kevan nicolello does not like people who wish to work

and or pray at nassau otb, believe in ny vonst art 1 sec 3 or are paridhioners st st pauls in hempstead



who are these guys kidding?

LONG ISLANDPOLITICS

Nassau Democrats want bills heard in public debate over opening the holy church of nassau itb so that people may work & or bet as they wish, see also ny const art 1 sec 3

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Track Code	Track Name	Entry	Scratch	1st Post ET	1st Post Local	Time Zone	Stakes Race(s)	Stakes Grade	T.V. Indicator
SA	SANTA ANITA PARK	72	48	3:00 PM	12:00 PM	PDT
SUN	SUNLAND PARK	168	24	2:30 PM	12:30 PM	MDT	Mt. Cristo Rey H.
TAM	TAMPA BAY DOWNS	72	0	12:35 PM	12:35 PM

Nassau Legislators Richard Nicolello and Kevan Abrahams during the legislature meeting on Oct. 15, 2019, in Mineola. Credit: Howard Schnapp 

By Candice Ferrettecandice.ferrette@newsday.com   @candiceferrette Updated January 19, 2020 7:08 PM

PRINT SHARE 

Democrats in the minority in the Nassau County Legislature continue to advocate for rule changes in the lawmaking processes, railing against decades-old procedures they say block their bills from committee hearings and stifle public debate.

As a new session gets underway, officials say the eight-member Democratic caucus has about a dozen filed bills — six of which are priorities they believe should pass — that immediately have been shut down before the committee process or have languished without the consideration of the full legislature. 

But Republicans, who hold an 11-8 majority on the county legislature, say more Democratic-sponsored bills are getting passed than at any time in recent Nassau history. For example, almost 20 bills filed by Democrats have become law in the last two years, Republicans said.

"I'm not asking them to vote for our bills. All I'm asking for is public discourse," said Minority Leader Legis. Kevan Abrahams (D-Freeport). "We want to require the Presiding Officer to assign every bill that's clocked in to a committee within 14 days." 

Abrahams, who has been minority leader for eight of his 17 years on the legislature, said too many bills are "not seeing the light of day" including measures that would serve taxpayers, public health and the environment. 

The longtime contention between the two political parties on the Nassau legislature came back into focus as the lawmakers adopted dozens of new procedural rules last week.

Among them were: requiring the legislature to hold at least four evening meetings, including a budget hearing; extend the public comment period from 30 minutes to one hour at the start of full legislative meetings; and giving five minutes to public speakers, up from three minutes. 

"We support all of these, obviously, but we didn't get everything we wanted," Abrahams said. 

Sign up to receive The 1600

Get our inside look at the White House and goings on in the Donald Trump administration.

Sign up

By clicking Sign up, you agree to our privacy policy.

Presiding Officer Legis. Rich Nicolello (R-New Hyde Park) rejected Democrats' complaints, saying each legislative body has a chairperson with the responsibility of setting the agenda. Nicolello pointed to the practice in the state Assembly where Democrats hold an overwhelming majority blocking Republican-sponsored proposals. 

"There has to be some sort of filter. In every legislative body there has to be a decision-making process and that rests with the chair," said Nicolello, who was sworn in Monday for his second, two-year term as presiding officer.

More minority-sponsored bills have been voted on than at any other time in the legislature, said Nicolello who is one of the only two current lawmakers serving since the inception of the Nassau County Legislature.

Nicolello's first term began in January 2018, when Nassau County Executive Laura Curran, a Democrat, took office. Previously, the Republicans had held both a majority in the legislature and in the executive office with former County Executive Edward Mangano.

Nineteen bills filed by minority Democrats have passed since 2018. By comparison, only one minority-sponsored bill passed the legislature during former Republican Presiding Officer Norma Gonsalves' last term, 2016-17; and only two minority-sponsored bill passed the last time Republicans were in the minority on the legislature, 2008-09. 

Among some of the reasons minority-sponsored bills are not assigned to legislative committees are because the majority has determined it would not get enough votes if called and sometimes because they are addressing issues or creating local laws outside of the jurisdiction of county legislature, Nicolello said. 

Abrahams gives credit to Nicolello for working in a more bipartisan fashion than his predecessors. 

"We were starting from zero so of course this is a major improvement," Abrahams said. However, he maintains the procedures need to change so bills go to committees, no matter which party holds the majority in the legislature. He said it is important for taxpayers and voters to hear lawmakers' stance on each bill on the record.

In Suffolk County, where Democrats hold a 10-8 majority over Republicans, each filed bill, no matter the sponsor, is assigned to a committee. 

"At least here in Suffolk we have the opportunity to speak on each bill — even if the more substantive Republican bills get tabled," said Minority Leader Legis. Tim Cilmi (R-Bay Shore). 

For the first time in years, Republicans hold chairmanships on committees, even if their bills tend to get tabled for several cycles and die in committee after six months, Suffolk officials said. 

Larry Levy, executive dean of the National Center for Suburban Studies, who has written about county and state politics for decades, said there's no real incentive for majority caucuses to go along with the changes in the rules. 

Public discourse often occurs on social media and in rallies, Levy said. 

"And frankly, it's not high on the list of what the public seems to care about which has much more to do with taxes and public safety," Levy said.