# 154th New York State Legislature

The 154th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 7 to September 19, 1931, during the third year of Franklin D. Roosevelt's governorship, in Albany.

## Background

Under the provisions of the New York Constitution of 1894, re-apportioned in 1917, 51 Senators and 150 assemblymen were elected in single-seat districts; senators for a two-year term, assemblymen for a one-year term. The senatorial districts consisted either of one or more entire counties; or a contiguous area within a single county. The counties which were divided into more than one senatorial district were New York (nine districts), Kings (eight), Bronx (three), Erie (three), Monroe (two), Queens (two), and Westchester (two). The Assembly districts were made up of contiguous area, all within the same county.
At this time there were two major political parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. The Law Preservation Party, the Socialist Party, the Communist Party, and the Socialist Labor Party also nominated tickets.

## Elections

The 1930 New York state election was held on November 4. Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lieutenant Governor Herbert H. Lehman, both Democrats, were re-elected. Of the other three statewide elective offices, two were carried by Democrats and one by a Republican judge with Democratic endorsement. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Governor, was: Democrats 1,770,000; Republicans 1,045,000; Law Preservation 191,000; Socialists 100,000; Communists 18,000; and Socialist Labor 9,000.
Assemblywoman Rhoda Fox Graves (Rep.), of Gouverneur, a former school teacher who after her marriage became active in women's organisations and politics, was re-elected, and remained the only woman legislator.

## Sessions

The Legislature met for the regular session at the State Capitol in Albany on January 7, 1931; and adjourned on April 10.
Joseph A. McGinnies (Rep.) was re-elected Speaker.
John Knight was re-elected Temporary President of the State Senate. He was appointed to the United States District Court for the Western District of New York, and resigned as Temporary President. On April 9, George R. Fearon was elected to succeed. Knight vacated his seat on May 1 when he took office as federal judge. After the ouster of Democrat Samuel H. Miller, the election of Republican Charles B. Horton, and the death of the Democratic minority leader Bernard Downing, the Republicans continued to hold a majority of 26 to 23 in the Senate during the special session, 26 being the minimum number of votes to pass a law.
The Legislature met for a special session at the State Capitol in Albany on August 25, 1931; and adjourned on September 19. This session was called to enact legislation to provide for emergency unemployment relief.

## State Senate
### Districts

* 1st District: Nassau and Suffolk counties
* 2nd and 3rd District: Parts of Queens County, i.e. the Borough of Queens
* 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th District: Parts of Kings County, i.e. the Borough of Brooklyn
* 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th District: Parts of New York County, i.e. the Borough of Manhattan
* 21st, 22nd and 23rd District: Parts of Bronx County, i.e. the Borough of the Bronx
* 24th District: Richmond County, i.e. the Borough of Richmond (now the Borough of Staten Island), and Rockland County
* 25th District: Part of Westchester County
* 26th District: Cortlandt, Greenburgh, Mount Pleasant, Ossining and part of Yonkers; in Westchester County
* 27th District: Orange and Sullivan counties
* 28th District: Columbia, Dutchess and Putnam counties
* 29th District: Delaware, Greene and Ulster counties
* 30th District: Albany County
* 31st District: Rensselaer County
* 32nd District: Saratoga and Schenectady counties
* 33rd District: Clinton, Essex, Warren and Washington counties
* 34th District: Franklin and St. Lawrence counties
* 35th District: Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer and Lewis counties
* 36th District: Oneida County
* 37th District: Jefferson and Oswego counties
* 38th District: Onondaga County
* 39th District: Madison, Montgomery, Otsego and Schoharie counties
* 40th District: Broome, Chenango and Cortland counties
* 41st District: Chemung, Schuyler, Tioga and Tompkins counties
* 42nd District: Cayuga, Seneca and Wayne counties
* 43rd District: Ontario, Steuben and Yates counties
* 44th District: Allegany, Genesee, Livingston and Wyoming
* 45th and 46th District: Monroe County
* 47th District: Niagara and Orleans counties
* 48th, 49th and 50th District: Erie County
* 51st District: Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties

### Members

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Joseph D. Nunan Jr, Frank B. Hendel, John J. Howard and Julius S. Berg changed from the Assembly to the Senate.
Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."; Chairmanships as appointed at the beginning of the session
| District | Senator | Party | Notes |
| 1st | George L. Thompson* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Conservation |
| 2nd | Joseph D. Nunan Jr.* | Democrat | |
| 3rd | Frank B. Hendel* | Democrat | |
| 4th | Philip M. Kleinfeld* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 5th | John J. Howard* | Democrat | |
| 6th | Marcellus H. Evans* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 7th | John A. Hastings* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 8th | William L. Love* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 9th | Henry L. O'Brien* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 10th | Jeremiah F. Twomey* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 11th | James J. Crawford* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 12th | Elmer F. Quinn* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 13th | Thomas F. Burchill* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 14th | Bernard Downing* | Democrat | re-elected; Minority Leader; died on May 25, 1931 |
| 15th | John L. Buckley* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 16th | John J. McNaboe | Democrat | |
| 17th | Samuel H. Hofstadter* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of General Laws |
| 18th | John T. McCall | Democrat | |
| 19th | Duncan T. O'Brien* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 20th | A. Spencer Feld* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 21st | Henry G. Schackno* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 22nd | Julius S. Berg* | Democrat | |
| 23rd | John J. Dunnigan* | Democrat | re-elected; Minority Leader from August 25 |
| 24th | Harry J. Palmer* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 25th | Walter W. Westall* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Internal Affairs |
| 26th | Seabury C. Mastick* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Taxation and Retrenchment |
| 27th | Thomas C. Desmond | Republican | Chairman of Public Printing |
| 28th | J. Griswold Webb* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Public Education |
| 29th | Arthur H. Wicks* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Public Health |
| 30th | William T. Byrne* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 31st | John F. Williams* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Affairs of Villages |
| 32nd | Alexander G. Baxter | Republican | Chairman of Revision |
| 33rd | Henry E. H. Brereton* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Civil Service |
| 34th | Warren T. Thayer* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Public Service |
| 35th | Henry I. Patrie* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Privileges and Elections |
| 36th | Samuel H. Miller | Democrat | contested by William S. Murray (R); seat vacated on March 31 |
| 36th | Charles B. Horton | Republican | elected on May 5 to fill vacancy |
| 37th | Perley A. Pitcher* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Codes |
| 38th | George R. Fearon* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Judiciary; on April 9, elected Temporary President |
| 39th | John W. Gates* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Labor and Industry |
| 40th | Bert Lord* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Pensions |
| 41st | Frank A. Frost* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Commerce and Navigation; Chairman of Printed and Engrossed Bills |
| 42nd | Charles J. Hewitt* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Finance |
| 43rd | Leon F. Wheatley* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Insurance |
| 44th | John Knight* | Republican | re-elected; re-elected Temporary President; Chairman of Rules; on March 30, appointed to the U.S. Court for the Western D. of NY |
| 45th | Cosmo A. Cilano* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Military Affairs |
| 46th | Fred J. Slater* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Penal Institutions |
| 47th | William W. Campbell* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Banks; Chairman of Re-Apportionment |
| 48th | William J. Hickey* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Cities |
| 49th | Stephen J. Wojtkowiak* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 50th | Nelson W. Cheney* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Canals |
| 51st | Leigh G. Kirkland* | Republican | re-elected; Chairman of Agriculture |

### Employees

* Clerk: A. Miner Wellman

## State Assembly
### Assemblymen

Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."
| District | District | Assemblymen | Party | Notes |
| Albany | 1st | John H. Cahill* | Democrat | |
| Albany | 2nd | John P. Hayes* | Democrat | |
| Albany | 3rd | Rudolph I. Roulier* | Democrat | |
| Allegany | Allegany | Harry E. Goodrich* | Republican | |
| Bronx | 1st | Nicholas J. Eberhard* | Democrat | |
| Bronx | 2nd | William F. Smith* | Democrat | |
| Bronx | 3rd | Carl Pack | Democrat | |
| Bronx | 4th | Herman M. Albert* | Democrat | |
| Bronx | 5th | Harry A. Samberg* | Democrat | |
| Bronx | 6th | Christopher C. McGrath* | Democrat | |
| Bronx | 7th | John F. Reidy* | Democrat | |
| Bronx | 8th | John A. Devany Jr.* | Democrat | |
| Broome | 1st | Edmund B. Jenks* | Republican | Chairman of Judiciary |
| Broome | 2nd | Forman E. Whitcomb* | Republican | Chairman of Cities |
| Cattaraugus | Cattaraugus | James W. Riley | Republican | |
| Cayuga | Cayuga | Fred Lewis Palmer | Republican | |
| Chautauqua | 1st | Hubert E. V. Porter* | Republican | |
| Chautauqua | 2nd | Joseph A. McGinnies* | Republican | re-elected Speaker; Chairman of Rules |
| Chemung | Chemung | G. Archie Turner* | Republican | |
| Chenango | Chenango | Irving M. Ives* | Republican | |
| Clinton | Clinton | Charles D. Munsil* | Republican | |
| Columbia | Columbia | Charles S. Fayerweather | Democrat | |
| Cortland | Cortland | Irving F. Rice* | Republican | Chairman of Public Education |
| Delaware | Delaware | James R. Stevenson* | Republican | |
| Dutchess | 1st | Howard N. Allen* | Republican | Chairman of Charitable and Religious Societies |
| Dutchess | 2nd | Charles F. Close | Republican | |
| Erie | 1st | Charles J. Gimbrone* | Republican | Chairman of Aviation |
| Erie | 2nd | William L. Marcy Jr.* | Republican | |
| Erie | 3rd | Frank X. Bernhardt* | Republican | Chairman of Revision |
| Erie | 4th | Anthony J. Canney* | Democrat | |
| Erie | 5th | Edwin L. Kantowski | Democrat | |
| Erie | 6th | Howard W. Dickey* | Republican | Chairman of General Laws |
| Erie | 7th | Arthur L. Swartz* | Republican | |
| Erie | 8th | R. Foster Piper* | Republican | |
| Essex | Essex | Fred L. Porter* | Republican | Chairman of Re-Organization of State Government |
| Franklin | Franklin | James A. Latour* | Republican | |
| Fulton and Hamilton | Fulton and Hamilton | Eberly Hutchinson* | Republican | Chairman of Ways and Means |
| Genesee | Genesee | Charles P. Miller* | Republican | Chairman of Labor and Industries |
| Greene | Greene | Ellis W. Bentley* | Republican | Chairman of Conservation |
| Herkimer | Herkimer | William J. Thistlethwaite* | Republican | |
| Jefferson | Jefferson | Jasper W. Cornaire* | Republican | Chairman of Re-Apportionment |
| Kings | 1st | Crawford W. Hawkins* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 2nd | Albert D. Schanzer* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 3rd | Michael J. Gillen* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 4th | George E. Dennen* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 5th | John J. Cooney* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 6th | Jacob J. Schwartzwald* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 7th | William Kirnan | Democrat | |
| Kings | 8th | Luke O'Reilly* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 9th | Daniel McNamara Jr.* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 10th | William C. McCreery* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 11th | Edward J. Coughlin* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 12th | Edward S. Moran Jr.* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 13th | William Breitenbach* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 14th | Jacob P. Nathanson* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 15th | Edward P. Doyle* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 16th | Maurice Z. Bungard* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 17th | Robert K. Story Jr. | Republican | |
| Kings | 18th | Irwin Steingut* | Democrat | Minority Leader |
| Kings | 19th | Jerome G. Ambro* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 20th | Frank A. Miller* | Democrat | died on June 25, 1931 |
| Kings | 21st | Joseph A. Esquirol* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 22nd | Jacob H. Livingston* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 23rd | Albert M. Cohen* | Democrat | |
| Lewis | Lewis | Edward M. Sheldon* | Republican | |
| Livingston | Livingston | A. Grant Stockweather* | Republican | |
| Madison | Madison | Arthur A. Hartshorn* | Republican | Chairman of Social Welfare |
| Monroe | 1st | Truman G. Searle* | Republican | |
| Monroe | 2nd | Harry J. McKay* | Republican | |
| Monroe | 3rd | Haskell H. Marks* | Republican | |
| Monroe | 4th | Richard L. Saunders* | Republican | |
| Monroe | 5th | W. Ray Austin* | Republican | Chairman of Public Health |
| Montgomery | Montgomery | Rufus Richtmyer* | Republican | |
| Nassau | 1st | Edwin W. Wallace* | Republican | Chairman of Affairs of Villages |
| Nassau | 2nd | Edwin R. Lynde* | Republican | |
| New York | 1st | James J. Dooling* | Democrat | |
| New York | 2nd | Millard E. Theodore* | Democrat | |
| New York | 3rd | Sylvester A. Dineen* | Democrat | |
| New York | 4th | Samuel Mandelbaum* | Democrat | |
| New York | 5th | John F. Killgrew | Democrat | |
| New York | 6th | Irving D. Neustein | Democrat | |
| New York | 7th | Saul S. Streit* | Democrat | |
| New York | 8th | Henry O. Kahan* | Democrat | |
| New York | 9th | Ira H. Holley* | Democrat | |
| New York | 10th | Langdon W. Post* | Democrat | |
| New York | 11th | Patrick H. Sullivan* | Democrat | |
| New York | 12th | John A. Byrnes* | Democrat | |
| New York | 13th | William J. Sheldrick | Democrat | |
| New York | 14th | Joseph T. Higgins* | Democrat | |
| New York | 15th | Abbot Low Moffat* | Republican | |
| New York | 16th | William Schwartz* | Democrat | |
| New York | 17th | Meyer Alterman* | Democrat | |
| New York | 18th | Sol A. Hyman | Democrat | |
| New York | 19th | James E. Stephens | Democrat | |
| New York | 20th | Louis A. Cuvillier* | Democrat | |
| New York | 21st | David Paris | Democrat | |
| New York | 22nd | Benjamin B. Mittler* | Democrat | |
| New York | 23rd | Alexander A. Falk* | Democrat | |
| Niagara | 1st | Fayette E. Pease* | Republican | |
| Niagara | 2nd | Roy Hewitt* | Republican | |
| Oneida | 1st | Mark C. Kelly | Democrat | |
| Oneida | 2nd | Russell G. Dunmore* | Republican | Majority Leader |
| Oneida | 3rd | Walter W. Abbott* | Republican | |
| Onondaga | 1st | Horace M. Stone* | Republican | Chairman of Insurance |
| Onondaga | 2nd | Willis H. Sargent* | Republican | Chairman of Banks |
| Onondaga | 3rd | Richard B. Smith* | Republican | Chairman of Public Printing |
| Ontario | Ontario | Robert A. Catchpole* | Republican | Chairman of Public Service |
| Orange | 1st | William J. Lamont | Republican | |
| Orange | 2nd | Rainey S. Taylor | Republican | |
| Orleans | Orleans | John S. Thompson | Republican | |
| Oswego | Oswego | Victor C. Lewis* | Republican | Chairman of Canals |
| Otsego | Otsego | Frank M. Smith* | Republican | Chairman of Agriculture |
| Putnam | Putnam | D. Mallory Stephens* | Republican | Chairman of Military Affairs |
| Queens | 1st | John O'Rourke* | Democrat | |
| Queens | 2nd | Joseph C. Mulligan | Democrat | |
| Queens | 3rd | Peter T. Farrell* | Democrat | |
| Queens | 4th | James A. Burke | Democrat | |
| Queens | 5th | Maurice A. FitzGerald* | Democrat | |
| Queens | 6th | Frederick L. Zimmerman* | Democrat | |
| Rensselaer | 1st | Michael F. Breen* | Democrat | |
| Rensselaer | 2nd | Maurice Whitney* | Republican | Chairman of Commerce and Navigation |
| Richmond | 1st | Francis P. Heffernan | Democrat | |
| Richmond | 2nd | William L. Vaughan* | Democrat | |
| Rockland | Rockland | Fred R. Horn Jr.* | Democrat | |
| St. Lawrence | 1st | Rhoda Fox Graves* | Republican | Chairwoman of Public Institutions |
| St. Lawrence | 2nd | Walter L. Pratt* | Republican | Chairman of Taxation and Retrenchment |
| Saratoga | Saratoga | Burton D. Esmond* | Republican | Chairman of Codes |
| Schenectady | 1st | Charles W. Merriam* | Republican | |
| Schenectady | 2nd | William W. Wemple Jr.* | Republican | |
| Schoharie | Schoharie | Kenneth H. Fake* | Republican | Chairman of Pensions |
| Schuyler | Schuyler | Jacob W. Winters* | Republican | |
| Seneca | Seneca | James D. Pollard* | Republican | |
| Steuben | 1st | Wilson Messer* | Republican | Chairman of Soldiers' Homes |
| Steuben | 2nd | James T. Foody* | Republican | |
| Suffolk | 1st | John G. Downs* | Republican | |
| Suffolk | 2nd | Hamilton F. Potter* | Republican | |
| Sullivan | Sullivan | William Whittaker | Democrat | |
| Tioga | Tioga | Frank G. Miller* | Republican | |
| Tompkins | Tompkins | James R. Robinson* | Republican | Chairman of Claims |
| Ulster | Ulster | Millard Davis* | Republican | |
| Warren | Warren | Harry A. Reoux | Republican | |
| Washington | Washington | Herbert A. Bartholomew* | Republican | Chairman of Internal Affairs |
| Wayne | Wayne | Harry A. Tellier* | Republican | Chairman of Excise |
| Westchester | 1st | Charles H. Hathaway* | Republican | |
| Westchester | 2nd | Ralph A. Gamble | Republican | |
| Westchester | 3rd | Milan E. Goodrich* | Republican | Chairman of Penal Institutions |
| Westchester | 4th | Alexander H. Garnjost* | Republican | |
| Westchester | 5th | William F. Condon* | Republican | |
| Wyoming | Wyoming | Joe R. Hanley* | Republican | |
| Yates | Yates | Edwin C. Nutt* | Republican | |

### Employees

* Clerk: Fred W. Hammond