| Upstate Democrats serving in the New York State Assembly, New York State Senate and the House of Representatives have come together to create an Upstate Majority Caucus. The caucus consists of 36 members (eight from the House of Representatives, 23 from the New York State Assembly and five from the New York State Senate) who represent districts in upstate New York. They are all Democrats and all 36 serve in Democratic majorities in their respective houses.
Here is the list:
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: Rep. Michael Arcuri, Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand, Rep. Brian Higgins, Rep. Maurice Hinchey, Rep. Dan Maffei, Rep. Eric Massa, Rep. Louise Slaughter and Rep. Paul Tonko
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY: Ron Canestrari, Joan Christensen, Francine DelMonte, RoAnn Destito, Dennis Gabryszak, David Gantt, Tim Gordon, Sam Hoyt, Susan John, David Koon, Barbara Lifton, Donna Lupardo, Bill Magee, William Magnarelli, John McEneny, Joe Morelle, Bill Parment, Crystal Peoples, Bob Reilly, Addie Russell, Robin Schimminger, Mark Schroeder and Al Stirpe
NEW YORK STATE SENATE: Darrel Aubertine, Neil Breslin, Bill Stachowski, Antoine Thompson and David Valesky.
Here is a statement regarding the group's first meeting:
Upstate Majority Legislators Meet to Discuss Economic Revitalization
Upstate Democratic legislators representing a "Conference of Majorities" convened this weekend in Rochester to discuss a unified effort to jumpstart the struggling economy of Upstate New York. The unprecedented meeting, hosted by Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-Fairport) and Assemblyman David Gantt (D-Rochester), brought together representatives from Democratic majorities in the United States House of Representatives, the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate.
When President-Elect Barack Obama is sworn in on Inauguration Day, Democrats will control the executive office and both houses of the legislature at the Federal and State level. The last time Democrats held similar control of so many levels of government was amidst the Great Depression. In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt entered the White House with a Democratic Congress in power and concurrently, in New York, Democrats had just won the majority in the State Senate.
With a federal economic stimulus package expected in the coming weeks and the federal transportation reauthorization bill slated for later this year, the legislators discussed several ways to revitalize the Upstate economy, including high-speed rail and alternative energy sources.
In these trying times, elected leaders must unite in the spirit of hope and cooperation. The Upstate Majorities Conference will not stand by and allow the Upstate economy to continue to decline.
The group plans to meet again soon and will reach out to business and community leaders throughout our region to push a concise and concrete agenda for Upstate New York.
This is going to be a great group for upstate New York. All of these leaders represent upstate districts that need economic development and job growth. Together, they can have a real impact in Albany and in Washington D.C. |
