Steve Hawley, a Batavia resident, and Jennifer Keys, a Le Roy resident, are running for the 139th Assembly District. We emailed three questions to each candidate and are publishing their answers verbatim.
What is the number one issue facing New York, and how will you address it in the Assembly?
HAWLEY: The number one issue in NYS continues to be the majority party and Governor’s out-of-control spending penchant. This year’s state budget is a whopping $220.5 BILLION foisted on our taxpayers during one of the worst inflationary times ever. Property taxes, income taxes, gasoline, grocery & heating expenses for our homes and apartments are literally bankrupting my constituents. Just like any business or family, the government needs to “live within its means.” Additionally, we need to reestablish a criminal justice system that makes our neighborhoods & streets safe again.
KEYS: I believe that the ability to access needed services that are put into place to help lift people up is the number one issue. The barriers are often insurmountable and increased by too many costly layers of government. I will work to identify and implement ways to streamline services for everyone who needs them and also to eliminate unnecessary layers of government. As someone who has worked as a community mental health worker for two or more decades, I have experienced the barriers to accessing behavioral health services, development services, social services, and medical help. The pandemic exposed that folks were not getting paid enough to do the work they were doing and has since increased the shortage of providers across the board. We have a significant shortage of providers in this state for some of our most needy citizens from birth to death, Early Intervention to Office of the Aging. There are waitlists to have basic needs met, such as housing, primary care and dental care. All of this needs to be addressed, including the barriers to hiring more staff. When people cannot get their basic needs met, their stress level increases and they can get stuck in fight, flight, or freeze mode, which can prevent them from getting a job, which then continues the cycle of unstable housing, which then continues everything else. When people live at a lower-than-subsistence level the stress of everyday life becomes their primary focus and that is not healthy for them, their families, or for our society. All of this needs to be addressed in order to increase the functioning of our society.
What could you do as a member of the Assembly to bring more new businesses, start-ups, homegrown businesses to Genesee County, to foster entrepreneurship in Genesee County?
HAWLEY: Our Free Enterprise system has taken serious hits over the last several years. Working long hours, taking risks and believing in one’s self needs to be re-established as a laudable attribute. We need to foster, as elected officials, a philosophy that encourages individuals, existing businesses already located in NYS and others who may be looking to locate here a welcoming and encouraging atmosphere by changing the reality that NYS is the 49th worst state to do business in and the highest taxed state in the nation. How do we do this…..by being responsible…..lowering taxes and fees, fewer adverse mandates and reducing the amount of red tape our state foists on individuals and businesses. We need to encourage, not discourage, success!
KEYS: I do not have a business background, as is well known, but I do recognize that business, particularly small business, is the backbone of our communities. I want to hear from experts in the field, the entrepreneurs themselves, about what it is that they need in order to keep their doors open and to hire more folks. I want to know the barriers and then to partner with other members of the assembly and state senate to create the change that is identified in order to promote increased entrepreneurial ship. My husband and I are raising our family here and, like everyone else, would like our children to have the opportunity to stay here and have their daily needs met.
What is one policy initiative that the political party of your opponent espouses that you think makes sense, is good policy?
HAWLEY: I fully support increasing the availability and accessibility of mental health services.
KEYS: I am not here to play party politics. I am here to represent everyone in the 139th Assembly District in an effort to make a positive impact on the daily lives of everyone who lives here and everyone who chooses to come here in the future.
