Press Releases

JCOPE Is Broken. Let’s Replace It.

Wouldn’t it seem strange if there was a massive outbreak of foodborne illness and no one thought to ask the FDA about it? If there was a devastating hurricane and no one reached out to FEMA? New York state is currently engulfed by a series of generational...

Ra Calls for Return to Previous LIRR Schedule, Urges Leadership to Reverse Service Cuts

“I’ve heard from numerous constituents that overcrowding on the LIRR continues to be a serious problem. It’s unacceptable. I’ve also been told the mobile app that supposedly monitors train capacity is not functioning properly. That’s also unacceptable....

Ra Rejects Majority Bill Extending Governor’s Emergency Powers

“Now that the Legislature has been convening remotely, there’s no justification whatsoever for extending the governor’s emergency powers. We were elected to govern. The fact that Majority members would extend the governor’s existing orders indefinitely...

Ra, Colleagues Fighting to Increase Transportation Funding for Local Governments

After years of flat budgetary allocations and across-the-board reductions due to COVID-19, Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) and a bipartisan group of his colleagues wrote a letter to legislative leaders and the governor seeking an increased investment...

Ra, Colleagues Fighting to Increase Transportation Funding for Local Governments - Letter

Ra Blasts Assembly Majority for Protecting Cuomo’s Emergency Powers

“Assembly Majority faced a simple choice: either work with Minority members to remove emergency powers from a disgraced governor under investigation by the Department of Justice and the attorney general’s office or play politics and protect his unilateral...

Ra, The Newly Elected President of The New York Conference of Italian-American Legislators, Encourages Local Students to Apply for Athletic, Academic Scholarships

New York Conference of Italian-American Legislators President Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) is encouraging area students to submit applications to the organization’s annual scholarship program. The group distributes two, $4,000 academic scholarships and...

Ra Renews Call for Bipartisan Public Hearings to Investigate Nursing Home Crisis after Lackluster Health Budget Hearing

“Budget hearings do not provide adequate time for the thorough public inquiry owed to the families who lost loved ones during the nursing home crisis. Because members have been stonewalled by the administration since August, it’s understandable that...

Ra Calls for AG Investigation into Sexual Harassment Allegations Against Governor Cuomo

“The story Lindsey Boylan detailed today is specific and credible. It merits a thorough and immediate investigation by the attorney general’s office. We must have zero tolerance for sexual harassment. These allegations describe predatory, unforgivable...

Ra Advocates for State Support of Small Businesses During Economic Development Budget Hearing

During this morning’s joint legislative budget hearing on economic development, Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) made the case for using existing Empire State Development funding to help small businesses hit hard by the pandemic. Ra believes that...

Ra, Minority Colleagues from Senate and Assembly Hold News Conference on Removing the Governor’s Emergency Powers

Today, Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) joined with his Minority colleagues from both houses at a press conference in the Capitol to urge their Majority counterparts to work with them to remove the governor’s emergency powers immediately. “This...

As Governor’s Falsehoods Intensify, Need for Legislative Investigatory Commission Becomes Crystal Clear

“After a week of threatening legislators, exaggerating their connections to world-renowned physicians and admitting to obstructing a federal investigation on a Zoom call, this administration decided the hole they’ve dug themselves in wasn’t deep...

Cuomo Administration Makes Best Case Yet for Our Subpoena Push by Admitting Cover-Up on Zoom Call with Majority Leaders

“Add federal prosecutors to the ever-growing list of people this administration has stonewalled and deceived. During a secret meeting with Majority lawmakers, the governor’s top staffer admitted that they covered up the scope of the nursing home crisis...

State Government Must Rebuild Trust. It Starts with The Legislature

Last week when Attorney General Letitia James released a scathing report detailing the Cuomo administration’s deceptions and failures in our nursing homes over the last year, it was regarded as a bombshell. Bombshell reports get a lot of attention....

Following Bombshell Investigation, Ra Calls for Colleagues in Legislature to Restore Constitutional Order

“Today’s scathing report from the Office of the Attorney General is a stark reminder of why my colleagues and I have continually called for an investigation into the crisis in our nursing homes. These findings are serious and damning. Public trust...

Ra, Colleagues Pass Needed Aid for Small Businesses and Workers in Assembly

Today, Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) helped pass a series of bills delivering needed economic relief to small business owners and workers across the state. Ra supported measures to extend eviction protections to commercial tenants, protect small...

Ra Applauds State Authorization of The Return of Scholastic Sports

“Today’s announcement from the administration clears the path for our kids to get back on the court, back on the field and back on the ice. I’m heartened to see the governor respond to our bipartisan push to get scholastic sports back. It will be...

Assembly Minority Releases ‘Jump Start New York’ With Redesigned Economic Recovery Blueprint

In an effort to stimulate New York’s economic recovery and strengthen its fiscal resilience ahead of future emergencies, the Assembly Minority Conference has compiled and updated a list of proposals — Jump-Start New York: A Plan for Economic Recovery.“All...

‘Jump Start New York’

Ra Says State Government Must Be Laser-Focused on Economic Recovery

“Today, the governor began outlining a broad, ambitious agenda. Some of his ideas are commendable. However, it’s important to remember that our state was facing a multi-billion dollar budget deficit even before COVID-19 rocked our economy and decimated...