“The budget penned by the Assembly Majority and presented before my colleagues and me today is not an accurate reflection of what the citizens of this state need. After the arrest of former Speaker and New York City Assemblyman Sheldon Silver, we heard promises of ‘a new day’ and ‘restoring the public’s trust.’ But, as time goes on, I grow more skeptical and fear that perhaps the New York City-controlled Assembly leadership is not interested in anything that could upset the status quo.”

“I cannot in good conscience vote for this proposed budget because it doesn’t go far enough on a number of issues. When I was a town supervisor, I went through the budget to find cost savings for the taxpayers; there wasn’t even an attempt to do that in this proposal. In regard to ethics reform, there is no true campaign finance reform and a wildly popular proposal to strip corrupt government officials of their pensions has been left out. I see only a half-hearted attempt to restore the 2010 education cuts, and no mention of repealing Common Core; both of which have plagued our schools and endangered our children’s future for years. And finally, this proposed budget doesn’t do nearly enough to help our struggling farming community and under-funded programs to help those with developmental disabilities.”

“The hardworking, law-abiding citizens of the Hudson Valley have made it clear to me what their priorities are, and, in turn, those will be my priorities for this year’s budget negotiations.”