I voted NO on the Senate One-House Budget Resolution, which proposed an increase of $16 billion in State Operating Funds–an almost 11% increase–that would bring total state spending to nearly $270 billion. Only Albany and New York City think we can spend our way out of an affordability crisis, despite New Yorkers’ pleas for relief from the reckless tax-and-spend policies that got us to where we are. I could not in good conscience vote in support of a Senate One-House Budget Proposal that would only exacerbate New York’s problems.

 

As New Yorkers’ utility bills have skyrocketed under one-party control since 2019, the Senate One-House Proposal failed to confront the economic realities of Albany’s energy policies, as laid out by even the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). A recent NYSERDA memo pointed out what Republican Senators and I have been saying all along: if New York continues on its current path, New Yorkers’ utility bills will increase by thousands of dollars per year, and gas will increase by an extra $2.23 per gallon above market prices. Rather than refunding New Yorkers the billions of surplus dollars NYSERDA collected from ratepayers, the Senate majority would rather use those dollars to subsidize electric vehicles and E-bikes.

 

I support strategic investments in areas such as education, mental health, and public safety, but this budget proposal goes far beyond sensible or prudent spending. While New Yorkers have faced tighter budgets and tough decisions on how to afford the cost of everyday essentials, New York State government continues down an unsustainable path that is paid for by taxpayers. I will continue fighting for each and every New Yorker to help make our state more affordable.

 

 

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