[1]Alessandra Biaggi - Democrat for State Senate



Friends -

Almost everything that gets done in Albany each year happens during budget
season — and right now, we are in budget season.

Do you remember when you were in grade school and you learned how a bill
becomes a law? That the budget starts in the House, it passes the Senate,
and then eventually the president signs or vetoes it?

That’s not how it happens in New York.

In New York, the governor proposes the budget and the legislature can only
strike items out. And if we do add any items, the governor has the power
to veto those additions individually, leaving the things he or she likes
intact.

That is how Andrew Cuomo shoved a provision into page 347 of last year’s
budget shielding nursing home operators from liability for their failures
to protect their residents from COVID.

And it is how Andrew Cuomo and a small group of insiders have created
budgets that reward the rich and powerful and leave our most vulnerable
communities behind.

Here are my priorities for this year’s budget:

 1. I am fighting to fully fund Medicaid after Governor Cuomo squeezed it
in last year’s budget.
 2. I am fighting for $750 million in funding for public housing and more
for rental assistance.
 3. And I am fighting to pass the Invest in Our New York package which
will raise revenues by taxing some of the wealthiest New Yorkers in
order to fund these programs and others.

The budget process is fundamentally broken. The legislature should be a
co-equal branch of government in this process, and that is especially true
when we have a governor in office who has historically been an
untrustworthy partner.

I’ll have a lot more on this year’s budget soon, but I wanted to give you
a heads up on what to expect from the process and what my priorities are
as the debate unfolds.

Stay safe,

Alessandra Biaggi

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sign Alessandra’s petition if you agree this year’s budget should
prioritize fully funding Medicaid, increasing housing and rental
assistance, and taxing the wealthiest New Yorkers to pay for it.

[ [link removed] ]Sign AB’s petition — make your voice heard.

[ [link removed] ]ADD YOUR NAME



 
Email is a very important way we communicate with supporters like you, but if you want to, you can unsubscribe here: [link removed]