New York Legislature
The
New York Legislature is the legislative branch of the
U.S. state of
New York, seated at the state's capital,
Albany. The Legislature is
bicameral, consisting of two houses: the
New York State Assembly and the
New York Senate.
The Assembly is the
lower house of the Legislature, and consists of one-hundred and fifty members, each chosen from a single-member district. The
upper house, the Senate, includes a varying number of members. The Constitution provides that the default membership be fifty members. However, it provides that if any county would by virtue of its population be entitled to more than three Senators, then the first three Senators would count towards the limit of fifty, while the remainder would be in addition to the fifty. Currently, there are twelve additional Senators (who are in terms of legislative power equal to any other Senators), making the total membership sixty-two.
In order to be a member of either house, one must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of the state of New York for at least five years, and a resident of the district for at least one year prior to election.
Legislative elections are held in November of every even-numbered year. Both Assembly members and Senators serve two-year terms.
The Assembly is headed by the Speaker, while the Senate is headed by the President, a post held
ex officio by the State Lieutenant Governor. The Lieutenant Governor, as President of the Senate, has only a casting vote. More often, the Senate is presided over by the Temporary President, who is also the Majority Leader, or by a senator of the Majority Leader's choosing.
The Assembly Speaker and Senate Majority Leader control the assignment of committees and leadership positions, along with control of the agenda in their chambers. The two are considered powerful statewide leaders and along with the
Governor of New York control most of the agenda of state business in New York.
An interesting note is that the New York state legislature is split. The State Senate is controlled by the
Republicans, who have a 35-27 majority, but the state Assembly is controlled by a
Democratic supermajority of 104-45 seats (1 vacant). Among the top reasons for this split include the more conservative
upstate region holding more clout in the State Senate, as well as
Long Island, where voters are increasingly trending towards the Democrats on the state and local levels but continue to re-elect their incumbent Republican state senators. In fact, Republicans currently hold every state senate seat for Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
In recent years, Republicans in the State Senate have lost ground, particularly in New York City, though they still hold a few state senate seats representing parts of Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island. However, the nature of New York State politics is such that occasionally Democrats will switch parties when they run for Senate so they can sit with the majority.
The Assembly has been dominated by Democrats for nearly 30 years and Republicans have recently lost ground in this chamber as well. Between 2002 and 2005, the Republican conference dropped from 53 seats to 45. Republicans even lost some districts that historically have been strongly Republican.
The Legislature is empowered to make law, subject to the
Governor's power to veto a bill. However, the veto may be overridden by the Legislature if there is a
two-thirds majority in favor of overriding in each House. Furthermore, it has the power to propose Constitutional amendments by a majority vote, and then another majority vote following an election. If so proposed, the amendment becomes valid if agreed to by the voters at a
referendum.
*Speaker of the Assembly:
Sheldon Silver*Majority Leader of the Assembly:
Paul Tokasz*Minority Leader of the Assembly:
James Tedisco*Lieutenant Governor and President of the Senate:
Mary Donohue*Temporary President and Majority Leader:
Joseph Bruno*Minority Leader:
David Paterson*Minority Leader
Pro Tempore:
Willis Stephens*
Official site of the New York Senate*
Official site of the New York Assembly*
Compiling the Legislative History of a New York State Law
