New York is home to more than 900,000 veterans, and some estimates indicate that as many as 72% have seen combat. Additionally, New York is home to approximately 30,000 active duty military personnel, as well as 30,000 National Guard and Reservists. ...

New York state has the unfortunate distinction of being a high-cost-of-living state, and when it comes to auto insurance, New York lives up to its reputation. Our auto insurance rates are among the highest in the nation. Although there are several reasons...

“This is excellent news for us here in Central New York, where farming has been the cornerstone of our rural communities for generations and has direct local and regional impact on our economy. Agricultural production returned almost $4.7 billion to...

Library use has increased across the state. According to some of New York State Library’s latest statistics, visits to public libraries increased by seven million, from 113 million to 120 million, from 2007 to 2009. The number of items borrowed—books,...

“I’m disappointed to learn that a State Supreme Court justice has upheld the SAFE Act and concluded that it did not infringe on our 2nd Amendment right to bear arms. I hope the challenge to the SAFE Act pending in federal court produces a different...

“Ethics reform” has been a buzz phrase heard in Albany and around the state a lot over the last few years, and for good reason. Lately, there have been several high profile cases of wrongdoing by state officials. However, as is often the case in...

“The Majority-controlled Assembly Codes Committee stopped all efforts to repeal the SAFE Act this week. They ensured that this repeal would not make it to the floor for a full Assembly vote. The message was clear: they do not care about our right to...

The 2014-15 New York state budget passed again on time for the fourth year in a row, and we kept state operating spending at under 2% growth. The $137.9 billion spending plan contains some good news for New Yorkers but did fall short on other aspects....

While the $138 billion spending plan for 2014-15 is not ideal, I am pleased with many components of the New York State budget and, accordingly, voted in favor of many of the budget bills. For one, it restores $602 million of the Gap Elimination Adjustment...

According to the most recent statistics I could find, in 2012, more than 600,000 children in the United States and Puerto Rico were victims of child abuse, and more than 1,500 children died as a result of abuse or neglect. Even more tragic, these are...

State budget negotiations are taking place and the budget deadline of April 1 is nearly upon us. Each year, the Senate and the Assembly pass what they consider to be priorities in “one-house budget” resolutions. The Assembly passed its $138.4 billion...

I was pleased to vote in favor of the farm tax credit in the Assembly. This bill establishes a much-needed tax credit for Thruway tolls for farmers. Passing this type of legislation is a good example of how our state can be friendlier to businesses, especially...

Last week, the state Legislature met in joint session to elect four members to the state Board of Regents. The Board of Regents is responsible for the general supervision of all educational activities within New York State, including the implementation...

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, use of illicit drugs in the United States has been increasing. In their Nationwide Trends report (updated January, 2014), in 2012, an estimated 23.9 million Americans aged 12 or older--approximately...

Assemblyman Will Barclay (R,C,I—Pulaski) voted yesterday to reform the controversial Common Core standards and curriculum. Assembly bill 8929 prohibits Common Core testing from counting against students’ permanent records or on teacher evaluation...

Assemblyman Will Barclay (R,C,I—Pulaski) was joined today by fellow lawmakers from the state Senate and Assembly and Upstate Poison Control officials at a press conference to ban synthetic drugs. Joining these officials at the press conference was Teresa...

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the first Surgeon General’s report on Smoking and Health. That report, issued in 1964, was the first federal government report linking smoking to ill health, including lung cancer and heart disease. The news...

Remington Arms announced last week that it will open a large manufacturing plant in Alabama. It will create 2,000 jobs for the southern state. While I don’t begrudge another state from securing these high-paying manufacturing jobs, I do begrudge our...

Assemblyman Will Barclay (R,C,I-Pulaski) today expressed disappointment over the failure of the Assembly Majority to pass meaningful welfare reform, costing the state $120 million in federal aid. Barclay is a co-sponsor of several welfare reform bills...

“We should not be using taxpayer dollars to help prisoners receive a college education. If the purpose of prison is for convicted criminals to pay for the crime they committed, they should do just that, not earn a college degree on our dime. The Governor’s...