Op Eds

After months of talking the talk on rising utility bills and rampant unaffordability, a Democrat in Albany is now attempting to walk the walk with a proposal billed as relief for state employees impacted by the late budget.

That relief, however, isn’t meant for you. It’s aimed at the only group currently not receiving a paycheck: State legislators themselves.

One of the side effects of a late budget, which is now a month past due, is that more than 130,000 state employees are subject to a payroll freeze. It’s customary for lawmakers to pass emergency extenders while negotiations continue to ensure most state employees remain paid. Notably, those extenders do not apply to members of the Legislature, leaving them as the only group currently facing a lapse in pay.

The Automatic Utility Deferment Act would require regulated utility providers to suspend service shutoffs, allow deferred payment on utility bills and waive late payment penalties for covered employees for the duration of the deferment period.

            This proposal is being presented as a helpful mechanism for state employees, but it’s entirely disingenuous. The only people not being paid right now are state legislators, who are the highest-paid state lawmakers in the country, no less. And that’s because they haven’t done their job to pass a budget on time. Instead of serving as an incentive to get the budget done, this proposal removes one of the only consequences lawmakers face for missing the deadline. It’s a sneaky, misleading and self-serving proposal.

While millions of New Yorkers are struggling to keep up with egregiously high utility bills, the same lawmakers responsible for not only blowing past the budget deadline but also advancing some of the most failed and costly energy policies in the country, now want to hold themselves harmless from paying their own. I’ve seen some remarkably bad ideas come through the Legislature before, but this one might be the runaway winner. My colleagues and I will always put New Yorkers first because that’s exactly what we were elected to do.

If you have any questions or comments on this or any other state issue, or if you would like to be added to my mailing list or receive my newsletter, please contact my office. My office can be reached by mail at 19 Canalview Mall, Fulton, NY 13069 and by email at barclayw@nyassembly.gov. You may also find me, Assemblyman Will Barclay, on Facebook or X at @WillABarclay.