PM-03: Assemblyman Eric N. Vitaliano Papers

Eric N. Vitaliano was born in the West New Brighton section of Staten Island, New York on February 27, 1948. He attended Public School 19, St. Peter's Boys High School and went on to Fordham University, graduating with an A.B. degree, June 1968. While at college he became a member of the Bronx County Young Democrats. Vitaliano continued his education at New York University School of Law graduating with a J.D. degree, cum laude and the Order of the Coif award(National Legal Honor Society). He was a member of the Law Review, serving on the Executive Board as Research Editor and was also a member of the school's Environmental Law Council. Prior to graduation from law school, Vitaliano was employed as a law clerk for the New York City law firm Kelley, Drye, Warren, Clark, Carr and Ellis, and was a Deputy United States Marshal for the Eastern District of New York, United States Courthouse, Brooklyn, N.Y. Upon graduation, he joined the staff of U.S. District Judge Mark A. Costantino as a Law Clerk. He was admitted to the bar in 1972 and practiced law from 1972 to 1979 as an Associate at the New York law firm, Simpson Thacher and Bartlett. From 1979-81, Vitaliano was Chief of Staff for Congressman John M. Murphy, 17th District of New York, after which he was a partner in the firm Russo, Silverman and Vitaliano (1981-85). Vitaliano was first elected to the Assembly in 1982 as a Democratic representative of the 60th Assembly District part of Richmond County,Staten Island. Shortly after his election he married Helen M. Fleming of New Brighton, Staten Island on September 9, 1983. Over the next fifteen years they had four children and continued to reside on Staten Island. More conservative than many city Democrats, Vitaliano often ran with Conservative Party support. His conservatism extended to some issues that he passionately defended, especially the death penalty. For sixteen years both houses of the Legislature passed capital punishment bills and each time the proposals were vetoed by the governor. In 1995, Vitaliano was the prime sponsor of the death penalty bill and spent the longest night of his legislative career in its defense. Governor Pataki signed the bill into law and this became one of the highpoints of Vitaliano's office. He was also adamantly pro-life and had strong ties with the New York State Catholic Conference; he sponsored the partial birth abortion ban bill in 1996. From the time he was elected, one issue in particular dominated the local political scene, namely, the movement for the secession of Staten Island from New York City. In 1983, New York City's Board of Estimate (where each borough president had one vote) violated the "one man one vote" democratic principle. Staten Island, with its population of 350, 000, had only one seat on the city council, and Staten Islanders felt that they had lost their voice in city affairs. Vitaliano, along with other Staten Island politicians such as Senator John J. Marchi, Assemblywoman Elizabeth Connelly and Assemblyman Robert A. Straniere actively promoted secession. The years 1991-93 were particularly active for Vitaliano. As a member of the Charter Commission for Staten Island, he coordinated public meetings in a bid to build up a popular movement, helped to draft the Charter and campaigned in support of secession in the two special referendums for Island residents (1989 and 1993). The movement gained considerable momentum, but in 1994 it was ultimately blocked when Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver stated he would not permit the secession bill to move forward without a "home rule" message from the New York City Council. Vitaliano and Robert A. Straniere, sued Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver over his home rule decision, but the courts ruled in favor of the Speaker. This effectively ended the secession movement. As a second generation Staten Islander, Vitaliano was acutely aware of the emotionally charged issues facing his fellow residents. One flashpoint was the Fresh Kills Landfill which began operating in 1948. He crusaded vociferously for its closure and was instrumental in lobbying for the order of consent from the Department of Environmental Conservation that was required to begin the closure process. In 1996, he shaped the bill whose successful passage of legislation eventually enabled the landfill to close in 2001. Waste itself was a major issue for Vitaliano, who was the senior New York City member of the Legislative Commission on Solid Waste Management and served as Vice-Chairman of the Joint Legislative Commission on Toxic Substances and Hazardous Wastes. Inextricably linked to the issue of waste and its management was that of resource recovery and recycling. To this end, he was a co-sponsor of the returnable beverage container law. He also served on the Interstate Sanitation Committee and was a member of the Clean Ocean and Shore Trust (COAST). Vitaliano also sponsored legislation addressing freshwater wetlands and transportation. In the former, he was sympathetic to his constituents who were caught in an environmental crossfire due to the Department of Environmental Conservation's remapping of areas to be designated as wetlands (1986), and petitioned that they should receive fair and just compensation for their properties that they had purchased in good faith. Transportation was another persistent issue. Mindful of his constituents,Vitaliano was constantly lobbying to ensure satisfactory express bus service from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority from the Island to New York City. The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, also under the authority of the MTA, provided Vitaliano with a constant battle to get the one-way toll into state law. The law was eventually enacted on the federal level. Committee for nine years, during which time he received his first major committee responsibility, as chairman in 1992. At a time when Governor Mario Cuomo was making election reform a high priority, one of Vitaliano's aims was to make it easier for New Yorkers to participate in the electoral process. In the same year that he was made chairman his legislation that increased voter registration opportunities and facilitated ballot access passed into law. He later became chair of the Subcommittee on Interstate Cooperation and the Subcommittee on Court Operations, and was a member of the Assembly Task Force on the Constitutional Convention. Vitaliano was also a president of the Conference of ItalianAmerican State Legislators. In January 1994, Vitaliano was appointed Chairman of the Standing Committee on Governmental Employees, a position that he retained until 1999. His chairmanship led to another highpoint when he sponsored a package that was passed into law that included pension supplements and enhanced retirement benefits for New York State's civil service retirees. In 1997, after fourteen years in the State Assembly, Vitaliano decided to run for Congress. A climax of his campaign was the day President Bill Clinton came to Staten Island in support of his candidacy. His attempt was unsuccessful and he lost to his Republican opponent, Vito Fossella. As an active member of the local community he was involved in numerous communal organizations including Citizens Against Bus Exhaust; Knights of Columbus; the Cardinal's Archdiocesan Appeal, and The Italian Club of Staten Island. Some of his notable community awards were: Friend of Education, Susan E. Wagner High School, Staten Island,1983; Legislator of the Year, NYS Court Clerks Association, 1987; Man of the Year, The Italian Club of Staten Island, 1991; Outstanding Citizen, The American Legion, Richmond County, New York, 1994; and the New York State Catholic Conference Public Policy Award, 1998. Vitaliano believed that he would ultimately return to his law career. From 1999 to 2002, he was counsel to the Staten Island law firm, Behrins Behrins P.C. A major influence on his decision to leave the Legislature centered around redistricting for the 2002 elections, which would have drastically changed his electoral district boundaries. Upon election as a judge of the Civil Court in Richmond County in 2001, Vitaliano resigned from Assembly.