Assemblyman Rob Walker (R,C-Hicksville) during an Albany press conference joined his Republican colleagues in demanding action from the Assembly leadership on important legislation that has languished in committees since the bills were introduced.

This year's legislative session ends June 23, though three important legislative issues have yet to be addressed: civil confinement, strengthening Megan's Law, and combating methamphetamine production.

"The need to address these legislative issues before the end of session next week is necessary for the protection of our communities and children. Having recently been elected to the Assembly, it does not take long to realize that sexual predators must not be allowed to live next door to the person he or she victimized," said Walker. "It is our responsibility as legislators to provide our courts, law enforcement and Department of Correctional Services with the laws needed to protect our residents from sexual predators and the increased production of a highly addictive and dangerous drug. I'm urging the Assembly leadership to bring this legislation to the floor of the chamber for a debate and vote."

Civil confinement gives judges the authority to order dangerous sexual predators held in secure mental health facilities after the completion of their prison terms if the offenders are deemed to pose continuing threats to society. Final decisions would be made only after lengthy review processes culminating in unanimous jury verdicts.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled civil confinement laws are constitutional. In 2002, the court clarified the criteria states must meet to commit sexual predators, stating they must prove that offenders have "serious difficulty" controlling their violent behavior.

Proposals to strengthen Megan's Law would restrict sex offenders' access to schools, monitoring of sex offenders' movements through Global Positioning System satellites, provide more information about sexual predators to communities, and require lifetime registration of offenders on the state Sex Offender Registry.

Meanwhile, a comprehensive legislative package designed to address the growing methamphetamine (meth) production problem has been promoted by Assembly Republicans during the current session, with no action taken by the majority. Meth production and abuse have increased dramatically in New York over the past five years, with three labs seized in 1999 and 73 raided by authorities in 2003.

The legislation would make it a crime to possess the components used in the production of meth, increase the penalties for theft of liquid fertilizer used in meth production, make it more difficult for meth "cooks" to obtain the drug's ingredients, protect children living in or near meth labs, and create new regulations for remediation of hazardous meth production sites.