Assemblyman Josh Jensen (R,C,I-Greece) joined members of the Assembly and Senate Minority Conferences, as well as county and town highway superintendents at a press conference to call for increased state support for local roads, bridges, and culverts. Today, they called on Gov. Hochul to further increase her Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS) proposal by $250 million, increase the “Extreme Winter Recovery” (EWR) funding by $50 million, distribute the $100 million program utilizing the existing CHIPS/EWR aid to ensure equity and fairness, and finally, increase the five-year, DOT Capital Plan to $44.1 billion.

“Investing in our infrastructure is what helps keep our towns and villages operating smoothly. Without our local highway crews working day and night to keep our roads safe, we would not be able to commute to work and our local first responders would not be there when we need them. This funding should be based on lane miles not centerline miles. Gov. Hochul is an upstate native and should understand the importance of strong road infrastructure, as such, we are asking for a more responsible increase as inflation alone has made an impact on all necessary resources. Local roads are essential, increase critically important infrastructure funding this year’s budget,” said Jensen.