Assemblyman Ed Ra (R,C,I-Franklin Square) is encouraging his Assembly colleagues to sponsor and advance his legislation which would create a nonpartisan office of  policy research and analysis that would serve lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

Ra has carried the bill for years. He sees an opportunity to get the issue on the governor’s desk and signed into law this year. The Senate Majority is quickly moving their version of the bill through committee.

“We need facts. We need statistics. We need reliable data, and we need to hear from experts. Research and critical policy analysis doesn’t need partisan spin. Certainly, we can have philosophical differences, but we should be operating from the same set of facts,” said Ra.

The analysts would also be tasked with generating an annual internal report, testifying at key legislative hearings and spearheading policy workshops.

Selecting a policy director would be a bipartisan process. Ra noted the importance of similar federal entities, including the Congressional Budget Office. He also pointed to the California Legislative Analyst’s office as another non-partisan agency that provides valuable programmatic and fiscal advice to the Majority and Minority.

“The people of the state of New York are going to benefit from this. It’s about making sure we’re as well-informed as we possibly can be,” said Ra. “In the age of social media, the temptation to relentlessly spin, to suggest partisan memes amount to solutions for our common problems, is everywhere. I’m hopeful that this will keep us honest.”