The dubious pension “amortization” bill that was the subject of warning posts on this page over the past couple of days was defeated on the floor of the state Senate in the early hours of this morning. Senate sources say the vote was 34-28, with four five Democrats joining all 30 29 Republicans in opposition, but an official roll call was not immediately available.**
Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, led the debate — and, apparently, was pretty persuasive.
By the way, the defeat of a bill on the Senate floor is almost unheard-of in Albany. This particular bill was backed by both the governor and the state comptroller, making the outcome that much more unusual. If this means lawmakers are going to start taking public pension issues more seriously, it may be an important turning point for taxpayers in New York.
** UPDATE: As reported on The Daily Politics blog, the bill was opposed by five Democrats – Ruben Diaz Sr., Ruth Hassell-Thompson, Jeff Klein, Shirley Huntley, Carl Kruger and Bill Perkins. One Republican, Long Island Sen. Kemp Hannon, voted “yes”.
FURTHER UPDATE — That blog report of the vote, above, had it wrong. The official roll call shows all 30 Republicans voted “no,” and the Democrats in opposition were Diaz, Klein, Huntley, Kruger and Perkins.
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