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About this blog

Senator Tom O'Mara's ( R- NY 58th ) weekly column. 

Entries in this blog

Welcome To New York's Climate Crisis

Welcome To New York's Climate Crisis

It was back to the races for Senate Democrats at the Capitol last week – the race, that is, to see who can be first to inflict yet another energy mandate on New Yorkers. In fact, since the 2019 enactment of what’s known as the “Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act,” we’ve watched the one-party control of the Albany Democrats move at world record speed trying to pile one unaffordable mandate on top of another unworkable mandate on top of the next unrealistic mandate in their race

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

A Budget Disguised As Fiscal Discipline Threatens Local Schools

A Budget Disguised As Fiscal Discipline Threatens Local Schools

One of the most controversial actions of Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposed 2024-2025 state budget is her move to cut education aid to more than half of New York State’s school districts outside of New York City. If enacted, the governor’s proposed education cuts would fall most heavily on certain regions, including many small, largely rural school districts across the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes. Here's a few of the most staggering cuts to schools in the 58th Senate District: Hammondsport
Rescuing New York Now More Urgent Than Ever

Rescuing New York Now More Urgent Than Ever

To kick off the 2023 legislative session – one that we believed represented a pivotal session with New York at a crossroads in so many areas – the Senate Republican Conference put forth a comprehensive set of goals to help rebuild and strengthen local and state economies, focus on the financial challenges facing many middle-class families and small business owners, and make public safety a top priority. At that time back in early January, I said, “New Yorkers across the Southern Tier and Fi

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

 

Our "Rescue New York" Plan Focuses On Overlooked Priorities

Governor Hochul delivered her State of the State message to the Legislature last week. Now we wait and see how she plans to pay for it. Those answers start to arrive later this month when she unveils her proposed 2023-2024 state budget. My initial reaction to the governor’s broad outline of her priorities for New York’s future is this: Governor Hochul highlighted the affordability crisis facing all New Yorkers, but every agenda item she spoke of will only make New York a more expensive plac

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Governor Hochul Ignores New York Agriculture

Governor Hochul Ignores New York Agriculture

It wasn’t long ago in this column -- in early September in fact – that I asked the question, “Will Governor Hochul turn her back on farmers?”  I asked it after a New York State Wage Board, established under a 2019 law known as the “Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act,” finalized its recommendation to lower the mandatory overtime pay threshold for farm workers from the current 60 hours to 40 hours.   Following the Wage Board’s action, Governor Hochul was given 45 days to send down the

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Will Governor Hochul Turn Her Back On Farmers?

Will Governor Hochul Turn Her Back On Farmers?

To no one’s surprise last week, a New York State Wage Board established under a 2019 law known as the “Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act” finalized its recommendation to lower the mandatory overtime pay threshold for farm workers from the current 60 hours to 40 hours.  If left to stand by Governor Kathy Hochul, it will change the face of New York State agriculture as we have known it for generations.  Listen to the warnings, governor. Stay at 60.  Grow NY Farms, a coalition of

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

NY's Spending Spree Already Proving Unsustainable

NY's Spending Spree Already Proving Unsustainable

It didn’t take long and it’s not good news for future taxpayers.  In April, when Governor Kathy Hochul and the Democrat legislative majorities in the Senate and Assembly finished stocking up what would become New York’s largest-ever state budget, many of us warned about its irrational spending.  Remember that the final 2022-2023 budget rang in at over $220 billion, hiking New York government spending by at least $8 billion over last year while simply ignoring the overriding need for ma

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Governor Hochul About To Uproot The Future For Many Farmers

Governor Hochul About To Uproot The Future For Many Farmers

In early September, a New York State Wage Board, established under a 2019 law known as the “Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act,” will finalize its recommendation on one of the key provisions of that three-year-old law – and its decision could forever impact New York agriculture as we have known it.  Specifically, the Farm Wage Board will issue a final report on September 6 and recommend lowering the mandatory overtime pay threshold for farmworkers from the current 60 hours to 40 hours, a

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

The Albany Mindset Refuses To See What's Happening

The Albany Mindset Refuses To See What's Happening

The extreme Albany Democrat mindset refuses to see what’s happening all around us and that it can happen anywhere.  Every day.  On the night of Thursday, July 21, in the city of Rochester, two police officers were ambushed and shot, an attack which took the life of Officer Anthony Mazurkiewicz, a 29-year veteran of the police force.   Rochester Police Chief David Smith would later say, “I was asked by the media, ‘How dangerous is it out there for the officers of the Rochester Poli

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

The Worst Of NY's COVID Response Belongs To Two Governors

The Worst Of NY's COVID Response Belongs To Two Governors

In the end, when the retrospectives of New York’s COVID-19 response have been completed – and, eventually, they will be – what transpired within the state’s nursing homes and the loss of more than 15,000 lives will finally be granted the total, transparent scrutiny it demands.  Sadly, at the moment, this desperately needed assessment and examination appears not to be a priority for Governor Kathy Hochul, despite her reassurances a few months back that her administration would be reexamining

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Opioid Crisis Remains Major Area Of Concern

Opioid Crisis Remains Major Area Of Concern

We were reminded not long ago, as part of the most recent National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, of just how serious and deadly the opioid crisis remains across our region, state, and nation.  The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has noted the dramatic impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on opioid addictions. According to the CDC, nearly 84,000 Americans overdosed during the latest 12-month period.  It is a stark reminder of an ongoing crisis that continues

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Keep Turning The Page This Summer

Keep Turning The Page This Summer

Numbers help tell every story.  For example, many studies have helped make the case that children who read during the summer months make greater academic gains in the following school year than children who do not.   In fact, statistics on the “summer slide” jump right off the page, including that:  Students can lose up to 25 percent of their reading level over the summer;  Children who don’t engage in summer reading lose approximately two months of instructional time, or rou

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Step Outside And Grow The Economy

Step Outside And Grow The Economy

Among numerous other designations, the month of June is recognized as National Great Outdoors Month.  It is worth some attention here in the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes. At a time when we need to stay in pursuit of every possible ray of hope, it is one bright spot in an otherwise cloudy and unsettled economic future.  The Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) gets right to the point, “Outdoor recreation is an economic force.”  It’s a point well taken and one that governmental lead

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Taking Back NY Is More Important Than Ever

Taking Back NY Is More Important Than Ever

To kick off the 2022 session of the State Legislature – one that we believed represented one of the truly pivotal sessions in modern history, with New York at a crossroads in so many areas – the Senate Republican Conference put forth a comprehensive set of goals to help rebuild and strengthen local and state economies, focus on the financial challenges facing many middle-class families and small business owners, and make public safety a top priority. It was called “Take Back New York” and w

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

God Bless America And God Bless Our Troops

God Bless America And God Bless Our Troops

From Arlington and Gettysburg to Woodlawn and Bath and hundreds of other national veterans’ cemeteries and monuments across this land, Americans will gather once again to observe Memorial Day.  The nation’s long-standing Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in the nation’s capital is highlighted by a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, on which the following words are inscribed, “Here rests in honored glory an American solider known but to God.” 

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Spreading The Word About Lyme Disease

Spreading The Word About Lyme Disease

May is officially designated as Lyme Disease Awareness Month because, according to the Lyme Disease Research Foundation, it is the “most commonly reported tick-borne disease in the United States.”  Several years ago, when I was serving as a member of the Senate Task Force on Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases, as well as chairing the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee, the Southern Tier was identified as a hotbed for Lyme disease, according to data released by the state Department of Hea

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Taking Back New York To Get More Urgent

Taking Back New York To Get More Urgent

The month of March could end up marking a critical turning point in the future direction of New YorkState.  The Senate and Assembly Democrat supermajorities controlling the state Legislature will soon unveil “one-house budget bills” likely seeking to expand the already $216-billion Executive Budget proposal put forth by Governor Kathy Hochul in January.  I’ve previously noted in this column that, if enacted, the governor’s proposal by itself -- already nearly $5 billion higher than the

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Take Back New York Sets The Stage For 2022

Take Back New York Sets The Stage For 2022

To kick off the 2022 session of the State Legislature – one that I believe represents one of the truly pivotal sessions in modern history, with New York at a crossroads in so many areas – my colleagues and I in the Senate Republican Conference have put forth a comprehensive set of goals to help grow local and state economies, focus on the financial challenges facing many middle-class families and small business owners, and make public safety an urgent priority.   It’s called “Take Back New

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Watch Your Wallet Heading Into A New Year In NYS Government

Watch Your Wallet Heading Into A New Year In NYS Government

Following the November 2018 elections, when New York State government fell under total, one-party, Democrat control, then-Governor Andrew Cuomo exclaimed that he felt “liberated” without a state Senate Republican Majority left standing in his way.   The former governor’s feeling was no doubt shared by the longstanding Assembly Democrat majority and, of course, the newly crowned Senate Democrat leadership. And, indeed, liberated they have been, especially when it comes to spending taxpa

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Nourish NY Emerges As A Highlight Of Effective Government

Nourish NY Emerges As A Highlight Of Effective Government

One of the most positive state-level actions heading into this holiday season was the recent enactment of a new law I helped co-sponsor and strongly supported to make the “Nourish New York” program a permanent fixture of New York government moving forward.  It is the product of legislation (S4892/A5781, Chapter 631 of the Laws of 2021) that received overwhelming bipartisan support in the state Senate and Assembly, where it was unanimously approved earlier this year, and was recently signed

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Upending And Uprooting The Fabric Of Our Community

Upending And Uprooting The Fabric Of Our Community

New York State governors continue to be full of surprises. Governor Kathy Hochul is the latest.   Early last week, she abruptly announced that the Southport Correctional Facility in the Southern Tier, the Willard Drug Treatment Campus and the Rochester Correctional Facility in the Finger Lakes, two North Country facilities, and a prison in the mid-Hudson Valley are slated to close on March 10, 2022.  Six correctional facilities in total impacting and uprooting more than a thousand stat

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Never Tire In Honoring America's Heroes

Never Tire In Honoring America's Heroes

This week’s Veterans Day observance could not arrive at a more important time for our nation -- as a reminder and as a reflection.  If there is a single national day of honor on the calendar that can and should serve to unite us, it’s this one.  Veterans Day offers a chance to pause to remember the fundamental greatness of the United States of America and those who have made it so, and then to keep pushing forward – pushing forward to find solid ground again during a time that has upended s

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

New York's Family Farms Facing Yet Another State Imposed Crisis

New York's Family Farms Facing Yet Another State Imposed Crisis

In the near future, a New York State Wage Board, established under a 2019 law known as the “Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act,” will revisit one of the key provisions of that law – and its decision could forever impact New York agriculture as we have known it.  Specifically, this Wage Board could decide, without legislative approval, to lower the mandatory overtime pay threshold from the current 60 hours to 40 hours.  In other words, the future of farming in New York State still han

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Have We Turned The Page To A New Governor?

Have We Turned The Page To A New Governor?

Under disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo, beginning in March 2020, we witnessed an unleashing of state government by executive order unlike ever before.  Cuomo utilized at least one hundred Executive Orders that allowed him to unilaterally change hundreds of state laws, as well as implement rules and regulations and make spending decisions, without legislative approval or local input. Any semblance of legislative checks and balances was abandoned. The same was true for local decision ma

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

Dark Spots In Governor's Vision For NY's Energy Future

Dark Spots In Governor's Vision For NY's Energy Future

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has now put forth one of her administration’s most ambitious public policy proposals to date and, in doing so, gave all of us a good look at her administration’s vision for addressing one of our state’s most urgent short- and long-term challenges: energy.  With that in mind, it’s fair to say at this juncture that the Hochul administration is squarely following in the footsteps of the Cuomo administration – which only continues to raise serious and troubling qu

Senator Tom O'Mara

Senator Tom O'Mara

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