Reclaim New York, a nonprofit that advocates for reforming state government, announced that JOHN BYRNE has joined the organization as regional director for Central and Northern New York. Byrne will lead Reclaim’s grassroots outreach and education efforts in communities across Cayuga, Oswego, Onondaga, Madison, Oneida, Herkimer, Lewis, Jefferson, and St. Lawrence counties. He will work with civic groups, and citizens to “hold government officials accountable for the affordability and corruption problems that have local families struggling, and too often leaving,” the organization said. Byrne grew up in the Southern Tier and started a precision mold company there. As a business owner, he “experienced first-hand how the Empire State’s countless regulations and complex tax code crush New Yorkers and our businesses,” Reclaim New York said. Byrne later moved to the North Country where he first became involved in local government. His “frustration over the lack of transparency” in his hometown inspired him to run for town council, and he served four years on the Cape Vincent board in Jefferson County. Byrne received his associate degree in applied science from Tompkins Cortland Community College in Dryden. He also served eight years in the New York Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve during the Desert Storm era, receiving an honorable discharge.