New York State Insider: SEN. GALLIVAN, ASSEMBLYMAN LAWLER, CONSERVATIVE PARTY CHAIRMAN KASSAR, CALL FOR LIFE-WITHOUT-PAROLE PRISON SENTENCES FOR NEW YORK COP KILLERS.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE.

 

SEN. GALLIVAN, ASSEMBLYMAN LAWLER, CONSERVATIVE PARTY CHAIRMAN KASSAR, CALL FOR LIFE-WITHOUT-PAROLE 

PRISON SENTENCES FOR NEW YORK COP KILLERS; 

 

Urge Gov. Hochul to Remove Manhattan D.A. Bragg from Office.

Latham, NY-Jan. 31…New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar, Senator Patrick M. Gallivan, and Assemblyman Michael Lawler today called for passage of legislation (A. 8682) that would impose mandatory life-without-parole prison sentences for the first- or second-degree murder of police officers or other New York first responders. Senator Gallivan and Assemblyman Lawler are prime sponsors of the measure in their respective houses. The announcement was made during the Conservative Party’s 54th Annual Conservative Party Political Action Conference (CPPAC) held in Latham, NY. 

 

"As a former State Trooper and Sheriff of Erie County, I know first-hand how law enforcement officers and other first responders risk their lives to protect our communities,” Senator Gallivan said. “An attack on these brave men and women represents an attack on the community at large and our rule of law and order. Any individual who is convicted of murdering a police officer, peace officer, corrections officer or first responder must be held accountable and should never be eligible for parole."  

 

"As a society, we must stand up for those who serve and protect our communities every day,” Assemblyman Lawler said. “In recent years, too many cop-killers have been released on parole without a second thought for the victims and their families. Assembly Bill A 8682 would ensure that anyone who is convicted in the death of a law enforcement officer, corrections officer, or first responder would receive a mandatory sentence of life without parole. In the wake of the horrific killing of Officers Rivera and Mora, we must pass this bill without delay. Anything less is a signal to criminals across our state that it's open season on law enforcement."

 

“New York Democrats have made major criminal justice errors over the past few years, and New Yorkers and law enforcement officers working to keep them safe are paying dearly for it,” Chairman Kassar said. “The Conservative Party strongly supports this life-without-parole legislation, just as we urge reversal of the no-cash-bail law that sparked the ongoing statewide crime wave.”

 

Chairman Kassar also highlighted at the news conference an active petition signed by nearly 2,000 New Yorkers to date, calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul to immediately remove Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg from office. The controversial D.A. announced earlier this month that his office would no longer pursue prison sentences for a host of serious crimes. 

 

“Gov. Hochul needs to make a choice between public safety and runaway progressivism; there is no in-between,” Chairman Kassar said. “When a district attorney refuses to prosecute serious crimes, he must not remain in office. We call on Gov. Hochul to stand on the side of public safety by dismissing Mr. Bragg from his position this week. There isn’t a moment to waste.” 

 

New York State Insider: Attorney General James’ Statement on Appellate Court’s Decision to Continue the Stay Preserving New York’s Mask Mandate.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 31, 2022

Attorney General James’ Statement on Appellate Court’s Decision
to Continue the Stay Preserving New York’s Mask Mandate.

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today issued the following statement after the Appellate Division, Second Department granted her office’s motion to keep the statewide mask mandate in effect during the appeal: 

 

“We are pleased by the Appellate Division, Second Department’s decision today to preserve the statewide mask mandate pending the appeal. Wearing a mask saves lives. The mask mandate and today’s decision will help in our efforts to fight back this virus. My office will continue to use its full authority to keep New Yorkers safe.”

 

New York State Insider: New York State Senator Pete Harckham 40th District: This Moment of Possibility.

 

Dear Friend:

 

As a member of the Finance Committee, my colleagues and I have begun hearings to analyze Governor Hochul’s proposed 2023 Budget. Unlike prior years, the Executive budget starts the process in a much better place regarding investing in New York’s success:

• Continuing our commitment to fully fund Foundation Aid to lift students and to hold local property taxes down;
• Accelerating the middle-class tax cuts, small business tax cuts and $2 billion in property tax relief;
• Record investments in healthcare and behavioral healthcare;
• $4 billion for the forthcoming Environmental Bond Act, a $1 billion increase from 2021 proposal;
• Nearly $1 billion of additional funding for highway repaving and repairing potholes.

The Governor also included a number of my legislative proposals in her budget as well, such as $85 million to facilitate homeowners to create Accessory Dwelling Units to address our local shortage of workforce housing; protection of critical wetlands to ease flooding and protect our fragile drinking water supplies; and the creation of certification standards for Recovery Housing.

 

In the State Senate, I have been working with my colleagues to enact real, concrete solutions that will safeguard residents, increase prosperity and prepare us for the challenges ahead.

New York State Senator Pete Harckham 40th District

New York State Insider: Attorney General James Issues Statement on Anniversary of Nursing Homes Report.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 28, 2022

Attorney General James Issues Statement
on Anniversary of Nursing Homes Report.

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James released the following statement on the first anniversary of her office’s report on nursing homes’ response to COVID-19:

“A year ago, we released a comprehensive report demonstrating that the previous administration undercounted deaths in nursing homes due to COVID-19 by as much as 50 percent and how its policy decisions may have contributed to the deaths of those residents. This report spurred critical action, and following its release, our state passed important nursing home legislation. We are continuing to investigate certain facilities for violations of the law because we are committed to the wellbeing of nursing home residents and staff across New York.”

Read the report: Nursing Home Response to COVID-19 Pandemic

New York State Insider: Conservative Party Political Action Conference (CPPAC).

 

 

54th Annual CPPAC Monday Luncheon Speaker Announced; 

Will Follow Noon Criminal Justice Press Conference.

TIM HOEFER, PRESIDENT & CEO OF THE EMPIRE CENTER FOR PUBLIC POLICY, WILL BE THE MONDAY LUNCHEON SPEAKER AT THE TWO-DAY, 54TH ANNUAL CONSERVATIVE PARTY POLITICAL ACTION CONFERENCE (CPPAC) ON MONDAY, JANUARY 31 AT 12:30 PM AT THE HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS & SUITES LATHAM AT 400 OLD LOUDON ROAD, IN LATHAM, NY. 

 

MR. HOEFFER’S REMARKS WILL FOLLOW A NOON PRESS CONFERENCE AT THE HOTEL ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUES. DETAILS ON THE NEWS CONFERENCE AND A FULL SCHEDULE OF SUNDAY/MONDAY CPPAC SPEAKERS WILL FOLLOW. 

 

MEMBERS OF THE NEWS MEDIA ARE WELCOME AT ANY PORTION OF THE TWO-DAY CONFERENCE. 

 

 

DATE: MONDAY, JANUARY 31, 2022

TIME: 12 NOON CRIMINAL JUSTICE NEWS CONFERENCE TO BE FOLLOWED BY TIM HOEFER THE LUNCHEON SPEAKER AT 12:30 PM.

PLACE: HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS & SUITES LATHAM, 400 OLD LOUDON ROAD, LATHAM, NY

New York State Insider: Attorney General James’ Statement on Judge’s Decision to Temporarily Allow Enforcement of New York’s Mask Mandate.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 25, 2022. Attorney General James’ Statement on Judge’s Decision to Temporarily Allow Enforcement of New York’s Mask Mandate. NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today released the following statement after a New York Supreme Court Appellate Judge granted her office’s motion to stay a decision Monday night striking down the state’s mask mandate: “Nearly three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, we know that wearing a mask saves lives. This mandate and today’s decision are critical in helping to stop the spread of this virus and protect individuals young and old. We will continue to do everything in our power to prioritize the health and wellbeing of all New Yorkers.” Under today’s order, the mask mandate will stay in effect until the Appellate court takes further action.

New York State Insider: Albany Bureau: Statement from NYIRC Chair Imamura and Commissioners Benger, Cuevas-Molina, Flateau, and Frazier.

Statement from NYIRC Chair Imamura and Commissioners Benger, Cuevas-Molina, Flateau, and Frazier.

 

We offer a status update on the New York State Independent Redistricting Commission.

 

On January 10, the Legislature notified the Commission that it had rejected both sets of redistricting plans submitted by the Commission.  The Legislature’s notification imposed a January 25 deadline to vote on and submit second maps.  We have repeatedly attempted to schedule a meeting by that date, and our Republican colleagues have refused.  This is the latest in a repeated pattern of Republicans obstructing the Commission doing its job. 

 

We have negotiated with our Republican colleagues in good faith for two years to achieve a single consensus plan.  At every step, they have refused to agree to a compromise.  Most recently, we met again with representatives of our Republican colleagues following the Legislature’s rejection of our first maps, to see if we could reach consensus on a single map.  We then developed and presented to them a new proposal for a consensus plan that tried to address specific areas of disagreement.  Like in December, they again rejected that proposal and have not presented or agreed to make a counterproposal. 

 

In parallel to these negotiations, for the past two weeks we have attempted to schedule a public meeting by January 25 to conduct the Commission’s business, including voting on second maps as well as to inform the public.  Our other colleagues repeatedly rebuffed or ignored our request, and our Commission’s bylaws do not allow us to schedule a meeting without the consent of at least two additional colleagues.  The Republicans are intentionally running out the clock to prevent the Commission from voting on second maps by its deadline. 

 

We are proud to have conducted a public-first process in which more than 4,000 New Yorkers made their voices heard.  This input had a major impact on our deliberations and line-drawing, and we changed more than 87% of the lines in our September maps to our January maps based upon extensive consideration of this public comment.  The Commission has conducted 24 public hearings both in-person and online where we listened to more than 51 hours of testimony from over 630 speakers.  These hearings have had more than 12,000 views online.  The Commission has received over 3300 written submissions, testimony and maps with nearly 4,500 pages of public input from New Yorkers.  

 

We reiterate our commitment to a redistricting process driven by public input and hope that the Legislature will consider the input that the Commission has solicited and collected in its work.  Moreover, we are proud to embody the diversity of New York, as the Constitution calls for, and believe our diversity is reflected in our approach to public input and the line drawing process.  We urge the Legislature to approach their duty in the same spirit. 

 

 

 

OPED: From Albany Times Union: John J. Faso, of Kinderhook, is a former member of Congress and minority leader of the state Assembly.

 

Source: Albany Times Union.

Put Build Back Better on pause and do the math.

John J. Faso

January 22, 2022

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., just did the nation a big favor when he slammed the brakes on President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better spending plan.

Proponents argue that their proposals for free day care, $300 monthly payments per child, lower cost prescription drugs and measures to address climate change are popular with the American people. When people are told something is free it is sure to be popular. But that opinion would undoubtedly change if the American people were told how much those free things will truly cost.

The Biden administration and congressional Democrats are not being honest about Build Back Better. They are intentionally hiding the price tag. The plan before the U.S. Senate is billed as costing $1.75 trillion over 10 years. According to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, if all Build Back Better programs were in place over the next 10 years, the real cost is almost $5 trillion.

The enhanced child tax credits alone, initially adopted in March, distribute $300 per month per child and would annually cost more than $1.2 trillion. But Build Back Better assumes that the program will only last a single year to make it fit under congressional budget reconciliation rules.

The plan is littered with such financial shenanigans.

Everyone knows that once enacted, a spending program rarely ends. Where will the money come from to permanently fund these programs? Democrats won’t say.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, Congress — first under former President Donald Trump and lately under Biden — has provided more than $5.7 trillion to the economy. Federal cash flowed to prop up businesses, families, state and local governments, school districts, higher education, transit agencies and a host of other entities. The Federal Reserve has injected an additional $4 trillion in monetary liquidity, purchasing government bonds and mortgage-backed securities.

Much of the government response was necessary, keeping families and businesses afloat during a worldwide pandemic. However, the fiscal and monetary stimulus has unleashed the highest inflation rate — 7 percent — since 1982. Biden economic advisers and the Federal Reserve assured us that inflation was transitory. They’re no longer saying that. In fact, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell recently said it was “time to retire that word.”

Senator Manchin has been warning for months that he feared such spending was spurring a dangerous inflationary spiral. He urged that Biden and Democrats pause Build Back Better until much later in 2022, allowing Congress to assess economic conditions.

While both parties have utilized budget reconciliation to avoid Senate filibusters and pass legislation on a partisan basis, Build Back Better is unprecedented in its use of fiscal chicanery to conceal true costs.

The plan is also audacious in its ambitions to expand the role of government. Child tax credits would no longer require a parent to work to qualify and undocumented children are eligible, creating yet another incentive for illegal immigration into the United States. Special interest provisions are added for unions, trial lawyers and other favored progressive constituencies.

BBB would put us on a path of unsustainable deficits burdening future generations with dangerous levels of spending and debt, requiring higher taxes on everyone to service such debt. A Penn Wharton study suggests the plan alone would increase the national debt by a whopping 24 percent by 2050.

International rivals — particularly China — will surely take advantage of a U.S. budget crisis as they seek to undermine confidence in democratic systems. A financially stressed America will also be less able to deal with unexpected crises at home and abroad. If COVID has taught us anything, it is that we need to prepare for the unexpected.

Democrats should take Joe Manchin’s advice and hit the pause button on Build Back Better.

John J. Faso, of Kinderhook, is a former member of Congress and minority leader of the state Assembly.

New York State Insider: Youth Advisory Council 2nd Annual Coat & Diaper Drive.

 

New York State Insider: Homeowner Assistance Fund Information Session.

 

**This event will be streamed on Zoom and Facebook**

**Spanish translation will be available on Zoom only.**

The New York State Homeowner Assistance Fund (NYS HAF) is a federally-funded program providing assistance to eligible homeowners who are at risk of default, foreclosure, or displacement due to financial hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, it is expected that there will be more applications than funding available, and applications are being processed as they are received. 

New York State Insider: Statement from New York State Senator Shelley Mayer 37th District.

 

Dear Friends, First and foremost, I offer my deepest condolences to the family of Police Officer Jason Rivera and pray for the recovery of Police Officer Wilbert Mora. My thoughts are with all the officers of the NYPD, who put their lives on the line to protect us, during this terrible and heartbreaking time.    This week, Governor Kathy Hochul released her proposed NYS budget for fiscal year 2022-2023. It was very positive and reflected the Governor’s continued commitment to fund education, transportation investment, economic regrowth, and other important initiatives. While there is always more that I want to see – particularly for home care and child care – I am extremely pleased by the tone and direction of Governor Hochul’s leadership and willingness to work together for the State. I continue to push for reform based on our experiences during and after Hurricane Ida. In anticipation of furthering my initiatives on storm recovery and flooding resiliency in the adopted state budget, we have created a survey regarding storm damage, losses, reimbursement, and out-of-pocket expenditures related to Hurricane Ida. Please take a few moments to fill out the form so I am fully informed about the extent of loss suffered. This Monday, I will be hosting an information session on the Homeowner Assistance Fund with Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Senator Pete Harckham, and Senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick. In addition, next Saturday, January 29, my Youth Advisory Council will hold its 2nd Annual Coat & Diaper Drive. More information on both of these events is available below.   Finally, it is with a heavy heart that I recognize the passing in the last week of the Honorable Reginald LaFayette. LaFayette previously served as Chairman of the Westchester Democratic Committee for over 15 years and was a Commissioner of the Westchester County Board of Elections at the time of his death. I knew Reggie well, and he led with principle, decorum, a profound faith in the institutions of our democracy, and a commitment to fairness and justice. As always, if there is anything my office can do to assist you, please email me at smayer@nysenate.gov or call (914) 934-5250. Warm regards,

Shelley B. Mayer State Senator 37th District 

New York State Insider: Attorney General James’ Statement on Fatal Shooting of NYPD Officers in Harlem.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 21, 2022.

Attorney General James’ Statement on Fatal Shooting of NYPD Officers in Harlem.

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James released the following statement in response to the police involved shooting in Harlem tonight:

“All of New York state is in mourning tonight. As we await the facts, my office may assert jurisdiction in this matter. We pray for the safety of our police and our communities.”

Publisher Brian Harrod Reports: NY ATTORNEY GENERAL: The Trump Organization’s Financial Records Include Multiple “Misleading Representations And Omissions.

 

PHOTO: The office of New York Attorney General Letitia James says it needs the testimony of former President Donald Trump and two of his adult children.|

NEW YORK: Attorney General Letitia James wants to to determine the Trump family knowledge of numerous “misleading statements and omissions” in tax filings and financial statements used to obtain loans, according to investigators 

“OAG requires the testimony and evidence sought herein to determine which Trump Organization employees and affiliates — and which other entities and individuals — may have assisted the Trump Organization and Mr Trump is making, or may have relevant knowledge about, the misstatements and omissions,” investigators wrote in a court filing late Tuesday.

The Statement Continues “The Trump Organization’s senior witnesses have invoked their Fifth Amendment protections against self-incrimination. Others have claimed they have a bad memory or that they were following orders from higher-ranking personnel.”

“However, Mr Trump’s actual knowledge of — and purpose to make — the multiple misstatements and omissions made by him or on his behalf are crucial components to concluding the OAG’s inquiry reasonably and equitably,” according to the brief.

“Similarly, Donald Trump, Jr. and Ivanka Trump operated as Mr Trump’s agents, acted on their behalf, and supervised others in connection with the transactions at issue here; their testimony is also required for the OAG’s inquiry to be properly resolved.”

Donald Trump Jr. was involved in several properties, including 40 Wall Street, and certified the accuracy of the financial statements from 2017 forward, according to the attorney general’s office.

Ivanka Trump was a key liaison with lender Deutsche Bank.

Investigators stated that around a dozen current and former Trump Organization workers had testified and that Trump himself authorized the production of his tax returns, according to lengthy court documents.

“Given the widespread and frequent nature of the misstatements and omissions,” the investigators said,

“it seems that the values in the Statements were usually inflated as part of a pattern to indicate that Mr Trump’s net worth was larger than it otherwise would have looked.”

They went on to say that when Eric Trump and Allen Weisselberg, the former CFO, testified in 2020, they both used their Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination in answer to moreover 500 questions apiece.

The New York attorney general’s office has stated that it is focusing on several particular alleged misstatements, including:

• Trump mislabeled assets, not under his or the Trump Organization’s control as “cash,” inflating his liquidity;
• The procedure by which Trump or his associates arrived at valuations was misrepresented, including deviations from widely accepted accounting rules that were not disclosed in the financial statements;
• Failed to apply basic valuation approaches such as discounting future revenues and costs to their current worth, or selecting only similar properties as “comparables” when imputing valuations from public sales data;
• Failed to disclose that certain valuation values were inflated by an unknown sum for brand value, and misrepresented the alleged involvement of “independent specialists” in achieving the valuations.

As, well as, the size of Trump’s penthouse at Trump Tower

Trump hasn’t responded to demands for records, according to James’ office.

They claim, for example, that while Trump did not use email, they gathered from witnesses that he preserved paper copies of documents and spoke with workers via sticky notes.

According to them, a file cabinet containing Trump’s data was never inspected in response to demand.

“The Trump Organization decided, improbably, that Mr Trump was not engaged in the production of his financial statements,” they wrote.

The alleged false claims were communicated with lenders, according to James’ office, and insurers said that “almost all of the advantages from the inaccurate appraisals came to Donald J Trump.”

The office also stated that it had information that Trump may have received more than $5 million in federal tax advantages through allegedly deceptive assessments acquired from tax benefits taken at the Trump National Golf Course in Los Angeles and the family residence in New York known as Seven Springs.

Since 2019, James’ office has been pursuing a civil investigation of the Trump Organization and the veracity of its financial records, which Trump has referred to as a “political witch hunt.”

The former President has filed a lawsuit against James, stating that she has violated his constitutional rights, and has requested a judge to impose a preliminary injunction to stop the probe or remove her from it. 

In December, James’ office issued subpoenas for Trump and his adult children, prompting Trumps’ lawyers to file a motion to quash the subpoenas earlier this month, claiming that the attorney general, whose office is conducting a civil investigation and whose attorneys have joined a criminal investigation led by the Manhattan district attorney’s office, was attempting to “circumvent the entire grand jury process.”

“A civil deposition is virtually the same as a deposition by the DANY,” they said, “but without the constitutional protections accorded every witness through the grand jury process.

Witnesses who testify in front of a New York state grand jury are granted transactional immunity and cannot be punished unless they lie under oath.

They suggested that James is attempting to circumvent those rights by obtaining testimony in a civil action that may later be utilized by criminal prosecutors.

In a civil matter, a jury might hold defendants liable or draw an unfavorable inference if they refuse to testify.

The idea was rejected by James’ attorneys in a Tuesday filing, who said that the Trumps may use their Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination.

“Each witness has the right to use the Fifth Amendment to protect themselves from self-incrimination. In a civil inquiry (or any other civil or administrative action), a witness using such privilege is neither rare nor a violation of a fundamental right “The lawyers sent a letter.

By New York City Newswire Journalist Brian Harrod 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/317058755130457 

New York State Insider: Statement from New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on Governor Hochul’s 2022-23 State Budget Proposal.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 18, 2022.

 

 

 

Statement from New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar on  Governor Hochul’s 2022-23 State Budget Proposal.

 

Brooklyn, NY - “More than 200 nations around the world have

budgets smaller than the $216 billion state budget behemoth Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed today. Her budget is more than those of Texas and Florida combined — each state with significantly higher populations than ours.  New York is narrowly competing only with California, a state with twice our population, for the most expensive state government in America. The Hochul budget is almost half the size of Russia’s — Russia’s! 

 

“Meanwhile, the moving trucks keep arriving. Boy, do we need a

change of direction in Albany.” 

 

 

New York State Insider: Senator Mayer Statement on Governor Hochul’s Executive Budget Proposal.

 

Date: January 18, 2022 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   Senator Shelley B. Mayer Statement on Governor Kathy Hochul’s Executive Budget Proposal.

"As chair of the Senate Education Committee, the commitment to fully fund Foundation Aid over three years was a major victory for students across New York State in last year’s budget. Thank you to Governor Kathy Hochul for continuing to recognize its importance by including it in her fiscal year 2023 executive budget proposal. Our schools are facing serious challenges that have been brought on and exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. All students in our state are entitled to a quality education that prepares them for their future. To ensure this we must seriously address the recruitment and retention of teachers, principals and staff; the mental health of our students; and academic delays. We must also continue to ensure our special education students receive the services they need to thrive. I look forward to working with my colleagues and the Governor’s office to move education forward to ensure we address the needs of all students from early childhood programs through post-graduation educational activities."

New York State Insider: New York State Senator Pete Harckham 40th District: Join me for my virtual Coffee & Conversation, Saturday, Jan. 22, at 11 a.m.

 

Join me for My Virtual Coffee & Conversation, Saturday, January 22 .

 Join me for my virtual Coffee & Conversation, 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., Saturday, January 22. I will discuss a variety of issues, including an overview of the state Homeowner Assistance Fund, and will gladly answer your questions.

 Click here to register in advance for this meeting. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.