issues

SERIOUS PROBLEMS THAT DESERVE COMMON SENSE SOLUTIONS…

TAXES

Had enough?

Lowering your taxes is my top priority. Period.

We pay the highest state and local taxes in the nation. These sky-high taxes are breaking up families and driving thousands of people and businesses out of New York. High taxes are forcing many senior citizens out of the homes they’ve lived in their entire lives.

I support BOTH a Property Tax Cap, as well as a mandatory Cap on State spending.

My opponent ---and his fellow  Tax & Spend Assembly members  --- are trying to dismiss these common sense measures as mere “gimmicks”.

They’ll use scare tactics, and say anything to try and stop REAL spending reform in the Assembly.

I think you’re smart enough to understand  that without the fiscal discipline these measure impose, the Assembly will only TALK about Tax Reform.
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How many of us got 60% pay raises in the last decade?

Between 1995 and 2005, local property taxes in New York grew 60 percent, over TWICE the rate of inflation!

Money Magazine has called New York State a "Tax Hell" because we’ve got the nation's highest tax rates. They’re 56 percent higher than the national average.

Excessive spending drives taxes up, and we can’t stop soaring taxes until we control state spending. As a business owner with years of corporate experience, I know that we can do more with less. I support tough legislation to cap state spending, and cap runaway property taxes.

I also support the New York State Property Taxpayer Protection Act. When fully implemented, it will save property taxpayers and school districts some $16 billion over five years.

JOB GROWTH

Our State has driven many good employers away, while other companies refuse to even consider New York as a location for their businesses. We must act now to make New York attractive again to employers both large and small. New York needs to attract and retain good, high-paying jobs. We must target vocational training to real world needs, and ensure that our colleges and universities are offering students the educational opportunities that will prepare them for careers in the knowledge-based economy ahead.

PRESERVING OPEN SPACE

We are very lucky to live in a part of New York that is blessed with so much natural beauty. Our farm lands and remaining open space are under constant pressure from developers. I support strong conservation measures to protect our undeveloped land, and help our farmers keep their land in agricultural use. 

WETLANDS PRESERVATION

Wetlands are among the most productive areas on the face of the Earth. They form the base of the Marine food chain, and help prevent coastal erosion. I am deeply committed to protecting our Wetlands from development and contamination.

As a member of the New York Sea Level Rise Task Force, I will help make long term recommendations to preserve our vital Wetlands for future generations.
   

PREDATORY MORTGAGE LENDING

Many homeowners in our State are victims of predatory or deceptive mortgage lending, and the high rates of foreclosure refl ect this fact. I support tough measures to punish any mortgage lenders who knowingly mislead consumers.

I support legislation that requires mortgage lenders to use “plain English” in all of their contracts so that risks are better understood by consumers.

LIPA

High electric rates are a burden for many rate payers, especially senior citizens, families living on fixed incomes and New York businesses struggling to remain competitive. We must reduce our dependency on expensive foreign sources of energy, while providing incentives for companies and municipalities to use new technologies and new strategies I support legislative efforts to limit the size of annual rate increases.

I’ll introduce bold new ENERGY STAR incentives for New York homeowners and businesses to help them purchase energy-efficient appliances and furnaces.

BROADWATER

Terrorism experts agree that LNG tankers and storage facilities are inherently vulnerable to attack. I oppose the construction of any LNG facility operated by any entity close to our shoreline and our population centers.

CRIMINAL ALIENS

New York State is home to a large and growing number of Criminal Aliens including sexual predators, violent gang members and identity theft rings.
Instead of ignoring this serious problem, we need an Assemblyman who recognizes this threat to public safety. We need an Assemblyman who understands how our local police can effectively cooperate with Federal law enforcement.

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How big is our problem?
According to the United States Department of Justice, New York spent $165 million last year locking up Criminal Aliens who were convicted of major crimes committed in our State. Think about this…only California spends more each year incarcerating Criminal Aliens.

Deportable Criminal Aliens in New York prisons should never be released, except into the custody of Federal officials. 

It’s time that the Legislature bans so-called “Sanctuary Cities. It’s also time that New York follows the lead of states like Florida, Alabama, and Rhode Island and implements a formal cooperation agreement between all of our Sheriff’s Departments and the Department of Homeland Security. Only when we have a seamless web of law enforcement can we seriously address the threat of Criminal Aliens.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

$4.5 billion per year! That’s how much New York spends each year on illegal immigrant healthcare, education costs, and incarceration. Every household headed by a native-born resident in our State pays over $800 extra per year.

While everyone blames Congress,  we can’t allow the Assembly majority to get away with “finger pointing”, or toothless  window-dressing measures.

We can’t wait another day for Washington to take action!

I support a powerful package of proven measures that will really address our State’s growing problems with illegal immigration;

1. Require EVERY employer in New York --- not just contractors doing business with the State ---, to use E-Verify to screen their new hires.
2. Prohibit so-called “Sanctuary Cities” that harbor criminal aliens and prevent their police departments from cooperating with I.C.E.
3. Ban EVERY company convicted of knowingly hiring illegal alien labor from doing business with the State for 15 years on the first offense.
4. Implement a tough State-wide 287g cooperation agreement with the Justice Department giving every Sheriff’s Department in New York the training and authority to help enforce Federal immigration laws.
5. Require every law enforcement agency in New York to record the immigration status of individuals they arrest at the time of booking.
6. Crack down on motorists who abuse lax DMV laws in states like RHODE ISLAND, NORTH CAROLINA and PENNSYLVANIA to avoid paying their New York vehicle registration fees.
7. Require the State Attorney General to screen our Registered Sex Offender database every month for convicted Criminal Alien offenders, and report them to I.C.E. for possible deportation.
8. Require the New York Department of Corrections to identify every deportable Criminal Alien in our prison system, and require them to notify I.C.E. on a regular basis to guarantee we never release a deportable Criminal Alien.

PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS

Eminent domain laws have been abused in recent years by local governments, and this trend puts all home owners at risk. I support strong State legislation to protect private property rights by strictly limiting the use of eminent domain to traditionally accepted “public benefit” uses only.
 

PUBLIC SAFETY

There is no higher priority for government than the safety and security of its citizens.

That’s why I successfully fought Gov. Spitzer’s dangerous roll-back of Driver License security last fall. Gov. Spitzer’s risky scheme would have allowed criminals and terrorists alike to get an official ID, putting public safety and officer safety at risk.

I believe the rights of citizens should always be placed before those of convicted criminals.

When a convicted predator moves into your neighborhood, you should be allowed to sign up to receive an automatic e-mail alert or a text message on your cell phone.

Drug Gang activity is on the rise in our district, and in our state. I support tighter coordination and better information sharing between State, Local and Federal law enforcement. I support the death penalty for Cop Killers.

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When it comes to protecting your family, I’ll work diligently to make sure our law enforcement agencies get all of the tools they need to do their jobs effectively and safely.

I support the common sense steps listed below, and all of those advocated by the Assembly Republican Conference, to fight the legislative roadblocks thrown up by the Assembly Majority.

- Expand the DNA Database,
- Prohibit sale of violent and sexually explicit video games to minors.
- Lifetime parole supervision for violent felony sex offenders.
- Tough new guidelines on settlement of high-risk registered sex offenders in our communities to minimize the number of sex offenders placed within a residential area.
- Active electronic monitoring for all Level 3, designated sexual predators, sexually violent offenders, or predicate sex offenders.

- Require (rather than permit) law enforcement to disseminate information on Level 2 and sex offenders to vulnerable populations including the exact address of the offender and the offender’s place of employment.
- Concerned citizens who visit the New York sex offender website must be able to register for automatic e-mail notification when sex offenders move into their areas.
- Prohibit employment of registered sex offenders in any position involving direct contact with children, and require employers and volunteer organizations to conduct criminal background checks of childcare employees and volunteers.
- Require the DMV to continue to provide an updated list of Level 3 sex offenders, including name, aliases, photographs and other background information so that it is readily available to police officers in patrol cars.
- Animal Fighting/Buster’s Law - Increases penalties for promoting animal fights, paying to attend or betting on an animal fight.
- Criminal Street Gang Abatement Act of 2008
- Requires SSN to Obtain a NYS Driver’s License - Ensures Governor Spitzer’s reckless driver’s license plan cannot be resurrected.
- Reporting Convictions of Illegal Aliens - Requires post-conviction notification to the federal government following conviction of a felony, to allow the federal government to consider deportation or removal of that non-citizen.
- Terrorism Prevention Act - Promotes public safety by facilitating investigations and prosecutions of terrorism. Helps identify, prepare for and respond to terrorism by increasing penalties and extending additional protections to the public for offenses related to agricultural adulteration and cyber-terrorism.


SECOND AMENDMENT

The recent Supreme Court ruling confirmed that the Second Amendment is not a collective right, but an INDIVIDUAL right guaranteed in our Constitution. Our State is home to many hunters and sportsmen. More gun laws are not the answer to gun violence. We need to enforce the laws we already have, and go after criminals. Studies show that when existing gun laws are aggressively enforced, gun related crime declines significantly. Every law-abiding citizen in our State who wants to own a gun should be able to do so.