05/09/2025
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ALBANY, 5/8/25 - In the late hours of Thursday evening, the New York State Senate passed the bloated $254 billion state budget for 2025-2026. Senator Peter Oberacker voiced sharp criticism of the plan, pointing to misplaced priorities, reckless spending, and the continued disregard for rural communities and public safety.
βLet me start by recognizing a few positives,β said Senator Oberacker. βUniversal free breakfast and lunch in schools, continued investments in school-based health centers, and $5 million in new grant funding for meat processors are wins I fought hard for, both in committee and on the Senate Floor. These programs directly support families and small businesses in our upstate communities.β
But Oberacker made it clear that those wins were overshadowed by the budgetβs larger failures.
βThis budget is completely disconnected from the needs of everyday New Yorkers,β he said. βWhile families are struggling to pay their utility bills and buy groceries, Albany Democrats are busy expanding housing vouchers for illegal migrants and cutting deals behind closed doors.β
Senator Oberacker also condemned the administrationβs ongoing efforts to close more state prisons. A move that disproportionately hurts upstate towns.
βThis isnβt reform, itβs retreat,β said Oberacker. βGovernor Hochulβs policies are gutting correctional facilities, destroying local economies, and ignoring the real crime problems we face. Instead of protecting our communities, sheβs doubling down on a dangerous pro-criminal agenda.β
One of the most egregious budget items, according to Oberacker, is a hidden $10 million appropriation for the legal defense of Attorney General Letitia James, who is facing an FBI investigation for mortgage fraud.
βThis is $10 million of your money to fund a legal slush fund for the Attorney General. This is money that should be going to fix roads, support farmers, or help small businesses,β Oberacker said. βItβs not just wrong, itβs unethical and borderline corrupt.β
βOnce again, the Governor and her allies chose politics over people,β he concluded. βIβll keep standing up for the 51st District and fighting to bring common sense back to Albany. We need to get back to basics. Safe streets, strong schools, lower taxes, and an economy that works for all of New York.β
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