May 17, 1996

The State Public Service Commission approved a far-reaching plan today to deregulate New York State's electric industry, a move designed to reduce high electric rates by allowing consumers to choose who will provide their power much as they select a long-distance telephone company. The new policy is based on the premise that breaking the electric utilities' monopoly and injecting greater competition into the market will ultimately drive down rates for everyone, though no one yet knows by how much bills will fall.

The Big Three auto makers, led by the Chrysler Corporation, which announced a stock split and a dividend increase today, are moving to improve returns to shareholders. The moves by Chrysler reflect an industrywide combination of strengthening auto sales this spring, healthier balance sheets and a new willingness to put slightly more emphasis on earning profits instead of winning market share. Responding to the same trends, officials at the General Motors Corporation and, to a lesser extent, the Ford Motor Company have also hinted in recent months at eventually paying out more money to shareholders.

After the mother of Megan Kanka pleaded for its passage, the state Senate unanimously approved a bill that would require people convicted of violent crimes to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences before being eligible for parole. The measure now goes to the Assembly. Governor Christine Todd Whitman has expressed reservations about the bill because of a lack of prison space. The bill's sponsor, John O. Bennett, Republican of Little Silver, said he also backs a measure to put a $295 million prison-building bond issue before the voters.

The race for Bob Dole's successor as the Senate majority leader narrowed today to his top two deputies, Mississippi's pair of Senators, who share an adherence to conservatism but are vastly different in demeanor and style. A day after Mr. Dole announced that he was quitting as majority leader and leaving Congress after 35 years to focus on his Presidential race, Senators Trent Lott and Thad Cochran began all-out campaigns for the Senate's top job.

Like President Clinton, the state Legislature and Governor Whitman think that clothes may make the student. The state Assembly passed a measure yesterday authorizing school districts to require uniforms. The Assembly has already passed the bill, but it will return to that house because a provision that would have allowed parents to request an exemption for their children was deleted by a Senate committee. The governor approves of the idea but has not reviewed the bill, a spokesman said yesterday.