Assemblyman Chris Tague (R,C,I,Ref-Schoharie) is standing up for localities in a letter he and his Assembly Minority colleagues wrote to the governor calling on him to give assurance of funding availability for local transportation and infrastructure projects. As towns have lost significant tax revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many localities have been forced to temporarily stop work on necessary projects due to these shortfalls and lack of funding commitment from the state. Tague says the governor should direct the Department of Transportation to release local transportation allocations, issue CHIPS authorization letters to localities and commit to full reimbursements through these programs as soon as possible.

“While the governor talks in his elaborate press conferences about big new projects for downstate localities, upstate New York has been left to crumble as our infrastructure goes without vital repairs and maintenance,” said Tague. “Our localities need assurance they will not be left bankrupt after completing this needed work, and many businesses need assurance they’ll be able to do this work in order to stay afloat after months of losing revenue due to NY PAUSE. There has never been a more dire time to address the needs of our region, and I urge the governor to approach upstate infrastructure development with the same urgency he has downstate.”

The letter is attached.