Assemblyman Bill Reilich (R,C,I-Greece) today spoke out against the Assembly Speaker for failing to address the multi-billion dollar budget deficit that New York State is currently facing.
Governor David Paterson called the Legislature back for a special session to enact $2.6 billion in budget cuts, made necessary by the economic downturn currently gripping the entire country. However, despite being called back to Albany, the Legislature took no action to rein in excessive state spending and close our budget gap.
“I came to Albany this week with the intention of not returning home until we weeded out the billions in wasteful spending that has been crippling our state,” explained Reilich. “Unfortunately, yet not surprisingly, the ‘three men in a room’ lived up to their notorious reputation as agents of delay by continuing their inexcusable partisan bickering. They can spin it however they want. The bottom line is they let down the millions of New Yorkers they allegedly serve.”
Reilich shrugged at earlier statements made by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver claiming that his House was willing to make difficult choices to cut the budget.
“Shelly Silver recently said the members of his House were not afraid to make tough decisions on the budget to rein in billions in spending, but when the time came to roll up our sleeves and get to work, the Speaker decided to sit on his hands and take no action. That’s absolutely shameful,” concluded Reilich.