Following a six month recess, the New York State (NYS) Assembly, including Port Washington’s representative, Assemblywoman Gina Sillitti, are back in Albany for the new legislative session. During this legislative session, the NYS Assembly along with committee members came together to propose legislation that will eventually reach the floor, possibly be voted on, and then potentially be brought to Governor Hochul for review.
Assemblywoman Sillitti, the NYS Assemblywoman for Port Washington, Great Neck, and other nearby towns, has plans to help address many of the key issues affecting our community. One of these major issues is climate change, which has resulted in reduced shorelines and extensive flooding during intense storms.
“A big priority has to do with climate change, including climate change mitigation, shoreline restoration, and flooding,” said Assemblywoman Sillitti in an interview with The Schreiber Times.
In the interview, Sillitti described how she was coming back from Albany to Port Washington during a recent storm and witnessed waves spilling over Shore Road, a sight that has become normal for the road during storms. She also discussed how she’s been working to help fix the issue, and how over the summer, she showed the Speaker of the NYS Assembly around Manhasset Bay and made sure that the many issues in the town were being addressed thoroughly by New York State.
Sillitti, a member of the Election Law Committee for the NYS Assembly, has recently proposed a bill to ensure that future elected officials tell the truth about their resumes, requiring that they sign a sworn statement about certain required aspects of their resume.
“I wanted to do something that wouldn’t prevent people from running, but would still help make sure people would tell the truth about their background,” said Sillitti.
The law has received bipartisan support and would take action to prevent future fraudulent characters from entering office.
“You can’t legislate morals, but you can legislate telling the truth, so this bill is going to make sure that people say, ‘I am who I say I am, I live where I say I live, and I meet the requirements to run for office’,” said Sillitti.
This legislation is a response to former Congressman Santos’ fraudulent history, and how he was successfully able to enter office despite his dishonest resume. Sillitti also stated that her legislation was also an effort to try and build trust with the public and disillusioned voters.
“I think it’s a very good thing that she is taking action against fraudulent politicians,” said junior Isabel Epstein.
In addition to these two bills, Sillitti also revealed a bill that she proposed earlier this month which would lower the voting age to 16 for Board of Education elections, which mirrors a move that was recently integrated in New Jersey.
“Yesterday we announced a bill, which would lower the voting age to 16 for school board elections. I’m hoping that this will help get students more involved in their school and give them a say in their day-to-day lives,” said Sillitti in her interview.
Sillitti has also worked significantly for gun-reform and common sense gun laws, including one bill that she wrote last year that was accepted in a major gun reform package that would make firearms illegal at polling locations.
“It seems like common sense, and the goal is to help keep poll workers safe,” said Sillitti when she was questioned about the policy.
She also has many plans for future bills related to our first responders, including police and firefighters, as has worked closely with local law enforcement in the past.
Sillitti has tackled and plans on continuing to tackle food insecurity. In the past, the assemblywoman has been involved in many different drives including annual food, school, and sports drives for low-income families and communities across the district.
“I think it’s very important that people like her are taking action on these issues. Even though we live in a pretty wealthy district, food insecurity is still a major problem that needs to be addressed,” said junior Harrison Chin.
In addition to this, Sillitti has raised thousands in grant money for food pantries across Long Island to help further combat the issue.
“Assemblywoman Sillitti has done incredible work in fundraising for food pantries, leaving no kid hungry is something that is non-negotiable,” said junior Nathan Jackman.
A policy that she’s also pushed for is free, healthy, school meals for all.
“Certain students haven’t eaten, and this policy puts everybody on an even playing field,” said Sillitti.
The ‘free lunch for all’ policy is only extended to schools that meet a certain threshold of low-income students who are eligible for free lunch, and the Port Washington School District is not eligible due to the fact that it didn’t meet that requirement. Despite this, Sillitti still plans to do more to ensure that people have free, healthy meals, both in and outside of school.
As the school year progresses, so does the legislative session, and both are set to end in June. Sillitti has recently just entered her third year working as our NYS assemblymember, and plans on continuing her efforts to bring about common sense gun laws, fair election laws, and creating a healthy environment.