By JON CAMPBELL
Ganett Albany Bureau
ALBANY --- Lawmakers and Gov. Andrew Cuomo have spent recent months touting their legislative accomplishments in 2011: an on-time budget, a 2 percent property-tax cap, a revamped income-tax code and a sense of renewed collegiality in a Capitol long known for its partisanship.
That doesn't mean, however, that there isn't plenty on the table for 2012.
When lawmakers return to Albany on Wednesday for Cuomo's second State of the State address, they'll be met with persisting concerns about state-mandated costs to local governments and questions about redistricting -- all while facing the increased public scrutiny that comes with an election year.
"Those are the sort of things people should look out for," said Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb, R-Canandaigua, Ontario County. "Are things being done because they're good public policy, or are they doing things because it will make it easier on those seeking election or control of the majority?"
All 212 legislators are up for re-election in November.
Much of the heavy lifting has already been done. Lawmakers dealt with many of the more contentious issues in 2011, such as the legalization of same-sex marriage and a deal to enact a higher tax rate on the state's wealthiest earners.
Cuomo and legislative leaders have already agreed on the two largest portions of the 2012-13 state budget: education and health-care spending.
But with local governments and school districts dealing with the crunch of the state's property-tax cap, the pressure will be on the Legislature and Cuomo to come up with significant mandate relief.
A report issued last week by Cuomo's Mandate Relief Redesign Team included recommendations to relax mandates by about $245 million, a figure municipal and business leaders say needs to be increased to have any significant effect.
"I was one of the big supporters of the property-tax cap, and I think it was important to get that done," said Sen. Jeff Klein, a Bronx Democrat who formed the four-member Independent Democratic Conference earlier this year. "Now we're in a very, very good position to now supplement that with mandate relief. That's how we're really going to deal with property taxes."
Local governments and businesses hope Klein is right. They have long called on the state to change mandated costs like the Wicks Law, which requires multiple contracts for a public construction project, and the Medicaid program. Unlike most states, local governments pay a significant portion of the Medicaid program for their residents.
"Past administrations have tried to deal with the economic barriers, and they keep coming back to the same problem," said Mike Durant, state director of the National Federation of Independent Business. "The regulatory environment of the state and the mandated environment of the state are the reasons why."
Other issues were ultimately left unresolved this year, such as the creation of a health-care exchange as required by the federal Affordable Care Act. A three-way agreement between Cuomo and legislative leaders fell through at the end of the 2011 session after a handful of Senate Republicans balked at helping to implement "Obamacare," as some derisively call it.
At stake is $40 million in federal funding to help set up the exchange, which would serve as a program to help facilitate coverage for the uninsured or underinsured.
"Right now, the ideological opposition from what we understand to be a relatively small number of state senators is holding up the parade," said Blair Horner, vice president for advocacy for the American Cancer Society of NY & NJ. "Hopefully the governor and legislative leaders can come to an agreement soon, and the sooner the better."
For their part, Senate Republicans -- who took back a razor-thin 32-30 majority in the 2010 election cycle - say they're planning on maintaining a close working relationship with the Democratic governor and majority in the Assembly.
"I'd be very, very surprised if we lost focus, or for that matter the governor loses focus," said Sen. Stephen Saland, R-Poughkeepsie. "The governor is a very focused man who has gone out of his way to keep his campaign promises, and I'm looking forward to continuing working with him and I'm expecting more of the same."
Even as most lawmakers said they'd rather focus on the legislative session rather than the 2012 elections, the two issues intertwine. A panel of legislators is currently in the once-a-decade process of redrawing district lines for all state lawmakers and Congressional representatives, which Cuomo has vowed to veto if they aren't drawn by an independent commission.
Senate Democrats insist there's enough time to set up an independent body, a move rejected by Senate Republicans, who insist a constitutional amendment is necessary for that to be done. The redistricting task force is expected to release a preliminary set of new districts early in 2012.
If lawmakers aren't removed from the process, Democrats plan on using it as campaign fodder.
"One of the most urgent and most important issues we have to deal with is redistricting reform," said Sen. Michael Gianaris, a Queens Democratic heading his conference's re-election efforts. "It's something that is required of us, something we all overwhelmingly promised to fix and something Senate Republicans unanimously abandoned."
The GOP points to the state constitution, which gives lawmakers the right to draw district lines. An amendment requires passage by consecutive terms of the Legislature and a public vote, which could be done in 2013 at the earliest.
Another issue expected to get plenty of attention is natural-gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton, D-Ithaca, and other lawmakers in both parties said they'd push for a moratorium on the much-debated technique, a move opposed by some Senate Republican leaders. New York has yet to allow high-volume hydrofracking, but is moving to finalize a state report sometime in 2012 that would allow the process to go forward.
Senate Energy Chairman George Maziarz, R-Newfane, Niagara County, said the hydrofracking issue is "more administrative than legislative," but acknowledged that plenty of bills will be introduced to try to limit the technique.
Said Maziarz, a hydrofracking supporter: "It's clearly going to be a topic that's going to be discussed."
Here's what's at stake in the 2012 elections. All 212 legislative seats are up for grabs in 2012, with all lawmakers serving two-year terms.
-- Control of the Senate. Republicans currently hold a 32-30 majority in the Legislature's upper house after flipping two seats in the 2010 election cycle, though four Democrats are part of an independent caucus. Democrats will be eyeing Republicans in traditional Democratic strongholds, such as Sen. Mark Grisanti, R-Buffalo, and Sen. Marty Golden, R-Brooklyn.
-- A supermajority in the Assembly. Republicans were able to break the Democrats' veto-proof supermajority in the Assembly after making significant gains in the 2010 election cycle. Democrats currently hold a 98-50 edge, with two vacant seats.
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