No Picture
Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

We Deserve Better; Let’s Pass a Budget Already

Because of the lack of respect our leaders have for the law—passing a budget on time—and the lack of true leadership, our communities lost parks, state workers were forced into furloughs, and the Democratic majority staged a “sit-in” at the Governor’s office and played ‘he said, she said’ in the media. As I said, we deserve better.

[…]

No Picture
Aubertine

Amid Albany Frustrations, Agriculture Is Getting Renewed Attention

With all that is frustrating in Albany right now—the budget deadlock, the lack of an Assembly companion to Power for Jobs legislation, the reintroduction of the farm labor bill—there has been good news. The Senate has passed more legislation to benefit agriculture than any year in recent memory.

[…]

No Picture
Aubertine

Once-Rare Events Show Progress of Reform

Last week, in this column, I discussed the previous week’s action by the Senate Agriculture Committee in support of farm workers, farmers and consumers through a bipartisan vote to kill the bill in committee. This is one sign that changes I pushed for and helped enact last year have begun to restore the people’s voice in state government.

[…]

No Picture
Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay

Reforming School Aid Formula Would Even Playing Field for Districts

More state aid should be driven to low-wealth districts than high-wealth districts. Many of the school districts in my Assembly district are low-wealth school districts and therefore are heavily reliant on state aid. When state aid is cut, they feel the cut more acutely than high wealth school districts because of their high dependency on state aid.

[…]

No Picture
Aubertine

Warm Weather, Spring Reminders of the Best in Central and Northern New York

The outdoors is a critical piece of our way of life here in Central and Northern New York. It makes the constant snow and cold bearable to more than just the winter sports lovers, when you know that sunshine is on its way and throughout the region, we have the open spaces, parks, forests, rivers, streams and lakes to enjoy.

[…]