VOTE411 Voter Guide

Healthcare. I support New York funding the difference in federal government cuts and making insurance more affordable for families to purchase. I support universal healthcare, and believe that should start with our children. I carry legislation providing healthcare for all New York children under the age of 19 without copay or deductible Education & Childcare. I support universal childcare. I fought for $20 million in additional childcare funds for Monroe County, and want more. We must invest more in our public schools, and I have delivered record-levels of funding for our schools across Monroe County. I introduced and passed legislation to provide hundreds of millions of dollars for RCSD to make capital improvements. Affordability. I got into law an increase of the Child Tax Credit, getting more money into families pockets, and supported a reduction in state income tax for the middle class. I support the utility rebate checks and took legal action against RG&E opposing rate increases.

I believe we cannot address climate change without investing in the technologies, renewable energy sources and resiliency mitigation measures. While public investment is critical, I believe additional funding sources should come from those who have contributed most directly to climate change. I believe we need more clean energy built, with more safe battery storage to capture the energy being generated. We need to expand our electric grid overall, so efforts to move away from fossil fuels don’t end up being impractical or have excessive cost. For transportation, we need to promote and expand public transit, and bicycle / pedestrian infrastructure, so everyone has the ability to easily get around without relying solely on cars.

As a member of the Senate MWBE Task Force, I also believe in equity in our state and local contracting process, and support setting aside a certain percentage of contracting for minority and women owned businesses. As Chair of the Senate Cannabis Subcommittee, I fully support efforts to promote equity through the cannabis industry, and have long advocated for a social equity component, where state funds gained from cannabis sales are reinvested in communities most negatively impacted by the war on drugs, including Rochester. On the policy side, I support home ownership incentives to break the generational cycles of poverty and have championed bills that create a first time home buyers savings account and funds to assist with closing costs. I am also the senate bill sponsor of the “Earned Time Act,” which promotes rehabilitation by giving some individuals the ability to be released at a time based on what they’ve done while incarcerated to show they’re bettering themselves.

I believe that New York must have all options available in promoting the federal Voting Rights Act, and disagree with the Supreme Court in its ruling. While the decision is federal and affects all states, New York must do all it can to promote equality across all voting districts. I voted for and continue to support the “John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act,” which is New York State’s equivalent to the federal Voting Rights Act, ensuring, at least at the state level, we have voting and redistricting protections. In response to Louisiana v. Callais, many states adjusted their own congressional districts mid-decade, and I support putting that question directly to the voters of New York through a constitutional amendment on whether New York should also be permitted to redistrict mid-decade. New York must also use its own state law to ensure protected classes have proper protections in districts drawn. Every citizen, regardless of their political party, should be able to easily and legally vote

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