Amidst the swirling winds of a bitter Spring day, and rumors of more
indictments of state elected officials, the State Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) has proposed an ambitious overhaul of New York's campaign finance laws.
The Corning Tower Observation Deck in Albany was packed on Jan. 30 as
scores of state elected officials gathered for the UFT's annual legislative reception to discuss the union's legislative priorities for the year ahead.
In the past few years, several high profile
cases of state elected officials being arrested and charged with corruption have further eroded public trust in government.
As in the last election, Tuck's supporters include a short
list of state elected officials, school board members from across the state and a long list of teachers, superintendents, charter school advocates and individuals associated with education reform groups.
The vast majority (88 %) of business leaders continue to say the ethical
behavior of state elected officials over the past twenty years has been either a somewhat (40 %) or very serious (48 %) issue.
The reception drew a record
number of state elected officials, including Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, Assembly Education Chair Catherine Nolan and Andrea Stewart - Cousins, the Senate Democratic Conference leader.
Paterson, who was in Queens to announce $ 30 million in state funding for the borough's hospitals and health clinics, was accompanied by a number
of state elected officials, including Assemblywoman Grace Meng (D - Flushing), who is pregnant with her second child.