Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) is calling on the governor and State Education Department to release school aid runs so districts across the state can plan for the coming fiscal year. It is customary for school aid runs to be released...

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) is calling on the next speaker to adhere to meaningful legislative ethics reforms. Currently, there is a contest for the office of speaker. Blankenbush urges each candidate to seriously commit to enacting...

Ever since the governor issued his budget proposal, I have been reviewing it, picking it apart, and seeing how it would impact the state, especially here in the North Country and the Mohawk Valley. For the next several weeks, I will be discussing components...

Here is a troubling fact: there are 30 closed local bridges within my Assembly District, with one county having at least 11 bridges closed. These closures have not only created hardships for residents, but they have also hindered economic development...

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) is calling on Sheldon Silver to resign his post as Speaker of the Assembly immediately. The New York City politician was arrested this morning by the FBI for public corruption. “There is a lot of serious...

“Today, we heard the governor outline his priorities for the state, and disappointingly, they are primarily focused on the needs of downstate. There is need across this entire state – families, small-business owners and farmers are looking for relief,...

The governor recently announced a nearly $1.7 billion property tax credit for New Yorkers paying property taxes that equaled more than six percent of their income. On the surface, this proposal sounds exciting. However, the governor qualified that only...

“I think it is a wise choice to use some of the windfall excess funds to help spur broadband internet infrastructure throughout Upstate New York. As with everything, I will be looking at how the New NY Broadband Program will be implemented and push...

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) and his Minority colleagues today called on the Speaker to allow individual women’s equality bills to be brought to the floor for a vote. In light of the Senate’s passage of eight bills separately, Blankenbush...

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) has been re-appointed as the Ranking Minority Member of the Assembly Committee on Agriculture. Blankenbush has advocated for family farmers on that committee since taking office. The position allows him...

The New Year is often a time when we reflect on the past year, offering ourselves a fresh perspective and the opportunity to set goals and make important changes in our lives. I look at the beginning of the new legislative year in a similar way. Now is...

Recently, State Education Department (SED) Commissioner John King announced his resignation to take a federal post. This means New York has a real opportunity to set the course right again in our education system and that all starts with the right appointment...

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) is pleased to announce that today the North Country and Mohawk Valley Regional Economic Development Councils were awarded $123 million to be invested throughout the region. “I am so pleased by the...

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) was recently named to the New York State Farm Bureau’s Circle of Friends. This is the fourth time the assemblyman, who is the ranking minority member of the Assembly Agricultural Committee, has received...

Where we’re from, we’re no strangers to extreme winter weather. We’ve also seen the toll it and traffic can take on our roads, bridges and culverts. Here in the North Country and the Mohawk Valley, there are thousands of miles of rural roads and...

This is a wonderful time of year. The weather begins to cool, the leaves begin to turn and the North Country and the Mohawk Valley go into full harvest mode. Families begin to flock to apple orchards and pumpkin patches. New York’s agricultural abundance...

With school just around the corner, this is a time of excitement for kids, teachers and parents. There is so much to consider when it comes to the education of New York’s youth, and being able to impact our education system is a great responsibility. Now,...

At the end of every legislative cycle, many advocacy groups assess elected officials based on their votes in the Assembly and Senate. Recently, Unshackle Upstate, a pro-taxpayer and job-growth organization, and the National Federation of Independent Business...

We’re only a few weeks away from September and the start of many hunting seasons in New York. Hunting licenses are on sale now and can be purchased online from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) at www.dec.ny.gov/permits/365.html....

There is some good news coming our way. Due to legal settlements with certain banks and insurance companies, New York will have a $4.2 billion surplus this year. The important question is “how should the government use it?” New York, while on much...