Wall Street Journal
By Mike Vilensky
March 18, 2014
ALBANY--Tensions
grew Tuesday between the New York state Senate's two Democratic
factions one day after the Dream Act, a bill that would offer state
college financial
aid to undocumented immigrants, fell short of a majority by two votes.
All Republicans present voted no, along with two Democrats, Ted O'Brien of Rochester and Simcha Felder of Brooklyn.
Supporters of the bill expressed frustration with the outcome, but vowed to press on through other channels.
"Yesterday
was quite a disappointment," said Aileen Sheil, chairwoman of the board
of directors for the New York Public Interest Research Group, a
nonprofit government
watchdog. "But we are committed to seeing this through…[and] remain
hopeful the governor will make Dream a priority and include it in his
final budget."
Senate
Democrats and the Independent Democratic Conference—a breakaway
coalition of Democrats led by Sen. Jeff Klein —each placed some of the
blame for the bill's failure
on the other.
Sen.
Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who leads the Senate Democrats, said on Tuesday
she had pushed for the Dream Act's inclusion in the Senate's budget
proposal, which was negotiated
largely by Mr. Klein and Republican Sen. Dean Skelos—to no avail.
She
said including it in the house proposal would have intensified
negotiations about funding it when legislative leaders hash out the
final budget with Mr. Cuomo this
month.
The Assembly slated funds for the Dream Act in its budget proposal—at a cost of about $25 million a year.
Mr.
Klein, the Senate Majority Coalition co-leader who shares power with
the Republicans, said the bill's advocates wanted a floor vote—not a
mention in the budget proposal.
Plus, he said, he had expected the two Democrats who voted no to vote
yes.
The bill already passed in the Assembly, and Mr. Cuomo has said he would sign it into law if it passed in the Senate.
Advocates began shifting their attention Tuesday to lobbying Mr. Cuomo to allocate funds for it in the final state budget.
"I
will keep waiting for Governor Cuomo to pass it," said Pedro Meza, an
undocumented high-school student from Staten Island, one of scores of
undocumented immigrants
who came to Albany Tuesday to lobby. "My family is counting on me, and I
don't want to disappoint them."
A
spokesman for Mr. Cuomo didn't comment on specific remarks made by
advocates of the bill regarding budget negotiations. But on Monday, the
governor expressed disappointment
with the Senate vote, saying: "I will continue to work with
supporters…to achieve this dream."
The Somos el Futuro conference, a gathering to discuss Latino issues, will be held in Albany this weekend.
"People
will be talking about" the Dream Act, said Andres Rivera, executive
director of the conference, "and where it's going to go from here."
Dream
Act advocates predicted some fallout for those in both parties who
voted no on Monday. "The ['No' votes] were memorable," said Ms. Sheil.
"That will be reflected
in the polls."
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