ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - This week in New York state government, lawmakers plan to introduce a new plan to modernize the state’s restrictive voting rules, the third of four new upstate casinos is poised to open and lawmakers take a look at taxes.
A guide to what’s coming up in the Capitol:
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VOTING REFORMS
Democrats in the state Senate plan to unveil sweeping changes to election rules intended to make it easier to cast a ballot.
New York is one of a minority of states that doesn’t allow early voting, and the state has some of the most restrictive registration rules in the country.
Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, both Democrats, have already unveiled their proposals, which include automatic voter through the state’s motor vehicle system and early voting.
Schneiderman’s office received 1,500 voter complaints about the April presidential primary, about 10 times more than any previous election. Many of the calls concerned mistakes in registration rolls or a deadline that required voters seeking to change their party affiliation to do so more than six months before the primary.
“Protecting voting rights is crucial to protecting democracy,” said Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers. “After the last elections it should be clear voting matters.”
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DEMOCRATIC DISCORD
The biggest challenge facing the new voting reform plan from Senate Democrats may be the Senate Democrats themselves, thanks to the schism within their party that has empowered Republicans.
Democrats technically have a one-seat majority in the 63-member Senate - an advantage that should ease the way for Democratic proposals. But Republicans lead the chamber thanks to the eight-member Independent Democratic Conference, whose members have broken with mainline Democrats to give control of the Senate to Republicans.
The long-simmering tensions between the two factions were on full display last week when Stewart-Cousins referred to the IDC as “rogue” Democrats. A spokeswoman for the IDC then accused mainline Democrats of “grandstanding” and called them a “failing conference.”
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TAX TIME
Scrutiny of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s $152 billion state budget proposal continue, with three days of hearings this week focused on taxes, human services and housing.
Cuomo is proposing no big tax changes this year, though he’s touting a middle class tax cut that was actually approved last year. That reduction is now being phased in and will lower income taxes for New Yorkers with annual incomes between $40,000 and $300,000.
Cuomo opted to renew the current tax rates on high-end earners, rates that were set to expire at the end of the year.
The move has been criticized by Republicans who had hoped the so-called “millionaire’s tax” rate would go away.
Some Democrats, however, are pushing for higher taxes on those who earn $1 million or more a year.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie put out his plan to tax the state’s richest residents late last month.
“By ensuring that tax rates are tailored to expect more from those who can most afford it, we can make sure our communities have better schools, New Yorkers have better access to healthcare and that tax burdens do not crush those who are struggling to make ends meet,” he said.
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NEW CASINO
The state’s third new upstate casino plans to open its doors Tuesday in Schenectady.
The opening of the $330 million Rivers Casino & Resort comes just days after del Lago Resort & Casino opened in the Finger Lakes. Tioga Downs was the first of the new casinos to open back in December.
A fourth upstate gambling facility, Montreign Resort Casino in the Catskills, is set to open next year.
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