The 180th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3, 1973, to May 30, 1974, during the fifteenth and final year of Nelson Rockefeller's

governorship A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, and during Malcolm Wilson's governorship, in Albany.

Background

Under the provisions of the

New York Constitution The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constitut ...

of 1938, and the U.S. Supreme Court decision to follow the

One man, one vote "One man, one vote", or "one person, one vote", expresses the principle that individuals should have equal representation in voting. This slogan is used by advocates of political equality to refer to such electoral reforms as universal suffrage, ...

rule, re-apportioned in 1971 by the Legislature, 60 Senators and 150 assemblymen were elected in single-seat districts for two-year terms. Senate and Assembly districts consisted of approximately the same number of inhabitants, the area being apportioned without restrictions regarding county boundaries. At this time there were two major political parties: the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. The Conservative Party and the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

also nominated tickets.

Elections

The New York state election, 1972, was held on November 7. The only three statewide elective offices up for election were three seats on the New York Court of Appeals. All three seats were won by Republican judges, two with Conservative endorsement, and one with Liberal endorsement. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the average vote for Judge of the Court of Appeals, was: Republicans 2,847,000; Democrats 2,709,000; Conservatives 425,000; and Liberals 258,000. To date this was the last time a Republican majority was elected to the State Assembly. Of the three women members of the previous legislature, Assemblywoman Mary Anne Krupsak (Dem.), a lawyer of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

, was elected to the State Senate; and Assemblywomen Constance E. Cook (Rep.), a lawyer of

Ithaca Ithaca most commonly refers to: *Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey'' *Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca *Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College Ithaca, Ithaka ...

; and Rosemary R. Gunning (Cons.), a lawyer of

Ridgewood, Queens Ridgewood is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It borders the neighborhoods of Maspeth, Middle Village and Glendale, as well as the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Bushwick and East Williamsburg. Historically, the neighborhood st ...

; were re-elected to the Assembly.

Karen Burstein Karen S. Burstein (born July 20, 1942) is an American Democratic Party politician, attorney, civil servant, and former judge from the State of New York. She served in the New York State Senate, worked in the administration of Gov. Mario Cuomo, ...

, a lawyer of

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

, and

Carol Bellamy Carol Bellamy (born January 14, 1942) is an American nonprofit executive and former politician. She is chair of the board of the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF). Previously, she was director of the Peace Corps, executiv ...

, a lawyer of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, were also elected to the State Senate; and Estella B. Diggs, of

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, was also elected to the Assembly. The New York state election, 1973, was held on November 6. The only statewide elective office up for election was the

Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals refers to the position of chief judge on the New York Court of Appeals. They are also known as the Chief Judge of New York. The chief judge supervises the seven-judge Court of Appeals. In addition, th ...

. Republican Charles D. Breitel was elected with Liberal endorsement. One vacancy in the State Senate and five vacancies in the Assembly were filled.

Elizabeth Connelly Elizabeth Ann "Betty" Connelly (June 19, 1928 – May 25, 2006) was a politician from Staten Island, New York who represented the North Shore community from 1973 to 2000. She was the first woman to win elective office to any district encompassing ...

(Dem.), of Staten Island, was elected to the Assembly.

Sessions

The Legislature met for the first regular session (the 196th) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 3, 1973; and adjourned ''sine die'' on May 28. Perry B. Duryea, Jr. (Rep.) was re-elected

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

. Warren M. Anderson (Rep.) was elected Temporary President of the State Senate. The Legislature met for a special session at the State Capitol in Albany on July 25, 1973; and adjourned ''sine die'' on July 31. This session was called to consider the issue of a $3.5 million bond issue to finance the construction of additional public transportation capacities in New York City. The Legislature met for the second regular session (the 197th) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 9, 1974; and adjourned ''sine die'' in the early morning of May 17. The U.S. Department of Justice found fault with the congressional, senatorial and Assembly districts in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

and

under the apportionment of 1971, and ordered a revision to safeguard the rights of minorities. The Legislature met for another special session at the State Capitol in Albany on May 29, 1974; and adjourned ''sine die'' on the next day. This session was called to remap the legislative districts in Manhattan and Brooklyn, and to amend the rent-control law passed during the regular session. The Senate passed Governor Wilson's rent law amendment, but the Assembly did not come to a vote on it. On July 1, the U.S. Department of Justice accepted the revised districts as passed by the Legislature.

State Senate

Senators

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Chester J. Straub, Vander L. Beatty, Joseph R. Pisani, Mary Anne Krupsak, Edwyn E. Mason and James T. McFarland changed from the Assembly to the Senate at the beginning of the session. Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Secretary: Albert J. Abrams

State Assembly

Assemblymen

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. George A. Murphy and John J. LaFalce changed from the Senate to the Assembly at the beginning of the session. Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Clerk: Donald A. Campbell, until February 1973, resigned ** Thomas H. Bartzos, acting from February 1973, appointed as clerk in January 1974''State news briefs''
in ''The Citizen–Advertiser'', of Auburn, on January 8, 1974

Notes

Sources

''Listing Of New York Metropolitan Area Legislators'' and ''Names. Addresses Of Upstate Legislators''
in the ''Civil Service Leader'' (Vol. XXXIV, No. 5; issue of May 1, 1973; pg. 8f)
''Six Seats in State Legislature To Be Filled in Tuesday Voting''
in the ''Amsterdam Recorder'', of

, on November 5, 1973
''Listing of New York Congressmen and Legislators''
in the ''Civil Service Leader'' (Vol. XXXIV, No. 50; issue of March 12, 1974; pg. 8f) {{NYLegislatures 180 1973 in New York (state) 1974 in New York (state) 1973 U.S. legislative sessions 1974 U.S. legislative sessions