FAYETTEVILLE, NY -- State Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb had barely even started a meeting in Fayetteville's Village Hall when it was clear that most of the people in the room were fed up with the status quo in Albany. Kolb asked anyone in the crowd to raise their hand if they were satisfied with how the state government works. Not a hand went up. Kolb also asked if anyone had seen their income go up by 70% in the past ten years like the state had. Not a hand went up.
Al Lukette came to the meeting to hear ideas for reducing the size of state government and the amount of money it spends.
"I think there's way too much government. Every time you turn around it's red tape - it just keeps piling up and piling up," said Lukette.
Assemblyman Kolb has been talking up his proposal to have a non-partisan group of taxpayers make changes to the state constitution. New York is scheduled to decide on a constitutional convention in 2017 but Kolb thinks it should be moved up. Kolb has been hosting the meetings for more than a year but admitted on Wednesday it is unlikely anything will be changed this legislative year.
"I'm still hopeful, still optimistic because I still think that's where we can can get more change without the special interests gumming up the works in Albany," said Kolb.
The crowd had questions for Kolb and Assemblyman Don Miller about how the delegates for a constitutional convention would be selected and Paul Weyna wanted to know if the process would be completely bi-partisan.
"I'm just curious as to whether it would be balanced as far as the politics of the people that get voted in," said Weyna. "How do you assure it is balanced and fair?"
Kolb says his proposal to reform the state constitution has support from current Governor Andrew Cuomo, his father and former Governor Mario Cuomo, former Governor George Pataki and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
