1. It is clear that affordability remains a concern for most, I want to know where the State should be prioritizing funding for your family.

When considering how to allocate the State’s financial resources, what are your three highest priorities for the state budget?

2. As we continue to see the impacts of climate change, discussions have been ongoing as to what the next steps are beyond the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (“CLCPA”) that was enacted into law in 2019 and how to fund the objectives of the law. The pandemic and resulting inflation have had major impacts on costs of materials and construction. Considering these new circumstances, there are concerns raised about whether we can adhere to pre-2020 goals and timelines. Concerns have also been raised by some as to which costs will be passed down to consumers (the proposed bills do not require nor specify this), questions around the rebates for low- to moderate-income ratepayers, and general questions as to how the legislation will be implemented in practice, including labor provisions. Understanding that it is not possible to explain the various components of complicated bills, what approach do you think is best to help meet the goals of the CLCPA as well as shift our energy source from fossil fuel to renewable energy?

3. Starting in 2026, most new construction of buildings in New York that are seven stories or less must be built to use electric heat and appliances. This will also apply to larger commercial buildings with 100,000 square feet or more of conditioned floor area (bigger businesses) due to the implementation of the All-Electric Buildings Act. There are various exemptions to the law as well to address concerns that were raised:

• Some industries, like restaurants, hospitals and doctors’ officers, factories, and agricultural buildings will be automatically exempt from these requirements.
• Existing buildings will not be impacted by these new requirements, even if they’re being repaired or renovated. If you build an addition on your house, you can still use gas if you want.
• Existing gas appliances can also be replaced with new gas appliances.
• Waivers will be available for new construction projects if the local utility or municipality can’t provide reliable service within a reasonable timeframe.
• People can still use fuel-generated power sources, like emergency generators, as backup and standby power systems.

Which of following applies to your opinion on the implementation of the All-Electric Buildings Act?

4. The Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A.1749 Glick) (known as extended producer responsibility or “EPR”) is a proposed environmental bill that would require producers (person or companies that create the products) of consumer packaging and paper products to pay to recycle these materials. Producers are prohibited from selling or distributing any covered materials in New York unless they have an approved producer responsibility plan. The program will also create a funding mechanism to cover the costs of the program or cover the cost of a municipality for participating in the program. The funding program will be structured in a way that includes incentives to reward producers for product designs that reduce waste, increases the recyclability of the product, and removes toxics in packaging. Charges will also be adjusted based on the post-consumer recycled content rate of the covered material.

5. Expanded bottle bill. There is a proposal for a bill (A.6543 Glick) that would expand the type of beverages eligible for a deposit and redemption under the current Bottle Bill and raise the deposit refund value from five cents to ten cents. The bill also expands the list of eligible items for deposit, including juice, coffee, tea, cider, and expanded wine products. Do you support passing an expanded bottle bill into law?

7. There is a bill proposed that is referred to as “Fair and Timely Parole.” This bill (A.127 Weprin) would require the Parole Board to release people to community supervision when their minimum period of incarceration has been served unless there is a clearly articulated current public safety reason to keep them in prison. At subsequent board appearances, there would be a presumption of release unless the board determines by a preponderance of evidence that an inmate is unlikely to avoid violating the law and that his or her release poses an unreasonable public safety risk. Do you support passing Fair and Timely Parole into law?

8. There are groups who are advocating for legislation (A.514 Davila) known as Elder Parole that would require a Parole Board hearing for elderly New York incarcerated people, irrespective of the nature of the crime that they were convicted of, who are 55 years of age and older (due to the common perception that many incarcerated persons experience “accelerated aging”) and have served at least 15 years of a sentence. If parole is denied, they would automatically receive another Parole Board hearing within 24 months for reconsideration. Do you support requiring the parole board to evaluate all inmates who are 55 years old and older for early release from prisons who have served at least 15 years of a sentence?

9. Migrants and asylum seekers are currently unable to seek expedited work authorizations from the federal government. An asylum seeker is someone who is seeking protection from danger in his or her home country. Asylum seekers cannot apply for protection until they arrive in the United States. Crossing an international border for asylum is not illegal and the asylum process can take years to complete. Allowing expedited work permits would allow asylum seekers to address some of the workforce challenges that businesses in NYS are facing and would allow them to obtain Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN) to allow them to pay NYS income taxes. Some have proposed allowing a temporary state work permit system, even though the authority to grant the permits is considered a federal authority. Do you support NYS legislation to allow asylum seekers to work in New York State and allow them to obtain tax ID numbers and pay NYS income taxes?

11. There is a bill (A.1466 Paulin) proposing a single payer healthcare system in New York. The legislation proposes to pay for the program through a progressive payroll tax for individuals and business. There would also be a graduated tax on income. Those with taxable incomes of $50,000 or less would be exempt if enrolled in Medicare, those with taxable incomes of $25,000 or less would be exempt overall. Taxes would be scaled up as enrollment grows. The federal government would need to grant a waiver to use federal funds for a single payer plan as well, which makes a program contingent on the waiver being granted. Do you support a single payer (Medicare-for-all) healthcare system?

13. Despite additional charges of corruption in politics, there has been little progress in the way of meaningful ethics reform. What in your opinion is the most important ethics reform measure that New York should enact? Select one option only.

14. Term Length—Currently, New York State legislators are elected to a two-year term. Would you support a constitutional amendment that would increase in the length of a term to four years?

15. Term Limits—Currently, New York State legislators are not subject to term limits, which means they can run for an unlimited number of two-year terms. Should legislators be subject to term limits?

16. Supporting small businesses is a priority of mine, and I frequently hear about the need for regulatory reforms to remove onerous burdens on small businesses to allow them to grow and succeed. What do you think is the biggest impediment for small businesses and why? Which specific regulations and reforms should be considered?

17. The unfortunate reality of the opioid/heroin epidemic is that many of us have been touched by it in some shape or form. What obstacles do you see in prevention, treatment, and recovery? What if any thoughts do you have on how we can be more effective in battling this growing problem?

18. The world of media has changed rapidly just in the past few decades. Today, what is your primary source for reading the news or receiving information? Please choose just one.

19. Which specific source of news do you trust the most? Some examples include: Friends on social media, influencers on social media, Major news outlets (e.g. ABC, Fox News, MSNBC, CNN), local news (print or digital). Please be as specific as possible.

20. New York has faced budget deficits in the past and has lost population in the last few years. In those last few years, personal income tax increased for individuals making more than $1 million and taxes increased on corporations whose business income was more than $5 million. Should New York raise taxes on the income of multi-millionaires, billionaires, and tax the assets of the ultra-wealthy to boost revenue for state programs (i.e. Medicaid, Pre-K to K-12 education, transportation, etc.)?