Nobody disputes that New York’s government has long been in a state of emergency, having earned the designation of worst state government in America. While out-of-control spending in Albany is the culprit, many politicians pin the blame on the more vague issue of Albany dysfunction – a safe and easy target for any politician to attack, regardless of their own contribution to the condition.
But will anything really change? What should the average New Yorker expect to happen that will significantly impact our bottom line in the next year?
The answer is most likely, nothing. Many candidates signed the pledge by Ed Koch’s New York Uprising to begin a serious conversation about how our government works, or doesn’t. Non-partisan redistricting, ethics reform and responsible budgeting are all laudable goals.
However, these were the “safe” issues, not blaming anyone, but rather blaming the system. And, even should all these reforms be implemented, it will change little about how Albany works and how bills, especially spending bills, are passed.
This is the infamous three-men-in-a-room syndrome. That the leaders of the Senate and Assembly have indisputable control over their members is where the problems stem from. In the Assembly, where I previously worked, nothing ever happens without approval from Speaker Sheldon Silver. He alone controls what bills make it out of committee for a full vote. He alone can negotiate the state’s now $134 billion budget on behalf of the 150 members of the Assembly; then hand them the budget in the dead of night, with no time for review, for an immediate vote.
This happens because his power in the Assembly is unchecked. He controls the budget for each member’s office and for every committee. Cast a vote in opposition to what the Speaker wants, vote a bill out of committee that he never intended to see the light of day, or just become too much of a nuisance, and the Speaker can literally strip your staff down to almost nothing, take away any position of power you hold, take away any pay stipend you may be receiving, and move your office down to the basement. They call it taking away your pencils, and that is not far from reality.
Until elected members of our Legislature have real power and are not simply rubber-stamps for the leadership, nothing will change. Setting budgets for Members’ offices and committees that cannot be altered at the whim of the Speaker will be a strong step toward real reform of our legislature and the shedding of our shameful reputation as the worst state government in America.
Robert Hornak is a Queens-based political consultant and executive director of the Queens Republican Party.
