It has been a great legislative session so far this year, and my team and I have been working extremely hard to deliver tangible results for the residents of the 12^th Assembly District. Although we are halfway through the legislative calendar, the fight to deliver inflation relief and protect our communities from the dangers of alcoholism and drug abuse is not over. In order to succeed here, we need to discuss the facts. Albany is broken, out of touch with reality, and at times it simply doesn’t care for the everyday New Yorker. We can see this happening when the Majority continues, week after week, to enact legislation that benefits their progressive agenda.

It doesn’t matter which side of the aisle you are on, our number one priority right now is to support legislation that will confront inflation and rising gas prices. That is why I support an amendment (A.8481) which eliminates state sales taxes on gasoline, food purchases, house-keeping supplies and other essential supplies. This is the worst inflation we have experienced in 40 years; consumers are forced to control their spending habits to endure the skyrocketing prices. It is crucial, now more than ever, that the state eases the economic burden on our family, friends and neighbors.

In addition to the critical state of our economy, I have been working alongside many local leaders and organizations to discuss drug addiction. I have teamed up with Northwell, Catholic Health Services, and Wellbridge, an organization that deals with addiction treatment and research, to hold a forum on May 13^th to strengthen the system of care for co-occurring disorders treatment, including integrated care models, barriers to care and clinical trends. It’s unfortunate this issue goes short shrift in our state Legislature. However, I am always committed to ensuring our state government supplies the necessary resources and a system of care that works.

We have observed the rushed legalization of marijuana in Colorado, and how it has negatively impacted young adults. Next week, I will be meeting with representatives from Suffolk and Nassau Counties to push for legislation, which will include certain substances in the offenses of driving while ability impaired by drugs, establishing the offense of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of cannabis while under the age of 21 and implementing the Cannabis Field Sobriety Test Pilot Program, which grants law enforcement the ability to conduct test swabs on anyone driving under the influence. My goal is to obtain a joint letters of support from officials of both counties to send to legislative leadership and Gov. Hochul requesting their full support for these initiatives.

It is a tremendous privilege to be your Assemblyman and to be representing the residents in the 12^th Assembly District here in our state Capitol.

For more information on these or any other issues, I welcome you to contact my office at (631) 261-2992 or via email at brownk@nyassembly.gov.