SANBORN — On the same day that Gov. Kathy Hochul announced she had welcomed six Texas Democratic state legislators, she criticized the lasting impacts that the “Big Beautiful Bill,” which President Trump signed into law last month.
“Our democracy has endured for 250 years in this great country and we’re not going to let it slip away,” Hochul said during an appearance at SUNY Niagara on Monday. “History will judge us in this moment. Were we complacent? Do we cower? We stand up and fight.”
Speaking within New York Congressional District 24, represented by Republican Claudia Tenney, Hochul made sure her constituents living there knew what would come with the various program cuts in the bill, from food assistance to Medicaid.
In the 24th District alone, spread across the Lake Ontario shoreline and Central New York from northern Niagara County to the St. Lawrence River, Hochul said local hospitals would lose $31 million due to uncompensated health care costs, with 1,000 hospital workers facing layoffs. More than 31,000 residents would lose their health insurance.
Across the state, Hochul said more than 2 million New Yorkers face losing some insurance coverage, 34,000 hospital workers could lose their jobs, small hospitals could face closure, and the overall impact of Medicaid cuts would be $13 billion a year.
She also brought up the decrease in Canadian tourists this year, tariffs making products more expensive, and people losing their SNAP benefits. More than 83,000 residents in the 24th District, Hochul said, could lose their food assistance.
“Pain is going to be felt across the urban, suburban and rural parts of our community, of our state and our nation,” said Congressman Tim Kennedy, who was also in attendance.
The six Texas Democratic state legislators in Albany left their home state over the weekend to break its voting quorum. It happened as Texas Republicans proposed a new congressional map that would give them five more seats from the Dallas, Houston, and Austin areas, despite it not being 10 years since the last redistricting effort took place following the census.
Democratic lawmakers also went to Illinois and Massachusetts, facing threats from Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. Hochul had also criticized Trump and Abbott earlier in the day in Albany, calling it a “blatant power grab” to further Republicans’ control in the House. They have a 219-212 majority with four vacancies.
“This is a hijacking of our democracy, the likes of which we’ve never seen before,” Hochul said. She added that the state is exploring its options to respond, including legislation that would change the timeframe of its own redistricting votes.
The earliest that could happen would be for the 2027 elections, requiring a constitutional amendment, the votes of two legislatures, and the vote of the electorate to pass. Despite Hochul calling Texas Republicans cheaters for using the tactic, her redistricting plans are similar.
“I don’t support unilateral disarmament,” Hochul said. “They’re going to take steps that’ll put them at an advantage. I will not let the people of the state of New York be at a disadvantage because we’ve always followed the rules.”
Congressman Nick Langworthy, whose 23rd Congressional District includes portions of Lockport and Pendleton, said Hochul was defending a failed, dependency-driven status quo, with the state encouraging welfare dependence and this bill promises to deliver long-overdue reforms.
“It restores accountability, protects taxpayers, and ensures that safety net programs are preserved for those who genuinely need them,” Langworthy said. “By ending New York’s pattern of gaming the system, the bill promotes self-sufficiency and brings dignity back to federal assistance.”