Asm. Robert Smullen

Raised technical and definitional concerns, arguing the bill uses New York State terminology inconsistent with Federal ATF definitions. Noted that in the firearms community, "convertor" traditionally refers to caliber conversion devices, not machine gun conversion devices, creating confusion for interstate commerce.

Argued the bill represents another example of "death by a thousand cuts" against Second Amendment rights. Stated the requirement is already covered under federal law and that New York's confusing, layered firearms regulations are deliberately obfuscatory to discourage gun ownership.

Rural areas require protection through proportional representation similar to Assembly districts. Removing the metric allows OCA to arbitrarily assign judges across jurisdictions based on salary/funding rather than local election accountability, threatening rural equity.

Rural areas need protection through proportional representation like the Assembly uses. Removing the 50,000 metric without safeguards allows OCA to arbitrarily assign judges across districts based on salary/budget control, threatening rural equity and the principle of locally-elected judges accountable to their constituents.

Opposed the bill on grounds of rural equity, arguing that forcing rural school districts to purchase buses before old technology is obsolete is unfair and that the state should fully fund the program if it mandates it.

Criticized the state's fiscal irresponsibility in accumulating debt rather than paying it down, particularly given tens of billions in federal COVID aid. Noted the state still owes $8 billion in borrowed unemployment insurance funds and carries $329 billion in public authority debt, arguing this burden is unsustainable for rural communities and contributes to outmigration.

Questioned why the sponsor, who has never hunted, should regulate hunting. Noted hunters already pay for regulation enforcement through licenses. Argued DEC is the proper authority for wildlife management and that the bill undermines their expertise. Raised concerns about fines up to $2,000 for fire departments and community organizations running contests.

Characterized the bill as cultural overreach by urban majority imposing values on Upstate communities. Argued this represents tyranny of the majority, forcing restrictions on legal activities simply because urban legislators have the votes.

Expressed concern that regulating Class C streams as Class A and B streams creates a huge regulatory burden on citizens and municipalities, particularly in Upstate regions. Advocated for a stream restoration initiative approach instead.

Argued the amendments do not go far enough and criticized the use of a Message of Necessity to bypass the three-day aging period. Suggested the amendments are attempts to soften CCIA provisions to make them more palatable to federal judges reviewing the law in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and represent policy fixes to a bad bill rushed through last summer.

Criticized the use of Message of Necessity to bypass three-day aging period, argued amendments do not go far enough and represent attempts to soften provisions under judicial review in Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and characterized the bill as correcting bad policy rushed through last summer.

Criticized the amendments as insufficient and suggested they represent an attempt to soften CCIA provisions under judicial review in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Stated he would vote no on this section of the budget, characterizing it as a policy fix for bad policy rushed through on a Message of Necessity last summer.

The goal is too open-ended without clear guardrails and will disproportionately affect rural upstate districts like the Mohawk Valley and Adirondacks, which already exceed 30 percent conservation. The Legislature should have approval authority over DEC's implementation, and dedicated funding should be provided if this is a priority.