Tonko accepts new post Spitzer backs assemblyman to lead energy board BY JASON SUBIK Gazette Reporter
Veteran Assemblyman Paul D. Tonko, D-Amsterdam, celebrated his 58th birthday Monday with a long-expected change of jobs when the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority Board of Directors voted unanimously to appoint him NYSERDA president and chief executive officer. Tonko, 25-year member of the Assembly, said he will take the position. “This has been a very emotional day,” Tonko said. “The torturous part of the decision is that human factor of connection with constituents who have undeniably grown to become extended family.” Gov. Eliot Spitzer has 15 days to formally accept or veto any NYSERDA Board decision, but in a statement released after the NYSERDA vote, he left no doubt that fellow Democrat Tonko has his support. “Paul brings a comprehensive understanding of the issues, having served for the past 15 years as chair of the Assembly Energy Committee,” Spitzer said. “In addition, as everyone who knows him will attest, Paul is a person of remarkable dedication and integrity. I am confident that he will do an extraordinary job in leading NYSERDA and that the people of New York will benefit greatly as a result.” Outgoing NYSERDA President and CEO Peter Smith submitted his resignation to the board on June 5, but will stay on until July 1 when Tonko has announced he will resign his Assembly seat. Spitzer will then likely call for a special election to fill the 105th Assembly District seat, said Spitzer spokesman Mark Violette. “Tonko will serve as an Assembly member until July 1 when he takes the [NYSERDA] post. I don’t think the governor would schedule a special election until he resigned his seat and took on his new duties,” Violette said. “That would be the trigger, when Tonko resigns.” Two candidates have or will announce their bid for Tonko’s seat: Schenectady County Legislator Edward Kosiur, D-Schenectady, and Republican George Amedore Jr., a builder. Kosiur announced June 11. Amedore is scheduled to announce today. The winner would serve the remainder of Tonko’s term and run for re-election in November 2008, Violette said. Tonko was elected to the Assembly in early 1983 and has been chairman of the chamber’s Energy Committee since 1992. He easily won re-election last year. Assembly terms are for two years. NYSERDA Board Chairman Vincent A. DeIorio said Spitzer had considerable input in the board’s decision to select Tonko. “With a change of administration there is obviously the opportunity, if not the need, to consider the prerogatives of the governor in terms of the development of energy policy,” DeIorio said. “Peter just felt that, historically, we’ve had a very strong relationship with the governor’s office, we needed to have it on a goforward basis and this is one way to provide it and very unselfishly … it was his decision to resign.” Tonko was questioned by NYSERDA Board members at a special executive session Monday morning at NYSERDA’s 18 Columbia Circle headquarters in Albany. Board Member Jay L. Gottlieb, an energy economist, said he was exhilarated by Tonko’s vision for energy, but was uncertain in what direction Tonko would take NYSERDA. “I don’t have a specific idea of how he’s going to make changes, or what those changes would be, but based on the background presented to me as a board member, and the discussion we had, I’m confi dent that those changes will be made in a way consistent [with the mission of the authority],” Gottlieb said. The authority, created in 1975, funds energy research projects and energy efficiency programs mainly from a state surcharge on utility bills. It has 228 employees and an annual budget of $409 million. In a recent energy policy speech Spitzer said it was his goal to implement a strategy dubbed “15 by 15,” which calls for a 15 percent reduction in energy consumption below the forecast demand level in 2015. Tonko said he will work to promote Spitzer’s agenda by “pumping up efficiency” and “driving down demand. “Treating efficiency and conservation as if it was an indigenous resource, much like Texas would treat its oil or West Virginia would treat its coal, is very important. It’s key to reducing that demand and cutting also the emissions, especially [carbon dioxide],” he said. Tonko said he was persuaded to accept the NYSERDA job because of his experience with energy policy, Spitzer’s agenda and what he perceives to be a public acceptance of the need for energy change. “I sense this growing notion that people want to move us off of dependency on foreign imported fossil-based fuels and also address at the same time climate changes [and] global warming,” he said. As president and chief executive officer of NYSERDA, Tonko will be paid $148,888 a year, up from his $79,500 Assembly salary plus $12,500 a year he received for chairing the Assembly Energy Committee. Smith said he was uncertain where he will work next after working for NYSERDA for 12 years. He was appointed president on Jan. 26, 2004 and then became the first president and CEO of NYSERDA after authority reform stripped the CEO job from the board chairman. He said he is proud of NYSERDA’s record during his tenure. “I’m proud of the Saratoga Technology and Energy Park, where we took it from a brownfield Superfund site, to right now there is a building under construction, 105,000 square feet, that will have clean energy technologies,” he said.
Tonko at first denied that he was getting the appointment but everyone else knew that he was going to get it. The next question is who will represent the district once he's gone? Let's hope it's someone that actually cares about the residents of the district.
The next question is who will represent the district once he's gone? Let's hope it's someone that actually cares about the residents of the district.
I don't know of anyone, in any party, that could fit this bill. They either have their own personal agenda, no platform/vison, greedy or power driven.
Clearly none of them are representative of the people!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Race to succeed Tonko set Democrat Ed Kosiur, Republican George Amedore to contend in July 31 special election
First published: Tuesday, July 3, 2007
SCHENECTADY -- Democrat Ed Kosiur and Republican George Amedore have 30 days to convince voters in the 105th Assembly District that they have what it takes to succeed Paul Tonko. Gov. Eliot Spitzer's office announced Monday that a special election will be held July 31 for the right to represent the district, which encompasses all of Montgomery County as well as Schenectady, Rotterdam, Duanesburg and Princetown in Schenectady County. The governor signed the proclamation setting the special election on Sunday.
Amedore, the owner of the firm that gained local fame for its role in building a Colonie home for the ABC television hit "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," and Kosiur, a Schenectady County legislator who has championed legislation to restrict the movement of convicted sex offenders, both announced last month that they intended to run for the seat. Kosiur lives in Schenectady and Amedore is a Rotterdam resident.
Tonko formally left office on Friday to take over as president of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, ending more than two decades in the Assembly.
Some campaigns feel like marathons, but the Assembly race might seem more like a sprint. Spitzer's announcement gives the two candidates the minimum 30 days allowed for a special election.
What are the specifics about the midsummer election day? Anything known yet? What time do polls open? Schenectady once did a special election for a council person I think in the lat 1970's and I think the polls opened at 6 a.m.
Here's a special election that crosses over counties. People outside Schenectady probably never heard of Kosiur. Amedore's, never in politics, probably no one heard of him until Extreme Makeover.
Two candidates, as the paper reported, who have similar views on issues. They even attend the same church together. Bet there church will help them play clean. Of course, there's not much time for campaigning.
This is an election without an incumbent so you'd think it could be a higher turnout. But this is not a usual election day, it's on such an unusual day (but not quite as unusual as those winter school project bond votes), so will the people who are not so observant as, say, we (on this board) are, come out to vote in numbers close to what November election day does if this contest were held then.
The one advantage for the candidates is that with a separate election, there's no connection made between them and other races, e.g., if there was a gov election, an AG, a congress and senator all of one party, I think people who vote all those offices in the same party, then that seems to extend to an assembly election. But there's no influences this time.
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
MC1 - They go to the same church? Doesn't Amedore's go to Calvery? I do know that the Amedore's are a very Christian family, but know nothing about Kosiur's. And even though I am hoping for a large turn out, there usually isn't for these types of elections. Didn't they have a special election to fill Rotterdam's seat when Joe 'abstain' Guidarelli left? That race was between Renna(r) and Godlewski(d). And there wasn't a big turn out for that. I know it is small town, but not many small town folks came out to vote.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
105TH ASSEMBLY DISTRICT Candidates get out to spread the word Pair seek to make impressions before July 31 vote BY MICHAEL LAMENDOLA Gazette Reporter
The two candidates for the 105th state Assembly District are so far encountering voters who are unsure who they are and even unaware that there is a special election scheduled for July 31. This will likely change as Republican George Amedore Jr. and Democrat Edward Kosiur continue their aggressive campaign schedules and their committees begin to flood the district with messages through mail, TV, radio and other sources. Last Monday, Amedore worked Fourth Avenue and Second Street in Rotterdam. He went door to door with a message of cutting taxes, helping people and trying to change a “dysfunctional” Albany state government. “I’m a businessman, not a politician,” Amedore told people. This is his first bid for office. Kosiur was just as busy, touting action in the county Legislature to place residency restrictions on sex offenders, create jobs and help local governments share services. Amedore and Kosiur are seeking the seat vacated by 25-year Assemblyman Paul Tonko. Tonko resigned his seat June 30 after he was named president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. A sampling of people the candidates met on the campaign trail viewed the men mostly as unknowns. “He’s a nice guy. Who is he running against?” asked Mike DePoalo of 2510 Second St., a Democrat, after meeting Amedore. DePoalo said he has not yet decided for whom he will vote. “We tend to vote Democrat, but sometimes I vote for guys with Italian last names.” Several doors down, Catherine Chiaretta, a Republican, said she did not know either Amedore or Kosiur but would vote for the candidate “who will get results.” She liked Amedore’s statement that he would put a ___ cap on gasoline taxes. She’s also concerned about high taxes and improving school standards. Patricia and Richard Olsen of 2652 Second St. know both Amedore and Kosiur superficially as members of their church, Calvary Tabernacle Assembly of God. The Olsens are Republicans who never voted for Tonko, they said. Both are happy to see Amedore and Kosiur running. “This is wonderful. It means we will have at least one born-again Christian in government,” Richard Olsen said. The Olsens remain open-minded about both candidates, saying they want to “see what they have to offer.” Before they decide which candidate to support, however, “we will pray about it, talk about it and think about it,” Richard Ol- sen said. CROSSING LINES At Wiles Park in Montgomery County Tuesday night, Kosiur worked the crowd with Minden Supervisor Tom Quackenbush, a Republican. Quackenbush endorsed Kosiur, his longtime friend, for Tonko’s seat. Democrat Tom DiMezza, Amsterdam town supervisor and chairman of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors, endorsed his friend Amedore. Quackenbush said he’s taken some fire from Montgomery County Republican leaders for supporting Kosiur but said friendship is more important than politics. Quackenbush said he will see if his cross-party support hurts him, as he is seeking re-election in November to another two-year term as supervisor. For now, Quackenbush is using his influence to help Kosiur win votes in the heavily Republican town. Keith MacGregor of Fort Plain, a Republican, said he believes Kosiur’s Quackenbush connection will help. “I trust Quackenbush’s word,” MacGregor said. MacGregor plans to vote for the candidate who will best benefit the district in the long run, as did Tonko. “Tonko did a hell of a job,” he said. Steve Stortecky of Canajoharie, who has no party affiliation, said meeting candidates face-toface “helps me decide who to vote for.” He was familiar with Kosiur’s name but had not heard of Amedore. “I’m just a common guy. I’m just getting frustrated. I don’t care what party you are from. I just want you to get it done,” he told Kosiur. Kosiur said he would. Amedore, 38, of Rotterdam, is executive vice president of Amedore Homes, a company started by his father, George Sr. Kosiur, 51, is director of teen employment with the Boys & Girls Club of Schenectady. He also is a Schenectady County legislator, representing District 2 in the city of Schenectady. He is a former city councilman. Both men have been campaigning full time since Gov. Eliot Spitzer on Sunday called a special election for the seat, with both candidates taking time off from their jobs. They have been criss-crossing the sprawling 105th District, which includes all of Montgomery County and half of the city of Schenectady, plus Duanesburg, Princetown and Rotterdam.
As Paul Tonko packs up at his Assembly offices, and his would-be successors start lining up for the race, I am hoping that our new assemblyman will be ready to serve the constituency with the same amount of zeal, energy, compassion and conviction that Mr. Tonko has exhibited since first being elected so very long ago. Those descriptive words may all seem redundant, but it is hard to leave one out, considering the dedication of our departing assemblyman. “There’s Paul” ... “There’s Mr. Tonko” ... “There’s our assemblyman.” It would be impossible for me to count how many times I have heard the above words of recognition, depending on the nature of one’s familiarity with him. He was everywhere — all the time — not just during an election year; sneaking in rather humbly, with no fanfare, sitting among the crowd at civic functions, religious celebrations, liturgies, festivals, anniversaries, funerals — regardless of the group’s affiliation or denomination. When his political counterparts could not fit another event into their busy schedules, Mr. Tonko always seemed to find time. And, he was warmly welcomed wherever he went. I truly believe he has enjoyed being with us, and has enjoyed helping the people he was elected to serve. When someone feels very comfortable in a diverse crowd and can effectively communicate at any level, a lot can be accomplished. It was this dynamic, yet subtle personality that kept him in office for all these years. May he continue to serve the citizens of New York with integrity and honor in his new position. SUSAN NIECKARZ Niskayuna
He was everywhere — all the time — not just during an election year; sneaking in rather humbly, with no fanfare, sitting among the crowd at civic functions, religious celebrations, liturgies, festivals, anniversaries, funerals — regardless of the group’s affiliation or denomination. When his political counterparts could not fit another event into their busy schedules, Mr. Tonko always seemed to find time. And, he was warmly welcomed wherever he went.
That is because Mr. Tonko is a 'lifer politician'! And that's what they do! No big whoop here!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
He was everywhere — all the time — not just during an election year; sneaking in rather humbly, with no fanfare, sitting among the crowd at civic functions, religious celebrations, liturgies, festivals, anniversaries, funerals — regardless of the group’s affiliation or denomination. When his political counterparts could not fit another event into their busy schedules, Mr. Tonko always seemed to find time. And, he was warmly welcomed wherever he went.
That is because Mr. Tonko is a 'lifer politician'! And that's what they do! No big whoop here!
Because he hasn't had to actually wake up each and every day for the past 30 years and go to serve "the man?" Maybe that's where he gets his free time.
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