Lupinacci’s Budget Priorities

Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci

A Legislative Column from Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci

The deadline to pass a state budget is rapidly approaching, which means it’s time to call on your legislators to stand up and represent their constituents. We need lawmakers who are willing to lead and make a difference in their communities and in the great state of New York. That is why I will not hesitate to share my ideas as to what our top priorities should be as budget negotiations heat up.

Without question, a top priority for all legislators should be ethics reform. Recently, a multitude of sexual harassment allegations, the arrest of the former Assembly Speaker and other ethical transgressions have made national headlines, casting a dark cloud over the state Capitol. The Assembly Majority promised ethics reform when our new Assembly Speaker took office, but the issues seem to have fallen on deaf ears. We need to gain the public’s trust back and make it clear that my colleagues and I in the Assembly Minority are serious about bringing real change to a legislature that has been mocked by the national media for being one of the most corrupt state governments in the nation.

Education also is always a top priority of mine, particularly its funding. The Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA) education cuts have taken its toll on our students and educators in school districts across the state, and our Long Island schools are feeling it the most. As a former school board member in the South Huntington School District, this issue really hits home. Our children should not be paying the price for the way lawmakers have mismanaged state funds in the past. Our students and teachers alike need the proper resources to be effective in the classroom to keep students engaged and to have the best educational experience available. It’s time to put our students’ education before political agendas, and repeal the GEA so we can move towards fully funding our schools.

As a college professor, I think it would be in the state’s best interest to increase funding for the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP). Thousands of college-ready students across New York State rely on TAP to pursue an education and ease the burden of high tuition costs. It’s important to keep the concerns of higher education students in mind during budget negotiations because they are the future leaders of this democracy.

This is such a critical time, and lawmakers must come together to make bipartisan decisions for the good of the state. I will not hesitate to make sure the concerns of all the hardworking people of Long Island are heard.