The one-house budget proposal advanced by the Assembly Majority this week is morally and fiscally irresponsible for Long Island families. In their proposal, the Majority included approximately $250 million in tax increases and approximately $448 million in spending increases beyond the Executive Budget proposal. These measures would be extremely detrimental to the hardworking families of our community who already are saddled with some of the highest tax bills in the nation. Instead of promoting tax-and-spend policies, which will further cripple our taxpayers, we need to be emphasizing tax relief and fiscal responsibility.

The Majority’s budget proposal is not just fiscally irresponsible, but it neglects Long Island residents as well. While the Majority put a premium on psychiatric services for those residing in the five boroughs, Long Island’s most vulnerable children were left to travel far from home to receive the treatment they need and deserve. At the same time, we continued to shortchange our school districts, coming up short again in Gap Elimination Adjustment funding, and not fully restoring the library aid cut in the Executive Budget proposal.