COOPERSTOWN _ The Otsego County Board of Representatives split along party lines Wednesday as members expressed their views on gun control.
All four of the board's Democrats _ Cathy Rothenberger, D-Oneonta; Richard Murphy, D-Oneonta; Katherine Stuligross, D-Oneonta; and Marty Stayton, D-Oneonta _ voted against a resolution to advise state lawmakers to not adopt further restrictions on gun owners.
After a spirited debate, the board's 10 Republicans supported the measure, which passed by a weighted vote of 4,669 to 1,498.
Among the measures addressed by the resolution are state proposals to require firearms licenses be renewed after five years, force gun sellers to carry at least $1 million in liability insurance and to ban the sale, use or possession of .50-caliber or larger weapons, such as many muzzle-loaders used in big-game hunting.
Rep. Stephen Fournier, R-Milford, an avid deer hunter, said the proposals were ``ridiculous.''
Rep. James Johnson, R-Otsego, said the nation's founders had considered the right to bear arms ``second in importance only to freedom of speech.'' Then he read part of the Second Amendment to his colleagues.
Murphy said he believed the measures were ``designed to target handguns and illegal guns,'' not to restrict hunters.
Handguns should be banned because they are implicated in many murders, Murphy said.
After Murphy said this, Rep. Betty Anne Schwerd, R-Burlington, pulled out her pistol permits and said she should be allowed to continue target shooting without undue state interference.
The resolution then was approved and will be forwarded to state officials including Gov. David Paterson, a Democrat, asking him to curtail the proposed new restrictions.
In other business Wednesday, the board:
Approved hiring for Otsego Manor two part-time licensed practical nurses at $14.02 per hour; five part-time certified nursing assistants at $12.41 per hour; four part-time universal workers at $10.66 per hour; and a full-time universal worker at an annual salary of between $20,732 and $24,329.
The resolution also called for retroactively boosting the pay for these positions when the county's new contract with CSEA workers goes into effect, making the salary for part-time practical nurses $15.32 per hour, part-time nursing assistants, $13.55 per hour; part-time universal workers, $11.65 per hour; and full-time universal workers, annual salaries of between $22,710 and $26,587.
Voting against this resolution were Reps. Scott Harrington, R-Oneonta; Keith McCarty, R-Springfield; Schwerd; and Johnson.
The measure passed by a weighted vote of 4,582 to 1,582.
