The 2006 legislative session ended with significant headway made on important issues for New Yorkers, but also left us major reforms to tackle next year. The Assembly made significant progress on reforming campaign finance laws, restricting lobbyist influence, and lowering prescription drug prices, but unfortunately the Senate did not follow suit. Below I have highlighted some of the main actions of this past legislative session.

New Yorkers, particularly those who are uninsured, are faced with greater prescription drug bills every day. The Assembly passed the Prescription Drug Assistance Program (A.6336) to secure the lowest possible prices for prescription drugs for a broad spectrum of New Yorkers, including public employees, senior citizens, small businesses, working families, and those without health insurance. The Senate and the Governor, however, failed to act on this critical issue. The Assembly’s plan taps into the collective purchasing power of New Yorkers by creating a buying pool managed by the state to negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs. For many people, these drugs are a necessary part of daily life. The increasing cost of prescription drugs has become prohibitively expensive to those who need them the most and places a burden on health insurance plans and publicly funded medical assistance programs.

I am pleased to announce that the Legislature passed landmark legislation to eliminate the criminal five-year statute of limitations on rape and Class B felony sex crimes. Victims of these crimes are often too traumatized to muster up the courage to notify authorities until years after the event. Removing the time limit in which victims can bring these cases will help ensure that criminals do not get away with these heinous crimes, no matter how much time has elapsed. The bill also extends the length of time victims have to file civil suits, from one year to five years. The Governor signed this important bill into law this summer.

The Assembly secured a record $225 million for the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF), which represents a $75 million increase over last year’s budget and $45 million more than proposed by the Governor in January. The appropriation provides much-needed funding for EPF programs, such as municipal parks, waterfront revitalization, municipal recycling, as well as the ability to fund new purposes, such as ocean and Great Lakes protection, water quality improvement and invasive species management and control. In addition, 25 percent of the funding for municipal parks and waterfront access was set aside for low-income communities that lack much open space.

Real reform starts on the road to elected office. Because I believe that New York’s campaign finance laws are in need of major change, I co-sponsored the Assembly’s efforts to overhaul these laws. The Assembly’s plan addressed some of the problems in the current law by limiting contributions to candidates and political committees and creating a public funding mechanism similar to that of New York City. It also would have closed a loophole in the system by banning unlimited "soft money" donations to political parties’ housekeeping accounts, which are currently exempt from contribution and receipt limitations. I also co-sponsored legislation that more clearly defines permissible uses of campaign funds once in office, so that contributions which are meant to help elect a candidate to office are not used as personal "slush" funds. Unfortunately, neither the Senate nor the Governor chose to follow the Assembly’s lead in reforming these dysfunctional laws.

Last year strides were made to limit lobbyist influence in Albany, and this past session the Assembly pushed these restrictions further by voting to prohibit gifts from lobbyists to public officials altogether. The Assembly’s reforms also banned the acceptance of honoraria by public officials, and restricted high-ranking legislators from lobbying their former colleagues in the Legislature for the duration of at least one year after leaving their positions. The Senate and the Governor again dropped the ball by ignoring these changes. If we want to see real reform in Albany, we cannot be content with business as usual.

In July, the New York State Court of Appeals issued its ruling refusing to recognize the simple justice of marriage equality. That decision marked a dark day for all New Yorkers. Discrimination based on who one loves cannot be tolerated in this state. Same-sex families are denied more than 1,000 federal and state rights and responsibilities granted to married couples, and family laws regarding custody and visitation rights do not adequately protect children of same-sex parents. I co-sponsored legislation to grant the fundamental human right to marry to same-sex couples, and I pledge to redouble efforts to work with my colleagues in the Legislature to achieve this civil right for all New Yorkers.

With rising energy costs looming on the horizon, the Assembly appropriated $100 million in emergency funds to the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP). These funds will assist low-income New Yorkers and seniors with home heating costs this winter.

My first legislative session was an exciting one. I introduced and co-sponsored many initiatives that address a diverse spectrum of issues. I have outlined for you four of my bills that were signed into law.

I authored legislation that protects companion animals from abuse and punishes animal cruelty. This bill allows family courts to include companion animals under the provisions of a court order of protection. The measure prohibits the intentional injuring or killing, without justification, of any companion animal that the subject of the court order knows to be owned by the victim. New York is only the third state in the nation to pass such a measure, and other states are considering similar legislation modeled on my law.

Domestic violence experts indicate that many men who abuse their spouses or girlfriends have threatened to harm, assault, and even kill their animals as a form of abuse and control. Nationwide, police departments, social workers, and animal protection organizations report a definitive link between abuse and animal cruelty. This measure has been hailed by both domestic violence advocates and animal rights groups as a step forward in ending this cycle of violence.

I am proud to be able to provide for the extension of the SONYMA program, which allows homeowners to more easily secure loans for construction and rehabilitation of affordable housing. I hope that this is the first of many bills that will alleviate conditions for tenants and homeowners throughout the West Side. Housing is one of my top priorities, and I am looking forward to pursuing an even more aggressive housing agenda next session.

Domestic violence victims who have left their abusers but continue to share health insurance policies are at risk because abusers can track their information-records of medical visits and information about a victim’s whereabouts. A law passed last year protects victims covered under individual health insurance plans, but excluded those protections from individuals covered under group health insurance policies, including Child Health Plus, Medicaid Managed Care, and Family Health Plus. Victims of domestic violence should not have to fear having their actions tracked by their abusers through the health insurance system. I sponsored and passed legislation that ensures the protection and confidentiality of domestic abuse victims covered under group health insurance policies by closing this loophole.

I was pleased to work with State Senator Tom Duane to pass legislation to ensure that no one escapes child and spousal support payments by filing for a name change. The new legislation requires petitioners for a name change to provide information about whether or not they are responsible for child or spousal support and whether or not the payments are up to date. No one should have the option of simply changing their surname to escape payments they are legally and morally bound to provide.

At the annual public hearing convened by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) on May 14, I urged NYCHA to reconsider its draft annual plan. While the Authority faces a significant budget deficit, its plans to close the gaps are ill-conceived and will prove to be harmful to the neediest families in New York City. In my testimony, I called on NYCHA to seek long-term solutions to its budget deficit, such as putting more pressure on the Mayor and the Governor to maintain city and state housing developments, rather than the stopgap measures proposed, which include a rent increase for NYCHA tenants. I also voiced strong opposition to NYCHA’s application to the federal Moving-to-Work program, which in other major cities has caused developments to be demolished or sold to private developers, and removed Brooke Amendment protections which cap residents’ rents at 30% of their income. Finally, I urged NYCHA to go back to the drawing board and include resident input on the plan, as they are required by federal law.

At the annual Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) meeting this year I testified on behalf of tenants living in rent-stabilized apartments in strong opposition to the proposed rent increases of 3-6.5% for one-year and 5-8.5% for two-year lease renewals. Many Upper West Side residents are being forced out of their homes through vacancy decontrol and landlord harassment. Landlords use a host of methods, legal and illegal, to exploit tenants in order to push the rent ever closer toward the $2,000 per month decontrol level. Some of these schemes include the oft-abused system of Major Capital Improvements and the illegal practice of phony demolitions. I called for the RGB not to allow these rent increases when many landlords are generating unprecedented profits on the decontrolled, market-rate apartments in their rent-regulated buildings.

Unfortunately, the RGB decided to raise rents 4.25% for one-year and 7.25% for two-year lease renewals. I also spoke out against 7.5% increases for rent-controlled tenants before the DHCR in March. These increases are unacceptable and simply reinforce what I and many other affordable housing advocates have been saying for years: New York City must have control over its own housing law. I will continue to fight for repeal of the Urstadt Law in Albany.

Property taxes across the state have increased steadily, yet when Governor Pataki submitted his executive budget in January, he excluded New York City homeowners from a proposed property tax rebate. The Legislature eliminated these exclusions in our version of the budget, making homeowners, co-op, and condo owners eligible for a rebate, including those who reside in New York City. The governor vetoed the Legislature’s proposal. With bipartisan support, both the Senate and the Assembly overrode the Governor’s veto. Homeowners, co-op, and condo owners who receive basic or enhanced School Tax Relief (STAR) exemptions on their 2006-07 tax bills are eligible to receive rebate checks, which will arrive this fall.

On May 25, more than 300 West Side seniors gathered at the American Museum of Natural History for my first West Side Seniors Day. I was happy to carry on this annual tradition which gets better every year. At the event, co-sponsored by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, seniors were treated to a lecture from a member of the Museum staff, a self-guided tour of the Charles Darwin exhibit, an IMAX movie about the Galapagos Islands, and access to the other 46 museum halls. I’ve heard lots of positive feedback from seniors and look forward to hosting this occasion next year.

In Albany, I made senior issues a major priority, sponsoring numerous bills to benefit our older residents. This legislative package targeted the challenge of making sure that our seniors can stay in their homes, afford to remain in our community, and stay healthy. I also urge any seniors with questions about SCRIE, HEAP, or EPIC to contact my office for assistance at 212-863-6368. I’m here to serve you!

The 96th Street IRT station is long overdue for rehabilitation, and beginning in 2007, it will undergo an $80 million renovation. The project will include a new station house located on the mall along Broadway between 95th and 96th Streets. The station house will provide for direct access to uptown and downtown platforms, replacing the existing two-staircase journey that passengers currently face. This station will have two ADA-compliant elevators to accommodate all passengers. The project will create usable park space along the median featuring plantings, seating areas, and a kiosk. I am working closely with New York City Transit and MTA officials to ensure that as the project gets under way, pedestrian safety, sidewalk space and other community concerns are addressed.

This past spring the Legislature scored a victory for New York City public school children by delivering $1.8 billion in the legislative budget for school construction. The budget also authorizes an additional $9.4 billion in borrowing, in order to fulfill the capital funding requirements as outlined in the Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE) decision. I believe this was a major step toward properly funding our schools and providing our children with a sound, basic education, but there is more to be done. For 13 years, CFE has been fighting to reform New York State’s school finance system. In March the Court of Appeals affirmed their case, ordering not only the capital funding, but also $4.7 to $5.63 billion in operating aid for New York City. I pledge to work with my colleagues to ensure that our schools receive the operating funding they desperately need. Our students deserve small classroom sizes, quality teachers, proper textbooks, and a healthy school environment. We must keep fighting to ensure that all New York City students have the opportunity for success!