2003 LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM
MANUFACTURING

Staff Contact: Ken Pokalsky

Following is The Business Council's 2003 Legislative Program. It identifies priority issues to be addressed by the Committees and Councils during 2003.

• Support legislation to adopt a "single sales factor" for assessing the state's corporate franchise tax. This change will provide a significant incentive to locate facilities and employees in New York State - and eliminate a tax "penalty" on New York State businesses with large in-state facilities and staff.
  
  
• Support legislation to reduce the cost of workers' compensation insurance, including limits on "permanent partial" disability awards, objective medical standards for assessing partial disabilities, and others.



• Reduce the cost of group health insurance plans by: limiting state-imposed coverage mandates; reducing state charges on hospital bills; and other reforms.



• Support superfund reform legislation that adopts use-based cleanup standards and post-cleanup liability releases; that refinances the state's remediation program using General Fund resources; and that avoids imposition of onerous new enforcement and/or cost recovery provisions.



• Support measures to reduce the cost of electric power, and to assure reliable and adequate power supplies. These include:
  
  
• the development of new electric generating capacity in New York State that is necessary to assure adequate supplies and to achieve more competitive markets.
• reduced regulatory barriers to the development of distributed generation.

• Support tort reform legislation that: repeals "joint and several" liability; caps non-economic damages; establishes a "statute of repose" to limit the period in which a manufacturer can be held liable for damages attributable to its product; allows consideration of plaintiff's negligence; and limits contingency fees.

The Business Council of New York State, Inc.
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