Gov. Pataki Vetoes More Than 70 Bills
ALBANY (1010 WINS) — In what may be a final slap at the Legislature, Gov. George Pataki on Thursday rejected pension sweeteners for public workers in powerful unions that were approved by lawmakers this election year.

Pataki also extended a program that subsidizes electricity costs for businesses that create and retain jobs, while vetoing the Legislature’s plan to collect cigarette taxes sold by Indian tribes. He also vetoed the Legislature’s attempt to change the state budget drafting process in a way that would take some power from the governor.

The Legislature is counting on hundreds of millions of dollars in uncollected tax revenues from cigarettes sold to non-Indians by tribes. The tribes, notably the Senecas, dispute the state’s authority to force them to collect taxes. Pataki said he still prefers to negotiate a settlement that respects Indian sovereignty and includes unresolved land claims.

“We should not abandon this important principle and jeopardize the state’s good relations with tribal governments simply to raise revenues to support additional spending,” Pataki stated.

In all, Pataki vetoed more than 70 bills on Thursday, many of them passed overwhelmingly in the Republican-controlled Senate and Democrat-controlled Assembly. That raises the possibility that the chambers could override some or all of the vetoes with a two-thirds vote in each chamber in special sessions this fall.

Legislative leaders had no immediate comment.

Now we have to watch this closely, will the assembly and senate go back into session and override these vetoes. I have heard they won’t, only time will tell if they will choose to complete the selling out of the government.