O'Mara votes 'No' on legislative pay raise

Albany, N.Y., December 22—State Senator Tom O’Mara (R,C-Big Flats) today voted against legislation (S9617/A10730) approved by the Democrat majorities in the Senate and Assembly to make New York the highest-paid Legislature in the nation.

If signed into law by Governor Kathy Hochul, as expected, the legislation will take effect on January 1 and increase legislators’ base pay from the current $110,000 to $142,000.

O’Mara released the following statement:

“New York’s taxpayers live under the highest state and local tax burden in the nation. Families are struggling to make ends meet. Too many small businesses and family farms are barely surviving. Crime is rampant and New Yorkers don’t feel safe where they live and work. Local economies, especially upstate, are stagnant. There’s a fentanyl crisis, an unemployment insurance crisis, an affordability crisis, a public safety crisis, an unfunded mandate crisis, and the list goes on. Yet the Albany Democrats call a special session to make New York the highest-paid Legislature in the nation. One-party, all-Democrat rule has been a disaster for everyday New Yorkers. It’s out of control and it’s about to go from bad to worse in the new year.”