County legislature Morelle, a
Democrat, made his first foray into elective politics at age 24 when he ran for a seat in the Monroe County legislature. He failed to unseat the incumbent on the first try, but prevailed in the 1983 election. He was reelected once before running for the New York State legislature.
State legislature ,
James Alesi, and
Nazareth College president Daan Braveman Morelle was first elected to the State Assembly in 1990. and won the November 2010 general election with 61% of the vote. During his tenure in the state legislature, Morelle authored more than 200 laws, including major reforms to the
workers compensation system, laws to require
carbon monoxide detectors in one- and two-family homes, toughen regulations governing charitable organizations, protect the elderly and infirm who live in
nursing homes or receive
home based health care, and raise senior citizens'
real property tax exemption. He sponsored bills to exempt veterans from certain state licensing fees, protect their grave sites, and assist them with the civil service application process. In January 2001, Morelle was appointed chair of the Assembly Standing Committee on Tourism, Arts, and Sports Development. He worked with area leaders to develop Rochester as a center for tourism and the arts in Western New York. In addition to the Tourism Committee, Morelle's standing committee assignments included Economic Development, Job Creation, Commerce and Industry; Higher Education; Local Governments; and Libraries and Education Technology. At his request, the Speaker created the Subcommittee on Manufacturing in order to give New York's manufacturing sector a greater voice in state government. In 2005, Morelle issued a report, "Creating a State of Innovation: Unleashing The Power of New York's Entrepreneurial Economy", detailing New York's economic decline, particularly upstate, and offering numerous policy recommendations to reverse this years-long trend. In 2005, Morelle was elected chair of the Monroe County Democratic Committee, and held this position until 2014.
Campaign violations In 1990, an acting state Supreme Court justice ruled that Morelle fraudulently obtained several signatures on nominating petitions to qualify him for an
independent line on the 1990 ballot (New York permits
cross-filing in some circumstances) during his run for the State Assembly. In 1991 he was charged with seven misdemeanor counts of violating state election law. Morelle denied intentionally violating the law, but accepted a plea bargain in which he was found guilty of two counts of disorderly conduct. He was sentenced to 32 hours of community service and a $25 fine. Because disorderly conduct is a violation of the law, rather than a misdemeanor or felony, Morelle's plea enabled him to avoid having a permanent criminal record as a result of the incident. ==U.S. House of Representatives==