 legislative seats are on the ballot.

Citizen Action, a labor-backed group, planned a statewide “Knock for the 99%” campaign Saturday to push for campaign-finance reform. They planned to go door-to-door in eight Senate districts, including those represented by Republican Sens. Mark Grisanti of Buffalo, Thomas Libous of Binghamton and Stephen Saland of Poughkeepsie.

“Our communities, our children, our families and our economy can no longer withstand the overwhelming weight of influence that CEO campaign contributions have over our electoral process,” said Ivette Alfonso, the group’s president, in a statement.

Advocates for campaign-finance reform said the Committee to Save New York is an example of why the state needs to rein in the power of money in politics.

The business-backed group last year quickly spent the most of any lobbying group, a remarkable $10 million, to support Cuomo’s first-year agenda to cut state spending. Most of the money was spent on television ads.

As a result, Cuomo hasn’t spent much of his own campaign cash since he was elected. He had $14 million in his coffers, as of January, the most recent filing.

Current laws do not require the Committee to Save New York to disclose its donors. The group released records earlier this month that showed it pulled in more than $17 million in donations, including a $3 million check from one anonymous donor.

The group’s spokesman, Michael McKeon, said it would comply with whatever rules are adopted.

“We’ve always fully complied with the rules and always will,” he said.

5/18/12

Michael Johnson

http://www.capitaltonight.com/2012/05/campaign-finance-reform-advocates-target-8-senators/

The organization Fair Elections for NY, which is calling for public financing of campaigns, has for weeks now been trying to raise awareness about the current system by revealing the donations that state lawmakers have recieved from corporations and interest groups. Tomorrow, they are going to continue that push by holding press conferences across the state targeting 8 specific senators.

The group is going to outline the donations each senator has recieved from members of the Business Council of New York State. On their list are 6 Republicans and 2 Democrats, Sen. Martin Dilan from Brooklyn and Sen. Dave Valesky from Oneida.

The Senate is seen as the biggest stumbling block for campaign finance reform and has been the focus of the groups efforts. The Assembly has already put forth a bill on campaign finance reform and the Governor has voiced support for the issue, while maybe not the specific bill in the Assembly.

“Our communities, our children, our families, and our economy can no longer withstand the overwhelming weight of influence that CEO campaign contributions have over our electoral process,” said Ivette Alfonso, President of Citizen Action of New York.

“When corporations and their big money lobbyists pay for election campaigns, they’re effectively buying public policy. The integrity of our democracy requires that we, as constituents, have an audience with the officials we elect. Until New York has public financing of elections, we can’t be sure we’re truly being represented in our government.”

All this information is public to all and can be found on the state board of elections website, though I think it is fair to say that few people comb through individual donations to candidates.

A list of tomorrow’s events is after the jump.

• Long Island (Hannon & Skelos) – 10:30 am – LIPC Office, 90 Pennsylvania Avenue, Massapequa, NY 11758
• Bay Ridge, Brooklyn (Golden) – 11:00 am – Arab American Association, 7111 5th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11209
• Bushwick, Brooklyn (Dilan) – 11:00 am – Make the Road New York, 301 Grove Street, Brooklyn NY 11237
• Poughkeepsie (Saland) – 10:00 am – Poughkeepsie Family Partnership Center, 29 North Hamilton Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
• Capital District (McDonald) – 11:00 am – Christ Church United Methodist, 35 State Street, Troy, NY 12180
• Syracuse (Valesky) – 10:00 am – Elmwood School, 1728 South Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13207
• Southern Tier (Libous) – 10:00 am – Citizen Action of New York, 477 State Street, Binghamton, NY 13901
• Buffalo (Grisanti) – 10:30 am – Riverside Branch Library, 820 Tonawanda Street, Buffalo, NY 14207

5/21/12

Maureen McManus

http://www.capitaltonight.com/2012/05/citizen-actions-laymon-on-new-campaign-finance-reform-effort/

Advocates of campaign finance reform are launching a new effort to raise awareness about money in politics. They are focusing on eight state senators and the donations they’ve received. And starting this weekend, they’ll be going door to door to talk to voters about the issue. Downstate Campaigns Manager Jesse Laymon explains why they chose this group of lawmakers.

VIDEO AT THE ABOVE LINK

5/17/12

http://www.liveinsurancenews.com/clock-ticking-for-new-york-health-insurance-reform-requirements/853091/

Lawmakers in New York are being urged to propose a bill that would establish a health insurance exchange program in the state. Exchanges are one of the provisions of the Affordable Care Act. All states are required to establish one by 2014, but several advocacy groups say that there is no time to waste. One of these groups, Health Care for All New York, hosted a press conference late last week, calling upon legislators to take action.

“Over a million New Yorkers will be getting insurance through this program,” says Jessica Wisneski, campaign director for Citizen Action of New York. Wisneski believes that the establishment of an insurance exchange is the single most important issue facing legislators now.

If steps are not taken soon, the state may not qualify for a number of federal grants that could help mitigate the costs of constructing the program.

States have until 2013 to pass legislation that makes establishing a health insurance exchange possible. Those that fail to enact such legislation will receive no financial aid from the government. They will have to erect the exchanges on their own before the final deadline in 2014. If a program is not in place by that time, the federal government will step in and set one up.

New York is one of 12 states that have yet to pass legislation regarding an exchange program. Advocacy groups believe that plans will have to be in place by the end of the current legislative session in order to receive aid from the government.

5/16/12

Corinne Lestch

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/sen-gillibrand-pressures-congress-prevent-college-loan-hikes-affect-thousands-city-students-article-1.1078755?localLinksEnabled=false

College loan interest rates will soar, affecting thousands of students citywide, if Congress doesn’t act immediately, according to a new report released by the Center for American Progress.

About 420,000 college students in New York State will have to pay more than $340 million extra in interest if the rates on Stafford loans double from 3.4% to 6.8%, according to the report.

“We could have prevented this from doubling,” charged Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) on a conference call with reporters on Tuesday. “When we price our young people out of higher education, we all pay the price. We rob ourselves of a future engineer or biologist or teacher.”

Jillian Sesenton, a master’s student at Fordham University, said she will be close to $200,000 in debt once she finishes her thesis this year, between her undergraduate and graduate programs. She started college at 28 after scraping up money from odd jobs.

“I’m excited to graduate, but I know what’s waiting for me in the end,” said Sesenton, now 38. According to the report, the median student borrower age went from 35 in 2007 to 39 in 2009.

“I have no idea how I’m going to manage to pay these loans,” continued Sesenton, who grew up in the Patterson Houses in Mott Haven. “If they double the interest rates to 6.8%, I’m going to be completely broke. I don’t know how I’m going to survive.”

Congress established the low interest rates in 2007 over a period of five years. The bill to keep the existing rate for another year was blocked by Republicans in the Senate, making the issue another instrument for partisan bickering.

Students at the city and state universities of New York may face more hikes on top of the federal loan threat after a tuition increase goes into effect.

“Especially with the tuition increases we’re seeing at SUNY and CUNY, and the interest rates we’re seeing on top of that, is really a double whammy for students,” said Karen Scharff, executive director of Citizen Action of New York.

Starting next fall, all CUNY students will pay $300 extra annually for five years, bringing the in-state tuition to $6,330 a year after a five-year hike.

“Let’s keep (college) affordable,” pressed Gillibrand. “There’s no excuse for inaction. There’s real concern on how to move forward here.”

5/15/12

Jillian Jorgenson

http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2012/05/staten_island_college_students.html

Nationwide, student loan debt has topped $1 trillion – and if Congress doesn’t act soon, New Yorkers heading to college in September can expect to pay about $420 million more interest on their federal loans.

If Congress doesn’t act by July 1, a law setting the interest rate on federal subsidized Stafford loans at 3.4 percent will expire – and the rate will double, to 6.8 percent. The rate hike would affect more than 7.4 million Americans who use the popular loans, which are issued to students at both public and private universities.

The 3.4 percent interest rate is for subsidized Stafford loans, given to needier students. Many other students already pay 6.8 percent in interest for unsubsidized  Stafford loans.

According to a report from the Public Policy and Education Fund of New York, USAction Education Fund, and Campus Progress released today, 422,670 New York students have currently borrowed funds through unsubsidized Stafford student loans. By keeping the interest rate where it is now, those New York students would save $419,711,310 – an average of $933 per student.

In a conference call with advocates working to keep the rates low, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand said she would continue to fight on behalf of students. Last week, she said, the Senate had the chance to “do the right thing” and extend the 3.4 percent interest rate for a year.

“Instead, my colleagues across the aisle chose to stand in the way of this common sense proposal,” she said.

The higher interest rates will push “access to quality higher education even farther out of reach” for many, and will lead to young people finishing college with “even more unmanageable debt.”

Sen. Gillibrand said while both parties were open to cutting the interest rates, they couldn’t agree on how to pay for it. Democrats proposed closing tax loopholes, she said, and Republicans refused. Republicans proposed cutting preventative care funding, and Democrats refused.

Karen Scharff, executive director of Citizen Action of New York, said with students graduating with more and more debt, young families are putting off expenses like buying a house – the kinds of investments and purchases that could help the sluggish economy.

“This year total student debt carried by Americans topped $1 trillion,” she said, more than credit card debt or car loan debt. “This crushing debt is hurting students, their families and our economy.”

Sophia Smart, a recent graduate from the State University at Albany and an organizer with New York Students Rising, said students are already taking out more debt because of increased tuition at SUNY and CUNY schools. City and state schools have raised tuition without consulting students, or explaining why the increases are necessary and why the cost should be passed on to students.

“Those who cannot handle the burden of debt are essentially boxed out from the opportunity to get a college education,” she said.

She hoped the conversation would eventually move from Stafford loan interest rates to how to tackle the $1 trillion in debt owed by students nationwide.

Lynne Theophanis, of Vestal, is pursuing her master’s in social work at Binghamton University – and has two daughters, 15 and 12, who will be heading to college in the next five years. She had paid off most of her undergraduate debt before pursuing her master’s, but when she graduates she’ll owe about $35,000.

“I can’t emphasize enough how alarming it is to me as a parent, and so many others, when we’re looking at the possibility of the interest rate doubling for student loans as I’m trying to conclude my own master’s program and also looking to finance my daughters’ education,” she said.

She chose to pursue her master’s despite the financial struggle, she said, in part to set an example for her children – that they could pursue a college education in this country regardless of age or income.

“I have to say, that dream doesn’t seem as realistic with the possibility of the doubling of the interest rates, and the financial predicament that would put my family and so many other families into,” she said.

5/8/12

James Nani

http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120508/NEWS/120509743

The Mid-Hudson Valley 99% will by occupying Rep. Nan Hayworth’s office Wednesday afternoon to protest a federal budget vote they’ve dubbed ”The Millionaires’ Dream Budget.”

The organization, made up of Working Families Organization, Citizen Action of NY and local residents, will be calling on Hayworth, R-Mount Kisco, to vote against what they characterize as “huge tax breaks to Wall Street, CEOs and the richest 1 percent of Americans.” The budget bill has been touted by Republicans but panned by Democrats.

Spokesman for the Mid-Hudson Valley 99% Matthew Hanson said they will present an offer to Hayworth to live like one of the 99 percent for a day by trying to find a job, balancing a budget and visiting schools.

The protest will happen between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. at 7 Coates Drive, Suite 1 in Goshen.

5/4/12

Ryan Delaney

http://www.wrvo.fm/post/buerkle-talks-vets-seniors-healthcare-town-hall

After opening with acknowledgement of the veterans present and the work she’s done for them, Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle (R-Onondaga Hill) turned her focus to a flyer that was being distributed outside.

Buerkle held her 17th town hall since taking office in Cicero Friday morning. The flyer being handed out by the political advocacy group Citizens Action of New York discussed her “dangerous record” on social security and Medicare.

Buerkle told the crowd of mostly senior citizens that it wasn’t true.

“There are no cuts for those who are on Medicare; there’s no change,” she said. “The Affordable Care Act changes Medicare as we know it, not the budget proposal out of the House.”

When it was time to take questions from her constituents, some of the topics got a little easier.

First up: “Are you as excited for your second term as I am?”

It drew a smile and a laugh from the congresswoman, who in November will face-off against the man she took the seat from, Democrat Dan Maffei.

Her appointment as a congressional liaison to the United Nations and taxes were among other questions she fielded.

5/2/12

Jon Campbell

http://polhudson.lohudblogs.com/2012/05/02/pro-frackers-deliver-petitions-anti-frackers-meet-behind-the-scenes/

Unsurprisingly, the divide among the two sides of the hydrofracking debate is evident even in their public relations strategies.

Both supporters and opponents of hydraulic fracturing for natural gas were in the state Capitol today to make their case. But their approach was very different.

Early in the afternoon, a handful of groups—including New Yorkers Against Fracking, the Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter and Citizen Action of New York—delivered seven boxes of petitions to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office that were signed by New Yorkers in favor of a statewide hydrofracking ban. In all, more than 200,000 people signed the petitions, according to the groups.

“We’re here today to present over 200,000 petitions to the governor for a permanent statewide ban on hydrofracking,” said Renee Vogelsang, field organizing director for Frack Action. “We know that this cannot be done safely, and an overwhelming majority of New Yorkers want real, green energy and a ban on fracking now.”

(Various polls have found support for hydrofracking is essentially split in New York.)

At the same time, members of the Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York were meeting behind the scenes with lawmakers and members of Cuomo’s staff.

IOGA Executive Director Brad Gill said the group’s message was simple: It’s time to move forward. High-volume hydrofracking has been on hold in New York since 2008, when the state Department of Environmental Conservation launched a review of the technique. It will remain on hold until that review is completed.

“First and foremost, we want this regulatory process to continue full steam ahead and ideally unimpeded by legislative efforts,” Gill said. “It’s been going on four years now that the state has delayed, and at great cost to the state.”