Publications

Keeping You Informed

State of the State Sets Tone for Another Productive Session

As I write this column, I’ve just come back from listening to Governor Cuomo’s annual State of the State speech. Last year, the governor promised to change the dysfunction in Albany and get our state government working again. With the cooperation...

Board of Regents Issues Unrealistic Mandates

Coming on the heels of an announcement in November that the New York State Board of Regents was considering requiring four-hour reading tests for 3rd graders, I wrote a letter to Merryl Tisch, Chancellor of the Board of Regents, to express my concerns...

Assemblyman Reminds Constituents to have a DD while Celebrating the Holidays

As the Christmas and New Year holidays approach, I’d like to take this opportunity to remind my constituents to make sure you have a designated driver if you will be out and about celebrating the holidays with alcohol. Any amount of alcohol affects...

It’s time for practical North Country solutions in Albany!

Rural Schools Deserve Better From The School Aid Formula

Although 2011 is coming to a close, it seems like just yesterday we were passing the state budget in Albany. And, before we know it, budget time will be upon us again. To prepare for budget negotiations, I recently held a meeting with several school...

Volunteer This Thanksgiving and Holiday Season

It’s hard to believe that November is already more than half over and Thanksgiving is upon us. Before we know it, it will be 2012! During this Thanksgiving and holiday season, I’d like to take a moment to encourage my constituents to volunteer their...

Career and Small Business Resource Guide

Assemblyman Blankenbush Reminds Constituents about Hunting Safety

In the last two weeks, there have been two hunting tragedies here in Jefferson County. The first involved a teenager who shot at what he thought was a deer. Instead he shot and killed his hunting partner. The second tragedy involved another teenager who...

November is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month

Alzheimer’s disease is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. The disease robs people of their memories and leads to progressive physical and mental impairments. This eventual fatal disease represents a serious and...

New York’s Medicaid Program Is Nation’s Costliest and Budget Buster for Local Governments

Ask any local elected official the following question: “What is the single biggest unfunded mandate that Albany imposes on municipal budgets?” Ten times out of ten you will receive a one-word answer: Medicaid. New York’s Medicaid program has ballooned...

Fall Showcases New York Agriculture

While many of us are wondering what happened to the summer, fall has arrived here in the North Country. The leaves are changing, the days and nights are cooler, and Halloween is just around the corner. But what’s best about fall in Northern New York...

Assemblyman Blankenbush Recognizes Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and since the program began in 1985, mammography rates have more than doubled for women age 50 and older and breast cancer deaths have declined. This is good progress, but still there are women who do not take...

Assemblyman Blankenbush Advises Constituents Of Rescheduled Town Hall Meeting

Due to Primary Day, my town hall meeting with Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb has been rescheduled for Monday, October 17 from 6:30 - 8 pm. The location has also changed to the Lowville Municipal Building, 5535 Bostwick St., Lowville. For the first...

Ken’s been fighting for Property Tax Relief

Back to School Time is Near: Remember School Bus Safety Laws and Guidelines

It’s hard to believe that summer is nearly over and children will be heading back to school in just a few weeks. With that in mind, I want to take this opportunity to remind motorists about school bus safety guidelines and laws. With school buses...

Solution To Stopping The Brain Drain: Create More Private Sector Jobs & Opportunities

We often hear people talking about the “brain drain” in upstate New York: the mass exodus of our state’s youngest and brightest leaving for other destinations where there are better business opportunities. This “brain drain” hurts our state...

Thanks To Taxpayers Like You, Albany Has Finally Begun To Change Course… Attend my town hall meeting and let your voice be heard

For the first time in a long time, the Albany bureaucrats listened – and New York has an on-time State Budget. The enacted spending plan was far from perfect – it involved tough, painful choices that began a long overdue process of reforming Albany’s...

Another Anti-Business Policy From Albany

With the recent enactment of the Real Property Tax Cap and the launch of the Regional Economic Development Councils, New York state is once again in a position to craft an economic development plan that creates jobs and puts unemployed New Yorkers back...

New York State’s Prosperity Depends on Reform

Much of the news the past few weeks has been dominated by the back-and-forth debate going on in Washington about raising the nation’s debt limit vs. passing real spending cuts and reform programs to balance the federal budget. As expected, much of these...

23rd Congressional District Should Remain Whole To Protect North Country Constituents’ Interests

For more than 30 years, the 11 northern counties in New York State that comprise the North Country have, in some combination, been part of a single congressional district. This North Country district that runs from Oswego County to Clinton County and...