The Remarks Of Speaker Sheldon Silver

New York State Association Of Counties Annual Legislative Conference

The Desmond Hotel, Albany, New York
Tuesday, January 29, 2007 [9:30 A.M.]

{As Prepared for Deliver}

President Lucille McKnight. County Executive Mike Breslin. Executive Director Steve Acquario. Members of NYSAC.

First, let me say that it is good to see my former Assembly colleague Bill Ryan again.

Although he served but one term in the Assembly (1983-84), Bill remained with us and assisted our Legislative Commission on State and Local Relations.

Bill, because it is the nature of politicians to take credit for everything that we can, let me say how proud I am that the years of Assembly training you received while I have been Speaker made it possible for you to become Chair of the Westchester County Board of Legislators.

Congratulations to both of us.

Let me offer a note of thanks to our Governor, Eliot Spitzer, for the great job he did in warming up the crowd for me this morning. Hopefully, for my sake, you are warmed up and not "overheated."

I understand that the Association was addressed by our State Comptroller, Tom DiNapoli, last night.

I think I join all New Yorkers in applauding his finding that a Thruway-toll increase is not justified at this time.

The Thruway is literally, the backbone of the upstate economy. Your communities and the working men and women who live there have a big enough challenge making due with limited resources, we should not be adding to their burdens with a hike in Thruways tolls.

That said, I repeat my earlier call for the Thruway Authority's Board to step down, so that Governor Spitzer can appoint his own team who will share his vision for the Authority.

It is my privilege, once again, to extend the greetings of the State Assembly to each and every member of this Association as well as our best wishes for a productive conference and for a good and a productive year of governing.

If I might, let me take a moment to acknowledge our host, my longtime friend and a terrific leader, Albany County Executive Mike Breslin.

Because Albany County has been my "home away from home" for more than thirty years, I know just how much Mike Breslin's leadership has meant to the growth and the enhancement of life here in the Capital Region.

As always, Mike, it's good to see you.

As I said a week ago today in my response to his budget presentation, I believe that the Governor has given us a good starting point from which we can begin the legislative budget process; a process that I am confident will yield a budget that will be on time, that will address the needs of the working men and women of this state, and that will reflect the uncertainty in our economy.

Yes, I and my Assembly Majority colleagues have concerns with the Executive Budget, as I know this Association does. Frankly, I would be more concerned if this governor or any governor submitted a budget proposal that had no critics.

The more important thing to remember is that we have a governor who actually wants to take on the big challenges we face.

Those of you who represent counties in Western New York and the Southern Tier, in Central New York and in the Finger Lakes, in the Mohawk Valley and the Hudson Valley, in the North Country and the Thousand Islands Region, did you ever think that you would see a day when a governor of this state would go to Buffalo and deliver a "State of the Upstate" Address?

That was no "tip-of-the-hat" to the plight of the upstate economy. That presentation was a comprehensive, thoughtful and carefully crafted plan backed up with a billion-dollar promise.

If that sounds like cheerleading, keep in mind that the Governor's region-by-region plan is the same economic development strategy that I have presented to you in the past; the same approach to job creation that I and my Assembly colleagues have been preaching for more than a decade.

The difference now is that we have partner in the Executive Branch who is passionate about governing and who sincerely wants to get things done.

This is not about partisanship or posturing. This is about restoring the people's trust in their government, their trust in you and me, and in all of our colleagues who understand what a privilege it is to hold elected office.

For the sake of our working families, we must revitalize the Main Street economy and we must expand the stock of decent, affordable housing in this state.

For the sake of our children, we must start them on the path to success by giving every four-year-old access to an effective pre-K program. We must apply the CFE principles to every school district in every region of this state, and we must do what the Bush Administration would not and extend S-CHIP health insurance coverage to an additional 70,000 needy children.

These are moral obligations that we share.

If County Executive Suozzi and his team can figure out how we can honor our obligations to educate our children and cap property taxes, then, by all means, let's get it done.

As Thoreau once advised, "In the long run, you hit only what you aim at."

Although it gets lost in the rhetoric, we aimed high last year and established a record of achievement that we can build upon:

• Worker's Compensation reform - the business community's number one issue;

• The Medicaid cap, the savings from which, will continue to accrue throughout the new fiscal year;

• A commitment to CFE that included an historic investment in public education tied to significant education reforms;

• Budget reform;

• And, tax cuts for business and tax relief for homeowners.

All of these important goals were reached, because we worked together: the Governor, the Legislature, the counties, the cities, the business community, Labor, the advocacy groups … all of us.

Now, just 29 days into the new year, we face our choice again, consensus or cynicism?

In his State of the State Address, the Governor extended an olive branch to the Legislature. I and my Assembly Majority colleagues have accepted that olive branch and are ready to work with him, with our colleagues in the Senate, and with this Association to move our state forward.

For our part, we have already unveiled a plan that addresses the sub-prime mortgage crisis in this state.

Last week, we passed a legislative package to reform our IDAs.

Soon, we will again move forward in reforming the Wick's Law.

And, we are ready to work with you to address the Governor's innovative revenue proposals.

Yesterday, the joint fiscal committees received NYSAC's testimony regarding the state budget. I assure you that your concerns and your recommendations will be kept at the forefront as we proceed through the legislative budget process.

As this session unfolds, remember that my door - and the doors of my Assembly colleagues - are always open to our county executives and to this Association.

In this period of economic uncertainty, let us continue to work together to bring a measure of security and hope to the working men and women that all of us are privileged to represent.

Whatever ultimately happens, let us stand together now and say in one voice: GO GIANTS!

Enjoy the remainder of your stay in Albany and thank you for listening.