New York City: term limit extension?

In 1993, New York City's voters imposed a two-term limit on its local government officials. Now, faced with a wholesale turnover of the city's elected leaders in five years, a major effort is underway to extend the eight-year limit to three-terms with a 12-year cutoff.

The referendum, already passed by the City Council, will appear on the November 5 ballot.

Spearheaded by City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, the extension campaign has raised about $200,000 so far and has attracted support from real estate interests and organized labor as well as much of the 51-member City Council. Opponents include political conservatives - such as cosmetics heir Ronald Lauder - who pushed term limits in 1993, as well as many liberal "good government" reform groups that have also supported tighter restrictions.

The three-term limit under the proposed extension would apply to the Mayor, Comptroller, Public Advocate, borough presidents, and City Council members.

Council members say the longer limit would allow for enough natural attrition to take place to make sure that too many elected officials aren't forced out of office all at once in the 2001 elections. Such a changeover, they contend, would create an "amateur" city government without vitally important experience or institutional memory.

Opponents point to the realtor and union money that has been raised by local politicians to support the extension campaign as evidence that eight-year limits will better serve the public. "Special interests...who have curried favor with the current City Council leadership, are naturally going to step up, because they don't want to lose the investment they've made in the leadership," said Allen Roth of New Yorkers for Term Limits in a quote published by The New York Times.

Countering Roth's viewpoint is Michael Clendenin, a spokesperson for Vallone, who said his boss has built a broad-based coalition throughout the city on behalf of the extension referendum. "The Speaker has always reached out to special interests, general interests, broad interests, and even to people with no interest at all," said Clendenin.

The Coalition for Voters' Choice, the political action committee set up by Vallone and extension proponents, received $10,000 each from real estate developers Jack Rubin and Bernard Mendik, and from Local 372, a Board of Education workers' union. They say they expect to soon add support from other unions and civic groups.