Assemblyman
Ron
Canestrari
Canestrari
Reports to the
People
People
Fall 2009
Dear Friend:
With the arrival of this beautiful time of the year here in the Capital District, I wanted to update you on some of the events taking place at the Capitol.
It has been, without a doubt, a tough year. We enacted a budget that cut some important programs, closed the deficit, and took other actions during this recessionary period. The intrigue in the State Senate has caused a great deal of public disenchantment. However, it must be emphasized that we in the Assembly ended our session in June, passing all bills deemed essential to other levels of government, commonly called local bills. With the constitutional structure that we have in place, I could not do anything to influence events taking place in the Senate but certainly it reflected poorly on the legislature itself.
The Governor expects to bring us back into special session to consider budgetary issues and I believe the agenda will be limited to the state’s financial position. Other legislative measures, including those passed by the Assembly but not the Senate, will be taken up when our regular session begins after the first of the year.
I have put together some items of interest in this newsletter. Please feel free to contact me on any state issue of importance to you; and suggestions are always welcome!
Sincerely,
RON CANESTRARI
The 2009 legislative session was a successful one, despite the many challenges we faced. Below are a few important pieces of legislation passed into law which will help New York State move forward on our path to recovery:
Power for Jobs Program Extended (A.9039)
The Senate has joined the Assembly and passed vital legislation that will extend New York’s Power for Jobs program through May 15, 2010. Power for Jobs provides low-cost energy – either through a direct discount on electricity rates or a cash rebate from New York Power Authority – to businesses that create or retain jobs in New York State.
New York’s small businesses and not-for-profit organizations pay some of the highest energy costs in the nation. That’s why the legislature created the Power for Jobs program in 1997. Today, the program supports nearly 250,000 jobs at approximately 500 businesses and not-for-profit organizations statewide.
It is fundamental to New York’s economic recovery that we make the cost of doing business more affordable, and the Power for Jobs program does just that through the delivery of low-cost power. Low-cost power helps hundreds of businesses and not-for-profits compete in today’s marketplace by providing them relief from the high energy costs that plague our state.
Ethics Reform (A.9032)
The Assembly worked in a bipartisan manner to pass ethics reform legislation that shines even greater light on state government. The bill increases financial disclosure and creates several independent entities to oversee ethics and lobbying in New York.
The Assembly is building on its commitment to ethics reform and the 2007 law that was passed to improve the way government does business. This legislation improves oversight and continues our efforts to make state government more open and accountable.
Government Consolidation (A.8501)
We in the Assembly passed legislation that will enable citizens and local governments to consolidate services and eliminate costly and confusing duplicative layers of government. The new legislation, entitled The New NY Government Reorganization and Citizen Empowerment Act, will make it easier to reorganize or dissolve outdated and inefficient local governments by following a uniform procedure.
New York State has more than 10,500 layers of government, resulting in a maze of costly, overlapping, confusing bureaucracy. Taxpayers need relief. Through the consolidation of units of government and the services they provide, we can eliminate waste and duplication and deliver real tax savings to working families.
Several local projects have been selected to receive federal stimulus funding through President Obama’s recently enacted American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA). Governor Paterson’s administration identified critical, shovel-ready projects that will provide continuous and sustainable economic benefits. The projects selected not only meet those criteria, they will also help protect the environment and the public health by replacing and improving deteriorating water and sewer systems. Critical economic development projects like these will not only create good-paying jobs and help put New York back to work, but also lay the groundwork for future prosperity by updating our State’s aging infrastructure. We will begin making the immediate investments necessary to put people back to work, doing the critical work the Capital Region needs done. To date, the Capital Region has received $45.9 million in stimulus funding for transportation projects of an expected $98.1 million. I thank the Governor, Congressman Paul Tonko and the New York Congressional delegation for their hard work in securing funds for these projects. Below is a list of major local projects receiving stimulus funding:
Reconstruction of 19th Street – City of Watervliet
$7.7 million – Considered Watervliet’s “Main St.”, 19th Street carries New York State Touring Route 2 through the city between the Congress Street Bridge and the city line and serves as the major east/west artery with direct connections to Interstate 87, Interstate 787 and the City of Troy. The reconstruction of 19th Street will be a tremendous benefit to the City of Watervliet. The project is scheduled for completion in the winter of 2010.
Cohoes – Waterford Bridge Replacement
$9.2 million – The historic Cohoes/Waterford Bridge serves as a vital link for the residents of Cohoes and Waterford and the entire Capital District. A new five-span steel bridge will be constructed on the existing bridge alignment, including reconstruction of the Oliver Street/Cedar Street Extension intersection.
City of Cohoes – Vliet Street Waterline Replacement
$715,929 – The installation of a new water main for Vliet Street will benefit residents and relieve the financial burden replacing it would have put on the City of Cohoes. This type of critical infrastructure project is at the core of the federal stimulus plan; to make needed improvements, while easing the fiscal strain so many municipalities are experiencing.
City of Rensselaer – Broadway Infrastructure Improvements
$627,224 – This funding will be used to replace sewer lines along Broadway in the City of Rensselaer. The city’s population of 7,666 persons will directly benefit from the project.
Troy Department of Public Utilities
$450,000 – These funds will be used for the installation of vibration leak detection equipment along 155 miles of distribution mains. This will enable the city to identify and reduce water lost through leaks and result in saving approximately 350 million gallons of water per year.
I recently announced that I secured $1,000,000 in state funding for the City of Rensselaer to address flood and erosion control measures along the Quackenderry Creek.
As you may know, Rensselaer suffered major damage to several homes and businesses from severe flooding in the summer of 2008, some of the worst in the city’s history. This funding will be used to make necessary repairs to the creek bed and existing structures, and to improve overall drainage of the creek which was a major factor in the recent flooding. The project, which is expected to create 6-10 construction jobs, will widen the capacity of the creek at peak flows and will replace an enclosed culvert that was destroyed by last year’s flood. The City of Rensselaer has identified the project as a top priority in order to reduce the threat of future flooding in this densely populated area.
