New York State Assembly

Negotiating the 2014-15 State Budget occupied a great deal of time and attention in the early part of the year. With the annual spending plan now passed, it is time for Albany to focus on advancing high-priority legislation before the end of the 2014 Legislative Session. A number of important legislative issues need to be addressed.

Because this is an election year, some lawmakers may be more inclined to generate campaign sound bites rather than enact responsible public policy. As we return to Albany from our districts, legislators need to put election-year gimmicks away and deliver programs that offer effective, lasting solutions that help New Yorkers.

FOCUSING ON THE NEEDS OF NEW YORKERS

My legislative priorities for the remainder of the session are focused on reducing taxes, creating jobs, improving our woeful business climate and addressing quality-of-life issues for constituents. There is a great deal of work ahead of us, and some specific measures have languished for far too long and require action in the immediate future.

• Brittany's Law would create a registry of violent offenders, providing families and communities with valuable information and improving public safety in every community. Despite bipartisan support in the Assembly, the bill has stalled for years. It is long past time to advance this critical public safety initiative.

• The recently-enacted budget completely ignored the issue of unfunded mandates. As a result, the state-imposed costs on local governments continue to rise. When Albany forces programs on municipalities, the expense of implementing those programs results in property tax increases. For years, local officials have pleaded for mandate relief, but their concerns have fallen on deaf ears.

• The legislature has not yet come together to deliver a women's equality agenda. The Assembly Majority's decision to introduce a single bill, rather than separate pieces of legislation, has meant that issues such as pay equity, stronger laws on discrimination, and improved protections for women have gone nowhere. The Assembly Minority Conference introduced separate bills to address these issues, and I hope my colleagues across the aisle finally take an approach that delivers results that are long overdue.

• Arrests and investigations of public officials haven't stopped, and neither should our pursuit of true anti-corruption reform. The Assembly Minority introduced the Public Officers Accountability Act to create greater transparency in campaign spending and member items, enact term limits for legislative leaders and committee chairs, and ban convicted officials from holding office in the future. In addition to implementing these measures, we should remove taxpayer-funded pensions from convicted officials and finally commit to changing the culture of corruption in Albany.

• New York is the only state in the country that has not yet legalized Mixed Martial Arts. A recent report estimated that legalizing MMA would result in a $67 million boost to our economy. The previous MMA bill passed in the Senate and had nearly 60 Assembly members signed on in widespread bipartisan support. But inexplicably, it was not allowed to come to the floor for a vote.

These are just a handful of the items we can take action on during the coming weeks. There are immediate steps we can take to improve New York's communities and economic prosperity - and the people we represent deserve those results.

What do you think? I want to hear from you. Send me your feedback, suggestions and ideas regarding this or any other issue facing New York State. You can always contact my district office at (315) 781-2030 or e-mail me at kolbb@assembly.state.ny.us.