Assemblyman Christopher S. Friend (R,C,I-Big Flats) views the budget’s squandering of $1.5 billion in bank settlement funds as a missed opportunity to solve some of the longstanding economic issues in New York State. The funds went toward what has been commonly referred to as Gov. Cuomo’s Hunger Games, where seven counties will vie for $1.5 billion. Three counties will be chosen and awarded $500 million each. Friend would prefer that the money go toward eliminating the local share of Medicaid for all counties north of New York City.

“The chief problem with headline chasing is that you rarely fix any of the issues you’re speaking about,” Friend said. “The governor prefers focus group-tested names and ideas that centralize power. This money should never have been used to fund a side project of the governor’s as he continues to implement a failed economic model. The settlement money should have been used to alleviate the strain felt by our local county governments. The counties outside of New York City pay $2.1 billion for their Medicaid share. The $1.5 billion in Hunger Games money would have done a lot for local governments. County governments could have lowered their taxes instead of discussing how close they would get to the two percent property tax cap. The budget should have done more for the people of New York, and this is just one of the several ways it failed to do so.”

Friend is the Ranking Minority Member of the Assembly Committee on Local Governments.