The following is a response to Governor Andrew Cuomo's State of the State address from Supervisor Christopher P. St. Lawrence of the Town of Ramapo in Rockland County. With more than 126,000 residents, Ramapo is the most populous town in the state outside of Long Island.
"Once again, Governor Cuomo has demonstrated that he is the right person to lead the Empire State at this critical juncture. Although our state is facing a multitude of challenges, Governor Cuomo is clearly prepared to overcome those hurdles through the application of sound strategies and smart solutions.
As our state continues to grapple with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, I commend Governor Cuomo for his herculean efforts to guide New Yorkers through this unprecedented challenge. With families and communities still reeling from the effects of the storm, Governor Cuomo's commitment to ensure that we have the financial wherewithal to rebuild our communities and restore our neighborhoods gives us confidence that New York will be able to bounce back from this devastating natural disaster.
The Governor displayed great foresight by advocating the need for a disaster preparedness plan that will help ensure that New York is ready for whatever challenges nature throws at us in the future. I also commend the Governor for his call to create greater oversight of our state's utility companies. As an outspoken advocate for the ratepayers in numerous rate cases before the Public Service Commission, and someone who has actively opposed the utilities' requests for rate increases on many occasions, I welcome Governor Cuomo's call to hold the utility companies' feet to the fire and make them more accountable for their performance. The utility companies have a responsibility to the people of New York State and a failure to perform cannot be an option.
As our state and our nation continue to mourn the twenty-six victims who tragically lost their lives in the deadly massacre at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, I applaud Governor Cuomo's call for tougher gun control measures and a ban on assault weapons.
We have all watched in horror over the past two years as innocent people lost their lives in a number of mass shootings, including the Sandy Hook massacre, the movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado in July 2012, the shooting in the Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin in August 2012, and the shooting in Tucson, Arizona in January 2011.
Because of the recent uptick in gun violence, the national debate over gun control has taken on a greater urgency, yet the issue has become embroiled in heated political rhetoric. Governor Cuomo knows that we cannot let partisan politics preempt public safety, and his commitment to pass tougher gun control laws will make New York State a safer place for all of us.
It was also refreshing to hear the Governor's call for an increase in the state's minimum wage, his recipe to continue restoring the state's fiscal health, and his goals for New York schools and the education of our children.
Governor Cuomo's vision for New York is the right one, and his plan to continue making this state a better place to live, work, and raise a family is exactly what New Yorkers need. With Governor Cuomo at the helm, New Yorkers can rest assured that even better and brighter times are in store for the Empire State."
Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence, a 6-term Supervisor of the Town of Ramapo in Rockland County, is also a member of the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council and the Mass Transit Task Force, which is a newly formed panel that is charged with studying ways to implement mass transit on a new Tappan Zee Bridge. In addition, St. Lawrence is a 2-term Rockland County Legislator, Chairman of the Rockland County Solid Waste Management Authority, Chairman of the Ramapo River Watershed Council, and Vice Chairman of the Rockland County Sewer District #1.
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