Governor’s Veto Is Not the End for RIOC Reform
August 31, 2010
In June, I reported that my legislation to reform the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) had passed the Assembly. I am incredibly disappointed that Governor Paterson has now vetoed this legislation — and I vehemently disagree with the reasons he has given for his veto. By passing the reform bill with overwhelming margins, the legislature clearly communicated its intent that RIOC should be more open and accessible, and that Island residents should have a greater say in the Island’s decision-making process. RIOC’s decisions have a vastly bigger impact on Island residents than on anyone else, and the needs of those who live on the Island should outweigh the abstract concerns expressed by the Governor in his veto message.
By rejecting these common-sense measures, the Governor has set back the cause of open government and public authorities reform. Nonetheless, I will not stop fighting to open up RIOC and make it more accountable to the Island residents it serves. I will bring these reforms back as many times as it takes to make them a reality.
A copy of the Governor’s veto message is below.
Governor’s Veto of RIOC Reform Bill
Discussing Oreo’s Law on DogsinDanger radio show
August 25, 2010
Last Sunday I was interviewed by Alex Aliksanyan and Brenda Bush on the DogsInDanger radio show to discuss my bill, Oreo’s Law. I have blogged extensively about the tragic case of Oreo, an abused dog who was killed despite her rescue by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (APSCA). In response to Oreo’s death, I introduced legislation (A.9449) to close a loophole in our animal protection laws. My bill will allow qualified animal welfare organizations the right to request animals be given to their care when a shelter is planning to euthanize them. Click here to listen to the audio file of the interview, which aired on Sunday, August 22nd on AM970 the Apple NY.
Governor Honors Elle Vandenberghe, Signs Elle’s Law
August 16, 2010
I introduced Elle’s Law in honor of 3-year old Elle Vandenberghe, who was struck by a motorist while she was on her way to school on the Upper East Side in September 2009. After the incident, Elle lay in a coma for two weeks; she suffered a stroke and lost two-thirds of the left side of her brain. The driver who struck Elle was illegally backing through an intersection—against a red light—in search of a parking space. Although the motorist displayed a blatant disregard for pedestrian safety and consequently left Elle permanently disabled, he was issued only a minor traffic infraction, paid a small fine and was free to get back behind the wheel, subject to no further penalty. Elle remains in physical therapy.
Elle’s Law gets dangerous drivers off the road by creating new penalties for drivers who injure pedestrians while violating traffic laws. I am tremendously proud to announce that on Friday, Governor Paterson signed Elle’s Law into law.
What happened to Elle Vandenberghe was both a tragedy and an outrage. It was unbelievable that a reckless driver could do so much harm and yet still be free to get right back behind the wheel with nothing more than a slap on the wrist. Elle’s Law will make irresponsible drivers think twice before doing something dangerous.
Under Elle’s Law, any driver who causes serious physical injury to another person while committing a traffic violation will have his or her license suspended for a period of six months. Drivers who have been involved in any similar incidents within the previous five years will have their licenses suspended for a full year.
According to data from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, in 2008 nearly 5,000 New Yorkers were injured because of a driver’s violation of the state’s vehicle and traffic laws. Only 2% of these violations resulted in criminal charges, leaving thousands of New Yorkers and families with no legal recourse. Prosecutors are unable to charge drivers who seriously injure innocent pedestrians under the existing Vehicular Assault laws, even when the serious injury was the direct result of the driver’s moving violation, unless it can be proven that the driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Because criminal charges are almost never possible, prior to Elle’s Law no effective sanction existed for drivers who injured pedestrians while violating traffic laws. Elle’s Law closes this loophole by creating a mechanism to punish these reckless drivers—suspending their licenses so that they cannot simply get back on the road.
Sadly, no law can undo what happened to Elle Vandenberghe, but we can ensure that in the future our streets are safer by getting dangerous drivers off the road and stopping thousands of unnecessary tragedies like Elle’s before they happen. By signing Elle’s Law the Governor turned this little girl’s tragedy into a legacy: making it safer for every New Yorker to cross the street.
Video Shows TLC’s Failure to Require Accessibility for NYC Cabs
July 27, 2010
Recently, I posted about the hearing I held on July 14th focusing on the need for New York City’s taxi fleet to be completely accessible to people with disabilities.
Below is a video clip from the hearing, in which Taxi and Limousine Commissioner David Yassky discusses how the TLC’s Taxi of Tomorrow Request for Proposal (RFP) does not make accessibility a requirement in vehicle designs, only a goal. My bill (A.7842) would mandate a 100% accessible taxi fleet by requiring that after June 30, 2011, taxi owners may put only accessible cabs into service when replacing old vehicles.
You can access video footage of the entire hearing here.
Hearing Exposes Failure of TLC to Make Cabs Accessible
July 16, 2010
I have always been a strong proponent of making New York City’s taxi fleet 100% accessible to people with disabilities. In June of 2009, I released my report Stranded, which documented the failure of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission’s central dispatch pilot program. My report Not For Hire exposed the failure of a TLC rule requiring for-hire vehicle (FHV) companies to offer equivalent service to customers using wheelchairs. I have blogged extensively about my work to make an accessible taxi fleet a reality.
On Wednesday I held a hearing with the Assembly Committee on Cities, Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, Committee on Transportation, and the Assembly Task Force on People with Disabilities, focusing on the need to achieve a fully accessible taxi fleet, and on my legislation (A. 7842) to mandate that after June 30, 2011, taxi owners may put only accessible cabs into service when replacing old vehicles.
At the hearing, Taxi and Limousine Commissioner David Yassky admitted that the TLC’s central dispatch pilot program was a failure. Back in December 2007, I wrote an Op-Ed in the New York Post raising concerns about the program. Unfortunately, my predictions proved correct. Now that this two-year pilot program has ended, the TLC has no way of getting accessible taxis to the people who need them. Until there are more accessible taxis on the road, the nearly 60,000 people with disabilities in New York City will continue to be left stranded- and as it stands, the TLC still has no firm plans to provide equal service for customers with disabilities.
As the hearing highlighted, the Commission’s plans for a “Taxi of Tomorrow” fail to include any guarantee of accessibility. The TLC’s Taxi of Tomorrow Request for Proposals (RFP) only makes accessibility a goal, not a mandate. Without such a mandate, the door is left open for accessibility criteria to fall by the wayside when determining the vehicle chosen for the Taxi of Tomorrow initiative. Accessibility should be a requirement, not a goal.
Kellner RIOC Reform Bill Passes Assembly
June 29, 2010
The Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) is responsible for decisions that have a huge impact on the lives of Roosevelt Island residents — from housing to transportation, parks, sanitation, and more. Islanders know that the Island only works when RIOC is accountable and responsive to the community. This is why I introduced legislation to reform RIOC, opening it up to greater community input. I’m pleased to announce that my RIOC reform bill passed the Assembly today.
This bill means that Islanders will have a greater role in the governing process—it opens up the corporation to the public and establishes the principle that Island residents must have a say in how the Island is run.
The legislation gives the public a role in the process of hiring the RIOC President — requiring the Board of Directors to consider at least three candidates for the job and to hold hearings allowing members of the public as well as Board members to interview the candidates. It requires that meetings of the Board of Directors be subject to the state’s open meetings law, and specifies that members of the public must have an opportunity to comment on all agenda items before the Board votes on those items.
The bill also provides that two of the public members of RIOC’s Board of Directors will be chosen upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the Assembly and the Temporary President of the State Senate—who will make their suggestions based on consultation with the local member of the Assembly and the Senate, ensuring input for the elected officials who are most answerable to Roosevelt Island residents.
The bill’s passage is a victory for Roosevelt Islanders — a clear affirmation of residents’ right to be part of the Island’s decision making process.
Kellner Bill to Protect Millions of New Yorkers from Prescription Drug Price Gouging Passes Legislature
June 24, 2010
Two weeks ago, I posted about how my legislation to prohibit so-called “specialty tiers” in prescription drug pricing would protect millions of New Yorkers with chronic and life-threatening illnesses. These specialty tiers are a way for insurance companies to gouge patients, charging them enormous amounts of money for the life-saving medication they need.
I am pleased to announce that my bill to ban this outrageous practice has now passed the Legislature, and will go to the Governor for his signature. This bill will protect millions of New Yorkers who might otherwise find themselves unable to afford the medication they depend upon.
In states such as California, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Wisconsin, insurance companies have created specialty price tiers for patients with conditions including breast cancer, leukemia, non-Hodgkins lymphoma, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, hemophilia, HIV and AIDS, cystic fibrosis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, hepatitis B and C, diabetes, psoriasis, kidney disease, anemia, and other serious medical conditions. These patients are charged “coinsurance,” typically 25%-33% of the total retail cost of the drug per month, instead of a flat co-payment for drugs they need to save their life or to prevent disease progression—many of which cost of hundreds or thousands of dollars each month.
Specialty tiering is an insidious practice which has become a major problem for patients in states where it is allowed. This bill will stop it from happening here in New York. I urge the Governor to do the right thing for patients and sign the legislation into law.
The bill passed the Assembly yesterday. It had passed the State Senate, where it was sponsored by Senator Tom Duane, on June 3. You can read my report on the how this legislation will benefit New Yorkers by clicking here: http://www.micahkellner.net/specialtytiers.pdf.
Koch Lauds Kellner as Reformer
June 23, 2010
I was proud to be one of the first elected officials to sign the three reform pledges sponsored by Mayor Ed Koch’s New York Uprising. The pledges are aimed at changing the culture of Albany and reforming our state’s government.
I am passionate about cleaning up Albany. I have introduced important new reform legislation–toughening anti-corruption laws, cracking down on government waste, making government more transparent, and opening up policy debates to the public. The New York Uprising pledges represent precisely the kind of change I am working to bring about.
“I applaud Assembly Member Micah Kellner as a “Hero of Reform” for signing the three New York Uprising pledges. This year voters are counting on candidates to commit to specific reforms in advance, as Assembly Member Kellner has done. I look forward to working with him to see them swiftly implemented should he be reelected.” — Mayor Koch
The pledges include the following:
Ethics Reform: As a signer, I pledge to support the creation of a state ethics commission, a comprehensive annual financial disclosure form for state officials, and an end to “pay-to-play” campaign contributions;
Redistricting Reform: I pledge to support the creation of an independent, nonpartisan redistricting commission in order to end gerrymandering and take politics out of the redistricting process; and
Responsible Budgeting: I pledge to support the adoption of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) to prepare and manage the state’s budget, as well as the creation of an Independent Budget Office, and other reforms to the state’s budget process.
Raising Awareness of Gastric Cancer
June 17, 2010
Assembly Member Kellner (r) with Lynn DeGregorio, Foundation Board Member Jennifer Carlson, and members of the DeGregorio family.
Yesterday the Assembly passed my resolution calling on Governor Paterson to declare today Gastric and Esophageal Cancer Awareness Day.
Upper Gastrointestinal Malignancies - including cancers of the stomach, esophagus, and the gastroesaphogeal junction - are responsible for over one million new cancer diagnoses worldwide, and are the second most common cause of global, cancer-related deaths.
I introduced the resolution after coming to know of the work of the DeGragorio Family Foundation, which was created by Lynn DeGregorio. Lynn lost 10 members of her family to gastric cancer. After she herself tested negative for the genetic mutation associated with the cancers, Lynn decided she was spared for a reason, and she dedicated herself to helping others – working toward containment and treatment of these cancers.
Lynn founded the DeGregorio Family Foundation to carry on this mission. In the short time since, she has almost single-handedly raised $1 million to fight Gastric and Esophageal Cancer. She has also worked with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to create gastric cancer registries in the United States, Germany, Korea, and Nigeria. The registries will provide a database of the individuals at highest risk for gastric cancer. They will also include tissue and blood samples for future studies, to help researchers and physicians manage and treat these cancers.
I commend the DeGregorio Foundation for their enormously important work in fighting Gastric and Esophageal Cancer. I hope that by declaring June 17 Gastric and Esophageal Cancer Awareness Day we will help raise awareness and inspire action on the part of the public and private sectors to find effective treatments and eventually a cure.
A Victory for Tenants: Kellner Submetering Bill Passes Assembly
June 10, 2010
When the management at the Eastwood housing complex on Roosevelt Island attempted to impose a potentially disastrous plan to directly charge tenants for their electricity use — a practice called submetering, which would have resulted in a massive de facto rent increase — I successfully worked with the building’s tenants to stop the scheme in its tracks. But the victory at Eastwood demonstrated the need to enshrine strong tenant protections into law, to ensure that residents of Eastwood and buildings across the state are never faced with this threat again.
The submetering plan at Eastwood presented a host of problems for tenants. The building’s poor insulation and clunky electric heat would have meant that under submetering, tenants would be paying enormous electric bills just to keep warm in the winter. And the electric charges would be deemed as rent in tenant’s leases–meaning that tenants could be taken to housing court and potentially evicted for nonpayment of their electric bills. Tenants faced the prospect of having to choose between paying the rent and heating their homes.
I am proud to report that, yesterday, the Assembly passed a critical tenant protection bill which I introduced in response to this threat. The bill (A. 7353-A) prohibits landlords from deeming electrical charges as rent. This legislation means that tenants will no longer be faced with the possibility of eviction in the event that they are unable to pay their electric bill. It will also help guarantee that tenants are able to exercise their rights as energy consumers, and if necessary, get assistance in paying their bills.
I will continue working to ensure that all the necessary protections are put into place to eliminate the threat of electrical submetering once and for all.
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