Mixed-Martial Arts Bill Won't Get N.Y. Assembly Vote
By JACOB GERSHMAN
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said Monday that a bill legalizing mixed-martial arts in New York wouldn't come to the floor for a vote.
The bill passed the Senate in April but has stalled in the Democrat-led Assembly. Mr. Silver discussed the issue with his members privately Monday. While dozens of Democrats indicated support, the speaker opted against bringing it to the floor.
"The Speaker has indicated there is no clear sense of the conference and the issue is evolving, therefore it will not come to the floor for a vote this year," said Michael Whyland, a spokesman for Mr. Silver.
"If we have a vote and lose, then we lose, but not to get a vote is maddening to me," said Marc Ratner, a lobbyist for Ultimate Fighting Championship, the sport's dominant promotion company.
New York is one of two states with bans on live MMA bouts. The other is Connecticut. New York first banned live MMA fights in the mid-1990s under Gov. George Pataki. Some critics have objected to the brutality of the full-contact sport, which permits striking, kicking and grappling. But the bill also faced stiff union opposition from the New York Hotel Trades Council, whose sister union in Las Vegas has been battling UFC over the labor negotiating rights of MMA fighters. UFC has been lobbying New York for years to get the ban lifted. Last fall, it sued the state in federal court alleging that the state's prohibition violated First Amendment rights. "We've been knocked down before, but we'll keep fighting," said Mr. Ratner.
