via www.opednews.com

MMA Weekly has the scoop

The last day of the legislative body’s 2009 session ended Monday, stranding several bills under consideration including one to legalize MMA in the Empire State.

Sarah Crean, a staffer with Cultural Affairs chair Sen. Jose M. Serrano, said the current legislative environment made the prospect of the MMA bill’s passage grim.

“Given what’s going on, probably all they’re going to be looking at is financing and very urgent bills,” said Crean. “What looks like is going to happen (to the MMA bill) is it’s going to have to go through the process again in our committee next year when session starts again.”

The next legislative session begins in January 2010.

The bill will now have to go back through the process in 2010, and even if it does pass next year, the soonest the UFC, or any other promotion, would be able to hold an event in New York would be late in the year or early 2011. "Essentially, we just ran out of time," said a representative from the office of Assemblyman Steve Englebright, who sponsored the bill in the House. ...Senator Joe Griffo, the Senate sponsor of MMA legislation, was unaware of the developments in the house, but said the current leadership dispute would place emphasis on bills that were expiring or had urgent fiscal implications. "We want to be careful too, because we want to win support for the bill in order to make it successful," said Griffo. "But at this point in time, with all the other things taking place, there are members that may vote in the negative because they don’t have enough information, and we don’t want that to happen either. "I feel very frustrated right now."