ASSEMBLYMAN
Joe Giglio
Working to Put the Empire State Back on Track
Joe Giglio supports actions which will require openness and accountability to ensure a State government that is responsible and responsive to its constituents.
Reducing State Debt
State debt is currently $53 billion, the third highest per resident in the nation, due to backdoor borrowing, which is incurred without voter approval and simply passed onto taxpayers. Joe supports lowering State debt and reducing the burden we place on future generations.
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Ban borrowing without voter approval;
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Require that 10 percent of any budget surplus be used to decrease the State’s debt;
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Allow for greater transparency by requiring any ballot proposition that authorizes State debt to include information on both the principal and interest that would be incurred by the taxpayers; and
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Require a super-majority (2/3) vote for final passage of any bill that imposes a new tax, or continues or revives an exisiting tax.
Increasing Transparency and Reducing Unfunded Mandates
Unfunded mandates handed down from the State Legislature force local governments and school districts to raise property taxes in order to fund these initiatives. To increase transparency and accountability, Joe supports requirements to mandate cost reporting and limit unfunded mandates in budget proposals.
• Mandate cost reporting to help lawmakers understand the financial consequences of any legislation and how it impacts local communities; and
• Require any State mandate that costs more than $10,000 to be funded by the State.
Medicaid Reform
Since his election to the Assembly, one of Joe’s top priorities has been to eliminate Medicaid fraud, waste and abuse, which costs taxpayers nearly $4.5 billion each year. As a member of the Assembly Minority Medicaid Reform Task Force, Joe supports legislation that will provide tax relief through recovery of these funds from those who cheat the system.
• Strengthen the Office of the Medicaid Inspector General, and create its own task force to address the fraud, waste and abuse problem, and return recovered funds to our counties; and
• Increase the ability of local governments to combat Medicaid abuse by reimbursing counties for Medicaid fraud investigation software.
