UPDATE & BACKFILL to my post of July 21, 2013, " NY DAILY NEWS EDITORIAL 'PROBE THESE GIVEAWAYS' ...TAX $$$ GIVEAWAY IS 'A PERFECT CASE FOR CUOMO’S MORELAND ACT COMMISSION'”

Is this THE BEST STATE SENATE THAT MONEY CAN BUY ?   

It sure is beginning to look like it.

Here is a very interesting note from State Senator Ruben Diaz to his fellow State Senate Democrats in response to the recent Daily News Editorial (discussed in my July 21st post, mentioned in the title above). HOWEVER, if you are paying attention, you'll see that State Senator Diaz' note and his January 23rd speech are also an indictment of ALL OF THE CURRENT CROWD OF  REPUBLICAN  STATE SENATORS  >>>  ESPECIALLY,  STATE SENATOR MARTIN GOLDEN, THE SPONSOR OF S-2320.

The copy of State Senator Ruben Diaz speech from January 23, 2013 shows that everybody in the NYS Senate knew on that day -- the day that they voted for Bill S-2320 -- what that bill was all about and that it was a tax money giveaway to wealthy developers and prospective wealthy condo-owners. State Senator Diaz’ note and January 23rd speech is as follows:

“You  should  know that some of the same senators that are asking me to join
them in signing the letter, are the same ones who did not want to listen to
me,  and went ahead and voted in favor of the legislation that now, because
of the Daily News editorial, want to appear “Clean and Honest.”

You  should know that on January 23rd, 2013, that piece of legislation came
to  the  floor  of the senate. The legislation, S.2320 sponsored by Senator
Martin  Golden,  was  debated  and  everyone got the opportunity to express
their opinions in favor or against the piece of legislation. I took my time
speaking  against  it  and asked my fellow senators to vote “NO”. Only 6 of
all  the  Democrats  heard  my call and voted no; they are: Senator Adriano
Espaillat,  Senator  Terry  Gibson,  Senator  Bill  Perkins, Senator Marcos
Serrano, Senator Gustavo Rivera and Senator Cecilia Tkaczyk, the rest voted
in favor of Bill S.2320.

Today I am including a copy of my speech on the Senate floor on January 23,
2013  expressing  my  opposition  to  the legislation in which I criticized
Senator Liz  Krueger for her vote in favor of the legislation.

My complete speech during that day goes as follows:

“Senator Krueger, I just love you. I love you so much. You know, I love you
for  keeping  me  one hour listening to you talking bad about a bill and at
the end saying "I'm voting yes." I love you. I love you.


Mr.  President  and  ladies and gentlemen, once in a while I write a column
called  "What  You  Should Know," It’s my way to inform my constituents and
the voters of New York of what's going on.


Today,  I wrote one. And I call it, based on the Roman Empire old saying, I
entitled it "Caesar's wife should not only be pure but should also have the
appearance of purity." And by voting for this bill, we  might be sending an
appearance  of  impurity, because this bill only benefits the rich. It is a
multi-million  program  of  rent  exemption and abatement for landlords who
renovate their buildings.


This  piece  of  legislation, ladies and gentlemen, does nothing to protect
and  strengthen  tenant protection. So tenants in the City of New York will
not  be  protected  with  this  bill. On the contrary, they might be put in
danger. It is just a tax benefit to developers producing luxury buildings.


This  bill, ladies and gentlemen -- and I'm so sorry that Liz Krueger voted
for  it -- this bill does nothing to prevent landlords from double-dipping.
That's  a  word  that -- a nice word, double-dipping. Meaning that a lot of
them  are  receiving  a J-51 tax credit from the government and at the same
time  will  be  increasing  the  tenants'  rent  based  on  a major capital
improvement.  So  this  bill  will  allow  landlords  to get money from the
government for the renovation based on J-51 and at the same time will allow
landlords  to  increase  tenants'  rents  based  on  something called major
capital improvement for the same renovation.


And  this  bill will extend 421-a tax benefits to the owners of 15 specific
plots in 22 Midtown and downtown Manhattan which are now being developed as
luxury  condominiums  and office buildings. Fifteen of them.  And according
to  the  New York Tenants and Neighbors Coalition,  it seems that only five
specific developer companies will benefit from this piece of legislation.


They  are  number  one,  Extell  Development  Company,  Extell  Development
Company,  for  their  billionaire tower, One57, Silverstein Properties, the
owner  of  the  World  Trade  Center. Thor Equities, the company behind the
controversial  Coney Island  redevelopment for 516-520 Fifth Avenue. Number
four, Steinhardt Management, who wants to develop two former Stock Exchange
buildings  in  Lower  Manhattan.  Number  five,  Shoreham {ph} Association,
Incorporated,  who  plans  to build a 30-story glass tower over the site of
the original New York Times building.


Ladies and gentlemen, these developments do nothing to address the New York
City ongoing affordable housing crisis. Therefore, to vote for this bill we
might  be sending a message, an impure message, that we're only working for
the  landlords  and  against the tenants and the regular people in New York
City.”


Now, after some of them voted in favor of that legislation, and reading The
New  York  Daily News Editorial they want Governor Cuomo to repeal it.  And
that ladies and gentlemen is pure hypocrisy.

This is Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz and this is what you should know.”