Fix NY 's Military Service Credit Law: Mission Accomplished

May 31, 2016: Excellent News. Great work and a heartfelt thanks to fellow veterans, interested public, veterans groups, union professionals, Assembly Woman Paulin, Senator Larkin, other legislative sponsors and staffs, and all others who fought so many years for equity and honor in NY's military service credit program. The simple concept, that those who sacrificed years of their life in defense of this great nation (and great state) should be treated fairly, carried the day in New York.

Thursday, March 31, 2016

Crunch Time: Call and Email, Call and Email, Call and Email

1. The hard cold facts:

a. Funding to reform the military service credit program must be in the one-house budget (March 14, 2016). Done! Assemblywoman Paulin's 14 March announcement is here and Senator Larkin's 14 March announcement is here.

b. Between 14 March and 1 April one-house budget items are added (or not) to the Governor's budget as amendments. VEA must survive the inevitable horse-trading and competing priorities of House, Senate, and Governor's office to become an amendment. Veterans phone calling and emailing the right representatives at the right time will prove decisive at this stage. VEA must be one of the amendments that survives to the ultimate budget. FAILURE 31 March 2016.

ASSEMBLY

William Magnarelli, Co-Chair 518-455-4826 MagnarW@assembly.state.ny.us

SENATE

Hugh T. Farley, Co-Chair (518) 455-2181 Farley@nysenate.gov

c. The final budget must contain the precise funding necessary to provide for any military service credit reform mutually agreed to in step b, above.* The final budget will be voted by the Senate and House on April 1, 2016.

d. The Governor may wield a line-item veto for any item he disagrees with. Discussions at 'b' above must forestall/prevent this possibility.

Any failure at a, b, or c means a definite governor veto (line item or bill) for military service credit reform (as occurred in both 2014 and 2015).

2. You (and all who support our veterans) must call and email**:

a. Your State Assembly Representative (here)

b. Assembly Speaker Heastie (518-455-3791, Speaker@assembly.state.ny.us)

c. Assemblywoman Paulin (sponsor, 518-455-5585, PaulinA@assembly.state.ny.us)

d. Your State Senator (here)

e. Senate President Flanagan (518-455-2071, flanagan@nysenate.gov)

f. Senator Larkin (sponsor, 518-455-2770, larkin@nysenate.gov )

3. Message Discipline:

Encourage him/her to fight to include the funded VEA (A04313 and S04124) as an amendment to the Governor's budget. It is the priority for including all veterans in the current but outdated military service credit program.
Remind the representative that the current system includes and excludes arbitrarily (Iraq - In, Afghanistan - Out, etc) and unfairly discriminates against female veterans.
Remind the representative that your vital service to the defense of the United States (including New York State) should not work to your disadvantage in the New York State retirement system.
No whining, no backfiring arguments.

4. Move out!

_______________________________________________________________________________

*All dates are subject to change

**More names will be added as I learn the names of the various table chairs during the process at 1, b, above.

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