(Maybe we should give them calculators first)

By Donna Comella

It's after April 1 and, for the 13th year in a row, New York State has a new fiscal year without a new fiscal plan.

Last July, after legislators passed the latest state budget in history, Assemblyman Bob Oaks wrote that Albany "budget gridlock" forced "greater expenses" on local governments and school districts. He announced a "five-point plan" that included barring legislators from considering any matter other than the budget if they failed to meet the April 1 deadline.

"After watching another budget deadline pass through the state capitol without even causing a great fuss, I am adamant that such an effort must be made to change the way Albany works...," said Oaks.

So, this year, when Assemblyman Oaks called a press conference for March 26, should we have hoped that his announcement would have to do with the budget? Were we to believe he was still adamant?

His conference would tell of a plan that would "save hundreds of thousands of dollars annually" and "improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness" and help legislators "carry out the business of the people...in a more productive manner." Last year's "five-point plan?"

Nope. He wants members of the Assembly to have laptop computers. He called it "Logging New York State's Government onto the 21st Century!"

Great idea. :-)

Bad timing. :-(

On April 4, with the budget three days late, Oaks sent a press release to say that we may make camping reservations for the 1997 season - $10-$18 per night for campsites, $122 to $325 per week for cabins.

On April 16, he released a picture of himself speaking out on behalf of crime victims. Meanwhile, an Assembly colleague, Jacob Gunther, and NYS Senator Nancy Lorraine Hoffman, of the Syracuse area, introduced legislation to change the budget process. A similar bill had been introduced by Assemblyman Jay Dinga of Broome County.

Then, on April 17, state lawmakers finally made a move - they went on a two-week vacation. (I guess that week they took off in late February just wasn't enough.) Okay, okay...now I'm just being nasty.

I don't want you to confuse my aggravation about the budget with disapproval of Bill A.6637 for laptops (or camping, or crime victims, or anything else). I just think that Assemblyman Oaks "logged off" on the "five-point plan" too soon.

The Assemblyman's Bill A.6637 has great promise. It has the potential to do everything he claims - save money, improve efficiency, reduce waste paper. It also has the potential to fulfill his hope of "opening up the legislative process."

Let's start with the budget. Maybe while Governor Pataki, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver are haggling over the budget, the other 209 legislators could be working on changing the process.

I encourage Assemblyman Oaks: Don't put away your laptop, use it to resurrect your five-point plan. If it had problems, iron them out. You said last year that at least it was a beginning.

e-mail, oaksr@assembly.state.ny.us