Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) announced today that New York has once again topped the list for the number of bills introduced into state legislatures nationwide in 2017, despite only 3.1 percent of all legislation being signed into law.

“The amount of useless legislation introduced into our Legislature each year is mind-boggling. These items surely clog the legislative process, preventing us from tackling real issues important to our citizens,” Hawley said. “Some of these bills, such as budget bills, are still printed despite the Assembly going ‘paperless’ a few years ago, which raises a serious environmental concern.

A total of 16,691 bills were introduced into the New York State Legislature in 2017, which dwarfs other states in comparison. Ranked second and third were New Jersey (7,165) and Indiana (1,831), respectively.

“While many legislators simply take credit for introducing bills which they know will eventually die, my focus will remain the real issues: reigning in government spending and waste, tax relief and crucial infrastructure repair of roads, bridges and highways,” Hawley concluded.