[UPDATED 6 p.m.] Legislature Republicans sent out this statement by Majority Leader Steve Tucciarello:
“The Republican Majority is honored that the voters in the last election chose to increase the size of our caucus,” says the statement. “The size of each legislative office budget should be a direct reflection of each caucus’s representation in the overall legislature. The current outdated practice thwarts the intent of the electorate and this proposal honors the will of the voter.”
In November, Democrats lost a seat in the Legislature when Joe Carbone defeated Stephanie Aldersley — the incumbent — in a special election.
Original post: The relationship between Republicans and Democrats in the Monroe County Legislature was strained before, but now the two sides are engaged in straight-up partisan warfare.
- FILE PHOTO
- Carrie Andrews
At the moment, the Republican majority is on the offensive, which turned Tuesday night’s Legislature meeting into a skirmish. And the GOP has now proposed legislation to cut funding for the Democratic office by 10 percent.
The cut would take $16,000 out of the Dems’ approximately $170,000 budget. The caucus would be forced to make some sort of cut to cover the funding loss, Democratic leader Carrie Andrews said during a press conference this afternoon.
“This is an unprecedented attack on the minority office,” she said.
Andrews and several other legislators said that the proposed funding cut, which is likely to pass since Republicans have a 19 to 10 majority in the Legislature, is retaliation. They said they’re being targeted because they called for former Monroe Community Hospital director Todd Spring’s resignation after a state report said Spring had mistreated a patient, and because they called for the reactivation of the hospital’s defunct oversight board. They said they’re also being punished for criticizing authority appointments. (Spring was fired, and the oversight board is starting up again.)
Democrats have also held up borrowing on a road project and a bridge construction project. They say they’re doing it to make the point that their proposals deserve to be heard but are routinely stifled by Legislature Republicans.
A staffer at the Republican legislators’ office said caucus leaders would issue a statement in response to the Democrats.
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This article appears in May 15-21, 2013.
I honestly think that if City objectively (hopefully) looks at the track of these issues, it makes a different point. Ms. Andrews, as minority leader, proposed a law to ban guns from the county office building. That would make sense if she checked …she would have found out that there was already a law on the books to do that! Before that, she stood up to criticize Republicans for adding a “snow tax”…something done by the city years before. Now she is upet about a pro rata cut in minority member funding…good lady…bad understanding of the issues!
Once more, Morelle puts her out there to ensure that she will never be meaningful in Monroe County. Carrie, you are a great future leader…but, bad at understanding when you are being used!
Talk about the gang that can’t shoot straight. The Democrats criticized the Republicans for dumping their previous leader, Daniele, b/c he supported them on ONE issue. As if the Republicans care what the Democrats think about internal party issues. THIS is their idea of strategy? Doesn’t matter who leads the Dems in the Legislature, they still end up over a cliff.