The 181st New York State Legislature, consisting of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan comp ...

and the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

, met from January 8, 1975, to August 5, 1976, during the first and second years of Hugh Carey'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 ...

in Albany.

Background

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

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 ...

under the apportionment of 1971, and ordered a revision to safeguard the rights of minorities. The Legislature enacted an amendment to the 1971 apportionment, remapping the legislative districts in Manhattan and Brooklyn, during a special session on May 29 and 30, 1974. On July 1, the U.S. Department of Justice accepted the revised districts as passed by the Legislature. Thus, 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, and amended in 1974, 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 Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

and the Democratic Party. The

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

, 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 ...

, the Courage Party, the Free Libertarian Party, the Socialist Workers Party, the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engel ...

, the

Socialist Labor Party The Socialist Labor Party (SLP)"The name of this organization shall be Socialist Labor Party". Art. I, Sec. 1 of thadopted at the Eleventh National Convention (New York, July 1904; amended at the National Conventions 1908, 1912, 1916, 1920, 1924 ...

and the Labor Party also nominated tickets.

Elections

The

New York state election, 1974 The 1974 New York state election was held on November 5, 1974, to elect the governor, the lieutenant governor, the state comptroller, the attorney general, two judges of the New York Court of Appeals and a U.S. Senator, as well as all members of t ...

, was held on November 5. Congressman Hugh Carey and State Senator

Mary Anne Krupsak Mary Anne Krupsak (born March 26, 1932) is an American lawyer and politician from New York. She was Lieutenant Governor of New York from 1975 to 1978. She was the first woman to hold the office. Early life She was born on March 26, 1932, in Sch ...

were elected Governor and Lieutenant Governor, both Democrats. Carey defeated the incumbent Governor Malcolm Wilson. The elections to the other five statewide elective offices resulted in a Republican Attorney General with Liberal endorsement; a Democratic State Comptroller with Liberal endorsement; a Republican U.S. Senator with Liberal endorsement; and two Democratic judges of the Court of Appeals, one of them with Liberal endorsement. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Governor, was: Democrats/Liberals 3,029,000; Republicans/Conservatives 2,220,000; Courage 12,500; Free Libertarians 10,500; Socialist Workers 9,000; Communists 5,000; Socialist Labor 4,500; and Labor 3,000. Gathering from the results for the other offices, the strength of the Liberals was about 400,000 votes, and the Conservatives about 250,000. However, Conservative Barbara A. Keating polled more than 800,000 votes for U.S. Senator. Of the seven women members of the previous legislature, State Senator

(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

Lieutenant Governor of New York The lieutenant governor of New York is a constitutional office in the executive branch of the Government of the State of New York. It is the second highest-ranking official in state government. The lieutenant governor is elected on a ticket w ...

, and became ''ex officio'' President of the State Senate; and five of the other six—State Senators

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, and Carol Bellamy, a lawyer of

; and Assemblywomen

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 Staten Island ( ) is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey b ...

;

Estella B. Diggs Estella B. Diggs (April 21, 1916 – April 18, 2013) was an American businesswoman, writer and politician from New York. Life She was born on April 21, 1916, in St. Louis, Missouri. She attended Pace College, City College of New York and New York ...

, 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 ...

; 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. Linda Winikow, of Spring Valley, was also elected to the State Senate.

Jean Amatucci Jean Amatucci Fox (born November 23, 1938) is an American politician from New York. Life Jean Amatucci was born on November 23, 1938, the daughter of Daniel and Carmela Amatucci. Her father was a Democratic politician, and was the Supervisor of th ...

(Dem.), a registered nurse of White Lake; Mary B. Goodhue (Rep.), a lawyer of

Mount Kisco Mount Kisco is a village and town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The town of Mount Kisco is coterminous with the village. The population was 10,959 at the 2020 United States census over 10,877 at the 2010 census. It serves as ...

; and Marie M. Runyon (Dem.), of

, were also elected to the Assembly. The New York state election, 1975, was held on November 4. No statewide elective offices were up for election. One vacancy was filled in the Legislature:

Jeannette Gadson Jeannette Gadson (July 5, 1945 – February 13, 2007) was an American politician from New York. Life She was born on July 5, 1945 to Jeanie Wright-Gadson and Samuel Gadson, Sr. Jeannette Gadson entered politics as a Democrat, and became executiv ...

, of

, was elected to the Assembly. On February 10, 1976, Gerdi E. Lipschutz (Dem.), of

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, was elected to fill a vacancy in the Assembly, making her the eleventh woman member of the Legislature of 1976, surpassing the previous record of eight in the

166th New York State Legislature The 166th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 8, 1947, to March 13, 1948, during the fifth and sixth years of Thomas E. Dewey's governorship, in Albany. Backgro ...

(1947–1948).

Sessions

The Legislature met for the first regular session (the 198th) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 8, 1975; and adjourned ''sine die'' in the morning of July 12. Stanley Steingut (Dem.) was 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: ** In ...

. Warren M. Anderson (Rep.) was re-elected Temporary President of the State Senate. The Legislature met for a special session at the State Capitol in Albany on September 4, 1975; and adjourned ''sine die'' in the early morning of September 9. This session was called to take measures concerning the financial crisis of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The Legislature met for another special session at the State Capitol in Albany on November 13, 1975. On November 25, a help package worth $200 million was enacted to avert the financial breakdown of New York City. They adjourned ''sine die'' on December 20, after enacting an increase of $600 million in state taxes. The Legislature met for the second regular session (the 199th) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 7, 1976; and adjourned ''sine die'' in the morning of June 30. The Legislature met for yet another special session at the State Capitol in Albany on August 4, 1976; and adjourned ''sine die'' on the next day. This session was called to consider Governor Carey's proposed court reform.''CAREY RECALLING THE LEGISLATURE''
in ''The New York Times'' on July 30, 1976 (subscription required)

State Senate

Senators

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Franz S. Leichter changed from the Assembly to the Senate at the beginning of the session. Assemblyman Anthony V. Gazzara was elected to fill a vacancy in the Senate. Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Secretary: Albert J. Abrams, resigned 1976 ** Roger C. Thompson, in 1976

State Assembly

Assemblymen

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Clerk:

Catherine A. Carey Catherine Ann Carey (born 1945) is an American lawyer and politician from New York. Life She was born in 1945, in Lackawanna, Erie County, New York, the daughter of William James Carey and Mary Clare (Kuebler) Carey. She graduated with a B.A. f ...

Notes

Sources

''Legislators' Lulu List: Who Gets $$''
in the ''Civil Service Leader'' (Vol. XXXVI, No. 27, issue of September 30, 1975; pg. 10)
''Democrats Control State Assembly''
by Betsy Buchner, in ''The Evening News'', of Newburgh, on November 6, 1974 {{NYLegislatures

181 Year 181 ( CLXXXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Burrus (or, less frequently, year 934 ''Ab urbe condit ...

1975 in New York (state) 1976 in New York (state) 1975 U.S. legislative sessions 1976 U.S. legislative sessions