Elementary school students in the 117th Assembly District could be taking a more active role in the political process sooner rather than later according to Assemblyman Marc Butler (R,C-Newport). Local students are being asked to debate and, later, vote for what could become New York’s official state reptile.
“I am asking fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade students from across my 117th Assembly District to engage in thoughtful debate, polling and, eventually, voting on what would be our official state reptile,” said Butler. “Their votes would be added to the statewide numbers on December 23. Then, we’ll draft actual state legislation designating the winning species.”
According to Assemblyman Butler, four types of turtles have been nominated for the title of official state reptile: eastern box, wood, common snapping and painted.
Butler said that schedule pending, he would visit with student groups over the next several weeks to speak about government and student involvement.
“It’s clear that adding one more state emblem isn’t the most important issue facing our State Legislature,” said Butler, “but engaging young people in the political process is important. This is a great opportunity to turn them around and get involved students who otherwise wouldn’t have been interested.”
The four types of turtles are the most common type found in New York, while the painted turtle is Michigan’s state reptile and the eastern box represents North Carolina and Tennessee. The legislation to name the winning turtle type would be introduced after the January start of the Assembly’s 2006 legislative session.