Assemblyman Boyland - Reports to the People

Assemblyman

William F.
Boyland, Jr.

reports to
the people

SUMMER 2003

Dear Friend:

First, let me start by saying thank you for allowing me the opportunity to represent the 55th Assembly District.

Since my election in February, New York State faces tough fiscal choices, but we shouldn’t make wrong choices that threaten the future of our children and our economy. As your Assembly representative, I am dedicated to making sure that education, health care, higher education, job creation and the encouragement of economic prosperity are addressed by strengthening and supporting New York State small businesses. These are all my top priorities for this year’s budget negotiations. We, as leaders, must step forward and lead our state in the right direction.

When you take funding from a hospital, nursing home, home care agency or clinic, whether by cutting Medicaid payments or by leaving more patients uninsured, staff gets cut and services are stretched thinner. Even the wealthiest will receive a poorer quality of care. Our families depend on quality, affordable health care, and the Legislature’s budget ensures that they get it.

Introducing children to the values instilled at an early age makes quality education a far reaching investment in their future. The things that are most valuable in life can be learned in the pre-school years: math and reading skills, social skills and problem-solving skills. It is a known fact that children who attend Pre-Kindergarten come to school ready to learn. By investing in quality pre-K programs, we can significantly reduce crime and delinquency rates. We can never just arrest and imprison our way out of the crime problem, but research, experience and common sense says that there are strong connections between how many children get quality, early educational care today and how many juvenile crimes we deal with later.

There is simply no question that children who fall behind in an early grade tend to fall even further behind over time. Many children currently arrive in kindergarten with underdeveloped learning skills, and I also believe that pre-K addresses this concern responsibly. The fact is, study after study finds that investing in pre-K helps to provide our children with the tools needed to succeed. Pre-K is a worthy investment in their future—today’s students are tomorrow’s workforce.

Offering the promise of higher education to motivated, talented students, the Assembly restored $400 million to higher education, a move that will help safeguard the dream of a college education for New York’s students. The restorations will help to ensure that our students can meet higher academic standards and avoid teacher layoffs.

Small businesses play a crucial role in New York’s economy. The Assembly passed a package of bills that are designed to help small businesses receive the much-needed assistance they deserve. Small businesses create eight out of ten jobs in New York. During these difficult economic times, we must do all we can to keep these vital businesses growing and thriving. We must work together to provide a bright and prosperous future for business in New York State.

Finally, to help some of our most vulnerable citizens, seniors should be active members of our community, and I will help to ensure that they enjoy a higher quality of life. Seniors are happier and government health care costs are lower if seniors can stay in their own homes. To help seniors stay independent and remain an integral part of the community, the Legislature restored funding for Social Model Day and Respite Care and the Retired Senior Volunteer Program.

Remember, most importantly, to be informed. Write, e-mail or call my office about your concerns to convey your views and get actively involved in the civic affairs of our community. There is no better way to develop a strong, effective community than through active public involvement.

Budget Agreement Provides For Lifesaving Wireless 911 Improvements

Assemblyman Boyland, Jr. announced the Legislature’s budget provides grants to help localities make life saving improvements to local 911 systems. The funding will allow eligible local emergency dispatch centers to install enhanced 911 technology—enabling emergency dispatchers to pinpoint calls from wireless phones.

This technology can save lives. The legislature’s budget ensures wireless emergency callers will have the same safeguards afforded landline callers, who can be quickly located in the event of an emergency.

The Legislature’s budget dedicates a portion of revenue from a surcharge on wireless phones to provide grants to help localities upgrade wireless 911 systems. The initiative reflects legislation passed by the Assembly earlier this year to end delays in 911 enhancements by providing funding directly to local emergency dispatch centers.

For over a decade, New York wireless phone users have paid millions in surcharges to establish a statewide 911 emergency telephone communications system. But the money has never gone to its intended purpose, even though the revenue continues to grow with the increasing number of wireless phone users.

The need for the initiative was highlighted in January when four teenage boys drowned in Long Island Sound after one of them desperately tried to describe the location of their sinking boat to 911 dispatchers, who lacked the E911 technology that may have helped save them.

We need to do everything we can to keep our families safe, and that means seeing to it that this money goes to enhancing New York’s 911 system.

For Your Information!

As the 2003 Legislative Session comes to an end, it looks to be a promising one for the constituents of the 55th Assembly District. I, as a Freshman member, am working hard to bring educational and economic developmental opportunities to the district. One such project that is developing at this time is the Columbia Science and Technology Center, which will be located in Brownsville.

The center will honor the lives of our nation’s recently fallen astronauts who died during space exploration earlier this year. The center will provide enhanced technology based educational opportunities for the local residents and the metropolitan area at large, partnering with local primary, secondary, and higher educational institutions. Members of the private sector have also approached Assemblyman Boyland, Jr. to be a part of this educational tree that will become a part of the 55th Assembly District.

In addition, Assemblyman Boyland also hopes to realize his dream to change the face of Brownsville’s multiple business corridors as a catalyst for attracting premier franchises and other Fortune 500 firms to locate their goods and services there in partnership with the local community. His aim is to cultivate an environment where economic development becomes contagious and spreads throughout Brooklyn, which is the last frontier for such phenomena in the metropolitan area.

In the near future, there will be franchise development workshops to source potential franchises and focused job training provided by private sector firms locating to the area, with the intention of hiring local residents. I will keep you informed of the developments.

Recently, we suffered a fire at 1636 Pitkin Avenue.
Currently, my office is located at:

250 Broadway, Room 2203, New York, NY 10007
(212) 312-1432

Very soon my office will be relocating back into the community. But please call my office at the above number if you have a problem and/or concerns.


*Assemblyman Boyland, along with Speaker Silver, visit School District 19 to promote the need to restore the pre-K budget.*

ASSEMBLY TO ACT ON 6 BILL PACKAGE TO MARK CRIME VICTIMS WEEK

URGES CRIME VICTIMS BOARD TO PRODUCE 9/11 RELATED DATA

As New Yorkers observe Crime Victims Week, April 7 – 11, 2003, the Assembly’s action on a package of bills aimed at enhancing financial and educational services available to crime victims in New York State.

Crime Victims Week serves to reinforce our understanding that for crime victims and their families, the grief, pain and suffering they face continue long after an actual crime is committed. That is why it is incumbent upon us to support them in their recovery and to offer immediate and long-term assistance as they try to get on with their lives.

What is particularly distressing is that we have no idea how the CVB has addressed the claims associated with the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Identifying and meeting the needs of crime victims and their lived ones, terrorist related and other wise, is a very vital function of the state. I urge the CVB to begin complying with state law so that the Legislature can continue to understand and support the needs of crime victims throughout the state.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE ASSEMBLY'S 6-BILL CRIME VICTIM PACKAGE INCLUDE MEASURES THAT WOULD:

Ensure that programs are in place to provide necessary forensic examinations for sexual assault survivors by enacting the Sexual Assault Forensic Exam Payment Act of 2003.

Allow parents whose children are victims of crimes to seek restitution for lost earnings from the CVB.

Enhance efforts to make crime victims aware of their rights and the services and programs available to them.

Improve the CVB’s ability to help victims by establishing a Victim’s Assistance Education Program for board members and staff.

Constituents travel to Albany, New York to speak with Assemblyman William Boyland, Jr. about their concerns in the district.

Provide financial assistance to crime victims so that they can attend and participate in court proceedings related to their cases.

Require the CVB to provide claimants who are denied claims with a complete explanation of the reasons for the Board’s decision.

In addition to the legislation being considered, there is a new bill that would authorize the use of crime victims awards for financial counseling of elderly and disabled victims of fraud or economic crimes.

The package of bills the Assembly has put together responds to specific and repeated concerns voiced by crime victims in New York State. And although we are unable to relieve completely the pain and suffering many victims continue to feel, we can and must ensure that laws and programs are in place to address their needs and allow them to make the best recovery possible.

Assemblyman Boyland visits with constituents at the Rosetta Gaston Senior Center.


ADVISORY COUNCIL FOR THE 55TH ASSEMBLY DISTRICT MEETS THE SECOND SATURDAY OF EACH MONTH Time: 10:00 am Place: 1747 Pitkin Avenue

ASSEMBLY DISTRICT NEWS FROM STATE OF NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SERVICE
The State of New York Department of Public Service Commission has asked me to post phone numbers and the web site address to help with problems related to energy, telephone, water or cable television service. The Office of Consumer Services assists residential and business utility customers throughout the State. I encourage you to consider the Commission’s Office of Consumer Services as a resource.
How To Reach The New York State Public Service Commission
Consumer Information	1-888-Ask-PSC1 (1-888-275-7721)
PSC Opinion Line	1-800-335-2120
PSC HOTLINE (Gas or Electric Shutoffs)	1-800-342-3355
PSC HELPLINE (Complaints or Inquiries about Gas, Electric, Water, Steam, Telephone Service or Billing)	1-800-342-3377
Alternative Energy Provider Line (Inquiries and Complaints)	1-888-NYS-PSC8 (1-888-697-7728) 1-800-342-3377
Electric Generation Facility Proposals	1-877-PSC-ARTX (1-877-772-2789)
Complaints about Cable TV	1-800-342-3330
Business Advocacy	1-877-661-9223
Consumer Education and Advocacy	518-474-1540
Public Information Office	518-474-7080
Hearing-Impaired Customers-TDD Center	1-800-662-1220
INTERNET ADDRESSES: http://www.dps.state.ny.us http://www.AskPSC.com FOR MAILING ADDRESSES: Consumer Complaints and Inquiries NYS Public Service Commission Office of Consumer Services Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350 NYS Public Service Commission Office of Consumer Services One Penn Plaza, New York, New York 10119-0002 NYS Public Service Commission Office of Consumer Services Ellicott Square Building 295 Main Street, Room 814 Buffalo, New York 14203-2508 Education and Advocacy Inquiries NYS Public Service Commission Office of Consumer Education & Advocacy Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350

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