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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Single Payer Health Care Would Eliminate Private Options, Cost Taxpayers and Limit Care

Since the passage of Obamacare, polling consistently has shown that it is a very unpopular program with the American people. Against this backdrop, it is surprising that a number of Democratic state legislators want to go a step further than Obamacare and implement a government-run single-payer healthcare system in New York state.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Federal Lunch Changes Cost Schools

School lunch purchases are on the decline. The decrease in sales coincided with the federal Health Hunger-Free Kids Act, which attempts to curb childhood obesity. Sadly, this federal mandate, though well meaning, has left many school lunch rooms with three problems: wasted food, loss of sales, and higher food costs.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Is Weather Detection System Necessary? Spend Budget Surplus on Upstate Infrastructure, Too

Following the storm’s wake, the Governor made his way to Buffalo and announced that meteorologists did not predict the storm well and residents were not prepared. While some may not have been prepared for the snow totals, it’s doubtful it had anything to do with the lack of weather predictions. According to several reports, New York needs to upgrade its water and sewer systems and, in fact, one report claims that to sufficiently upgrade our systems would cost $36.2 billion over the next 20 years.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Volunteers Make Holiday Efforts Possible

Whether it’s adopting a family to make sure they have presents under the tree, or working at a local community dinner to ensure that people have a warm holiday meal in good company, many volunteer their time to give back to their community. I continue to be humbled at the way our community gives in time, talent, and resources. Many holiday events are successful because of volunteers.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

State Offers Scholarships, Assistance with Higher Ed

Fall is the time of year when many graduating high school seniors start to look toward the future. According to the New York State Education Department, in 2010, 82% of high school graduates in New York entered post-secondary education which includes either two- or four-year institutions. In order to attend, most students will apply for some type of financial aid whether it is in the form of student loans or scholarships or a combination of both.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Tax Foundation Ranks New York at a Sad #49

The Tax Foundation, an independent tax policy research organization, released its 11th annual report last week which indicated that New York’s business tax climate is second to last in the country. California, New Jersey and Minnesota also received shameful ratings while states like Wyoming, South Dakota, Florida and Nevada ranked among the highest.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Website Aims to Raise Awareness About Drug Addiction with Personal Stories, Facts

There have been a number of reported overdoses due to heroin and other opioids in recent months. According to the Centers for Disease Control, among people 25 to 64 years old, drug overdose caused more deaths than motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2012. Drug overdose death rates have been rising steadily since 1992 with a 117% increase from 1999 to 2012 alone.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Local Agencies Work to Improve Literacy

In 1961, Ruth Colvin, a resident of Central New York, read an article in the newspaper claiming that more than 11,000 people in her town were unable to read. Shocked by this information, Ms. Colvin decided to take it upon herself to do something about it. It was defining moment for Ms. Colvin and her life’s work. She pioneered Literacy Volunteers of America, a program providing literacy tutoring to adults.

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Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Put Politics Aside and Pass Legislation that Promotes Women’s Rights

As Election Day draws closer, campaigns often ratchet up their rhetoric. The Governor’s campaign is doing just that. In effort to counter the “Stop Common Core” line that his opponent Rob Astorino is running on, Cuomo formed the Women’s Equality line. This is a political party formed by the Governor and his Democratic political allies to help advertise his support of a package of bills known as the Women’s Equality Act.

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