A Column from the Desk of Assemblyman Karl Brabenec (R,C-Deerpark)
With a 4.8 magnitude earthquake striking New York last week and a total eclipse occurring this past Monday, one might expect an on-time New York State budget – a rarity in itself – to be in the works. Unfortunately, that assumption would be incorrect. Due to partisan infighting in Albany, the legislature and governor are once again late in fulfilling their most crucial responsibility to taxpayers. As the days pass, legislators in Albany find themselves entangled in debates over non-urgent bills while the state operates without a reliable budget figure. Last Thursday, April 4, we were informed that legislators would be required to return to Albany on Sunday, April 7, to pass what is now the third emergency extender bill this year. These bills are necessary to ensure that essential public employees, ranging from state troopers to the National Guard to support staff in legislative and executive offices to maintenance personnel statewide, continue to receive paychecks even in the absence of a developed budget plan. Notably, elected members of the legislature are rightly excluded from this extension, meaning they do not receive a paycheck until the budget is passed. However, despite being partly responsible for these delays, the governor continues to collect her paycheck. Go figure! Legislators in Albany remain unaware of the specific sticking points within the budget, as these discussions are held behind closed doors by the so-called leadership. This failure to perform the most fundamental function – passing a reasonable, cost-effective budget – leaves legislators in the dark. The need to return to Albany over the weekend solely to pass an extender, rather than a full budget, begs the question: can this truly be called ‘leadership’? Shutting out the public and keeping legislators uninformed only serves to worsen the issue of governance in Albany, perpetuating a cycle of corruption and elitist politics. With one Party maintaining uncontested leadership, there’s a concern that this trend will persist. Assemblyman Brabenec represents the 98th District, which includes the city of Port Jervis, the towns of Deerpark, Greenville, Mount Hope, Wawayanda, Minisink, Warwick, Tuxedo and portions of the towns of Goshen, Monroe and Ramapo. For more information, please visit his Official Website at www.yourfavoriteassemblyman.com.
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