The $200 million worth of member item funding in this year's state budget, spread out among some 5,800 individual appropriations, figures to be a major issue in this year's campaign season.
This fall will mark the first elections since budget reform efforts removed some of the mystery of member items - the term Albany uses for targeted grants secured by individual legislators. After six years, lump sums for member items were replaced with listing every recipient in the budget as a separate line item, along with the legislator who sponsored the grant.
The result is a clear record of how money is distributed mostly to the members of the majority parties, and the differences couldn't be more obvious in Cayuga County. The only majority party state legislator out of five representing the county this year is doling out roughly three times more than the other four combined.
State Sen. Michael Nozzolio, a member of the Senate Republican majority, received $2.15 million to pass out this year. Cayuga County's other state senator, Democrat David Valesky, got just $300,000. The three Assembly Republicans representing Cayuga County were able to distribute even less.
The differences have prompted minority party lawmakers and challengers to call for equal distribution of member-item spending.
But Nozzolio rejects that idea.
“Every project that receives state funding should be judged on the merits of the project,” he said.
He also downplays any
contention that the current system protects majority party incumbents, pointing to his years as an Assembly Republican.
“I have served in both the minority party and the majority party in both houses of the Legislature and am proud of my record of securing funding for local projects,” he said.
But his opponent in this year's race for the 54th Senate District favors member-item spending divided equally among legislative districts.
“The history is that the New York State Senate has been controlled too heavily by Senate Majority Leader Bruno,” she said. “Member-item spending should not be due to a partisan power struggle at the whim of either majority leader for other members.”
She sees no impact in Albany of recent changes in member-item disclosure but hopes that the first layer of disclosures will lead to further scrutiny by independent research groups.
“For candidates like me, it is critical information,” she said. “Further research can uncover how it ties into campaign dollars.”
“Without question the system is designed to protect majority incumbents,” Capanna said. “You can see which seats Bruno was going to protect by ranking members of the Senate according to member-item dollars. It skews the democratic process.”
Capanna also says too much is spent on member items. “We have to balance the budget and pay down the debt,” Capanna said. “Member items are going to come up as part of that conversation.”
Nozzolio, however, said his focus is on controlling overall state spending.
“I have fought for and voted in favor of legislation to enact a constitutional state spending cap that limits and controls state spending,” he said.
Valesky, not surprisingly, had views similar to Capanna's
“A project that is worthwhile in terms of receiving funding should have nothing to do with whose district it's in,” he said.
That said, he believes the disclosure of member items has had a significant impact.
“That's one of the reform measures that I and my Senate Democratic colleagues were successful in getting,” Valesky said. “As to why it's so important, the bottom line is that these are taxpayer's dollars, so transparency in government is crucial. Any way that we can make it easier to access information and provide full information is absolutely something we can strive toward.”
His opponent for District 49, Republican James DiStefano, said it's difficult to say whether equal distribution among legislative districts is wise. He said his bigger concern is state spending.
“The state currently spends too much money - period,” he said. “The cost of government has to be reduced in all areas.”
Assemblyman Gary Finch, a Republican, with the $127,000 he received, doled out 29 awards this year. Finch agrees with the equal division principle.
“Each Assembly District is divided based on an equal population of roughly 130,000, so if the districts are equal, it would be appropriate that the spending is the same,” he said. “As a minority member of the Assembly, there are definitely inequities in the system.”
He considers the reforms achieved so far positive.
“The concept of full disclosure is very important and transparency is needed for the allocation of member item money,” Finch said.
Ultimately, though, he wants to eliminate member-item spending.
“There are far more requests for funding than we can possibly provide,” he said, but added that he will continue fighting for those in his district as long as money is available.
“I do not believe I was elected to ”bring home“ member item grants,” Finch said. “I was elected to be a strong advocate ... to speak about issues that are important to this region, like education, agriculture, tourism, and economic development.”
Even though his opponent, Democrat Barbara Abbott King, would likely benefit from the current system should she win the 123rd Assembly District race this year, she also favors major changes.
“So many of these (member-item spending) policies are being modified, but they should be absolutely ended.”
King supports equality in the division of funds for member-item spending,
“I don't think one cause is more important than another depending on where you live,” she said. “We have to get back to a sensible policy in this state.”
Democratic and Republican parties both target races for the more vulnerable seats and appropriate funds to those candidates, she said.
And the ability to bring out a member-item check during a campaign can make a difference, she said.
“Incumbents are popular and have established rapport with their constituencies, based on personality and how long they have held office. Holding up a big check with their name on it has people duped into thinking this is a big giveaway,” she said.
Assemblyman Brian Kolb, who distributed 19 awards from his cache of $142,000, agrees equal distribution is a sound idea.
“First and foremost, if you look at all the legislative districts in New York,” Kolb said, “you will see that each member of the Senate represents 295,000 people, while a member of the Assembly represents 125,000. All Assembly members should have the same allotment. I could see where a senator should get more because he represents more people. but all state senators should be equal in terms of their legislative house.”
But Kolb also said it's unlikely the system would change as long as the current majority is in control. He said he has found a way to work with the process that exists. He shares his district with five different senators and said that he works closely with them not to overlap or duplicate support to organizations there.
“There's a lot of cooperation,” he said.
Noah Sargent, Kolb's Democratic opponent for the 129th District, had a different take on member-item spending.
“Member items shouldn't be amended, they should be ended,” Sargent said. “They are really IOUs for election time that allow politicians to build up contributions.”
He excluded non-funded mandates as frequent recipients of member-item spending and said that giving money to them helps upstate New York.
“I wouldn't want to eliminate that as it helps with budget issues,” he said. “Amend and end the ridiculous giveaways.”
In spite of a kind of balance in New York with the Assembly controlled by downstate Democrats and upstate by Senate Republicans, he said many instances of disproportionate spending remain.
“The system is absolutely designed to protect majority party members,” he said. “I wish it wasn't, but it is.”
Duplication of services should definitely be ended, he said. If member items were completely eliminated, taxpayers would get more money in their paychecks.
“I can spend my money much better than the state can,” he said. “There should be 100 percent disclosure, no secrets at all. When people aren't happy, there needs to be accountability.”
“I would be willing to co-sponsor a bill to make that happen,” Sargent said. “It's not who you trust but who you trust to do the job. It's going to be tough to make a change.”
Staff writer Kathleen Barran can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or kathleen.barran@lee.net
Notes:
Last modified 07/25 07:42 PM by Kathleen Barran
Created 07/22 09:10 PM by Kathleen Barran
The result is a clear record of how money is distributed mostly to the members of the majority parties, and the differences couldn't be more obvious in Cayuga County. The only majority party state legislator out of five representing the county this year is doling out roughly three times more than the other four combined.
State Sen. Michael Nozzolio, a member of the Senate Republican majority, received $2.15 million to pass out this year. Cayuga County's other state senator, Democrat David Valesky, got just $300,000. The three Assembly Republicans representing Cayuga County were able to distribute even less.
The differences have prompted minority party lawmakers and challengers to call for equal distribution of member-item spending.
But Nozzolio rejects that idea.
“Every project that receives state funding should be judged on the merits of the project,” he said.
He also downplays any
contention that the current system protects majority party incumbents, pointing to his years as an Assembly Republican.
“I have served in both the minority party and the majority party in both houses of the Legislature and am proud of my record of securing funding for local projects,” he said.
But his opponent in this year's race for the 54th Senate District favors member-item spending divided equally among legislative districts.
“The history is that the New York State Senate has been controlled too heavily by Senate Majority Leader Bruno,” she said. “Member-item spending should not be due to a partisan power struggle at the whim of either majority leader for other members.”
She sees no impact in Albany of recent changes in member-item disclosure but hopes that the first layer of disclosures will lead to further scrutiny by independent research groups.
“For candidates like me, it is critical information,” she said. “Further research can uncover how it ties into campaign dollars.”
“Without question the system is designed to protect majority incumbents,” Capanna said. “You can see which seats Bruno was going to protect by ranking members of the Senate according to member-item dollars. It skews the democratic process.”
Capanna also says too much is spent on member items. “We have to balance the budget and pay down the debt,” Capanna said. “Member items are going to come up as part of that conversation.”
Nozzolio, however, said his focus is on controlling overall state spending.
“I have fought for and voted in favor of legislation to enact a constitutional state spending cap that limits and controls state spending,” he said.
Valesky, not surprisingly, had views similar to Capanna's
“A project that is worthwhile in terms of receiving funding should have nothing to do with whose district it's in,” he said.
That said, he believes the disclosure of member items has had a significant impact.
“That's one of the reform measures that I and my Senate Democratic colleagues were successful in getting,” Valesky said. “As to why it's so important, the bottom line is that these are taxpayer's dollars, so transparency in government is crucial. Any way that we can make it easier to access information and provide full information is absolutely something we can strive toward.”
His opponent for District 49, Republican James DiStefano, said it's difficult to say whether equal distribution among legislative districts is wise. He said his bigger concern is state spending.
“The state currently spends too much money - period,” he said. “The cost of government has to be reduced in all areas.”
Assemblyman Gary Finch, a Republican, with the $127,000 he received, doled out 29 awards this year. Finch agrees with the equal division principle.
“Each Assembly District is divided based on an equal population of roughly 130,000, so if the districts are equal, it would be appropriate that the spending is the same,” he said. “As a minority member of the Assembly, there are definitely inequities in the system.”
He considers the reforms achieved so far positive.
“The concept of full disclosure is very important and transparency is needed for the allocation of member item money,” Finch said.
Ultimately, though, he wants to eliminate member-item spending.
“There are far more requests for funding than we can possibly provide,” he said, but added that he will continue fighting for those in his district as long as money is available.
“I do not believe I was elected to ”bring home“ member item grants,” Finch said. “I was elected to be a strong advocate ... to speak about issues that are important to this region, like education, agriculture, tourism, and economic development.”
Even though his opponent, Democrat Barbara Abbott King, would likely benefit from the current system should she win the 123rd Assembly District race this year, she also favors major changes.
“So many of these (member-item spending) policies are being modified, but they should be absolutely ended.”
King supports equality in the division of funds for member-item spending,
“I don't think one cause is more important than another depending on where you live,” she said. “We have to get back to a sensible policy in this state.”
Democratic and Republican parties both target races for the more vulnerable seats and appropriate funds to those candidates, she said.
And the ability to bring out a member-item check during a campaign can make a difference, she said.
“Incumbents are popular and have established rapport with their constituencies, based on personality and how long they have held office. Holding up a big check with their name on it has people duped into thinking this is a big giveaway,” she said.
Assemblyman Brian Kolb, who distributed 19 awards from his cache of $142,000, agrees equal distribution is a sound idea.
“First and foremost, if you look at all the legislative districts in New York,” Kolb said, “you will see that each member of the Senate represents 295,000 people, while a member of the Assembly represents 125,000. All Assembly members should have the same allotment. I could see where a senator should get more because he represents more people. but all state senators should be equal in terms of their legislative house.”
But Kolb also said it's unlikely the system would change as long as the current majority is in control. He said he has found a way to work with the process that exists. He shares his district with five different senators and said that he works closely with them not to overlap or duplicate support to organizations there.
“There's a lot of cooperation,” he said.
Noah Sargent, Kolb's Democratic opponent for the 129th District, had a different take on member-item spending.
“Member items shouldn't be amended, they should be ended,” Sargent said. “They are really IOUs for election time that allow politicians to build up contributions.”
He excluded non-funded mandates as frequent recipients of member-item spending and said that giving money to them helps upstate New York.
“I wouldn't want to eliminate that as it helps with budget issues,” he said. “Amend and end the ridiculous giveaways.”
In spite of a kind of balance in New York with the Assembly controlled by downstate Democrats and upstate by Senate Republicans, he said many instances of disproportionate spending remain.
“The system is absolutely designed to protect majority party members,” he said. “I wish it wasn't, but it is.”
Duplication of services should definitely be ended, he said. If member items were completely eliminated, taxpayers would get more money in their paychecks.
“I can spend my money much better than the state can,” he said. “There should be 100 percent disclosure, no secrets at all. When people aren't happy, there needs to be accountability.”
“I would be willing to co-sponsor a bill to make that happen,” Sargent said. “It's not who you trust but who you trust to do the job. It's going to be tough to make a change.”
Staff writer Kathleen Barran can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or kathleen.barran@lee.net
Notes:
Last modified 07/25 07:42 PM by Kathleen Barran
Created 07/22 09:10 PM by Kathleen Barran
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