WASHINGTON DISPATCHES

NY Senators Want Public Option

New York’s two senators have joining 15 others in a liberal-backed effort to revive the so-called “public option”—a government-backed insurance plan to compete with the private sector.

Political observers had long believed the government option was dead when it became clear that there were not 60 votes in the Senate to pass it over an expected Republican filibuster. But now, some Democrats are urging the use of “budget reconciliation” tactics that would allow legislation to pass while receiving a bare majority of 51 votes in the Senate.

“This is far from a done deal, but it’s an opportunity to break through the obstructionism Republicans have pushed for the past year,” Schumer said in a message to supporters.

Last Friday, MoveOn.org, a liberal website, hailed Gillibrand, “a hero of the public option” in an e-mail to the group’s supporters

Though Schumer has long been a supporter of a government-backed health insurance option, his strong support of it now may be tied to his ambitions to succeed Nevada’s Harry Reid as party leader, should Reid be defeated this November.

Schumer Wants Tougher Laws on Sex Offenders

Recent reports that a convicted sex offender was working as a superintendent in an Upper West Side brownstone have convinced Assemblyman Micah Kellner and Senator Charles Schumer that legislation is necessary to prevent a repeat.

Schumer has introduced a federal bill that would prohibit convicted sex offenders from becoming a super or manager in any multifamily apartment building in New York or nationwide, unless they disclose their past.

“The fact that these sex offenders have access to apartments where there are children present is beyond scary,” Schumer said in a statement.

Gillibrand Feeling Heat in Rochester

During a recent visit to Rochester, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand received criticism for some uncertain answers during interviews.

Gillibrand could not name Rochester’s largest employer, the University of Rochester, and seemed confused about how many times she had visited the Rochester area, saying she had attended 25 events “in the area” before being corrected and admitting that she had visited the second largest economic power in New York a scant five times.

Hall Touts Credit Card Reform

On Monday, Rep. John Hall and Orange County consumer affairs commissioner Charles Mitchell announced that federal legislation known as the “Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights” had gone into effect this week.

The legislation includes a requirement that promotional rates last for at least six months, and a new obligation for companies to inform consumers when they’ve spent over their limit, to prevent fees.

“This ... is first and foremost about fairness for consumers who play by the rules but are struggling to make ends meet,” said Hall, a co-sponsor of the law.

“No one has been immune to the excessive fees and interest rate gimmicks of the credit card industry,” Hall said.

The reforms may still allow loopholes and fine print for those examining new offers after the legislation has gone into effect. The Federal Reserve has issued a report that in 2009, consumers cut their credit card debt by an average of $1,700 per household.