State government’s effect on local municipalities came up again and again in a recent debate between candidates in the 109th Assembly District.
The Thursday, Nov. 1, forum sponsored by Spotlight Newspaper and the Albany League of Women at Bethlehem’s Town Hall was to be the last time Democratic candidate Patricia Fahy, Republican Ted Danz and Conservative candidate Joseph Sullivan met before Election Day. Voters went to the polls Tuesday, Nov. 6, after The Spotlight went to press. Visit spotlightnews.com for full coverage.
The newly redrawn district encompasses the southwestern parts of the City of Albany and the towns of Guilderland, New Scotland and Bethlehem. Candidates are vying to replace retiring Assemblyman Jack McEneny.
During the hour-long forum, candidates were asked questions submitted by the audience. The answers to many came back to mandate relief and the topic of education. Fahy is the former President of the Albany City School Board.
“Mandate trickle down is causing testing fatigue in students,” said Fahy, who added she does not support Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s new teacher evaluation system.
Sullivan said local districts need control over the curriculum to support education and said teaching to standardized tests should be ended.
“The government needs to stay out of education,” he said.
Danz is the founder of Danz Family Heating in Guilderland, while Sullivan is a U.S. Navy veteran living in the City of Albany.
Fahy said cutbacks at the federal and state level are resulting in an increase of mandates at the local level that are non-sustainable. Danz agreed, adding that mandates are crushing county governments, who should be able to have greater control over their pension system and medical benefits.
No candidate said they would foresee voting for a tuition increase in the state university system. Fahy said she would fight to help students struggling to attend college to find additional resources, while Danz called the SUNY system “the jewel of New York state.” Sullivan said he feels too many people are attending college today who do not belong there, and said more support should be given to trade programs, something Fahy agreed with.
All three candidates felt the new 2 percent tax cap law is not working as intended.
Fahy said for school district budgets, the cap is pitting students against property tax payers because the number of mandates often causes districts to challenge the cap and many municipalities are facing insolvency.
“It’s a band-aid that’s treating the symptoms instead of the problem,” she said.
Danz said he agreed with the principles behind the cap but feels there are too many ways for municipalities to challenge the cap or allow for a formula that raises taxes above 2 percent.
On term limits, Fahy and Sullivan were both opposed to the concept but for different reasons. Sullivan said they were not needed because voters could oust politicians they felt were unfit to serve, while Fahy felt term limits empowered the staff members above representatives. Danz said term limits are needed because those with heavily funded campaigns will continue to win if campaign finance reform isn’t passed.
All candidates agreed changes are needed within the state Medicaid system and all said bipartisanship is needed to move the state forward. Danz said the partisan atmosphere “is crippling state government,” while Sullivan believed many politicians are currently working together.
“You have Cuomo endorsing Republicans right now,” he said.
Fahy also appeared on the Working Families line, while Danz won the Independence line in a September primary.