PLATTSBURGH — Environmental infrastructure and recycling will be among top priorities in the next session for state Assemblyman Matt Simpson (R-Lake George), who is running unopposed for reelection.
Simpson said revenue from the 2022 Environmental Bond Act is replacing existing funding rather than supplementing it.
“That’s not the way it’s supposed to work,” he said.
Simpson said this year he spoke out during the state budget process about proposed cuts in Environmental Protection Funding, and the cuts were restored in the final budget.
The Environmental Protection Fund is important to funding local water and sewer infrastructure improvements, he said.
“That’s really an important issue in my district. The system really needs to be brought up to date,” he said.
Making sure that bottle return contractors can be financially solvent is important to recycling, Simpson said.
Revenue from bottle and can deposits is greater than what is being paid out in the system because some people do not return containers.
The state currently reallocates unclaimed deposits to the general fund to offset other state tax collections.
Simpson said an increase in handling fees for bottle return contractors could be made by reallocating less unclaimed deposits to the general fund.
Simpson said that at this time he does not support increasing the current 5 cent bottle deposit or expanding the deposit program to other types of beverage containers.
Also on the environment, Simpson said he will push for more flexibility in state heating system standards, intended to address climate change.
He said the new standards may not be practical in rural areas.
FUEL BURNING
Simpson said he will continue to push for approval of legislation he cosponsored in April –A9743 –to exempt rural communities for restrictions on wood-burning heating and cooking systems.
“Using wood for fuel poses a minimal environmental impact and, as a renewable resource, wood can be used as a sustainable fuel source,” states the legislation’s justification section. “With New York State’s often unpredictable weather patterns, those in the rural regions of our state often depend on the natural resource of wood for fuel, as it can become a life-saving measure when frigid temperatures occur or power lines become obstructed for homes and businesses alike.”
Senate companion legislation had not been introduced, as of Oct. 9.
Simpson, a two-term incumbent, represents the 114th Assembly District, which includes portions of Essex, Saratoga and Washington counties and all of Warren County except for the city of Glens Falls.
UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS
Simpson said another priority will be pushing for increased disclosure about how state funding for assistance to undocumented immigrants is used.
“It should be transparent, and we should be able to know where that money is going,” he said.
Another priority will be to make sure that rural school districts receive a fair share of state funding as the state restructures its Foundation Aid formula.
“That concerns me greatly,” he said.
HOUSING
Housing affordability is another priority, but housing development must be accompanied with economic development, Simpson said.
“What is really needed is economic growth,” he said.
Simpson said the state must prioritize reducing spending.
“There may be some things that we would like to do, but we cannot do,” he said.
He said that many constituents have told him that they would move out of New York, if it was feasible, because of high taxes.
“If they had that ability to pick up and go, they would go,” he said.
Reforming the state’s 50-year-old laws which govern purchasing policies is another priority, Simpson has said.
Since late 2023, he has been researching the myriad laws which govern purchasing policy and identifying practical revisions that can be proposed in the 2005 session.
The topic is one of bipartisan interest, he said.
FOOD CONTRACTS
Among the reforms that he is evaluating is one that a coalition of public interest advocacy groups and labor organizations is pushing to make New York the first state in the nation to allow flexibility in bidding of food contracts to account for factors such as environmental impact, wages and animal welfare.
Currently, New York state law requires awarding food contracts to the “lowest responsible bidder” – meaning that the bidder has the financial and technical expertise to comply with the terms of the bid specifications.
A system based exclusively on price often results in serving the least quality food, Assemblyman Simpson said.
Proposed legislation would allow municipalities and school districts to award food contracts at bids up to 10% above the lowest responsible bidder if the higher bidder meets certain “value-based” criteria.
Using the ”value-based” criteria would be optional.
Simpson said the concept could be expanded to apply to other commodities, such as office supplies.
Because of the lowest responsible bidder requirement, the Assembly buys copier paper imported from China, instead of product manufactured at paper mills in New York, for example, he said.