IDC joins GOP to stay in action

The leader of the Independent Democratic Conference, state Sen. Jeffrey Klein, said his group will maintain its majority coalition with Republicans in the Senate, describing the alliance as a way to “get things done.” 

In a statement on the continued coalition, Klein said it is the most effective way to ensure the IDC can continue to push major agenda items such as affordable higher education and juvenile justice reform. 

“As pragmatic progressives, we know how important it is to engage and get things done.  This bipartisan coalition will represent every county across New York, ensuring that every New Yorker has a voice in the Senate,” he said. “There’s too much at stake for the IDC to sit on the sidelines.”

After months of debate and speculation after the Nov. 8 election, it became clear the Democrats could not win control of the Senate, despite holding 32 out of 63 seats. State Sen. Simcha Felder, a Brooklyn senator who conferences with Republicans, is a leading reason for that. 

“Simcha Felder is Republican in every way that I can think of, except for his party registration, the Republicans have a majority,” Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz said.

As a result, the IDC elected to maintain its partnership with the GOP, in order to keep its values and goals relevant in the Senate,  Klein said.

“The IDC is going to make a positive change for New York’s working- and middle-class families,” he said in the Jan. 4 statement.

A range of elected officials and activist groups have lauded the move by the IDC to maintain its partnership with Republicans, citing past victories such as raising the state minimum wage to $15 per hour. 

Dinowitz said the IDC’s coalition with Republicans is a chief reason for some of the Democrats’ biggest policy victories last year. 

“I think the IDC has accomplished a number of things, which may not have been accomplished but for the coalitions that they’ve made,” he said. “The IDC partnering with the IDC majority is not denying the Democrats the majority, they’re just not. So, if this coalition arrangement that they’ve made with the Republicans can help accomplish some of the things that we’d like to see happen in Albany, then I hope it’s successful.”

A number of unions voiced their support for Klein and the IDC, including the Transport Workers Union Local 100, whose president, John Samuelson, lauded the conference in a statement for protecting workers in New York State. 

“The IDC has been a strong ally to Transport Workers Union Local 100 and to all working families across New York,” he said. “New York City’s transit workers look forward to working with the IDC to ensure that the interests of working New Yorkers are front and center in the upcoming legislative session.”

This year, the IDC released an agenda outlining the group’s goals for the 2017 legislative season. The plan, “Changing New York Agenda,” lists six policy categories geared towards dealing with issues that face middle-class families. 

Among the items Klein and the conference have said they will push this legislative season are proposals to raise the age of criminal liability for juveniles, increase funding to the Tuition Assistance Program and provide incentives for companies to stay in New York. 

“The impact that the current age of criminal responsibility has on 16- and 17-year-olds affects them for the rest of their lives,” Klein said in a Dec. 29 statement regarding the IDC’s proposal to raise the age of criminal responsibility in New York. “Whether it’s increasing the chance to advance academically or secure employment, it is clear that raising the age of responsibility will have a great societal benefit.”