To the Editor:

For the second year in a row, I can report your State Legislature and Governor worked together on a bipartisan basis to pass an on-time budget that works for you and your family.

Why is that important? Because, after years spent earning its reputation as the “most dysfunctional” government in America, Albany is starting to show it can get the job done.

When I arrived in Albany a little over a year ago, I promised you that I would reach across the aisle to help change State government to help make the Empire State a place we could all be proud of once again. Promise kept: I’ve worked with a Governor and fellow lawmakers from both political parties, putting aside partisanship and rancor, to do what’s right for New Yorkers.

And the results are showing. While we still have a lot of work to do, I can report that after years of out of control spending and the annual tax and fee increases that drove thousands of businesses and millions of people out of our Empire State, we have begun to make New York work again for our hard working families.

The budget I helped pass last week calls for no new taxes, no new fees, no gimmicks and, for the second year in a row, reduces overall spending—that’s a historic first.

But even as it holds the line on spending, the budget delivers new funding where it’s needed most, supporting our public schools, helping to hold down property taxes, and ensuring our children obtain the education they need to compete for jobs in the global economy.

The budget also reversed cuts to the EPIC prescription drug program for seniors, and it invests heavily in overdue highway and bridge construction projects to help create jobs and jumpstart our economy.

Just like your family’s budget, government plans require tough choices. But with this budget, we’re laying the groundwork for a stronger economy, more jobs and a better future.

On time. Less spending. No new taxes. More jobs, and a brighter future. Albany sure has changed, and I’ll continue to work hard to keep on delivering and turning New York in the right direction.

Sen. Patty Ritchie, Heuvelton