State of the Counties

You know you're in good hands when a politician notes, "You want your elected officials to take some risks and not make decisions simply to protect their own jobs". Queensbury Town Supervisor Dan Stec said exactly that as he kicked off the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce's first ever "State of the Counties" breakfast this morning at The Glen at Hiland Meadows. The room was packed with elected officials, area business owners and execs, media and concerned citizens.

Warren County Board of Supervisors Chair Dan Stec spoke first and addressed several key issues, including:
* Americade made an agreement with DEC to continue to use state facilities. Keeping this iconic festival in our community is a huge coup.
* Discussions are progressing nicely with Iowa Pacific Holdings to provide tourist train service. County Attorney/Administrator Paul Dusek expects the contract to be presented for approval in the coming days. The Public Works Committee is expected to vote on April 7th and the full Board of Supervisors at its regular meeting on April 15th.
* The Gaslight Village demolition project is moving forward nicely and ties in with the environmental goals for Lake George. There has also been positive discussion about utilizing the land for festivals in the future.
* The biggest issue right now is clearly the budget. A great website to gain more details and information is NYSAC, whose mission is to represent, educate and advocate for the 62 counties of New York State and the thousands of elected and appointed county officials who serve the public. There is a huge cause and effect with what the state budget looks like and the county's budget looks like.

Washington County Board of Supervisors Chair John Rymph spoke next, along with his respective County Administrator Kevin Hughes to share some of the initiatives, successes and challenges they are facing in 2011 and their vision for the future, including:
* There is a need for better infrastructure and government entities need to focus dollars on things like social services, police protection, infrastructure... thing the government is supposed to do... things businesses cannot accomplish on their own.
* One of our biggest concerns is what we're going to do about energy. John Rymph joked that Washington County has big plans for a nuclear facility, smartly clarifying the news media got that wrong when they suggested they were indeed considering such a facility.
* 76% of the County's budget = pure mandated items. The infrastructure of government has to change as there is a need for fewer layers of government. Kevin Hughes noted if that's what a Tax Cap does, then it's worth it... but if it's just death by a thousand cuts, it's not sustainable and therefore not worth it.


Pictured above, L-to-R are Washington County Board of Supervisors Chair John Rymph, Warren County Board of Supervisors Chair Dan Stec, Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Peter Aust, and Washington County Administrator Kevin Hughes. For more pics from the breakfast, please visit the ARCC Facebook Page.

The Simple Things

A sunny day.
Tree lined streets.
Cheerful faces.
The festive beat of a marching band.

Memorial Day in Glens Falls.

And the people spoke

The town hall style meeting held at the Charles R. Wood Theatre and moderated by Judge David Krogmann drew a nearly full house. The program began with Rona Rahlf, Publisher of The Post-Star, offering a welcome on behalf of The Post-Star and co-sponsors TV8 and the ARCC. She then invited Bob Sweet, of the National Development Council, to the podium.

Judge David Krogmann moderated.



The first speaker of the night quickly made his way to the podium and shared the first of many views that would be shared.



Former Glens Falls Common Council Member, Kay Saunders, spoke of her appreciation for the Civic Center.



Nick Caimano, Warren County Budget Officer, stood to clarify figures in dispute regarding monies given by the County to the City of Glens Falls.



Another resident of Glens Falls spoke to the difficulties created by the burden of the Civic Center deficit.




It was not until the evening's end that the crowd really spoke.



Regarding the five options provided by the NDC:

1 - The city continues to own and manage the arena;

2 - The city retains ownership and hires a private management firm;

3 - The city transfers ownership to a regional authority or local development corporation;

4 - The city transfers ownership to a private firm that would operate the arena; and

5 - The city closes the arena and redevelops the site for some other use.

And the tall of the votes in the non-binding, public vote:

#2 had 112 votes or 67 percent

#4 had 25 votes or 15 percent

#3 had 19 votes or 11 percent

#5 had 8 votes or 4 percent

#1 had just 4 votes

Congress and Progress at Your Corner

The ARCC played matchmaker and as a result Binley Florist played host to a Congress at Your Corner with Congresswoman Gillibrand this past weekend and receiving incredible exposure through pre-event press and the thousands of calls made to promote the event.



Congresswoman Gillibrand's office had contacted the Chamber looking for a location to host their Congress at Your Corner program in Queensbury.

"We suggested Binley’s and they took us up on the offer. Stewarts which opened their newest store right across the street participated by providing refreshments for those who gathered to meet with Congresswoman Gillibrand," recounted Todd Shimkus, ARCC CEO.

As a result of the Congresswoman's visit and converstaions that took place regarding the efforts of the Glens Falls BID to transform City Park, some of her staff will be assisting the local effort in the coming weeks by working with BID members to draft at least three grant applications to help secure the funding for this project.



Once the event was over Congresswoman Gillibrand took a moment to thank Wally Hirsch for having her at his festive location at 773 Quaker Road in Queensbury.

Congress at Your Corner...Florist

Congresswoman Gillibrand will be at ARCC member, Binley Florist and Garden Center located at the corner of Dix Ave and Quaker Rd in Queensbury to hold Congress At Your Corner this Saturday, October 27th, at 2:30. If you’d like to come and speak with her about issues that are important to you, she would love to see you!

Taylor and Caimano Get PAC Nod

BUSINESS FIRST PAC ENDORSES TAYLOR AND CAIMANO

The Business First Political Action Committee today announced that it has endorsed Bud Taylor, a candidate for Glens Falls Ward 3 Supervisor; Queensbury-at-Large Supervisor Nick Caimano, in his race to become County Treasurer; and the re-election of Glens Falls Ward 5 Supervisor Bill Kenny.

According to Dwayne Zuhlke, the PAC’s Chairman, the organization is still scheduling interviews with a wide range of candidates for office that will appear on the ballot this November. The organization met with Mr. Taylor, Mr. Caimano and Mr. Kenny in August. The Business First PAC was formed by area business leaders in 2003 so that the business community could speak out in support of pro-business candidates particularly at the local and county level.

“Bud’s commitment to reduce property taxes and to promote inter-municipal cooperation really made a positive impression with us during his interview,” added Zuhlke. “He will bring a regional approach to problem solving and to enhance the communication that must go on between the Board, the Mayor and the Common Council. The fact is that Bud has also been a successful business person and he understands the challenges we face.”

“Nick Caimano impressed us with his genuine desire to utilize the position of Treasurer as an advocate of the taxpayer and a resource to the Board of Supervisors,” said Zuhlke. “The Business First PAC believes that Nick will take undertake new initiatives and help lead our County in a more fiscally conservative taxpayer friendly manner.”

“Bill Kenny has received our PAC’s endorsement every year since we’ve been interviewing candidates because of his strong opposition to increasing the County’s sales and property taxes,” said Zuhlke. “The business community enjoys a strong working relationship with Mr. Kenny and his leadership on the County Board as a pro-business advocate is greatly appreciated.”

PAC Announces Queensbury Endorsements

BUSINESS FIRST PAC* ENDORSES SLATE OF CANDIDATES IN QUEENSBURY

The Business First Political Action Committee today announced that it has endorsed Fred Champagne, Bill Van Ness, Bill Mason and Matt Sokol for the four at-large seats on the Warren County Board of Supervisors representing the Town of Queensbury. For the Queensbury Town Board, the PAC has endorsed: Anthony Metivier, in Ward 1; Tim Brewer, in Ward 4; Sharon Borgos, in Ward 3; and Ron Montesi, in Ward 2.

According to Dwayne Zuhlke, the PAC’s Chairman, the Business First PAC was formed by area business leaders in 2003 so that the business community could speak out in support of pro-business candidates particularly at the local and county level during elections. “We work hard to determine which of the candidates are pro-business which in our opinion means that they support reducing taxes and solving local challenges regionally through shared services and better cooperation,” said Zuhlke. “We base our endorsement decisions on interviews with the candidates where we discuss a range of business and economic issues as well as a review of their votes or public positions on key business issues. Whether or not a candidate seeking our endorsement has ever owned, operated or managed a business is also an important consideration that we consider in our evaluation process.”


*The Business First PAC is a member of the ARCC and not to be confused as a part of the ARCC. Its views are based on its members and do not necessarily represent the views of the ARCC.

About that report card...

Shimkus talks to Governor Spitzer about Business Council Report Card

ARCC President Todd Shimkus was one of just two chamber executives in the upstate that had the chance to ask questions directly of Governor Spitzer during a 30-minute teleconference hosted by the Governor. The Governor’s office set up this teleconference to hear from Chamber executives representing communities that had not faired so well in a recent Business Council report card on economic growth. In his discussion with the Governor, Todd suggested that the state could better help Washington and Warren Counties to expand economic opportunity and to respond to some of the challenges noted in the Business Council’s report card by providing monies to encourage cities and towns to expand and connect regional water and sewer systems to increase the area’s shovel ready property for new industrial development. He also asked the Governor to consider ways the state could support Adirondack Community College’s higher educational facility. Once built, this facility will better enable local residents to secure four year degrees without ever leaving our region helping us to retain their talents and to improve our region’s educational attainment levels. In response, the Governor noted that the state’s higher education system is looking at better integration strategies to align the four-year and two-year college programs. He also noted that the recent bridge collapse in Minneapolis/St-Paul has put a great deal of new focus on federal and state funding for infrastructure projects. He has a team now working on developing proposals for investing in key infrastructure projects throughout the state.

Say It Loud: They're Keeping it Low!

Announced Today:

Warren County will remain one of only 5 counties in all of New York to cap its local sales tax at 3%. That is the outcome of a meeting of the Warren County Board of Supervisors today. The ARCC has been a vocal opponent of a proposed 1% increase in the county sales tax believing the focus should be on reducing expenses first.

We applaud the Board of Supervisors for their thorough study and analysis of the pro’s and con’s of this proposal and more so for the decision to keep our sales tax the lowest in the state. This decision saves local taxpayers from a more than $10 million increase in their taxes. The ARCC has been the only local organization opposing this proposal to attend each of the four prior committee meetings on this matter.

Rapping About Health Care

R. Randolph Rapple, General Manager/Divisional VP, Barton Mines Co. LLC spoke at yesterday's summit on the North Country's health care crisis.

United for Change

Today, at a meeting in Lake George, representatives from area health care providers and law makers gathered to address an issue threatening rural New Yorkers. The potential crisis involves a serious shortage in health care services. The group worked swiftly and decisively. A letter was drafted and will be sent to Governor Spitzer. The three actions the group is calling for to, "avert a health care catastrophe in the North Country" are:

1) commit emergency funding to protect essential community providers in the Adirondacks from fiscal collapse;
2) convene both public authorities and private carriers to assure that all payers contribute their fair share to both the rescue and continuing support of essential services; and
3) establish an Adirondack Healthcare Demonstration Project to test and validate reforms that are needed statewide but for which this region can no longer wait.

We will keep you posted as we learn more.

On the Horizon

Photo by Dan Way for LARAC exhibit



Next Tuesday, the 4th of September, the Glens Falls Planning Board will receive a presentation by The Chazen Companies and the Glens Falls BID (Business Improvement District) regarding their proposal to restore and enhance City Park.




Two days later, on Thursday, September 7th at 10am, the full Warren County Board of Supervisors will meet to discuss the proposed 1% sales tax increase.

Doing the Right Thing

We can't be all things to all people, but we try to be the best we can for you.

At a recent meeting of the Business First Political Action Committee, one of the PAC’s local members noted that it is hard for the business community to attend the wide range of seemingly non-stop board and council meetings to advocate for a business friendly environment. There are literally dozens of local boards and commissions that have the power to take actions of direct and indirect impact on our members.

For instance, the Washington and Warren County Boards of Supervisors meet during the day as do most of their committees which is when most business executives are focused on their day jobs, meeting payroll, making sales and serving their customers and clients.

"We realize that the world is run by those who show up and it is our job to show up whenever a decision is being made that will positively or negatively impact our members and our region’s economy," states Todd Shimkus , CCE, President/CEO of the ARCC. "As an advocate for the region’s business community, we don’t always take the most popular or politically expedient positions and there are certainly times where some in government will perceive us as the antagonist. We continuously strive to be a resource and to make our case on the merits of the evidence we have but this strategy doesn’t always work."

So what has the ARCC done lately in the role of advocate
(that has not caused a public sensation) …



Platforms and Big Ears -
(Not shoes and parts of the body, places and people.)
Our region is often overlooked or lumped in with places hundreds of miles away, slowly but surely, we have created a legitimacy to our region, actually appearing on the radar of politicians and others who can help us achieve the changes we need locally.

• I Live NY – On a Tuesday afternoon in August, the Governor’s office called and asked if the ARCC would be willing to put together a program for some of its members with the Governor’s wife Silda Wall Spitzer. Mrs. Spitzer is heading up an effort entitled "I Live NY " to identify strategies to reverse the Upstate "brain drain." Within a matter of hours, we had organized a focus group of area business and educational leaders with the help of Dr. Ronald Heacock, ACC’s new President, for the following week.The discussion itself was wide ranging with a great many suggestions made that are likely to influence the work of the Governor’s task force.

Advocating for function and form -
(Known for our forest, we can't forget the trees...
or the sidewalks, or the bus stops or the storefronts)
Realizing that sometimes the along the journey to progress even the most well-intentioned lose sight of the details, we endeavor to remind decision makers how we look from the outside looking in.

• Trolley Stops in Queensbury – On a Monday evening, in July, the ARCC attended a Queensbury Town Board workshop along with Scott Sopczyk of the Greater Glens Falls Transit Authority to seek the Town Board’s assistance with installing covered trolley/bus stops along Route 9. The ARCC and the Transit Authority were looking for the Town’s assistance in identifying and securing permission from property owners in ideal locations for these stops to allow for their installation as well as a means for funding this project. The goal is to provide a better, more convenient and more welcoming public transit system for tourists, visitors, residents and workers that use the trolley’s over the summer and now must wait on grassy knolls and street corners for the next trolley or bus to come along rain or shine.

A Powerful Voice -
(Not speaking louder, but stronger and reaching farther.)
By creating a shared literacy, within a dedicated group of respected professionals, of subjects that directly impact our region, the potential for getting the ear of people in positions capable of effecting change is increased.

• Regional planning in Washington County – On a Thursday afternoon, in August, a group of business and educational leaders who had taken part in the ARCC’s Intercity Visit to Hillsboro, Oregon, delivered a power point presentation and open discussion about what was seen and learned from this trip to the members of the Washington County Board of Supervisors.The Supervisors were given an opportunity to hear this presentation and to ask questions as part of the delegations outreach program to begin a dialogue about the types of actions our region might consider taking to improve its ability to achieve economic growth while enhancing our region’s extraordinary quality of life just as Hillsboro has done over the last 30 years.

Big Presence for Small Business-
(Big responsibility, little free time.)
The individuals who often need to speak the loudest are rarely free to leave the counter to speak up for themselves, we try to attend meetings in their stead.

• Sales Tax in Warren County – On a Wednesday morning, in August, the ARCC’s professional staff attended a meeting of the Warren County Board of Supervisor’s Ad Hoc Sales Tax Committee. This committee has spent several months studying the costs and benefits of increasing Warren County ’s sales tax by 1 percent. The ARCC has attended each of the committee sessions held during this time and has repeatedly and publicly expressed its opposition to this tax increase. The ARCC has consistently noted that the way to control property taxes in Warren County is NOT to increase the sales tax but to better manage spending in the first place.

Fighting to Pave a Way -
(Because we think the accountable need to be held accountable.)
We are an organization driven by a dedication to helping small business. We are also families, tax payers, small business owners, parents and passionate individuals. We want the best for our region on many levels.

• Tech Meadows in Glens Falls – Over a couple of days in August, the ARCC wrote a letter and emailed the Mayor and members of the Glens Falls Common Council, the Glens Falls Local Development Corporation and the Glens Falls Industrial Development Agency urging the City to take whatever action is necessary to allow for more flexibility in uses of the City’s Tech Meadows property. This advocacy campaign began in response to the City rejecting one or more large scale development proposals for this land because the uses were not for technology companies. Either of these proposed uses, however, would have led to the City and the Glens Falls School District realizing hundreds of thousands of dollars of new property tax revenue at a time when the City desperately needs money to provide vital services and to fix aging infrastructure.

Safety -
(A hot button issue, but a little heat never scared us.)
Whether it's workplace safety, something related to our region's youth, or the safety of our visitors, we advocate vociferously for the greatest measures taken to protect those we serve.

• Cell Service along the Northway – In June, the ARCC promoted AAA’s letter writing campaign to the Governor’s office regarding the urgent need for cell service along the Northway. The ARCC reached out to its members via broadcast email. Those interested members who received this email in turn contacted the Governor’s office directly helping AAA generate thousands of signatories on their petitions.



These are just a few of the examples we can offer.

"Many times we simply make phone calls to advise elected officials of information we have that will help them to make the best decision," added Shimkus. "Other times we are able to partner with them and provide technical advisors to various committees they may form to deal with particularly complex issues. Yet the bottom line is that we’re willing to be a partner, a resource, an advisor and an advocate and to utilize every avenue we can think of to advance a public policy agenda that will help local companies to succeed, grow and thrive and to enable our region to expand economic opportunity."

And in this corner...

Did you hear the one about the ruckus
caused by speaking up in the name of community?

It all began with a letter. Remember those?
Written by hand and sent via postal carrier?
Granted, this one was typed, but it was still sent through the mail.

Here it is in its entirety :

(Click on it to make it larger)

That letter, coupled with indefatigable representation of the business community through attendance of meetings, public advocacy and behind the scenes efforts to create positive change, sparked the aforementioned ruckus.

Soon there will be more. Todd Shimkus reached out to Fifth Ward Councilman Bennet Driscoll, asking that efforts be made to salvage a deal with Travelers. Mr. Driscoll shared his intentions to approach Mike Mender,"to make sure that a resolution will be added to next Tuesday's agenda instructing the Mayor to work with the EDC and contact again representatives from Traveler's."

Councillors Jim Brock, Judy Villa White and Michael Busch all verbally agreed to support this resolution.

Stay tuned.

Hyde House Gets a Special Visit

Mrs. Silda Spitzer, First Lady of the State of New York, touring The Hyde Collection with Director of Education, Sara Hallberg on Wednesday, August 15th.

The Hyde Collection Mission
As stated by Mrs. Hyde in her 1952 Trust Agreement establishing The Hyde Collection, our mission remains "to maintain a Museum for the exhibition of the permanent collection and to promote and cultivate the improvement of the fine arts, for the education and benefit of the residents of Glens Falls and vicinity and the general public."

Visit the Hyde.

Snippets from First Lady Silda Spitzer's Visit

During a focus group on the Adirondack Community College campus in Queensbury, Governor Spitzer's wife, Silda, talked about her I Live New York initiative and her hopes about curbing the NY brain drain.

Live it, don't leave it.

The late afternoon sun shone through the windows as a group of twenty local business leaders gathered in the Marshall Conference Room at Adirondack Community College to talk with New York State's First Lady Silda Spitzer about her I Live New York initiative. The signs around the table demonstrated a diverse group, with representatives from health care, medical device manufacturing, legal and financial services, economic development, education, advertising and media.

After a brief welcome, First Lady Spitzer said hello and snickered sheepishly, as the group stood to welcome her, the men wearing suits and the women in equally conservative in dress, that she had dressed down for the intense travel and the more rustic settings further north. She then launched into background on the Brain Drain campaign, designed to complement the efforts of communities throughout upstate New York, in communicating effectively to our region's young people that lives can be made and enjoyed right here at home.

William Flaherty of National Grid and Marcie Dreimiller of Glens Falls Hospital, past and current presidents respectively, of the Adirondack Business and School Partnership, speak about the realities of the disconnect between the business community and the teaching force.

Len Fosbrook, President, EDC Warren County, NY, explained how New Markets Tax Credits could help promote new business in our region, particularly if incentives were taken from the town and city level to the county level, which could effectively diminish the comptetiveness between map lines.

September 18th at SUNY Cortland, the First Lady will host the innaugural I Live New York Summit.
More Coverage:
Here.
And here.

Checks, Balances and DEBT

The continuing pursuit of an answer that won't devastate small business and citizens.


The Warren County Board of Supervisor’s Ad-Hoc Sales Tax Committee met yesterday and the ARCC was the only organization in attendance. The ARCC has sent one of our professional staff members to each of these committee meetings since they began several months ago. The goal was to monitor the work of the committee and to ensure that our opposition to an increase in the sales tax was voiced consistently.

The ARCC has long opposed an increase in the sales tax as it will increase the cost of doing business in Warren County and will not guarantee a decrease in the property tax. The ARCC continues to argue that the only way to control NY’s extraordinarily high tax burden is to control the amount of money government can raise in the first place. Yesterday, the committee of Supervisors recommended that discussion of whether or not to increase Warren County’s sales tax by 1 percent be the focus of a special Board meeting in September.

In advocating for the 1 percent increase in the sales tax, Lake Luzerne Supervisor Gene Merlino offered a suggestion as to how the County could use the $14 million that such an increase will raise annually in an attempt to reduce property taxes. His suggestion included the following: $7 million for property tax relief; $2 million set aside to pay mortgage for health and human services building; $1 million each for the County road department, Sherriff’s department, and a surplus fund. He also suggested that the County reduce the bed tax from 4% to 2% and use $1.5 million from the increased sales tax to fund county tourism operations now supported by the bed tax. His recommendation also set aside $500,000 from the sales tax increase for Glens Falls to use for East Field and the Civic Center. The increase in the sales tax and these mandated uses would be subject to a sunset clause after five years meaning that if the funds were not spent to reduce property taxes that the sales tax increase would be eliminated after 5 years.

Supervisors Nick Caimano, Bill Kenny and Fred Champagne were vocal in their opposition to an increase in the County’s sales tax. One supervisor noted that he had heard from officials in Washington County and indicated that they had told him that they were prepared to follow whatever lead was taken by the Warren County Board. If this information is correct, this means that the success of the ARCC’s opposition to an increase in the sales tax in Warren County may also help Washington County businesses to avoid the costs associated with an increase in the County’s sales tax as well.

Besides wanting to control the spending appetite of government, the ARCC recently released a report it created that documents the fact that many small businesses (those who lease space) as well as households who rent will pay more in taxes if the sales tax is increased even if the property tax is decreased. The report noted that all small businesses typically spend money on equipment, supplies, and other business oriented purchases that are subject to the sales tax and as such their costs will rise if an increase is approved. The ARCC will continue to monitor the work of the committee and will notify members as soon as a special meeting is called.

Remembrance

Fort Hudson Health System held a dedication ceremony of Monday, July 2nd for the Veteran's Memorial. Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand arranged for the flag used in the Washington Flag presentation to be flown over the United States Capital on June 7th, 2007. The Congresswoman sent Lisa Manzi from her office as a representative at the ceremony. Manzi presented the flag to Mr. John A. Matochik Jr., DVM the Fort Hudson Foundation President and Veteran of War.


Senator Betty Little also participated in the ceremony with a flag presentation. Andrew Cruikshank, CEO Fort Hudson Health System presented a plaque. The Rasing of the Colors was executed by American Legion Post 574 of Hudson Falls.

The veterans honored in the ceremony:

Donna Allie, Maynard Alverson, Dan Anderson, Vivian Blakely,
Mike Brown, Roy Brown, Gwendolyn Bussey, Moses Carma,
Jack Coburn, James Conway, Elizabeth Dickinson, Bernard Dobler,
William Edwards, Mike Eggleton, David Eldridge, Kevin Fisher,
Gus Griffing, Gary Hammond, Paul Hillman, Irving Jenkins,
Walter Komsa, Patty Kupiec, Angelo LaSarso, Richard Leight,
Don MacArthur, Vincent Malvuccio, Robert McClard,
Mary McKenna, Howard Miles, Tammy Moss, Robert Munger,
Larry Olsen, Jim Patton, Stanford Searl, Edward Seely,
Floyd "Pete" Smith, Len Smith, Bill Ward, Dean Warde,
Arnold Weatherwax, Bob Winney, Frank Williams.

Fruits of Labor are Lower Labor Costs

We've just received word from Kenneth Adams on the latest regarding NY State Workers' Comp reform:

To all members and friends of The Business Council:

I am writing to thank you for the solid, longstanding, grass-roots business community support that made possible yesterday's tremendous good news about workers' comp.

As you'll have seen in the papers, as well as in The Business Council's on-line dispatch, Governor Spitzer announced yesterday that workers' comp rates for the 2007-08 rating year will be cut by an average of 20 percent. This is expected to save New York employers a total of $1 billion next year.

You can read the Governor's news release here.

The Business Council news brief is here.

The rate reduction was made possible by the workers' comp reforms we won this year in negotiations with the Governor, the Legislature and the state AFL-CIO - the fruit of more than five years of work by The Business Council, individual member companies, chambers of commerce, manufacturers' associations, Unshackle Upstate and other allies.

There's a summary of those reforms here.

We're tremendously proud of this achievement - and acutely aware that we couldn't have done it without your support. Thank you again.

Kenneth Adams
President and CEO
The Business Council of New York State, Inc.

"We at the ARCC would like to thank Senator Little, Assemblyman Roy McDonald and Assemblywoman Sayward for their commitment and contributions to this effort, and, in effect, their assistance in helping local companies succeed, grow and thrive." Todd Shimkus, ARCC CEO and President.