Lorenzo Fertitta pens memo on Assembly Failure to Pass MMA Bill in New York
“However, the thousands of New Yorkers who engage in MMA – at the professional and amateur level – are hurt. Thousands of New Yorkers participate in amateur MMA events in the state every year, and because there is no regulation and oversight, their health and safety are at risk.
“We genuinely feel bad for the hotels, restaurants, gyms, and other businesses that support our effort and have championed this cause. We also feel bad for New York’s arenas – large and small, particularly those upstate – that have worked alongside us to pass the legislation.
“We want to thank Assembly Majority Leader Joe Morelle – a true champion – and the 73 other Assembly cosponsors who know passing this bill is the right thing to do. We will continue to work with them to educate the rest of their colleagues. And of course our thanks go as well to Senator Joe Griffo and his colleagues.
“This bill has now passed the Senate seven times in the last six years with overwhelming bipartisan majorities. That’s right, strong majorities of Republicans and Democrats in the Senate support this bill. We have never had more support in the Assembly, where there is clearly enough support among Democrats alone to pass the bill and we know if we could only get a vote in the Assembly, we would see strong majorities of Democrats and Republicans supporting the bill.
“Our disappointment with the Assembly’s failure to vote on and pass the bill has never been greater – simply because of the demonstrated support we have among rank and file legislators. However, our resolve to see this through has also never been greater.”
