Assemblyman Michael J. Fitzpatrick (R,C-Smithtown) and members of the Assembly Minority legislative conference have unveiled a sweeping new plan that will help create new jobs, reinvigorate the state's struggling economy and boost the quality of life for all New Yorkers.

'Roadmap to Renewal" is the Assembly Minority Conference's list of 2004 legislative priorities and builds on last year's Assembly Minority "NY First" legislative agenda, the conference's most successful program of achievements in a generation.

"I believe that a less intrusive and more efficient government can provide the best opportunities for work and prosperity for our citizens," said Assemblyman Fitzpatrick. "In order to increase efficiency in our state government reform of our broken budgetary process needs to be the first order of business," he continued. "For the past 19 years, late budgets have hindered state finances and created a loss of public trust and confidence in government. New York deserves a budget that's on-time every time!"

"Rebuilding New York's economy and creating new jobs and opportunities for New Yorkers must be the top priority of government at every level around which every other action must be measured," said Assembly Minority Leader Charles H. Nesbitt (R,C-Albion). "Roadmap to Renewal is a comprehensive package of proposals that combines innovative new ideas and expanded programs that already work to encourage the creation of new jobs and make New York a destination for entrepreneurs, companies large and small, and anyone looking for a chance to succeed and achieve the American dream."

"Roadmap to Renewal" contains four essential points designed to help improve the quality of life for all New Yorkers and focuses on critical needs and issues most important to New Yorkers:

A less intrusive, more efficient government
Focuses on streamlining government operations by reducing costs that lead to increased taxes, and rewards new initiatives aimed at lowering the cost of government regulation. It includes comprehensive mandate relief and other measures, including emergency assistance and a gradual state takeover of the entire share of local Medicaid costs, to help local governments hold the line on soaring local property taxes.

Ensuring a quality education for our children The plan recognizes the critical role a quality education is in helping prepare New Yorkers for future challenges, by strengthening our communities and providing for the critical needs of New Yorkers. The plan reinforces the Assembly Minortiy's commitment to quality, locally-based education, and urges reforms designed to ensure the best use of scarce education aid dollars.

Providing opportunities for work and prosperity Includes incentives and innovative programs to help stimulate New York state's economy and encourage job growth, such as a renewed commitment to lower taxes by protecting and preserving the STAR property tax relief program and resisting any effort to extend income and sales tax increases enacted last year beyond their statutory sunset dates. The plan also supports innovative new tax incentives to encourage manufacturing, bolster job-creating small businesses in downtown "Main Streets" throughout the state, and make it tougher for future legislatures to raise job-killing taxes.

Safer Communities The plan proposes to build on New York's historic strides against violence by promoting even safer communities and strengthening safeguards against future terrorist attacks. The plan includes a sweeping 'zero tolerance' plan to thwart sexual attacks against women and children, which have been on the rise in recent years defying the dramatic drop in other types of violence. The 'zero tolerance' recommendations stem from the work of a special Assembly Minority Task Force created in 2003 to study the growing problem. In addition, it confronts the nagging problem of inner-city crime and renews the Assembly Minority conferences demands for tougher anti-terrorism laws to protect the state from future attacks.

Providing opportunities for work and prosperity

Keeping New York's tax cut promise - urges lawmakers to abandon any attempt to extend 2003 sales and income tax hikes beyond their statutory sunset dates as a way to support higher government spending.

Empire Zone expansion and reform - supports expanding the best features of the successful, job-creating EZ program with reforms and other incentives to improve accountability and support growing small businesses, creation of a statewide "Superzone" with added flexibility and accountability and an innovative "EZ Main Street" program that provides new tax breaks and required improvements to help small businesses in downtown districts.

Manufacturing incentives - includes call for new tax incentives for companies that create and maintain new jobs, as well as an emphasis on new technologies that hold promise for creating future industries in New York State.

"Back to Business" tax reform program - simplifies existing tax codes to remove obstacles for businesses to locate in New York, and promotes efforts to lower the cost of doing business in New York.

Power to Grow - prioritizes the need to ensure safe, reliable and affordable energy supplies for New York families and businesses.

Agriculture - builds on the findings of the Assembly Minority Task Force on the State of New York Agriculture to provide new benefits, initiatives and incentives for family farmers to help support New York's strongest industry.

Less intrusive, more efficient government

Budget Reform - renews Assembly our conference's commitment to an on-time state budget as a first step to restoring public confidence in Albany governance. The Assembly plan urges consensus revenue forecasts, a stronger role for the independently elected Comptroller, public Minority conference committee debates on all parts of the spending plan, a fool-proof mechanism to ensure a budget by the start of the fiscal year, and a prohibition on secretive, lump-sum budget disbursements.

"NY-stat" - an innovative proposal to adopt the highly successful computer mapping and accountability standards that helped drive the startling crime reductions in New York City to operations of state government to promote better efficiency and savings for taxpayers.

Medicaid reform - in addition to a five-year state takeover of local Medicaid costs, the plan urges funding for emergency fiscal relief for counties strapped by soaring Medicaid costs, new anti-fraud incentives, and a ban on new, unfunded Albany-ordered mandates.

State/local working groups - encourages proactive outreach by state agencies to help local governments identify new sources of funding, as well as economies of consolidation and cost-sharing agreements. The idea is modeled on the Assembly Minority Conference's own successful housing development forums hosted throughout the state in 2003.

Tax and mandate relief - the plan urges stricter limits on the ability of the Legislature to enact new and higher taxes, and ideas to help local governments facing higher-than-expected mandated costs for government employee pensions.

Safer Communities

"Zero tolerance" for sex crimes - includes proposals to stem growing incidents of sexual assaults, especially against children, that stem from the findings of a special Assembly Minority task force on that issue. Bills strengthening "Megan's Law" and establishing a process of "continued confinement" for high-risk offenders would send a clear message to criminals that protecting women and children from becoming victims of violence is a high priority for state government.

Urban and gang crime initiative - addresses growing problems of street violence in Upstate cities, many of which have not seen dramatic reductions in crime witnessed by other communities, as well as other quality of life crimes in urban areas.

Reducing Drunk Driving Fatalities - seeks to address continuing problem of "hard-core" drunk drivers who are responsible for most highway carnage.

Terrorism - the mind-boggling failure of the Assembly Majority to enact stricter laws to deter and punish terrorist acts is addressed in a series of proposals to help guard against future incidents such as by criminalizing potential terrorist actions, and amending the heralded Assembly Minortiy Patriot Plan to provide additional recruitment and retention incentives to New York men and women fighting to defend freedom.

Ensuring a quality education for our children

Protecting STAR - The Assembly Minority Conference stands united in defending the STAR property tax relief program from attacks by those seeking to increase state spending.

Education reform - proposals ranging from a top-to-bottom make-over of the Board of Regents to accountability and efficiency initiatives designed to ensure tax dollars are used wisely and effectively to educate our students for a promising future.