Earlier this month, Gov. George E. Pataki delivered his sixth State of the State address. The governor spoke about laying the foundation for the future, which his State of the State address clearly laid out by proposing more than $700 million in tax relief.

STAR, the School Tax Relief program was among the highlights of this year's address. I support the governor's proposal to provide an additional $800 million to continue this successful program. Already, STAR has provided more than three million homeowners with tax relief.

In addition, the idea of providing homeowners, who are eligible for the basic STAR exemption, with STAR rebate checks was proposed. This initiative would provide eligible homeowners with a check in the amount of their STAR savings, instead of the savings being merely reported on their property tax bill. In this situation, homeowners would be able to see their full STAR savings, rather than it being merely reported on sometimes confusing tax statements.

As the ranking minority member on the Assembly Health Committee, I am encouraged by the governor's commitment to expand the current Child Health Plus Program. Today, more than 400,000 children are receiving quality health care through Child Health Plus. Many of these children would otherwise not have health care.

The governor also proposed the elimination of the gross receipts tax for business and residential consumers across the state and targeting industrial and manufacturing businesses to create jobs. When fully effective, his proposal would provide $500 million annually in tax savings statewide and encourage economic prosperity through savings on utility costs.

I believe current health care initiatives and tax relief initiatives have greatly improved the overall quality of life in New York state. In 1998, 1,025 companies located or expanded in New York state and New York's national ranking in Site Selection magazine's annual tally of new and expanded corporate facilities has improved from 20th to fifth in the United States. This is truly a testament to our commitment to fiscal management, tax relief and job creation.