“Politicians who abuse their power to line their own pockets or arrange favors for their friends have turned their backs to the public that elected them. They should under no circumstances continue to receive the benefits that New York grants to its dedicated servants. This has been obvious to me, and that’s why I was a co-sponsor of the original legislation that would revoke the pensions of politicians convicted of abusing their office. But despite passing it year after year in the Assembly, our bills have failed to pass the Senate and make it to the governor’s desk.

“Today, we’ve finally succeeded in this most common-sense effort, but I believe that, rather than congratulate one another, we lawmakers have the duty to continue working to restore the public’s trust in government. I will continue to work on behalf of the public that put its faith in me and find solutions to problems in government and campaign finance. The people deserve nothing less.”