Albany, NY—In response to the end of the 2019 state legislative session, Jessica Wisneski, Co-Executive Director of Citizen Action of New York, has issued the following statement:
“This state legislative session demonstrated the extraordinary power and potential of everyday New Yorkers to win transformative legislation.
“From the strongest tenant protections in a generation, nation-leading action on climate change, justice for farm workers, expanded voting rights, bail reform, discovery overhaul, driver’s licenses for all and more, the path to victories that put people and communities over profit is clear. It’s the path that led us through the 2018 election that ousted the IDC-Republican Senate majority, that led us to throwing down a progressive primary challenge to Governor Cuomo and that drove us to fighting for statewide public campaign financing: People-powered elections push the edge of what’s possible in Albany.
“We applaud the New York State Assembly and Speaker Carl Heastie for their years of dedication to the many important bills that became law this session and congratulate and commend the New York State Senate, under the leadership of Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, for its thoughtful and persistent leadership in shaping the most historic legislative victories for New Yorkers in a generation.
“It’s also clear how much farther we have to go. Critical bills to legalize marijuana and address decades of racist enforcement, stop the overuse of school suspensions, advance police transparency and accountability, and end the torture of solitary confinement were sidelined. But we know what to do: Day by day, block by block, door by door, Citizen Action will continue to engage, recruit and empower the New Yorkers most impacted by these injustices who will lead us to victory.”
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