AN ALBANY CHECKLIST

New York's State Legislature moves this week into that slippery season
when a number of bills could be passed into law -- or disappear --
with the speed that comes when politicians are ready to go home and
campaign for re-election. With days, perhaps hours to go in this
session, now is the moment for lawmakers to finish work on crucial
issues that voters should remember on Election Day.

Campaign finance reform: This vital legislation seems in danger of
being lost within the power triangle that dominates the State Capitol.
Gov. George Pataki, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Joseph Bruno,
the Senate majority leader, have separate plans.

The Assembly version is the best, but a failure to agree on any reform
would signal voters that Albany politicians think nobody is watching
their gathering of special-interest money.

Rockefeller laws: These outdated and barbaric drug sentencing laws
skew the state's judicial system, robbing judges of the ability to fit
the jail term to the crime. Under these laws, many nonviolent drug
offenders serve more time than convicted perpetrators of violent
crimes. It is a reform that needs some political courage, a rare
commodity in Albany.

Ballot access: After an embarrassing presidential primary election
that tried to lock out Senator John McCain, there was hope that New
York's notoriously closed ballots would finally be opened. A
winner-take-all provision weakens the bill, but the ballot access
legislation being offered by Republicans still presents a rare
opportunity for New York voters to have a wider choice of candidates.

Guns: The governor's decent gun-control proposal would ban assault weapons,
raise the age for purchasing guns and provide ballistic fingerprints. This
bill should be passed as a move in the right direction, even if it would be
improved by a stronger trigger-lock provision.

Restructuring courts: Three years is long enough for legislators to
protect their patronage appointments in the courts. It is time to
endorse Chief Judge Judith Kaye's solid 1997 plan to untangle the
court system. The overhaul needs constitutional approval, which means
that it must be approved by two separate Legislatures. If this
Legislature will not do it, voters should demand a better one for the
next session.

Physician profiles: A system like the one in Massachusetts that lists
medical minuses along with the pluses should be approved to give
consumers vital information about their doctors.

Jet Skis: A law that grants local towns and communities the authority to ban
these and similar personal watercraft deserves approval.

Casinos: Legislators should make certain that the state's casino laws do not
turn the Catskills into another Atlantic City.

After this session is over, voters will be given a rare chance to
choose a very important State Legislature this fall. Next year's
legislators get to redraw their own electoral districts based on the
new census. For such a golden opportunity to pick their own future
voters, Albany's legislators should provide this year's voters with a
larger and more distinguished list of accomplishments.