 Senate Republicans Stage Coup—Take Back Senate
This week in Albany has been nothing short of pure chaos. On Monday, Senate Republicans staged a coup during the Senate session and voted 32 to 30 to oust Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-Queens) as Majority Leader and President Pro Tempore and elected Sen. Pedro Espada, Jr. (D-Bronx) as the new Senate President and Sen. Dean Skelos (R-Nassau) as Majority Leader. Senate Republicans, with the help of Rochester billionaire Tom Golisano, have been hatching the plan to take back control of the Senate for several months. They were able to do so by persuading two Democratic senators, Espada and Hiram Monserrate (D-Queens), to cross over and join Republicans in a new "Coalition Conference." The two men are controversial figures—Monserrate is currently under indictment for assaulting his girlfriend, and Espada is under investigation for potential misuse of non-profit groups to avoid campaign laws. Both said they decided to join the Republicans after becoming dissatisfied with the leadership of Malcolm Smith and promises for change that never occurred.
Senate Democrats have so far refused to accept the legitimacy of the new leadership, even refusing to surrender the keys to the Senate chamber. Democrats filed for injunctive relief on Wednesday to challenge the coup and stop the Republicans from holding session. On Thursday, a judge denied their request for injunctive relief, but an appeals court granted the Democrats an injunction with respect to the narrow issue of whether Espada would be second in line to become Governor. The temporary injunction barring Espada from ascending to the governorship is only valid until further order of the court, which could come today. Senate Democrats are back in court today to continue their challenge to the legality of the coup. Democratic leaders say that even if the Republican takeover proves to be illegal, it is doubtful Smith will be able to regain his leadership position. Sen. John Sampson (D-Brooklyn) is seen as a likely successor to Sen. Smith. Gov. David Paterson, who at first expressed outrage over the Senate Republicans actions, called for another leadership vote as a way to end the standoff. On Thursday, the new Republican Majority held its first meeting in the Senate chamber, which was really nothing more than a symbolic gathering where the new leaders and Democratic defectors gave speeches and urged other Democrats to join the coalition government. Sen. Monserrate left the session right after his speech telling members he wanted to get more Democrats to join the coalition before he would vote. Monserrate's commitment to the new coalition has been less than convincing, and Democrats are lobbying hard to get Monserrate back into their conference. If Democrats are successful, this would deadlock the Senate at 31-31 with no sitting lieutenant governor to break the tie. Senate Republicans declared that they plan to hold session again on Monday. Meanwhile, the Assembly continued to conduct business this week and is scheduled to meet five more days before June 22, the last day of session. The abrupt change in leadership control has drastically changed the outlook for various legislative proposals that were on track for passage before the end of the session. There is a chance that Senate Republicans could pass some of those bills, especially those that Sens. Espada and Monserrate back, to reward them for defecting and support their claims of bipartisan government. The bill to legalize same-sex marriage is one measure that Espada has said he would bring to the Senate floor. Espada has also said that the Senate may extend the session past June 22, even if the Assembly recesses. The governor has also said he may extend the session or call lawmakers back to finish business, including property tax relief, pension reform and a state spending cap. IIABNY Testifies Against Prior Approval of Health Insurance Rates
IIABNY National Director and past President Steven Spiro testified before the Assembly Insurance Committee at a public hearing on June 8 against legislation that would implement a system of prior approval for health insurance rates and increase insurers' medical loss ratio requirements. Spiro acknowledged the need for lawmakers to address the high costs of health insurance, but he cautioned that requiring prior approval of health insurance rates would create an even larger problem for New York residents by jeopardizing the solvency of health carriers and leaving consumes with few health coverage options or with no coverage at all. The daylong hearing was widely attended by various groups, including those from the health insurance industry as well as consumer and business groups. Troy Oechsner, Insurance Department deputy superintendent for health, testified in support of the proposal. The bill was introduced by Assembly Insurance Committee Chairman Joseph Morelle (D-Rochester) at the request of the governor, but he has some significant concerns with the proposal. It is questionable whether the bill will advance this year. Legislation of Interest
The Assembly, as scheduled, held session four days this week and passed two noteworthy bills that await action by the Senate. The Assembly passed A.1867, the Farmworkers' Fair Labor Practices Act , by a vote of 85 to 57. The bill would grant certain employment rights to farm workers, including the right to receive workers' compensation and unemployment benefits. A.8611 was also passed. It would make Timothy's Law permanent. Timothy's Law currently requires certain health insurance policies to provide a minimum of 30 inpatient days and 20 outpatient visits for the treatment of mental health conditions. It also requires large group health insurance policies to provide coverage for biologically based mental illnesses and serious emotional disturbances at the same level of coverage that is provided for other health conditions. This bill also awaits Senate action. Recent Legislation | 
