At the end of each legislative session, I think back on the successes and shortcomings the state Assembly has had over the last six months, and every year I feel as if I’m beating a dead horse. Without fail, the Majority continues to push the same radical policies and the only thing that changes is the price tag. This year, they passed the largest state budget in New York history at over a quarter of a trillion dollars, all while failing to address the issues New Yorkers actually care about.
According to a recent poll, 81% of New Yorkers believe our state is unaffordable and another 61% no longer feel safe in their own neighborhoods. Despite this, the Majority failed to provide any kind of meaningful results for our state. Instead of tackling the affordability crisis, they marched ahead with their radical ‘Green New Deal’ energy plan as they passed the rebranded HEAT Act, which would make it more expensive for thousands of upstate New Yorkers to power their homes. And instead of cleaning up our streets, Gov. Hochul opened the doors of our state prisons to allow hundreds of convicted criminals back out into communities across our state.
This isn’t real leadership. It’s the product of incompetence and mismatched priorities. It’s now clearer than ever that the ruling party in Albany cares more about appeasing their downstate donors than bringing forward solutions that will help New Yorkers. The Majority failed to pass any legislation to address the affordability crisis crushing working families, fix bail reform and restore public safety, reduce the regulatory burden on small businesses and scale back extreme and unrealistic climate mandates.
Despite these shortcomings, our Conference was able to champion several initiatives to help better our state. This included a proposal to make it a crime to operate a drone over schools or critical infrastructure and a bill to increase awareness for the National Marrow Donor Program. While I’m proud of our accomplishments with these efforts, the Majority does everything within its power to try to silence our voices on the issues New Yorkers are dealing with every day. Unless both sides are allowed a seat at the table, we’ll never see a change of direction for our state.
Overall, this year’s legislative session was messy. Mass overspending coupled with radical policies have created a disaster for New York if we don’t actively advocate for change. Despite these challenges, I still believe there is hope for our state. I’ve talked with countless residents across our community and the message is clear. People are fed up. We need real leadership to solve this crisis. As long as we are committed to making a change and fighting for what’s right, I truly believe we will see our state head in a better direction.
Assemblyman Steve Hawley
139th Assembly District
