The 183rd New York State Legislature, a body composed of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, convened from January 3, 1979, through December 31, 1980. This period marked the latter half of Hugh Carey's tenure as Governor of New York, with legislative proceedings primarily centered in the New York State Capitol in Albany.
Background
The framework for this legislative session was established by the New York Constitution of 1938, further shaped by the U.S. Supreme Court's mandate to adhere to the One man, one vote principle. This principle necessitated reapportionment, which had been undertaken in 1971 and subsequently amended in 1974 by the legislature itself. The outcome was a bicameral structure comprising 60 Senators and 150 Assembly members, each elected to two-year terms representing single-seat districts. These districts were designed to contain roughly equivalent populations, with contiguous boundaries and no strict adherence to county lines.
Within the state's political landscape, two dominant parties vied for influence: the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. Beyond these major players, several other parties fielded candidates, including the Conservative Party, the Right to Life Party, the Liberal Party, the Libertarian Party, the Socialist Workers Party, the Communist Party, and the Labor Party. Their presence, while often smaller in scale, added nuance to the electoral dynamics.
Elections
The electoral landscape leading into the 183rd session was significantly shaped by the 1978 New York state election, held on November 7. This election saw the re-election of Governor Hugh Carey, a Democrat, and the ascent of Secretary of State Mario Cuomo to the position of Lieutenant Governor, also a Democrat. The contests for the other two statewide offices resulted in a Republican victory for Comptroller and a Democratic win for Attorney General. The voting patterns for Governor offered a snapshot of the prevailing political sentiment, with Democrats garnering approximately 2,306,000 votes, Republicans 1,913,000, Conservatives 243,000, Right to Life 130,000, Liberals 123,000, Libertarians 19,000, Socialist Workers 13,000, Communists 11,000, and the Labor Party 9,000.
The legislature saw a notable increase in female representation. Seven of the ten women who served in the previous legislative session were re-elected. These included State Senators Olga A. Méndez (Dem.) from East Harlem and Linda Winikow (Dem.) from Spring Valley, New York. In the Assembly, re-elected members were Elizabeth Connelly (Dem.) of Staten Island, Pinny Cooke (Rep.) of Rochester, New York, Estella B. Diggs (Dem.) of the Bronx, and Gerdi E. Lipschutz (Dem.) of Queens. Additionally, Assemblywoman Mary B. Goodhue, a lawyer from Mount Kisco, New York, transitioned to the state Senate. Carol Berman (Dem.) of Lawrence, Nassau County, New York also secured a seat in the state Senate. The Assembly gained further female representation with the election of Rhoda S. Jacobs (Dem.) from Brooklyn; Joan B. Hague (Rep.) from Glens Falls, New York; May W. Newburger (Dem.) from Great Neck, New York; Toni Rettaliata (Rep.) from Huntington, New York; and Florence M. Sullivan (Rep.), also a lawyer from Brooklyn. Consequently, the 183rd Legislature boasted 13 women members, exceeding the previous record of 11 set during the 181st New York State Legislature (1976).
The subsequent 1979 New York state election, held on November 6, 1979, did not feature elections for any statewide offices, nor were there any legislative vacancies to fill.
Sessions
The legislative year commenced with the first regular session, designated as the 202nd, which opened at the State Capitol in Albany, New York on January 3, 1979. This session saw the election of Stanley Fink (Dem.) as Speaker of the Assembly. Simultaneously, Warren M. Anderson (Rep.) was re-elected as the temporary president of the state Senate. The session proceeded until June 17, 1979, when it recessed indefinitely.
Intermittently throughout October and November 1979, the legislature reconvened to address matters concerning energy policy. These sessions were notably marked by legislative action on fuel taxes and aid for heating, with the Assembly overriding two of Governor Carey's vetoes on heating aid bills, and the Senate also overriding two such vetoes.
The second regular session, the 203rd, commenced on January 9, 1980, again at the State Capitol in Albany. Governor Carey used this opening to call for fiscal restraint and increased federal support for the state. This session continued until its indefinite recess on June 15, 1980.
A special session was subsequently convened at the State Capitol in Albany, running from November 19 to November 23, 1980. This extraordinary gathering was specifically called by Governor Carey to deliberate on legislation pertaining to banking, the state budget, and housing initiatives within New York City.
State Senate
The New York State Senate during the 183rd Legislature comprised 60 members. The asterisk (*) denotes senators who were incumbents from the previous legislative session. Several members made transitions from the Assembly to the Senate: Christopher J. Mega, Mary B. Goodhue, Charles D. Cook, and John B. Daly. The listed chairmanships, for the sake of conciseness, omit the phrase "the Committee on (the)".
| District | Senator | Party | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Kenneth LaValle* | Republican | |
| 2nd | James J. Lack | Republican | |
| 3rd | Caesar Trunzo* | Republican | |
| 4th | Owen H. Johnson* | Republican | |
| 5th | Ralph J. Marino* | Republican | |
| 6th | John R. Dunne* | Republican | |
| 7th | John D. Caemmerer* | Republican | Chairman of Transportation |
| 8th | Norman J. Levy* | Republican | |
| 9th | Carol Berman | Democrat | |
| 10th | Jeremy S. Weinstein | Democrat | |
| 11th | Frank Padavan* | Republican | |
| 12th | Gary L. Ackerman | Democrat | |
| 13th | Emanuel R. Gold* | Democrat | Deputy Minority Leader |
| 14th | Anthony V. Gazzara* | Democrat | |
| 15th | Martin J. Knorr* | Republican | |
| 16th | Howard E. Babbush* | Democrat | |
| 17th | Major Owens* | Democrat | |
| 18th | Thomas J. Bartosiewicz* | Democrat | |
| 19th | Marty Markowitz | Democrat | |
| 20th | Donald Halperin* | Democrat | |
| 21st | Christopher J. Mega* | Republican | |
| 22nd | Martin M. Solomon* | Democrat | |
| 23rd | Vander L. Beatty* | Democrat | |
| 24th | John J. Marchi* | Republican | Chairman of Finance |
| 25th | Martin Connor* | Democrat | |
| 26th | Roy M. Goodman* | Republican | |
| 27th | Manfred Ohrenstein* | Democrat | Minority Leader |
| 28th | Carl McCall* | Democrat | In December 1979, appointed as Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the U.S. Mission to the U.N.. Leon Bogues (Democrat) was elected to fill the vacancy on February 12, 1980. |
| 29th | Franz S. Leichter* | Democrat | |
| 30th | Olga A. Méndez* | Democrat | |
| 31st | Israel Ruiz Jr.* | Democrat | |
| 32nd | Joseph L. Galiber* | Democrat | |
| 33rd | Abraham Bernstein* | Democrat | |
| 34th | John D. Calandra* | Republican | Majority Whip |
| 35th | John E. Flynn* | Republican | |
| 36th | Joseph R. Pisani* | Republican | |
| 37th | Mary B. Goodhue* | Republican | |
| 38th | Linda Winikow* | Democrat | |
| 39th | Jay P. Rolison Jr.* | Republican | |
| 40th | Richard E. Schermerhorn* | Republican | |
| 41st | Joseph Bruno* | Republican | |
| 42nd | Howard C. Nolan Jr.* | Democrat | |
| 43rd | Ronald B. Stafford* | Republican | |
| 44th | Hugh T. Farley* | Republican | |
| 45th | Hugh Douglas Barclay* | Republican | |
| 46th | James H. Donovan* | Republican | |
| 47th | Warren M. Anderson* | Republican | Re-elected Temporary President |
| 48th | Charles D. Cook* | Republican | |
| 49th | Martin S. Auer* | Republican | |
| 50th | Tarky Lombardi Jr.* | Republican | Chairman of Health |
| 51st | William T. Smith* | Republican | Deputy Majority Leader |
| 52nd | Frederick L. Warder* | Republican | Died on July 23, 1980. |
| 53rd | John D. Perry* | Democrat | |
| 54th | Fred J. Eckert* | Republican | Chairman of Conservation and Recreation |
| 55th | Joseph A. Tauriello* | Democrat | Minority Whip; in 1980 appointed to the NYS Workers' Compensation Board. |
| 56th | Raymond F. Gallagher* | Democrat | |
| 57th | Jess J. Present* | Republican | |
| 58th | Dale M. Volker* | Republican | Chairman of Energy |
| 59th | Walter J. Floss Jr. | Republican | |
| 60th | John B. Daly* | Republican |
The Secretary of the Senate was Roger C. Thompson.
State Assembly
The New York State Assembly consisted of 150 members. The asterisk (*) denotes assembly members who continued from the previous legislative session. Committee chairmanships are listed, with the standard introductory phrase omitted for brevity.
| District | Assemblymen | Party | Notes The 183rd New York State Legislature , consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3, 1979, to December 31, 1980, during the fifth and sixth years of Hugh Carey's governorship, in Albany.
Background
Under the provisions of the New York Constitution of 1938 and the U.S. Supreme Court decision to follow the One man, one vote rule, re-apportioned in 1971, and amended in 1974, by the legislature, 60 Senators and 150 assemblymen were elected in single-seat districts for two-year terms. Senate and Assembly districts consisted of approximately the same number of inhabitants, the area being apportioned contiguously without restrictions regarding county boundaries.
At this time there were two major political parties: the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. The Conservative Party, the Right to Life Party, the Liberal Party, the Libertarian Party, the Socialist Workers Party, the Communist Party and the Labor Party also nominated tickets.
Elections
The 1978 New York state election was held on November 7. Governor Hugh Carey was re-elected, and Secretary of State Mario Cuomo was elected Lieutenant Governor, both Democrats. The elections to the other two statewide elective offices resulted in a Republican Comptroller and a Democratic Attorney General. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Governor, was: Democrats 2,306,000; Republicans 1,913,000; Conservatives 243,000; Right to Life 130,000; Liberals 123,000; Libertarians 19,000; Socialist Workers 13,000; Communists 11,000; and Labor 9,000.
Seven of the ten women members of the previous legislature were elected again: State Senators Olga A. Méndez (Dem.), of East Harlem, and Linda Winikow (Dem.), of Spring Valley, New York; and Assemblywomen Elizabeth Connelly (Dem.), of Staten Island; Pinny Cooke (Rep.), of Rochester, New York; Estella B. Diggs (Dem.), of the Bronx; and Gerdi E. Lipschutz (Dem.), of Queens, were re-elected; and Assemblywoman Mary B. Goodhue (Rep.), a lawyer of Mount Kisco, New York, was elected to the state Senate. Carol Berman (Dem.), of Lawrence, Nassau County, New York, was also elected to the state Senate. Rhoda S. Jacobs (Dem.), of Brooklyn; Joan B. Hague (Rep.), of Glens Falls, New York; May W. Newburger (Dem.), of Great Neck, New York; Toni Rettaliata (Rep.), of Huntington, New York; and Florence M. Sullivan (Rep.), a lawyer of Brooklyn, were also elected to the Assembly. Thus the 183rd Legislature had 13 women members, surpassing the previous record of 11 in the 181st New York State Legislature (1976).
The 1979 New York state election was held on November 6. No statewide elective offices were up for election, and there were no vacancies in the legislature.
Sessions
The legislature met for the first regular session (the 202nd) at the State Capitol in Albany, New York on January 3, 1979; [1] and recessed indefinitely in the early morning of June 17. [2]
Stanley Fink (Dem.) was elected Speaker.
Warren M. Anderson (Rep.) was re-elected temporary president of the state Senate.
The legislature was again in session on and off in October and November 1979, to consider legislation concerning energy matters. [3] [4] [5]
The legislature met for the second regular session (the 203rd) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 9, 1980; [6] and recessed indefinitely on June 15. [7]
The legislature met for a special session at the State Capitol in Albany from November 19 [8] to 23. [9] This session was called by Governor Carey to consider legislation on banking, the State budget, and housing in New York City. [10]
State Senate
Senators
The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Christopher J. Mega, Mary B. Goodhue, Charles D. Cook and John B. Daly changed from the Assembly to the Senate.
Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."
| District | Senator | Party | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Kenneth LaValle* | Republican | |
| 2nd | James J. Lack | Republican | |
| 3rd | Caesar Trunzo* | Republican | |
| 4th | Owen H. Johnson* | Republican | |
| 5th | Ralph J. Marino* | Republican | |
| 6th | John R. Dunne* | Republican | |
| 7th | John D. Caemmerer* | Republican | Chairman of Transportation |
| 8th | Norman J. Levy* | Republican | |
| 9th | Carol Berman | Democrat | |
| 10th | Jeremy S. Weinstein | Democrat | |
| 11th | Frank Padavan* | Republican | |
| 12th | Gary L. Ackerman | Democrat | |
| 13th | Emanuel R. Gold* | Democrat | Deputy Minority Leader |
| 14th | Anthony V. Gazzara* | Democrat | |
| 15th | Martin J. Knorr* | Republican | |
| 16th | Howard E. Babbush* | Democrat | |
| 17th | Major Owens* | Democrat | |
| 18th | Thomas J. Bartosiewicz* | Democrat | |
| 19th | Marty Markowitz | Democrat | |
| 20th | Donald Halperin* | Democrat | |
| 21st | Christopher J. Mega* | Republican | |
| 22nd | Martin M. Solomon* | Democrat | |
| 23rd | Vander L. Beatty* | Democrat | |
| 24th | John J. Marchi* | Republican | Chairman of Finance |
| 25th | Martin Connor* | Democrat | |
| 26th | Roy M. Goodman* | Republican | |
| 27th | Manfred Ohrenstein* | Democrat | Minority Leader |
| 28th | Carl McCall* | Democrat | in December 1979, appointed as Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the U.S. Mission to the U.N. [11] Leon Bogues (Democrat) on February 12, 1980, elected to fill vacancy [12] |
| 29th | Franz S. Leichter* | Democrat | |
| 30th | Olga A. Méndez* | Democrat | |
| 31st | Israel Ruiz Jr.* | Democrat | |
| 32nd | Joseph L. Galiber* | Democrat | |
| 33rd | Abraham Bernstein* | Democrat | |
| 34th | John D. Calandra* | Republican | Majority Whip |
| 35th | John E. Flynn* | Republican | |
| 36th | Joseph R. Pisani* | Republican | |
| 37th | Mary B. Goodhue* | Republican | |
| 38th | Linda Winikow* | Democrat | |
| 39th | Jay P. Rolison Jr.* | Republican | |
| 40th | Richard E. Schermerhorn* | Republican | |
| 41st | Joseph Bruno* | Republican | |
| 42nd | Howard C. Nolan Jr.* | Democrat | |
| 43rd | Ronald B. Stafford* | Republican | |
| 44th | Hugh T. Farley* | Republican | |
| 45th | Hugh Douglas Barclay* | Republican | |
| 46th | James H. Donovan* | Republican | |
| 47th | Warren M. Anderson* | Republican | re-elected Temporary President |
| 48th | Charles D. Cook* | Republican | |
| 49th | Martin S. Auer* | Republican | |
| 50th | Tarky Lombardi Jr.* | Republican | Chairman of Health |
| 51st | William T. Smith* | Republican | Deputy Majority Leader |
| 52nd | Frederick L. Warder* | Republican | died on July 23, 1980 |
| 53rd | John D. Perry* | Democrat | |
| 54th | Fred J. Eckert* | Republican | Chairman of Conservation and Recreation |
| 55th | Joseph A. Tauriello* | Democrat | Minority Whip; in 1980 appointed to the NYS Workers' Compensation Board |
| 56th | Raymond F. Gallagher* | Democrat | |
| 57th | Jess J. Present* | Republican | |
| 58th | Dale M. Volker* | Republican | Chairman of Energy |
| 59th | Walter J. Floss Jr. | Republican | |
| 60th | John B. Daly* | Republican |
Employees
- Secretary: Roger C. Thompson
State Assembly
Assemblymen
The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature.
Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."
| District | Assemblymen | Party | Notes