“While there are some positive items in the budget, I could not support it. Aside from the fact that our budget was more than thirty days late, there was zero transparency in this process. Members were left out in the dark for months and given an unnecessary message of necessity to vote on budget bills that we should have had more time to research and debate. Our government is always at its best when the people we represent have a voice in the process. We cannot give the people we represent a proper voice when we are given only hours to research, debate and vote on bills that contain hundreds of pages of information.

“New York state just spent $229 billion, and we don’t have nearly enough to show for it. While I was pleased to see items I have been advocating for included in the budget such as increased school aid, funding for school meals for more of our students and an increase in funding for local roads, we fell far short of the expectations our constituents should have for their elected representatives. More funding and more effort should have gone into a variety of areas to provide relief to taxpayers who have been facing the challenges of inflation. We have an affordability crisis and certain aspects of this budget make our communities less safe and could cause inflation to become much worse. We can do better, and I will continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to make a meaningful difference in the months and years ahead.”