Jun 19, 2009 8:35 pm US/Eastern
AP: Paterson Will Order NYS Senate Into Session
Source: If Power-Sharing Issue Is Unresloved By Monday, Governor Will Make Them Meet To Go Over Certain Bills
ALBANY (AP) ―
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Gov. David Paterson, then-Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (file).
AP
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Sens. Dean Skelos (l) and Pedro Espada (r) are sworn in in the New York Senate chambers on June 8, 2009.
CBS
New York Gov. David Paterson will order the state Senate to meet in a special session Wednesday if battling senators fail to resolve a two-week power struggle, a state official said Friday.
Paterson would compel senators to convene if they don't settle the leadership question by the end of Monday, the regular session's last day. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the governor hasn't yet announced his plan.
Senators would have to attend, but Paterson can't make them vote.
The state official said Paterson is preparing a list of essential legislation requiring action, most of which will extend laws about to expire. Some measures would let New York City and other local governments arrange taxing or borrowing.
A coalition of 30 Republicans and a Democrat claim control of the chamber following a June 8 vote that shocked the Democratic conference that has controlled the Senate since January. The 62-seat chamber is now gridlocked with 31 senators in each camp.
Paterson has said in the last two weeks that he could set the agenda and remove one of the biggest obstacles to the leadership dispute by removing the power of choosing bills for votes.
Paterson has been trying to push the Senate into a truce to pass 20 to 40 bills. The bills aren't expected to be controversial or require lengthy floor fights.
The most critical of the bills include one to continue mayoral control of New York City schools and a bill to allow Nassau County to borrow for expenses and avoid a big spike in property taxes.
The Democratic conference has offered power-sharing agreements in which the top two leaders of the Senate would be split and the holders of the post would rotate each day.
There was no immediate comment from the coalition or the Democratic conference.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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