Timothy Cardinal Dolan, archbishop of New York, Bishop Edward U. Kmiec and their brother bishops of New York state will meet with Governor Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders at the state Capitol in Albany on Monday, March 12. It will be Cardinal Dolan's first visit to Albany since the February 18 consistory in Rome at which he was elevated to the College of Cardinals by Pope Benedict XVI.

The meeting with Governor Cuomo will be at 11 a.m. in the Red Room on the second floor of the Capitol. At noon, Cardinal Dolan will hold a media availability in the press room on the third floor of the Capitol off of the Senate Lobby. He and the Bishops will meet with Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos at 12:45 p.m. and Speaker Sheldon Silver at 1:45 p.m.

The annual Catholics at the Capitol public policy day will be held the next day, on Tuesday, March 13. Due to a meeting of the U.S. Bishops' Administrative Committee in Washington, D.C., Cardinal Dolan will leave Albany on March 12 and will be unable to participate in the March 13 event. That day will include meeting with legislators, a Rosary prayer rally sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, and a procession to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, for Mass, at which Bishop Howard J. Hubbard will be the principal celebrant and homilist.

Issues for the day, at which more than 1,200 Catholic New Yorkers are expected, are as follows:

• Oppose the "Reproductive Health Act" which expands abortion and support the Maternity & Early Childhood Foundation
• Preserve Catholic schools and provide equity for all school children
• Support emergency food programs, affordable housing and increased employment opportunities for low-income families and individuals
• Support programs that prepare and assist incarcerated individuals to successfully return to the community
• Support English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction, direct legal services and assistance to recent immigrants on the path toward citizenship