Spallone Returns to House as Counsel to Speaker.

Deputy Secretary of the State James Spallone will serve as counsel to incoming House speaker Joseph Aresimowicz. Spallone, who was a state representative for five terms before becoming Denise Merrill’s deputy in 2011, will face the challenges of assisting Aresimowicz as he seeks to hold together a narrow Democratic majority as it faces the growing storm of more budget deficits and the 2018 elections, which nervous House Democrats are already dreading.

Spallone’s appointment starts to add some clarity to the extended confusion that has accompanied the shift from incumbent Speaker Brendan Sharkey.