State Senator Bonacic on the big issues

NRYI and flooding top the list

By FRITZ MAYER

NEW YORK 42ND SENATE DISTRICT — When New York State Senator John Bonacic turned out for a breakfast speech in Port Jervis last week, he was nattily dressed as always; his familiar tan looked fresh. If he didn’t seem quite as energetic as usual, that might be because it was 7:30 a.m., and he’d been pursuing a grueling schedule of late, with extensive travels in his district, which includes all of Delaware and Sullivan counties and parts of Ulster and Orange.

Bonacic has been dealing with two large issues: the controversial power line that threatens to bisect his district, and the historic flooding in late June that ravaged quite a few of his constituents’ homes and businesses.

During his remarks to the Tri-State Chamber of Commerce audience, he spent a lot of time talking about the New York Regional Interconnect (NYRI) and their plans to build a 200-mile power line. He sponsored a resolution in Albany that would strip NYRI of the power of eminent domain to take land on which to site its power line.

The bill passed in June, but he has not yet sent the bill to Governor George Pataki for his signature.

He said he had three reasons for not doing so. The first was that he is not sure that the governor will sign the bill, and he wants to help persuade the governor to accept his point of view. Next, he said, holding the bill back gives him time to build support for an override in case the governor does veto the bill. Third, he said, holding the bill back provides a degree of uncertainty for NYRI, which slows down their effort and costs time and money.

In a later phone conversation, Bonacic bristled at the suggestion in a news article that New York lawmakers passed the legislation as an election-year gesture, with the understanding that it would not pass.

The article was a “hatchet job,” said Bonacic. He said his effort amounts to a fundamental change in eminent domain law in New York. “This is a big thing that’s never been done before.”

He said he’s doing what’s necessary to build a major coalition of support for his legislation. He said he believes the governor has not prejudged the bill, which is why he and four other New York state senators are plotting strategy and compiling research to give the bill its best chance of getting the governor’s signature.

At the breakfast speech, Bonacic also talked about his concerns that his efforts to fight the project in Albany may be overridden by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in Washington. He explained that even if the New York Public Service Commission (PSC) rejects NYRI’s permit application, the necessary permits could be granted by FERC. Further, he noted a new regulation published by FERC last week, which said that all pre-construction costs for power line projects with a National Interest Electric Transmission Corridor designation could be passed on to ratepayers, even for a project that had been abandoned. He said, with some astonishment, “that’s giving total control to private sector investment companies, with no risk.”

He said the issue with FERC and power lines also raised the matter of federalism versus states rights. The question of the location of a power line should be made at the state level, not the federal level, he said.

The historic flooding

Bonacic has spent many hours in recent days touring the flood-damaged areas in his district. He said that while this flooding was historic, there were also some human elements involved. He said the New York City Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) should come up with a plan to use the six city-owned reservoirs to mitigate the impacts of flooding.

Local lawmakers have been negotiating with the DEC to come up with such a plan since the first flood two years ago.

“Their position has been: ‘We’re not in the flood control business,’” said Bonacic. His reply was, “If you’re in the reservoir business, you must be in the flood control business.”

Last year, the senate passed a bill taking control of the reservoirs away from the city and giving it to the state. The assembly did not take up the matter. According to Bonacic, that situation points out a reality of New York politics.

“It’s not the divide between Republicans and Democrats that often matters. Instead, it’s the divide between upstate and downstate interests.” Democrats from New York City, said the Republican senator, control the agenda of the state assembly.

Bonacic gave the DEC good marks for issuing permits that allow the clearing of creeks and streams in the wake of the late June flooding. He advocated that the legislature pass a measure that would allow municipalities to clear gravel and silt from under bridges on a regular basis.

Bonacic was aware stream clearing can cause problems for property owners downstream, but said that scientists and others with more knowledge than he about the matter will be working to find the best balance for the issue.

Asked if this was a particularly tough time for him as a senator, he said, “Not the toughest. That was the six weeks after 9/11, going to all those memorials. Still, this is a pretty demanding time.”