Hugh Farley

Hugh T. Farley (born November 26, 1932) is an American politician.

Early life

Prior to his service in the New York State Legislature, Hugh Farley served in the United States Army and was a high school teacher in Syracuse, New York and Maryland.

In 1965, he became a member of the faculty at the School of Business of the University of Albany, since 2000 he has been Professor Emeritus of Business Law at the college.

Farley holds a Juris Doctorate from American University School of Law, as well as a Bachelor of Science from the University of Albany. He is also a graduate of Mohawk Community College.

Career

Farley represents District 44 in the New York State Senate, which comprises Schenectady, Montgomery, and Fulton Counties, as well as a portion of Saratoga County. He currently serves as Majority Whip within the State Senate Republican Caucus, as well as Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Interstate Cooperation and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Libraries.

In 1979, Farley was chosen as the first Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Aging. As chairman, Farley authored laws creating New York's hospice care system and a law prohibiting mandatory medical intervention/treatment for terminally ill patients.

In 1985 he was named as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environmental Conservation, a position in which he sponsored the 1986 Environmental Quality Bond Act, which disbursed $1.45 billion for the cleanup of hazardous waste sites. Due to his work as Chairman he was named Legislator of the Year in 1986 by the New York State Conservation Council.

In 1989, Farley was appointed to the Chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Banks. In this capacity, he has authored or sponsored numerous laws dealing with banking regulations, including a law enacted in 1994 aimed at making New York's interest rate deregulation laws permanent. In addition to this, he is also responsible for sponsoring New York's interstate branching laws, and authoring the law that in 1996 finally allowed New York banks to branch into other states. One year later he would sponsor the law that allows New York's Banking Board to grant state-chartered banks the same powers as banks chartered by the federal government.

Farley has been a member of the Governor's Commission on Libraries, and an elected delegate to the White House's Conference on Libraries in both 1979 and 1991.

He is presently a member of the Executive Committee of the National Conference of State Legislatures in addition to being a member of the Governing Board of the Council of State Governments. He has also served as past President of the National Republican Legislators Association, which bestowed upon him the award "Legislator of the Year" in 1989.

Personal life

Farley has a son, Robert, who is currently a member of the Schenectady County Legislature and Counsel to Senator Vincent Leibell, a colleague of his father's.

External links

* [http://www.senatorfarley.com/biography.asp New York State Senator|44th Senate District|Hugh T. Farley]
* [http://www.fourthbranchofamerica.com/interview_with_hugh_farley.shtml Fourth Branch of America - New York State Senator Hugh Farley]
* [http://www.vote-smart.org/issue_rating_category.php?can_id=BS022178&type=category&category=Gun%20Issues Project Vote Smart: Interest Group Ratings]