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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TODAY: 3/24/09
Contact: Suzanne Redmond (315) 255-3045
FINCH, ASSEMBLY AND SENATE MINORITY
MEMBERS, BLAST SECRETIVE, PARTISAN BUDGET PROCESS
Assemblyman Gary D.
Finch (R,C,I - Springport) today joined minority members from both
houses of New York's Legislature in speaking out against the secretive,
unilateral method in which leaders in the Senate and Assembly, as well
as Governor Paterson have thus far worked in shaping the state budget.
"Fiscal responsibility and democracy no
longer reside in Albany and the 19 million citizens who live in New York
State are not being represented in the budget process. Holding a
majority position and running a dictatorship are two very different
things and New York's government is currently heading down a very
dangerous path. We see "three men in a room" with no input from
either minority conference of the Legislature. There has been no open
discussion and my colleagues and I have been completely shut out from
negotiations. Moreover, the public has been kept in the dark. It is
widely known that the New York State Legislature acts in secrecy. Now,
the governor, Senate Majority Leader Smith and Speaker Silver have taken
it to a whole new level by eliminating conference committees which were
created to bring about openness and transparency. Furthermore, I'm
fairly certain that the budget, in the form of thousands of pages of
information, will grace our desks no more than a few minutes before we
are forced to vote on it, meaning our understanding of the facts will be
sketchy at best. The people of New York deserve better, especially
during such trying economic times."
-30-
Mike Avella Jr.
Press Coordinator
NYS Assembly Minority
(518) 455-5981
F (518) 455-5057 |
