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THE YEAR AHEAD
By Assemblyman Brian M. Kolb
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It occurs to me, as we close out 2004, that New York state government still has a long way to go before it becomes the efficient, representative government that I know it can and will be. I, for one, am excited for 2005. I believe the New Year brings new hope and renewed spirit for a better New York.
As I toured my Assembly district these past two years and listened to the input from many of my constituents, I am committed to continuing and enhancing my efforts on many issues for the upcoming year. I do take every constituent comment seriously, whether it is a problem with school funding or criticism of New York's Medicaid problem.
REFORM - I will continue advocating on behalf of the recommendations made in a report by the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law in 2004. The Brennan Center called for changes to the Assembly rules that would help make the state Legislature more efficient and truly more representative of the people. The Assembly Republican conference promises to bring these reforms to the floor for a vote this year. Recently, 27 Assembly Democrats signed a resolution of support for these reforms.
For me, the most important of all reform measures deals with the state budget. I am advocating on behalf of measures that Assembly Republicans have been fighting to get passed, such as:
-- Changing the April 1 fiscal year start date to May 1
-- Requiring approval of state aid for schools two years at a time, rather than annually
-- Enacting the previous year's budget if, on May 1, no agreement has been reached for the current fiscal year's budget
-- Requiring the governor to submit an executive budget by Jan. 15, or Feb. 1 for newly elected governors
-- Limiting the governor's executive budget amendment process to 21 days rather than the current 30
-- Making agency budget requests available to the public at the time of the executive budget hearings
-- Creating an independent budget office to forecast revenues and recommend spending options
-- Providing a three-year fiscal plan with additional details
-- Changing health care spending "on budget" category to fall under the Health Care Reform Act
-- Requiring a current services budget be submitted with the executive budget
TAXES - When Albany imposes unfounded mandates, the results are often disastrous. Local governments are often unable to balance their budgets and are strong-armed into raising property taxes. Medicaid is the most burdensome of all these mandates. If 2005 truly is the year of reform, tax reform will play a major role, and I will continue working hard for tax reform by fighting for measures such as:
-- Emergency Medicaid relief
-- A five-year state Medicaid takeover
-- New legislation to fight Medicaid fraud
-- A ban on unfounded mandates
JOBS - Creating jobs has been, and will continue to be, a crucial factor in New York's resurgence as a dominant employer. Initiatives that I am implementing are going to encourage job growth in our community to create a more comfortable, better life for all of us. As one of the most reliable sources of jobs in our upstate economy, manufacturing jobs support, on average, over 2.67 related jobs for each manufacturing job. As chair of the Statewide Task Force on Manufacturing, I have listened to manufacturers and discussed ideas on ways to advance employment throughout the entire industry. One way to do this is to provide manufacturers with a tax credit equal to 2.5 percent of a new employee's salary for each job created.
EDUCATION - By and far, our children are the most important aspect of our community. Our children's education is one of the most important aspects of their lives. As parents, adults or even legislators it is our responsibility to ensure our children receive the best quality education available. In 2005, I will continue to battle on behalf of our children. I will do whatever I can to make sure that our upstate schools receive their fair share of state education funding, I will fight to keep our tax dollars here, in the Finger Lakes and Central New York, benefiting our children, bettering our schools.
These are just some of the many issues that I plan to take up in 2005. I will continue working on behalf of each and every one of the constituents in the 129th Assembly District. Please, as always, feel free to contact me at any time, with any issue, via e-mail at kolbb@assembly.state.ny.us, or call my office at 315-481-2030.
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KOLB ANNOUNCES FIRE PREVENTION LIFE SAFETY POSTER CONTEST
By Assemblyman Brian M. Kolb
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Assemblyman Brian Kolb (R,C-Canandaigua) has announced the 8th annual Fire Prevention Life Safety Poster Contest sponsored by the Firemen's Association of the State of New York (FASNY). The contest is open to students statewide in both public and private schools, grades K-5.
"Not only does this contest give children the ability to showcase their creative skill, but it also helps to teach them now to prevent fires," Kolb said. "I encourage students in grades K-5 to take advantage of this opportunity."
Participants may use a variety of media, such as watercolor, pen and ink, crayon, chalk and markers, drawn horizontally on 8.5x11-inch paper. Posters created by students must be their original artwork, and contents must reflect fire prevention and life safety.
Entries must be mailed to FASNY, 107 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12210, and postmarked before Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2005. For complete contest rules, visit the FASNY Website at www.fasny.com, or telephone June Gunza at 845-446-3007.
Assemblyman Kolb can be reached by phone at 315-781-2030 or by e-mail at kolbb@assembly.state.ny.us.
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