By State Sen. James Tedisco, R–Glenville, 44th District
New York has an affordability problem. We all know it.
After being part of the problem for many years, it has finally dawned on our Governor that people can’t afford to live here.
It’s no wonder people are escaping New York in droves, leading the nation in out-migration.
Our previous governor blamed the exodus on the weather.
Remember the 1990s hit “Blame it on the Rain”? We may get our share of precipitation in New York, but when 16 percent of people fleeing our state head for the “warm and balmy” state of New Jersey, you can’t credibly “blame it on the rain!”
One of my all-time favorite movies is the film classic “Casablanca” with Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Claude Rains, among a stellar cast.
In a famous scene from the film, Claude Rains’ character, Captain Renault, expresses his mock outrage that there is gambling taking place at Humphrey Bogart’s establishment, saying “I’m shocked, shocked to find there’s gambling going on in here” as someone hands him his gambling winnings!
I was shocked that the Governor attempted to illustrate that she was “shocked” when she came out after being in charge for five years having super majorities in both houses and suddenly saying that we have an affordability problem in New York State!
None of our constituents are shocked because they’ve been living with this affordability problem for a while.
The reality is this has been an issue for a while now and it relates to an agenda that is simply holistically not working.
In the Empire State, over the last seven years, who has controlled all levers of power?
Who controls the present agenda which is sent taxpayers scurrying from New York State?
If your answer is the previous governor and this Governor, Kathy Hochul, and her allies in the Senate and Assembly Majorities, you’d be correct.
Who really believes a $200 election eve check will solve the affordability problem that ails New Yorkers?
No, it’s the holistic failed agenda which has demographers predicting the loss of two and possibly even three members of Congress from New York in the 2032 census. In other words, less representation to stand up for New Yorkers at the federal level.
Crime, taxes, insurance costs, daycare, healthcare, unrealistic energy mandates, and the lack of affordable housing are all to blame for New York’s affordability crisis.
An obvious example of poor decision making when it comes to affordability for New Yorkers is the Governor’s push for the “All Electric Buildings Act” which she signed into law in 2023 that requires all new construction to be electric by 2026 for smaller buildings and all buildings having to comply by 2029.
At the end of 2025, the Governor announced a “pause” on the implementation of this bill which would ban the use of natural gas including gas stoves and heating,
Don’t be fooled.
The Governor’s “pause” on her “All Electric Buildings Act” is only a bait and switch to try and get her through the next election.
Once that’s over, she will again seek to ban all gas heating and new construction, increasing the cost to homeowners and businesses in our state.
No one is against investing in alternative fuel energy solutions, as I’ve long sponsored legislation to study a transition to it. But it must be developed based on deliverable metrics over a reasonable period that does not make it more difficult for people to build a home and business.
It should not be based on political rhetoric on the eve of an election year.
Under the governor’s gas ban, it will cost between $5,000 and $10,000 more to go electric to build a new home for homeowners who are already struggling to afford to buy a home in our state.
I am a sponsor of legislation (S.1167) to repeal the gas ban and bring back some common sense to this issue.
The Empire State is a beautiful state with amazing and talented citizens.
Unfortunately, under one-party rule, it’s become too expensive for many people to afford to live and work in, which has led to a mass escape from New York over the past few years. Nothing illustrates this clearer then the fact that a recent National Taxpayers Union Foundation study ranks New York number two for interstate migration with someone permanently leaving the Empire State every 2 minutes and 23 seconds. — only California is seeing greater loss of taxpayers.
As the new 2026 legislative session begins this month, I’m ready to work, as I’ve always done, in a bipartisan fashion to help turn this economy around and make our state a more affordable and safer place to live and work so we can get New York on the right track again.