Lobbying Day in Albany..this coming Tuesday

Lafalce
a commie and disgusting!

BUMP!!

I haven't gotten any updates on how things went yesterday, how about you??????

OOPS....I asked too soon.......though I am still waiting for first hand experiences. Smoking ban hurts business

nothing as of yet, I just checked my mail.

I did respond to the leader of the pack and asked him for an update.
Do you know if anyone you know went?

I thought so.......but they are from NYC and may have stayed overnight.....because I've got nothing in my email.

first thing I've seen, thanks for finding it.

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Groups representing New York state bar owners contend the statewide smoking ban has cost their industry about 2,000 jobs.

A study released Tuesday by the New York Nightlife Association and the Empire State Restaurant and Tavern Association said the ban that went into effect in July has also led to $28.5 million in lost wages and $37 million in lost gross state product. Affiliated businesses lost another 650 jobs and $56 million in wages and production, the study by Ridgewood Economic Associates said.

The study's author, Brian O'Connor, said the numbers were derived from projections. Actual employment data for 2004 is not yet available.

The government-documented number of bar and tavern jobs lost from 2002 to 2003 was 401, according to state Labor Department numbers supplied by O'Connor. Those numbers showed bar and tavern jobs also declined in the previous two years, before the ban went into effect.

The groups are pushing for passage of a bill sponsored by majority members in both houses of the Legislature that would provide new exemptions from the ban.

The bill from Republican state Sen. Raymond Meier and Democratic Assemblywoman RoAnn Destito would exempt bars, provided the taverns are equipped with approved air filtration systems. Destito's bill adds bowling alleys and billiard parlors to the list of workplaces where smoking would be allowed, in special rooms with filtration systems.

Russell Sciandra of the Center for a Tobacco Free New York said such systems do little to clean the air of harmful pollutants. He pointed to the many disclaimers in which the makers of air filters acknowledge the shortcomings of their systems.

The state ban outlaws smoking in restaurants and bars, Off-Track Betting parlors, bowling alleys and pool halls, company cars, enclosed parking lots and outdoors around the entrances to public buildings.

State and local health departments may grant waivers to establishments that can prove they lost at least 15 percent of their profits to the ban. The businesses must also take steps to protect workers and non-smoking patrons from second-hand smoke.

Hopefully something else comes in shortly.......I'm getting ready to go out of town and will be without computer access until tomorrow evening.

And of all places---- I'm going to wonderful smoke-free Dover, DE................sigh.

But at least the political function I'm attending is being held at an establishment that has an outside deck and patio bar!!!

This e-mail just came.

Russ Sciandra acted like a lunatic in Albany yesterday. I have heard that by several people that were there. It's too bad he crashed our news conference.

They have millions of dollars to lobby in Albany and have ad campaigns on television. We have to depend on what ever we can get through the FREE PRESS.

How pathetic can he be? In case you don't know who Russell Sciandra is-He is the head of the American Cancer Society and makes a big buck for what he does. NON-PROFIT organization?? Someone is profitting from it.

That doesn't surprise me from some of the paid lunatics.

You wouldn't believe some of the things they accused me of when I was fighting the first smoking ban in Delaware in the early 90s...............along the lines of doing more than just speaking with legislators................

I can only imagine..
I just sent this email to a whole group of people and politicans.

""State and local health departments may grant waivers to establishments that can prove they lost at least 15 percent of their profits to the ban. The businesses must also take steps to protect workers and nonsmoking patrons from secondhand smoke. ""

This statement is so telling, just proves the lunacy of Albany,
this coming from the biggest den of iniquity in New York State.

First of all the businesses are being devastated by this law,
then they are going to be forced once again to spend more
money, money that they will have to scrape together if they
want to attempt to try and stay in business.

How many thousands of dollars have already been spent on
separate rooms, separate ventilation systems. This to me is
just another example of New York bribing the business community.

It makes me sick to see that all of the politicians keep on spewing
forth that they are business friendly. Also makes me wonder
what businesses they are friendly to, the only ones that donate
to their campaigns and get taxpayer money from?

It is absolutely no wonder to me any longer why thousands are
fleeing this state. Especially the retired workers that have sucked
of the tax payers for pay and benefits and a pension that is second
to none.

Then move to Florida because the taxes are cheaper and on top
of that are exempt from New York State taxes.

Where oh where has the Empire State gone ?

who's going to turn out the lights in Western New York?
The last welfare recipient, or the last union leader?

WOW...........scathing but directly to the point!

That's me....

gotta go, see ya soon!

Me too - Later!!!

We had a very productive day in Albany yesterday. We really could not have done any of it without you all in the Trade and particularly New York Nightlife and Empire State (and their Lobbyists) being so committed and involved. The Study (see attached release) was damning, and provides undeniable evidence that all is not rosy in our industry because of one overbearing piece of bad legislation.

Many media picked up the tale here today, incl radio, newspaper and TV. No doubt we spoiled Bloomberg’s morning coffee or/and Joe Bruno’s breakfast! Lets keep our finger’s crossed that our representations made some difference and will help the bills get out of Health Committee log-jam.

We have a ways to go yet, but it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge the success of the lobby day for all of us. Whatever else we achieved, we were there together, with one message for the legislature, from bars and associated industries all across the entire state. People traveled from Niagara, Buffalo, Rochester, NYC and elsewhere to be in Albany for the day. It was quite moving, and yet sad at the same time. They are all hurting!

Now on our return to Gotham, I see Mayor Bloomberg's big push to shush the city includes, albeit sotto voce, the need to quell the crescendo of calls to the 311 lines by disgruntled city residents, bemoaning the noise caused by smokers congregating outside bars at night, talking and generally carrying on in the summer night's heat!

He says that "over 1,000 calls a day are logged by 311 concerning noise in the city", and we know from bitter experience last year that the bulk of those calls in the summer are related to our customers having to leave the bar to smoke outside....and the related convivial though admittedly loud conversations among these smokers and other friends, passer-bys and whomever is driving community boards and local residents nuts!

The very fact also that the 311 calls are free, and anonymous exacerbates the issue and encourages crank and repeat callers, because there is no consequence for the caller if fraud or nuisance is his/her goal. (calling 911 falsely on the other hand is a federal offense!).

Recently some city bars have been targeted by over-reaching residents associations, circulating fliers to residents on neighboring city blocks encouraging them (the residents) to call 311, indicate that smoking is going on at a given named bar, (whether that’s true or not) and by making that bar's life a misery, with police and health officers' inspections each week, answering these complaints, the bar will eventually close and the block will quieten down.

QED. The end justifies the means...hardly!

The real solution as we know, for such sidewalk noise is to put the smokers back inside the bars where they belong in the first place, where they can be controlled, and the street noise quelled.

On a lighter, but totaling note, please see David Letterman’s Top Ten List from last night’s show… go to http://www.cbs.com/latenight/lateshow/top_ten/

We made National TV Guys - Take a bow!

Thanks again!

Brian Nolan

Exec Director
United Restaurant & Tavern Owners of New York, Inc.
305 Madison Ave, Suite 1946, New York, NY 10165
URTO-NY Phone 212 557 5200

I'm happy they are upbeat............but I don't doubt one bit the situation with the noise stuff going on in NYC......or the encouragement of the anonymous calls to the snitch line.

In a stretch of about 15-20 miles yesterday in Delaware I saw not less than 3 billboards promoting the anti-smoker snitch line....it made me very sad. I made a point of not looking at billboards when I was coming home today.

http://c1.zedo.com/jsc/c1/ff2.html?n=162;c=8/1;s=4;d=16;w=720;h=300;t=UndertoneNetworks.com

BARS THAT BLOW OFF BAN MAY LOSE LIQUOR LICENSE

By KENNETH LOVETT

June 13, 2004 -- ALBANY — Bars owners have been warned in threatening government letters that they'll be stripped of their state liquor and lottery licenses if customers continue to smoke, The Post has learned.
The state Health Department, state Liquor Authority and some local county health departments have sent letters to several upstate bars believed to be flouting New York's smoking ban.

"All other business licenses be revoked or suspended, including your liquor and/or lottery licenses," warned Health Department principal sanitarian Leonard Arias in the letters.

Among several bars in Hornell that received warnings were The Angel and Codder's sports bar.

The Liquor Authority, which can suspend liquor licenses when a business is in violation of any state or local ordinances, has also sent out warnings.

Bars owners, already struggling financially because of the law, were outraged to learn they can lose their licenses over the issue.

"The smoking ban itself is putting enough people out of business," said Robert Bookman, counsel for the New York Nightlife Association.

"[Now] the state is threatening to put them out of business for the alleged violation of an ill-considered law."

In the city, bars face closure if they breach the smoking ban more than three times, but it has not been enforced to date.

City health officials say they do not "routinely" refer violators to the Liquor Authority.

Hi Rus,
I personally talked to Ken Lovett from the NY Post on Thursday. I have personally seen 2 letters in Cattaraugus County. We did fax the letters to the NY Post. I think this is going too far. We not only have to be looking out for the smoke police, but we don't know if all the health depts. are telling the State Liquor Authority or if it is just a select few. Business is hard enough to worry about, now we have to worry about getting our license pulled because they ban a legal product in the hospitality industries that we bought.

This woman is a bar owner in the south towns of western new york

FOCUS: PROBLEMS IN ALBANY
Albany's Session of Scandal

At the State Capitol, lawmakers are beset by charges of ethical lapses and criminal acts

By TOM PRECIOUS
News Albany Bureau
6/13/2004

ALBANY - Skeptics long thought that true reform would not come to the state Capitol until indictments started flowing.
Forget indictments. Top state officials are heading to jail.

And the push for reforms? Silence.

Welcome to the Session of Scandal.

A state budget is more than two months late, no major initiative on any topic has passed and critics note that legislators are standing around the Capitol waiting for the action to begin.

But prosecutors are busy.

It is the most dramatic series of crimes, unethical deeds and questionable dealmaking to hit the state Capitol in generations.

Consider the rap sheet growing longer by the week:

Assemblywoman Gloria Davis, a Democrat from the Bronx, resigned and went to jail last spring after she admitted taking a bribe.

Assemblyman Clarence Norman Jr., head of the Brooklyn Democratic Party, was arraigned in the fall on charges of extortion and grand larceny in a scheme to pressure judicial candidates to hire campaign aides.

Assemblyman Roger Green, a Brookly Democrat, pleaded guilty in February to larceny and other charges for pocketing state money for travel expenses never incurred. He resigned.

A top aide to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver pleaded guilty to sexual misconduct in February and was given probation and a fine.

Former Sen. Guy Velella, a Bronx Republican, was sentenced last month to one year in jail after pleading guilty to taking bribes. He resigned in May.

James McGowan, the former state labor commissioner, was convicted last

month of conspiracy and bribery for steering taxpayer money to a friend in return for kickbacks and job promises. He faces up to 10 years in prison.

One would have to go far to find parallels. Wayne Parent, a political scientist at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, knows corruption there has been a national story for generations.

"It sounds like a heck of a lot, even to someone from Louisiana, and our tolerance level for corruption had been pretty high," he said.

More investigations

But it's not over in Albany.

More investigations are under way, and they may point to further misdeeds.

Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell IV, a Democrat from Manhattan, is under investigation, accused of giving alcohol to a 19-year-old intern in an Albany hotel and having sex with her.

Silver has been asked about a cheap hotel deal he got in Las Vegas with a company doing business in New York and car rental discounts from a company trying to get legislation approved.

Gov. George E. Pataki ran into a series of questions over a trip to St. Barts he and his wife, Libby, took on a private jet part-owned by a political benefactor, whose real estate development company stands to benefit from a recently awarded state rail project. The governor later said he reimbursed the benefactor, though he refuses to release any documentation.

Jack Gaffney, former head of the state Bridge Authority, is under investigation by state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer after the state inspector general's office accused him of spending state money on various trips and running up an $80,000 credit card tab at the taxpayers' expense.

Spitzer is investigating the state Thruway Authority's award of a contract to develop high-end housing along a large portion of the Erie Canal award. That deal to a Buffalo businessman, Richard Hutchens, was recently scuttled by the Pataki administration after criticism arose.

A half-dozen Assembly committees are looking at the award of a contract worth more than $1 billion to a politically-connected company, Tyco subsidiary M/A-COM, to build a statewide emergency radio system.

Criticism has been leveled at former Sen. Alfonse D'Amato, now a lobbyist, who earned $500,000 to make a phone call to help a contractor win an award with a Pataki administration-controlled agency.

Guilt by association?

Are these closely strung-together scandals a coincidence?

Some lawmakers are angry that they are being lumped in with the handful who have tried to cheat the system.

"My personal experience and my observations is that the vast majority of members are moral, hardworking and decent people," said Assemblyman Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo.

But why no reforms?

In other states, reforms seem to follow periods when scandals rocked state Capitols, said Parent, the Louisiana political scientist.

"I would think even in Louisiana, having such a strong history of corruption, these sorts of things would cause some public outcry," Parent said of the New York scandals.

The idea of any changes in Albany is seen as a stretch, legislators say, and critics point out the governor and lawmakers are incapable of changing a system that works for them.

Forget the much-maligned three-men-in-a-room negotiating style in which major deals are hatched in secret by the governor and the two legislative leaders.

The openness some would like to see is more basic.

The state Legislature made itself exempt from the state's Freedom of Information law, and the Pataki administration often is late in complying with the law's requirement for prompt release of public records.

Accounting of lobbyists

If any good can come of the scandals, various groups are zeroing in on one measure: reforming the way companies lobby to win huge state contracts.

State agencies each year award billions of dollars to private companies. The companies often hire lobbyists to help get them the business. Yet, that work is not considered lobbying, so there is no public accounting of it.

Pataki's own lobbying commission has recommended, without success, expansion of the law to include this so-called agency procurement lobbying.

"It's exceptionally open to manipulation," Assemblyman William Parment said of the procurement process.

He saves most of his venom for contract abuses in the Pataki administration. He spent two years investigating one a major computer contract for child protective services, and found bloated costs and numerous failings.

Parment says the problems in the Capitol are obvious. He notes, for instance, how computers aren't considered commodities in state bidding, and, therefore, agencies can buy them from pricier bidders.

"Competitive bidding isn't meant to get the best-priced products, but to keep the politicians honest," he said.

But Kevin Quinn, a Pataki spokesman, said the governor has proposed procurement lobbying reforms. Agencies "have made tremendous progress in their efforts to better serve the people of New York," he said, also insisting the governor already has imposed several contracting reforms.

Critics say the Pataki reforms are weak. Parment laments what he says is a broken system.

"Nothing but secrecy'

The harm created by a a handful of legislators is significant, Parment says, but it doesn't rise to the costs incurred to the "wholesale, systemic manipulation of public policy throughout state government."

Important public policies - casino gambling, for instance - are heavily influenced by the hiring of a few lobbyists with close, personal ties to government leaders, he notes.

Reform groups say Albany's way of dealing with scandals is to hush them up through internal channels, such as ethics panels run either by the Legislature or Pataki administration.

"There's no cop walking the beat and there's nothing but secrecy, and that breeds problems," said Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group.

Horner blames Pataki for halting many of the reforms, a claim the administration dismisses.

"What we don't have is a reform leader," Horner said. "We have a leadership-dominated system cemented in gridlock and the absence of a high-profile political leader who's grabbed the reform mantle.

"Maybe," he added, "it takes more convictions before the scales will tip."

How to light up local nightlife again

BY FRANK CALLAND
Frank Calland is president of Amusement & Music Owners of New York Inc., a regional trade group of electronic game and jukebox operators.

June 10, 2004

For 35 years I have been a provider of electronic games and amusements, mainly to bars, taverns, restaurants, diners and entertainment centers. I have never seen such a drop in business like the one this past year. It is directly tied to the smoking ban.

I talk with other service providers (food, alcohol, cleaning supplies, even state-sponsored "Quick Draw" gambling). When it comes to bars, restaurants and other businesses they serve, they all have the same story: Many have closed.

Now several bills have been introduced to revise New York State's smoking ban, almost a year old. These proposals would exempt bars, taverns, clubs and entertainment centers that primarily do not serve food from the smoking ban and require them to install air-purification filtration systems.

Some kind of reason, common sense and accommodation must be brought to the financial crisis many are finding themselves in.

The state imposed the anti- smoking law, so it's only fair that it take over the measure's statutory authority, enforcement and administration. Right now, every municipality has its own approach to enforcing the ban, which has created a maze of confusion that turns innocent people into criminal violators.

Likewise, the waiver system intended by state lawmakers and state Health Department officials is unfair and not working. The waivers are meant to exempt any establishment from the ban if it can be demonstrated that it is adversely affecting business. Many municipalities have not set these standards or, if they have, they're unreasonable. In Suffolk, for instance, the county requires a $500 fee without any guarantee that a business will be granted a waiver. There needs to be one uniform standard, with an equitable policy.

In the meantime, local health inspectors are issuing summonses for violations such as having an ashtray on a bar or a table, or failing to post the legalese sign about the smoking law even though a "no smoking" sign is clearly displayed, or smoking under an outside awning or any "permanent outdoor structure."

A sorely needed correction would be to take the liability off the bar owner for a customer lighting up. If someone lights a cigarette on a bus or subway, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority does not receive the summons. So why should a summons be issued to a bar owner for the actions of a customer over whom he has no control? This undermines the integrity of the ban and creates contempt for government authority.

Many municipalities abandoned the "smoking permitted" pledges they made years ago that required businesses to install costly smoke-eater ventilators, now useless under the ban. Still, businesses that want to open their doors to smokers again are supporting state legislation that would require them to invest in expensive, state-of-the- art air filtration purifiers, the same ones used in hospitals and health facilities to prevent contagious germs and bacteria.

Despite the smoking ban, tobacco remains a legal substance. If government wants to get out from under the economic influence that tobacco represents, it should put forward some kind of financial subsidy. The concept of a financial incentive would enable businesses to taper off their operations, say, over five or 10 years.

Lawmakers and public interest activists who want to play social engineers by prohibiting smoking should not do this on the backs of the thousands of responsible, hard-working people who are stalwart contributors to the economy.Frank Calland is president of Amusement & Music Owners of New York Inc., a regional trade group of electronic game and jukebox operators.

Copyright (c) 2004, Newsday, Inc.
This article originally appeared at:
http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-vpcal103842820jun10,0,7722834.story?coll=ny-viewpoints-headlines

I have been saying it from the get go..........smoking bans are just a back door to prohibition.....if they weren't why are only bars and restaurants being targetted with enforcement???

The coffee shop on the corner that violates the ban only faces higher fines with each violation - but the bar on the other corner can effectively be shut down after a 3rd one.

Only bars basically face the closure of their business, because without a liquor license a bar can't exist. A restaurant can still exist without the liquor license.

These bans are allegedly for the safety of employees of ALL business - but only one type faces the prospect of being shut down..........like I said - back door prohibition.