John Faso, former state Assembly Minority Leader and the Republican candidate for Governor, will speak on issues in the race for Governor the morning of Thursday, September 21, at the Council's Annual Meeting at The Sagamore in Bolton Landing on Lake George.

Eliot Spitzer, state attorney general and leading candidate for the Democratic nomination for governor, has also been invited to participate in that discussion.

The following day, the Council has scheduled a joint appearance by the three major candidates for state attorney general. Democrats Andrew Cuomo and Mark Green and Republican Jeanine Pirro have all been invited to speak at that event, which is set for 9 a.m. Friday, September 22.

Other events scheduled to take place during the Annual Meeting include:

• The Council's annual election of new directors and officers.
  
• Presentation of the Corning Award for Excellence.
  
• A discusion on New York State's current fiscal condition.
  
• A discussion on health-care policy issues of interest to New York State employers.
  
• Meetings of various Business Council committees and councils, including the Council's board of Directors, the Construction Committee, the Tax Committee, the Homeland Security Council's Steering Committee, and the Chamber Alliance of New York State.
  
• A range of recreational, social, and networking events.

John Faso grew up on Long Island and earned degrees from the State University of New York at Brockport and Georgetown University Law Center. He was elected to the state Assembly from Columbia County in 1986, where he became a voice of fiscal conservativism in the state Legislature. In 1994, he chaired the budget transition team of Governor-elect George Pataki. In that role, he supervised the state’s budget staff in drafting the initial Pataki budget proposal and developed an economic blueprint of significant tax and spending cuts. He left his post as Assembly Minority Leader to run for state Comptroller in 2002, losing narrowly to the current state Comptroller, Alan Hevesi. He is a partner in the national law firm of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and a board member of the Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority, on which he has served since 2003.

All Business Council members are invited and encouraged to attend the Annual Meeting, which is the Council’s most important annual event. Agenda and registration details are at www.bcnys.org/whatsnew/events/aminfo.htm. Exhibition and sponsorship opportunities are still available. For information, visit www.bcnys.org/whatsnew/events/amsponsorinfo.htm.