ADVOCACY 101: A Guide to Legislative Advocacy in New York State

Transcription

1 ADVOCACY 101: A Guide to Legislative Advocacy in New York State Presented by: Julie M. Marlette, Director of Governmental Relations Theresa Cassiack, Governmental Relations Representative Kathleen Digan, Governmental Relations Representative 2015 New York State School Boards Association October 19, 2015

2 3 New York State Government: Know the Players

3 4 Know the Players Executive Chamber Andrew Cuomo New York State Governor James Malatras Director of State Operations Deputy Secretary of Education

4 5 Know the Players New York State Senate Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (R, Suffolk) Senate Democratic Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D, Westchester) Senate IDC Leader Jeffrey Klein (D, Bronx) Senator Carl Marcellino, Education Committee Chair (R, Nassau/Suffolk) Senator George Latimer Ranking Member, Senate Education Committee (D, Westchester)

5 Know the Players New York State Assembly Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D, Bronx) Assembly Republican Leader Brian Kolb (R, Ontario/Seneca) Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan, Education Committee Chair (D, Queens) Assemblyman Edward Ra, Ranking Member, Assembly Education Committee (R, Nassau) 6

6 7 Know the players Know your Local Representatives NYSSBA can help you connect:

7 8 Know the Process

8 9 Know the Process: Budget From October through December, the Executive and Division of Budget work on the next year s budget drafts From July through October, all agencies develop budget plans

9 Know the Process: Budget The Governor forecasts his budget and legislative priorities in his annual State of the State address First Wednesday after the first Monday of January Executive budget released after the State of the State Second Tuesday after the start of session, except after gubernatorial election years On or before the first day of February following the election of governor Legislative budget hearings begin after the executive budget proposal is released 10

10 Know the Process: Budget Each house passes a one house budget bill and/or resolution by early to mid March Legislative Conference Committees then convene Final budget must be passed and signed into law by April 1 st or there are consequences 11

11 12 Know the Process: Budget Consequences of a late budget Legislators will not receive paychecks The Governor can insert executive budget proposals into budget extender bills Government can shut down

12 13 Know the Process: Legislative Early January - Governor delivers State of State, the start of legislative session Starts the first Wednesday after the first Monday of January February-March budget hearings, one house budgets, three way negotiations April 1 st budget adopted Late June end of session

13 Know the Process: Legislative Once a bill is introduced, it is delivered to the appropriate committees based on content Bills must be reported out of committee to get to the floor for a vote Committee chairs set the agendas Legislative staff plays a role is shaping the agendas 14

14 Know the Process: Legislative Bills may be referred to more than one committee. These are called committees of dual reference In the Assembly, all bills must go through the committee process to be considered on the floor In the Senate, leadership has the option to discharge the bill for a vote, in which case the bill must pass through the Rules committee before being entered on a floor calendar 15

15 Know the Process: Legislative Sometimes there are fiscal or penal implications for bills, in which case they must also pass through the finance and codes committees respectively to be considered for a floor vote The Senate Majority Leader and Assembly Speaker both chair the rules committee in each of their houses, therefore, these committees play a significant role in the flow of legislation They are especially influential near the end of a legislative session when majority of bills get referred to the rules committee 16

16 Know the Process: Legislative Once a bill reaches the floor or calendar it is still not guaranteed a vote If debate is requested it must be placed on a debate list in the Assembly or the active list in the Senate to move forward Leadership controls this process Both houses must pass identical versions Bills must then be signed or vetoed by the Governor 17

17 18 KNOW THE POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT

18 19 Know the Political Environment Factors that influence decision making Voters Special Interests Timing Media Current Events

19 20 Know the Political Environment Other Education Players New York State United Teachers New York State Parent Teacher Association Council of School Superintendents Conference of Big 5 NYS Association of School Business Officials School Administrators Association of New York State

20 21 Know the Political Environment Other groups to consider Seniors Veterans State employees Other elected officials Donors

21 22 Advocacy 101

22 Advocacy 101 Build Your Relationships Be proactive, don t wait until you need something Build real relationships School invites Updates Reminders Leverage your network Build coalitions and partnerships 23

23 24 Advocacy 101 Successful Meetings Have the right meeting, at the right time, with the right people, making the right ask

24 Advocacy 101 Successful Meetings Be prepared Know the facts Be respectful but firm Have an ask An ask can be a series of next steps Acknowledge the other side Don t argue Follow up and follow through 25

25 Questions and Comments Julie M. Marlette Director of Governmental Relations, NYSSBA Theresa A. Cassiack Governmental Relations Representative, NYSSBA Kathleen Digan Governmental Relations Representative, NYSSBA Main line:

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