Opinion

[The Jan. 28] decision by the Farm Laborers Wage Board [to lower the overtime threshold for farm workers to 40-hours per week] demonstrates how completely tone-deaf Albany bureaucrats are to the needs of the state’s agriculture industry.  Despite hours of testimony, multiple financial reports, and real-world accounts of the devastating impacts a lower overtime threshold will […]

It’s been [just over] a year since Joe Biden took office as president, and though it’s still too early to draw firm conclusions about his performance, it’s not too early to discern some trends. Especially in light of how Biden positioned himself in the 2020 campaign and, I believe, how he still sees himself: as a centrist

The recently unveiled executive budget proposal should be no surprise to anyone who has lived in New York state in the last decade. Spending is looking again to be record-setting, and the $216 billion proposal on the table would represent the largest in the history of the state if passed as it stands. As history has

We Americans share a common faith in democracy as the best and most-just system of governance. We treasure government “of the people, by the people and for the people.” With the founders, we believe that governments derive their authority from the consent of the governed. For generations, we have seen the United States as the world’s champion

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released its most-updated data regarding inflation and spending trends in the U.S. The numbers aren’t just bad; they’re historically bad. The rate of inflation has hit a 40-year high. And the latest announcement came with no immediate solution from New York State’s legislative majorities or Gov. Hochul to address this

Decades ago, it was easy to talk about “the promise of America,” as historians and boosters did regularly, and have most people understand what you meant. These days, I worry they’d look at you as if you’d taken leave of your senses.  Even before the pandemic threw us back on our heels, many people here and abroad

With a $1 trillion infrastructure package on the books and the Biden administration’s $1.8 trillion “Build Back Better” measure preoccupying the Senate after passing the House, government spending is very much on Americans’ minds. In public meetings, I frequently hear people say that government’s share of the economy is too big, and it’s likely that voters’ feelings

While my colleagues and I gear up for a new legislative session, I am optimistic for a brighter and better 2022. To say that the last year has been littered with obstacles and unfortunate distractions is an understatement, and it is now time to get New York back on track for the 20 million residents who call

Looking back at how some of the $2.2 trillion in CARES Act money was spent is a lesson in why we don’t need another multi-trillion-dollar spending bill — they are always fraught with waste and abuse. When Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act in the Spring of 2020, it directed states