LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS of THE RIVERTOWNS

P.O. Box 142, Hastings on Hudson, NY 10706 www.lwv-rivertowns.org

BULLETIN – JANUARY 2016

President's Message

A New Year's Resolution?

Dear Rivertowns Members and Friends,

We are well aware of increasing efforts in many states to restrict voting, triggered by Shelby County v. Holder, the 2013 Supreme Court case which in effect gutted the 1965 Voting Rights Act by eliminating federal pre-clearance for changes in voting laws in certain states. This trend is especially troubling as voter turnout in presidential elections has been trending down in the past five decades. In 1964 turnout was 69% but dropped steadily to 57% in 2012. According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, 93 million eligible voters sat out the 2012 elections. In fact, the U.S. ranks 31 out of 34 OECD nations in voter turnout, ahead of only Japan, Chile, and Switzerland!

Closer to home, the picture is bleak. In the 2014 mid-term elections, New York turnout was just 29% of eligible voters (49th out of 50 states) and New Jersey was not that much better, with a 30.4% turnout. In New Jersey, Governor Christie recently vetoed a bill that would have provided two weeks of early voting, on-line voter registration, and automatic registration when obtaining a driver's license at the DMV. New Yorkers have yet to see any requirements for photo IDs or other restrictive measures but at the same time the legislature has failed to follow the lead of other states which have adopted measures to make voting easier.

New York does offer absentee voting with an excuse, but looks on as the majority of states offer early voting (the time period varies from state to state) as well as no-excuse absentee voting. Three states have adopted voting by mail, and Maine offers same day voter registration. Rivertowns League can decide to urge our State League to prioritize the adoption of early voting at the very least.

I hope your holidays were joyful and relaxing! Susan

BOARD BRIEFS

December 2015: We continued planning for the Hot Topics Breakfast in January. LWVNYS suggests we make a wish list of things we would like to pursue if we had more resources – high on our list is revival of the Observer Corps. We heard from CUNY law Professor Babe Howell and adopted concurrence on raising the age for criminal prosecution in New York from 16 to 18.

MORE ABOUT VOTING

The right to vote in the U.S. has evolved continuously since the inception of the Constitution in 1787 and the details are left to the states. The bumps in the road to universal suffrage were outlined in a fascinating talk on December 18 by eminent attorney John Nonna, former Mayor of Pleasantville and former County Legislator. He traced the extension of the franchise from white male property owners first to former slaves and then to women; but also traced the recent success in some states to limit voting as a result of weakening of the Voting Rights Act. He recommends that New York State adopt six days of early voting, to broaden voter participation.

Mr. Nonna was recently appointed by the New York State Bar Association to a committee to review the state constitution. . . . He also serves as co-chair of the Board of Trustees for the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights under Law. (Reported by Susan Goodwin.)

HOLIDAYS! LWVWESTCHESTER - Susan Goodwin

Rivertowns League was represented at the Westchester County League December 3 meeting and holiday luncheon by Susan Schwarz, Karen Schatzel, Edith Szold, Lisa Cohen, and Susan Goodwin. At the board meeting it was noted that attendance at county budget hearings had fallen off in recent years, partly due to the difficulty for many to come to evening meetings. The LWVW will urge budget director Larry Soule to schedule time for a daytime meeting next year. Karen Schatzel reported on affordable housing issues, including the fact that the county was on its way to fulfilling its obligations regarding the Housing Settlement by purchasing single homes and condos as builders were not anxious to build larger developments at this time. The featured speaker was the new Westchester Community College President, Dr. Belinda Miles, who outlined an ambitious agenda and improved communication. She welcomed WCC’s partnership with the League and established a connection for us to notify WCC students and faculty when appropriate League programs are planned.

HOT TOPICS BREAKFAST

At our most recent Hot Topics Breakfast NORMA DRUMMOND, Westchester County

Deputy Commissioner of Planning, who discussed AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN WESTCHESTER, the Settlement and its Costs? Co-sponsored by: League of Women Voters of Westchester County, Interfaith Council for Action and Hastings-on-Hudson Affordable Housing Committee, this was our most successful Hot Topics Breakfast ever with 43 people attending. WESTCHESTER BUDGET

In December, the Westchester County Board of Legislators approved (10-7) a “tight” 2016 budget that avoids some funding cuts and staff layoffs proposed by County Executive Astorino, yet manages to keep the tax levy flat for a sixth year. It relies on a 4% increase from sales tax revenue (considered by critics “too optimistic”); six county employees will be laid off, and sixty-four vacant positions eliminated.

Quality of life restorations include: six full-time park curators (something our LWVR Environment Group had lobbied for), the Muscoot Farm manager, $100,000 for the Hudson River Museum (down $40,000 from 2015) $35,000 of the $50,000 cut the Greenburgh Nature Center had faced.

League of Women Voters of Westchester had testified at a budget hearing “Westchester needs adequate staffing to fulfill its obligations. Yet the County Executive would eliminate 60 jobs and cut another 25. Specifically, he proposes to cut seven jobs in the Planning Department at a time when, already suffering losses, it must deal with climatic events. He calls for the Board of Elections to give up eight or nine positions while taking on School Board elections during a year in which it must conduct three primaries, as well as a Presidential election. So far as we know he has not been willing to raise salary levels of Public Works engineers sufficiently to draw applicants to various posts, including head of the department. The result is we lack expertise to supervise capital projects currently being approved.

“We live daily with problems of an aging infrastructure, all the more apparent as winter approaches. The administration must take account of heightened perceptions of threats to public safety. And proposed cuts to funding not only undermine public healthcare, education, critical legal service programs and the arts but also the quality of life that draws residents and businesses to Westchester and helps promote higher property values.

“. . . With regard to bonding, we recommend that debt be avoided for operating expenditures.

“In conclusion, we ask the Board to call for a property tax increase. County taxes are a relatively small portion of the burden on Westchester residents. An increase to the 2% cap currently permitted by the State would impact each household very little while helping the County make up deficits of the past, avoid jeopardizing its AAA credit rating and preserve the quality of life now enjoyed by nearly one million residents in the County.”

CONSENSUS and DEVELOPMENT CRITERIA REVIEW

The LWVR Waterfront consensus and Development Criteria (developed after study and discussion) are ten years old! Are updates needed? The Consensus statement appeared in a prior issue; please find Development Criteria on another page of this bulletin, then submit suggestions to: elsailors@mail.com (Emma Lou Louis) - to be considered by the Riverfront/Environment Group and LWVR Board, with final decision by membership at the June annual meeting.“DISORDER IN THE COURTS” - YOUTH OFFENDERS

Amid news stories of too aggressive policing and court disorder, LWVR had a unique behind-the scenes look at (NY) justice when Babe Howell addressed the December expanded board meeting and holiday luncheon. Prior to her present position as Criminal Law Professor at CUNY, Ms. Howell was a public defender with the Manhattan Legal Aid Society for many years. According to Ms. Howell, prosecutors are powerful, time pressured, and risk averse; often process “minor offenses” in two-three minutes, their record judged by “success” (conviction record). (It’s a numbers-driven system.) Plea deals are common, often in the interest of resource efficiency. Unlawful conduct by police is unchecked. Minor offenses often result from social malaise - marijuana, etc. - But, for the perpetrator, being thrust into the criminal justice system becomes a predictor of recidivism. Exposure to the system (school for crime) is a determinant of result. Social services are inadequate for the many complex problems faced.

(This is only a sample of insights necessary to truly understand the problems of youth justice.)

NYS TRANSPORTATION

Gladys Gifford, LWVNYS transportation specialist, urges advocacy for efficient and equitable transportation, specifically legislation S5967/A8242. A small percentage of income tax would be used to provide a steady, increasing revenue stream for capital needs and transportation infrastructure, both upstate and downstate. This issue will be part of 2016 budget hearings.

AT THE UN

A new UN Women policy brief series synthesizes research regarding gender and equality, to enrich policy debate and influence decision making - can be accessed at http:// www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2015/12/un-women-policy-brief-series. These include: 1. Making national social protection floors work for women.

2. Gender equality, child development and job creation.3. Protecting women’s income security in old age.4. Why macroeconomic policy matters for gender equality.

from CAMPAIGN FOR NEW YORK HEALTH, nyhealthcampaign.org

The New York Health Act would provide universal, comprehensive single payer health coverage to all New Yorkers (regardless of immigration status) without premiums, co-pays, deductibles, or limited provider networks. New York Health will pay for care, not private industry profit. Our lead co-sponsors Assembly Member Richard Gottfried and State Senator Bill Perkins are working tirelessly to get the bill to the Governor’s desk. We must change the conversation from “it’s a great idea” that will never happen to a truly achievable goal.

WHAT’S NEW IN HEALTH CARE - by Edith Szold

In a word, it is “arbitration” – a means of settling disputes outside the purview of the courts, long favored by business, in part to protect corporate profits. Streamlined and fast, it grew in popularity over the last ten years, spreading throughout the economy from the financial sector to consumer goods and, reportedly even into the realm of medical treatment where lives, not hardware can be at stake. One Ob-Gyn office in Tampa, FL informs expectant mothers that if a problem arises (a botched delivery or flawed Caesarean) they cannot go to court. More commonly this happens in nursing homes (for example: a 90 year old demented patient whose bed-sores would not be treated by the nursing home’s physician if her guardian did not agree to binding arbitration. (NY Times, Nov. 1 2015).

On November 1st, 2nd, and 3rd of 2015 the NY Times published an expose about this practice, two years after the second relevant Supreme Court decision upheld the right of corporations to demand it. I wrote this to alert you to the results, having just learned about them myself. The information here-in comes from those articles, based on extensive research by the Times’ reporters, enquiries of lawyers familiar with arbitration and my own brief stint as an arbitrator with the Better Business Bureau of Westchester.

As it is used today arbitration is a private confidential process. It takes place behind closed doors, with cases heard and decided by one or more arbitrators, unencumbered by juries or rules of evidence, and from whose decisions there is virtually no appeal. In addition, it is usually accompanied by a ban of class actions. Since realistically, that is the only legal recourse the ordinary person has to challenge a corporation, he is effectively deprived of his right to a day in court.

What made this possible were two decisions, as noted above, in 2011 and 2013 by the Supreme Court upholding the right of corporations to insert clauses to the above effect within their contracts. The class action ban was of particular importance because such suits are so expensive to defend and/or to settle. They needed to be banned and a consortium of corporations met to find a way to do so. John G. Roberts, Jr., then a prominent corporate defense lawyer, helped get the Supreme Court to intervene. In 2013, the Court (by then the Roberts Court) upheld a lower court’s decision to affirm the ban 5 to 4 with Justice Scalia, standing for the majority, and Justice Kagan et al heatedly dissenting. The upshot was – is – an alternative system of social justice, which the courts cannot touch and which perpetuated grossly unequal playing fields. As for medical matters, the likelihood is that devices, like heart valves, defibrillators and prostheses will be similarly bound if they are not already.

How does this work out in practice? That all depends. There are many firms that do arbitration, supplying experts in various areas of dispute (architects, physicians, plumbers). The largest are the American Arbitration Association and JAMS which strive for professionalism and lack of bias. However, arbitration is a business and arbitrators, who do get paid, depend on the companies, not the customers or plaintiffs, for repeat referrals. The short answer is that nobody actually knows. The secrecy that shrouds the process is purposefully maintained, from clauses buried in contracts that few people read before they sign and don’t know what they have agreed to, or the consequences thereof, to the free-for-alls that can disrupt proceedings, making fraud, lies and other illegal acts.

Nobody is meant to know and, if some do, the public, amazingly, seems largely unconcerned. It’s time, I think, for us to be disturbed and badger Congress, in the coming year, to act on our behalf.

NATURALIZATION COURT - by Susan Weisfeld

As I walked into the courtroom at the White Plains County Courthouse, filled to capacity, I heard excited voices in many languages. People were dressed so beautifully, surrounded by family members and friends. I came as a representative of the League of Women Voters to be part of this momentous day, achieving citizenship, which was my own unforgettable milestone when I was a third-grade student at P. S. 169 in Brooklyn.

When the presiding judge entered I was wonderfully surprised to see it was the Hon. Charles Wood –“Charlie(!) son of my neighbors Arline and George - now a Supreme Court Justice! He opened the court by proclamation, and then the Deputy County Clerk announced, ”Your honor, I would like to introduce 118 new citizens who have been examined by the Immigration Service and have been found to comply with all the regulations.” And that’s when tears welled up in my eyes. The moment was so incredible!

Everyone rose and the new citizens repeated the oath of allegiance administered by the County Clerk, Tim Idoni, who is the grandson of immigrants and happily does this every two weeks. This was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance; everyone applauded. The faces were so different, but all had the same emotion. It was moving in the midst of such pride and joy!

Judge Wood gave a wonderful speech to the new citizens, welcoming them and highlighting the uniqueness of equality and inalienable rights guaranteed by our laws. He also spoke briefly of his own history. Finally he spoke about both the rights and responsibilities of citizenship saying “always love the place you were born, but now dedicate yourself to the place you chose to come . . . we rely on you to promote and contribute to this exceptional nation.”

Lining up when called, each new citizen then came to the front to get their certificate of naturalization and the Judge and County Clerk posed with each for a memento photo. Then it was my turn; I was able to greet everyone individually with a welcome booklet and showed them where they could apply for a passport and register to vote. Many told me they had waited for this day and couldn’t wait to register. LWVR’s next date for Naturalization Court is February 24.

JN THE RIVERTOWNS

We welcome two new members Diane Dowling of Croton and Judy Lindey of Ardsley.

Condolences to Carolyn Reiss on the passing of her husband.Looking ahead - IMPORTANT DATES!

Saturday, Feb. 13: Rivertowns LWV Board Meeting - Hastings Community Center – 10:00 a.m. Board meetings are “open” and we welcome your participation.

Sunday, Jan 24: Fix It Health Care at the Tipping Point LWV Westchester Sponsors Forum and Film on Health Care Crisis – 1:30 p.m. - The State Assembly has passed a bill for a single payer health care in New York, and advocates are now focusing on State Senate passage. For further information, call 914-761-4382.

Monday, Mar. 7: Waterfront/Environment Group – home of Emma Lou Louis, 125 Bellair Drive, Dobbs Ferry, (693-1726) – 1:30 p.m. - ALL WELCOME

Wednesday, Feb 24: Naturalization Court – White Plains - If you would like to attend contact Rhoda Barr. (478-1144 or mbrb29@optonline. net) It’s an inspiring experience.

Thursday, Apr. 14: Running and Winning

Sunday, May 22 to Wednesday May 25: Students inside Albany – The deadline for students and parents to submit forms to LWVNYS is March 1, 2016

Future LWVR Board meetings: Hastings Community Center - 10:00 a.m. - Mar 12, Apr 9, May 14, Annual Meeting Jun date TBD

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