Broadband access and tax policy key issues facing Upstate New York By Brian Miller
As representative of the vast 101st Assembly District, which encompasses parts of Oneida, Herkimer, Otsego, Delaware, Ulster, Sullivan & Orange counties, I spend a lot of time on the road going to meet with constituents, attend meetings and community events, and making sure our communities are being represented in an appropriate manner. With the end of the year quickly approaching and the upcoming legislative session around the corner, I think it is important to outline our priorities and what we have accomplished this year.
One of the top issues I have heard about from countless constituents is broadband access or lack thereof. All New Yorkers deserve broadband. I was pleased to see some movement in the push for getting broadband to all through the Comprehensive Broadband Connectivity Act. I have also co-sponsored several pieces of legislation related to broadband. A critical bill I want to outline is; A.896, which would enact the ‘wireless broadband eligible facility permitting act’ to provide for uniform regulation of certain wireless facilities. This bill intends to ease the burden on local governments by reducing their administrative costs and incentivizing wireless carriers to co-locate their equipment at existing wireless facility sites, rather than construct new sites. Another important bill is A.4197, which relates to fees associated with agreements between municipalities and fiber optic utility companies. This bill aims to reduce the cost of expanding broadband access throughout New York by reversing the use and occupancy fee assessed in the 2019-2020 state budget. There is still much work that needs to be done.
Additionally, due to increasing inflation, I was proud to join my conference members in supporting our “SHOP-NY legislation.” This proposal would suspend the state sales tax on motor fuel, hygiene products, cleaning supplies, and ready-to-eat foods at grocery stores and restaurants, and also allow local governments to have the option to eliminate local taxes on these products. New York has historically been one of the most expensive states to live in the country. Our conference’s ‘Inflation Relief & Consumer Assistance Plan” would be a tremendous step in the right direction to combat this current crisis. We, as legislators, have a responsibility to act in the best interest of our citizens and with inflation at a 30-year high, we need to do everything that we can to put money back in their pockets.
I think we can all agree that our state has come through a very difficult period during the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the hardest hit industries was our small businesses, who struggled immensely. Former Gov. Cuomo officially ending the COVID-19 state disaster emergency in June was welcome news for all New Yorkers. Despite this, our small businesses are still struggling. We need to get people back to work. New York State is ready for a roaring economic comeback and growth following the last year of emergency and shutdowns. Let us do everything to cut the unemployment rate, fill jobs that are open in every sector and industry and get our Empire State fully back to business.
Photo from NY State Assembly
As we return to Albany, we need to start thinking ahead to this year's State Budget. One of my biggest concerns with the 2020-2021 state budget was the enormous number of tax hikes despite receiving over $23 billion in federal aid. In my opinion, there was no need for tax increases or budget cuts, as the federal aid helped us close our deficit significantly. Additionally, the $18.7 billion in overspending was outrageous and just plain greedy. I have been calling for the state to take a very hard look at areas of wasteful spending in our budget for years. Because we are still in the midst of a global pandemic, I believe we should have worked more within our means, with less unnecessary spending, unfunded mandates and luxury projects. We need to help New York climb back out of this hole, not dig it deeper.
One last point I would like to touch on is infrastructure. Fixing upstate New York’s failing infrastructure is a top priority of mine. We can achieve this by securing more funding for the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Program (CHIPS) and Bridge-NY. In this year’s budget, CHIPS received an additional $100 million in funding; bringing the total up to $538.1 million, upstate transit systems received $10.6 million more than last year, bringing that total up to $22.55 million and PAVE-NY received $50 million more to bring the total up to $150 million. We also saw programs such as the Extreme Winter Recovery and BRIDGE-NY stay in place at $100 million each rather than being cut. Keeping our local roads, bridges, and infrastructures in good shape is crucial for public safety and economic recovery. We must maintain this momentum moving forward.
Although this year has been challenging, I am very optimistic that the people of New York state will show their unwavering resilience and ability to push forward during uncertain times. I hope that we can finally return to a sense of normality. To my fellow legislators and our leadership, I ask for togetherness to bring about the best possible solution to the issues we are facing.
I am looking forward to getting back to Albany and working hard for our communities and the constituents that I represent. I encourage all of our residents to reach out to me and other elected officials to have their voice heard. Let us know what is hurting you the most. Let us know what you believe will help you the most in your daily life. It has been a great honor to be your voice in the state Assembly for the past five years. I wish everyone a safe, happy and healthy holiday season, and I hope for a new year that is full of reasons to be proud New Yorkers. Please know my door is always open.
New York Assemblyperson Brian Miller represents the 101st District consisting of parts of Delaware, Herkimer, Oneida, Orange, Otsego, Sullivan and Ulster counties.
Special thanks to The Genesis Group for facilitating this article. The Genesis Group is a civic organization that unites Business and Community Leaders working to advance regional Economic, Social and Cultural interests, and to foster unity and cooperation in the Mohawk Valley region of Upstate New York.
