Steve Hawley

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is outraged following the passage of a series of bills that would restrict the Second Amendment rights of New Yorkers, all of which he voted against.

They would drive gun sellers and manufacturers out of the state through burdensome regulation. One of the bills passed would make firearms manufacturers and dealers liable for harm caused by their weapon even if that harm is not reasonably foreseeable, if deemed a “public nuisance” (A.6762B).

“These bills won’t make anyone safer, and are nothing but shallow attempts to regulate sellers of firearms out of the state and make it impossible to sell handguns here in New York,” Hawley said.

“These measures are unconscionable violations of the constitutional rights of New Yorkers, and are just another step toward making it impractical, if not illegal, to buy and sell firearms in New York State.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley announces the passage of Assembly Bill A.6021, which designates State Route 77 between Pembroke Town Park and the intersection of Indian Falls Road in the Town of Pembroke as the “SP4 C. Jay Hall Memorial Highway.”  

Specialist Four Clarence "C. Jay" Hall served as a rifleman in the Army in Binh Duong, Vietnam. On Oct. 7, 1969, Specialist Hall exposed himself to hostile fire so his comrades were able to obtain cover with a complete disregard for his personal safety. During this action, he was mortally wounded.

Specialist Hall earned the NYS Conspicuous Service Cross, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal with One Bronze Star, Vietnam Campaign Ribbon, Combat Infantryman Badge and the Silver Star, which is the nation's third highest award for valor.

“The actions of Specialist Four Clarence ‘C. Jay’ Hall should be remembered and honored for all of time, so I am proud to have passed this law forever enshrining his legacy within our Western New York community,” Hawley said. “The selfless service of our nation’s heroes must never be forgotten.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is being joined by his colleagues in the Assembly and Senate Minority Conferences in demanding the termination of the state disaster emergency declared by Executive Order 202 before the end of the 2020-2021 legislative session, which is scheduled to finish this Thursday.

As of June 2, New York State’s seven-day average coronavirus positivity rate was the lowest in the nation at 0.64 percent, and hospitalizations dropped to under 1,000 for the first time since October 2020. Within Hawley’s district numbers are similarly low, with a seven-day positivity rate of 1 percent in the Finger Lakes Region.

“In the wake of the decision by our state Department of Health and the CDC to largely let life get back to normal, we should follow the data and restore state government back to normal with all of the checks guaranteed by our constitution,” Hawley said.

“Declarations of emergency should be decisions based on public health, not political expediency, and if the governor and the Majority also believe this, they should immediately terminate this state of emergency. If this legislative session ends with this declaration still in place, it will only be to secure the governor’s power, not for anybody’s well-being.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is joining his colleagues in the Assembly Minority in calling for the passage of a legislative package known as the “Restore Order” initiative, which would restore elements of judicial discretion eliminated by the “bail reform” law passed in 2019 by the Assembly Majority (A.5265).

The package would also increase the penalties for particularly hateful and violent crimes, such as shooting into a crowd (A.4259), among other measures. 

These bills were drafted in response to a widespread spike in violent crime that has persisted for months throughout the state, which Hawley and others attribute to limitations placed on the ability of local judges to exercise their judicial discretion by previously passed “bail reform” laws.

“We elect our judges for a reason, and it’s because they know us and they know the communities we live in,” Hawley said. “Bail reform has restricted judges from making decisions they know are most sensible for both the defendants before them and the collective well-being of the people and families that live in the surrounding area.

"The consequences of this law have been fatal for far too many New Yorkers who have senselessly lost their lives to increased acts of violence in our towns and cities. The bloodshed in our streets has gone on far too long, and it’s time we recognize bail reform as the dangerous failed experiment it really is.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley, a member of the Assembly Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, is sounding off about a directive from Governor Andrew Cuomo through the Office of Government Services.

It would split half-staff flag dedications on Memorial Day weekend between essential workers who passed away during the COVID-19 pandemic and fallen veterans, as flags would be lowered to half-staff Sunday for essential workers, and Monday for veterans. 

A veteran himself, Hawley feels that while those who passed during the COVID-19 should be honored and remembered, it is incredibly disrespectful to service members who have passed and their families to diminish their remembrance in this way. 

“Honoring one group of people should never come at the cost of diminishing the honor of another, especially when we’re talking about people that fought and died so that we can live free and peaceful lives,” Hawley said.

“This directive, by the governor, was issued in incredibly poor taste, and is an insult to all of the New Yorkers who made the ultimate sacrifice for the liberty of our countrymen and people throughout the globe.

"To say this slighting of our nation’s fallen heroes is a disgrace would be an understatement, and I implore the governor to see that this directive is reversed immediately.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is joining his colleagues in the Assembly Minority calling for the passage of a bill (A.7107) that would prohibit statewide elected officials from profiting on published works while serving in their position.

This legislative push follows news that Gov. Andrew Cuomo will be earning more than $5 million on a book deal for a memoir he wrote during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a time when over 15,000 seniors passed away in nursing homes under his administration’s watch.

“To think that the governor and his staff would be concerned with writing a self-promotional memoir while working at the same time to hide information about the tragedy happening in our nursing homes is incredibly disconcerting,” Hawley said.

“It’s also an example of why we need laws like this to ensure our public officials are putting their service to the public before their own personal gain.”

Press release:

Today, Senator Ed Rath called on the Department of Budget (DOB) to release critical funding grants for emergency services. Senator Rath was joined by Assemblyman Steve Hawley, Genesee County Legislature Chair Rochelle Stein, Undersheriff Brad Mazur, Genesee County Director of Emergency Communications Steven Sharpe, members of the Genesee County Legislature and members of the 911 Advisory Board.

“The delay in the release of this funding for our communities is extremely damaging," Senator Rath said. "As ranking member on the Senate Local Government’s Committee, I know the extreme duress many of our counties are under as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. For the State to be delaying the release of this funding, with no end in sight, is completely unacceptable.

"We need to be working with our counties and local governments, not adding unnecessary burdens. Unfortunately, this seems to be all too typical for our State. I am calling on the Department of Budget to release these grants (2020-21) and inform our counties when they will be able to apply for the current fiscal year’s grants (2021-22)."

Assemblyman Hawley said: "Our heroes of healthcare have been working dutifully throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure emergency services were not overwhelmed or interrupted during the highly contested time. To see that our 9-1-1 services are now under threat of being underfunded is unacceptable, and the State needs to take immediate action to ensure that our emergency telecommunications are not stifled."

"County governments must work alongside the State to ensure the funding needs are met for these important emergency services," said Genesee County Legislator Gregg Torrey, Human Services chair. “I want to thank Senator Rath and Assemblyman Hawley for fighting to secure our fair share of critical 9-1-1 funding which is needed to support our County Public Safety operations."

Genesee County Legislator Gary Maha, Public Service chair, said: "We have been fighting this battle for years through the New York State Sheriffs’ Association, the New York State 911 Coordinators Association and the New York State Association of Counties. It is time the Governor stops using these funds for other purposes than 9-1-1 services."

"The delay in releasing already collected 9-1-1 surcharge revenue money could cost Genesee County over $500k in the 2021 budget," said L. Matthew Landers, Genesee County manager, budget officer. "While we have long been advocating that a greater share of the collected surcharge go to the intended recipients, namely emergency communications operations such as the Genesee County Dispatch Center, this recent delay in funding is unexplainable and undermines emergency communications operations across the State."

Emergency Communications Director Sharpe, of the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, and NYS 911 Coordinators Legislative Committee chair, said: “Over the past year, our first responder community needed to address the pandemic while continuing to provide emergency services to the public.

"Our friends at the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Office of Interoperable and Emergency Communications (DHSES/OIEC) have been excellent partners by assisting local communities setting up communications for testing sites, emergency clinics, and now mass vaccination sites. DHSES/OIEC also hosted teleconferences for local and county partners to discuss best practices during the pandemic.

"Unfortunately, the State of New York has not honored their commitments regarding grant funding. Counties provide a majority of public safety answering point (9-1-1 center) services throughout the State and also administer a majority of public safety communications systems. During this pandemic, the State has inexplicably halted and delayed grant funding despite the funding stream for those grants increasing during the pandemic. 

"We are asking our partners at the State to honor their words, obey the laws of the State of New York, execute the law in a timely manner, and release the grant funding that is now above a year overdue."

The State has yet to release the 2020-21 grant funding or the application information for 2021-22.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is putting pressure on Gov. Cuomo to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) example and lift all mask mandates for those who have completed their COVID-19 vaccinations.

A proponent against the one-size-fits-all solution to New York’s fight against the coronavirus pandemic, Hawley sees no reason why the entire state should continue to follow the draconian enforcement of capacity restrictions and mask wearing if the federal government is ready to move on. 

“Western New York is ready to move on from the pandemic, and we’re grateful for the recognition of personal responsibility the CDC is returning to the people,” Hawley said.

“It’s been a long time coming, as the governor’s continued restrictions are seemingly less and less about science and safety and more about continued state control over every aspect of our lives. The people of New York are reliable, smart and trustworthy, and the governor must absolutely follow the example of the CDC.”

Hawley said he staunchly believes in leaving the responsibility and decision making to the localities.

“I’ve said from the start that part of the mismanagement of the fight against COVID is the fact that the state oversaw it all without partnering with local governments. These local institutions know the needs and capabilities of their areas better than the state, and they’ll be able to legislate accordingly moving forward.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley and Assemblyman David DiPietro will be hosting a free electronic waste recycling event with Sunnking on Saturday, May 15, at the parking lot of 5130 E. Main St. (Department of Social Services parking lot) next to National Grid, in the Town of Batavia. Time is 8:30 a.m. to noon.

Any e-waste including cell phones, computers, monitors, printers, and more will be accepted for recycling at this event, though preregistration online is required by FRIDAY MAY 14 AT 4 P.M.

Those interested in attending this event can preregister using this link: https://www.sunnking.com/events/batavia-05-15-21.

“Electronic waste is some of the hardest and most expensive to dispose of,” Hawley said. “This event will provide residents from throughout the area with a convenient and economical way to dispose of their electronic waste, giving people the opportunity to do some spring cleaning, while also preventing their old gadgets from becoming pollutants.”

Cars should enter off Ag Park Drive West.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley will host a series of town hall meetings in Genesee County in the towns of Pavilion, Le Roy and Bergen on May 22.

Residents are encouraged to attend to discuss local issues and share any questions or concerns they have with Hawley. Social distancing and other health and safety protocols will be followed during this event.

“After having to suspend last year’s town halls due to COVID-19, I am excited to have the opportunity to speak with residents and discuss their concerns directly,” Hawley said. “The budget that passed recently is the largest and possibly the most consequential in our state’s history, though frankly I fear those consequences will be negative, so I am eager to hear from people in the district in regard to how they feel about it and how it affects their lives.”

TOWN HALL MEETING SCHEDULE for Saturday, May 22

• Town of Pavilion -- 10 to 10:45 a.m. / Pavilion Town Hall, 1 Woodrow Drive
• Village/Town of Le Roy -- 11 to 11:45 a.m. / Le Roy Village Hall, 3 W. Main St.
• Village/Town of Bergen -- 12 to 12:45 p.m. / Bergen Village Hall, 11 N. Lake Ave.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is announcing that traffic lights have been installed and activated at the Route 77 and Ledge Road intersection in the Town of Alabama. 

The state Department of Transportation (DOT) had previously planned on construction of a roundabout at this intersection, but canceled those plans after the town passed a resolution opposing the project for reasons related to cost and safety.

The DOT had previously planned to build a roundabout for $1.8 million, but the installation of the traffic lights proved to be a more prudent and sensible solution, costing only approximately $100,000.

Hawley joined locals in opposing this project in favor of installing traffic lights to address safety concerns, which were just turned on this last Thursday.

“I am glad to see this project come to fruition and hope it will ensure safe travel for the agricultural, emergency and commercial traffic that make use of the intersection every day,” Hawley said. “With that said, I still caution all residents to take the dangers surrounding this intersection seriously and heed all traffic signals and devices.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is joining his colleagues in the Assembly Minority in standing against the extension of a legislative moratorium on evictions.

The Assembly Majority has introduced a bill (A.7175) to extend the moratorium through Aug. 31. Hawley has opposed extending the moratorium in the past, as it has greatly burdened small landlords throughout the pandemic that have been unable to collect rent to pay the mortgages on their properties. 

“The landlords impacted the most by this moratorium are people who have worked their entire lives to buy property to generate an income to take care of their families, and we’ve left them helpless for over a year now,” Hawley said.

“Addressing the burden placed on our housing system by COVID-19 means helping both tenants and landlords, and this moratorium deprives them of their rightful legal and financial recourse.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is railing against the Assembly Majority after they tabled a bill he sponsored during a Ways and Means Committee meeting that would have exempted veterans over the age of 85 from paying state income taxes (A.5033).

Notably, this bill was rejected even after the Majority passed a budget that gives more than $2 billion in assistance to illegal immigrants in the form of direct payments.

The cost to the state in lost revenue from excluding veterans over 85 years old from state income taxes is estimated to be about $6 million, just over 1/4th of 1 percent (.0000283) of the state’s record high $212 billion budget. 

“The decision by the Majority to refuse to take this small step to show appreciation for our most elderly veterans even after giving billions to people who broke the law to come to this country is shameful, and representative of our state’s misguided priorities as a whole,” Hawley said.

“We are failing those who have risked their lives for our freedoms, and helping those who have disrespected our nation’s rule of law. It seems, year after year, the Majority places the well-being of lawbreakers above that of working people, and apparently even our veterans, even when they need our help more than ever during these unprecedented times.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley was joined today at the Genesee County Veterans Service Agency by Senator Ed Rath, Genesee County Legislator Gary Maha, Genesee County Veterans Services Director Bill Joyce, and Chris Kreiger and Lynn Magistrale of WNY Heroes, the organization that operates the Dwyer program in Genesee County, to discuss funding of the Joseph P. Dwyer Veteran Peer Support Program and the impact the program has on local veterans. 

The final enacted budget for the 2021-2022 fiscal year included $4,505,000 for the Dwyer Program across New York State, with $185,000 allocated for Niagara County, $185,000 for Monroe County, and $185,000 for Orleans, Genesee and Wyoming counties. This funding was secured even as Governor Cuomo proposed eliminating it entirely in his executive budget proposal.

“As a member of the Assembly Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and being a veteran myself, I am proud to have secured this funding for our service members after yet another attempt by the governor to eliminate it from our state budget,” Hawley said. “This funding saves lives, and operating programs such as the Dwyer program is the least we can do for those that risk their lives to defend our liberties.”

"I was pleased that the Dwyer Program funding was included in the final 2021-22 budget,” Senator Rath said. “The services that the Dwyer Program provides to our veteran community are critical. The State has continuously tried to cut or delay this funding, so I am happy that it was included in full."

“We are honored to take care of veterans and assist their families,” said Chris Kreiger, president of WNY Heroes and Iraq War veteran. “Our programs are about providing a hand up, not a handout. It takes more strength to ask for help and even more strength to accept it.

"Here at WNYHeroes, we are no different than you, the veteran. We don’t dress in fancy clothing, we don’t drive fancy cars, we simply just want nothing more than to provide support while sustaining your dignity at the same time.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley joined his Assembly Republican colleagues in calling on Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and associated committee leaders to provide them with copies of the required notices and justifications from the governor’s office regarding a modification to an executive order that mandates a 12 a.m. curfew on bars and restaurants.

The Assembly Minority also demanded to know why the curfew was simply pushed back an hour from 11 p.m. to 12 a.m. instead of being done away with entirely.

Pursuant to Chapter 71 of the laws of 2021, the governor is now required to inform legislative leaders and relevant committee chairs of any extension, modification or alteration to existing executive orders related to the coronavirus pandemic.

Hawley has been critical of this curfew for months, especially as similar restrictions were lifted on casinos, theaters and gyms.

The curfew has been in effect in some form since mid-November of last year and has placed great strain on family-owned businesses and small restaurants, forcing many of them to close on a temporary or permanent basis.

“Every day we wait to do away with this senseless curfew, the more real the fear of closure for restaurant owners becomes,” Hawley said. “It is ridiculous to think casinos can stay open all night while restaurants are forced to close, and I hope our legislative colleagues in the Majority will join us in standing with restaurant owners against this nonsensical and burdensome curfew.

"Many of the restaurants threatened by this mandate have been built and operated by several generations of family members and for us to let this mandate drive them out of business would be nothing short of tragic. COVID-19 doesn’t suddenly grow more aggressive after midnight, and it certainly isn’t more infectious in restaurants than it is in theaters and casinos.”

Press release from Assemblyman Steve Hawley:

“As families throughout the state have tightened their budgets throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to prepare for an uncertain future, the Majority has decided now is the time to become more cavalier than ever in their spending," Hawley said. "Worse yet, by increasing spending to historic levels, we may have less than ever to show for all of that spending in this incredible time of need for so many small businesses throughout New York. 

“In this second-largest budget in our nation that spends more than those of the large and populous states of Texas and Florida combined, and almost as large as California’s proposed executive budget for this year, a state with about twice as many people as ours, we will give $2.1 billion to illegal immigrants in stimulus and unemployment payments while only giving small businesses about $1 billion in assistance.

"These small businesses employ our neighbors, pay taxes that fund our municipal governments and emergency services and make our communities the unique places we know and love. The loss of these businesses would devastate the communities that rely on them and our state as a whole, and it should not be controversial to want to support businesses that families have worked to build for generations rather than people who disrespect our laws in order to enter our country.

“As unwise as this spending is, it’s also unsustainable in a very dangerous way. The Majority is treating the hefty federal stimulus we received this year like an incredibly irresponsible person would treat lottery winnings, spending it all rapidly to start living a lifestyle we won’t be able to sustain that will be financially ruinous for our state in the future.

"The money we’re spending now won’t be there this year, but it’s unlikely the people and agencies across the state it supports will plan for that. Instead, we will be forced in the future between painful tax increases or spending cuts, which will come with very real consequences for our economy and our communities."

“Those in the Majority would do well to look at how their constituents have ‘lived within their means’ in the last year as we pass this budget that’s 20-percent larger than last year’s. If New Yorkers managed their finances like their government did we would be in a very bad place, and I only hope the consequences of this budget do not bring about suffering in communities that have worked to be responsible with their resources.”

Press release:

“The budget the Majority is set to pass this year will increase our state’s spending by about 20 percent over last year’s budget, and it makes me think, has the average New York family increased their spending by that much over the last year?" says Assemblyman Steve Hawley.

"The answer is of course not. While New York families have pared back their spending and lived within their means, our state is poised to increase both spending and taxes in a way that will prove unsustainable, all while giving twice to illegal immigrants what it will distribute to small businesses as aid.

"I am nearly certain that by this time next year the Majority will be talking about the need to further increase our taxes to pay for the increased spending people will come to rely on, which is why I will be voting against this irresponsible budget.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is vocalizing his opposition to the proposed establishment of an “excluded workers fund” in this year’s state budget, which advocates hope will provide more than $2.1 billion in new state aid to illegal immigrants.

The fund would allocate $2.1 billion in new spending to provide unemployment benefits, including benefits similar to Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), for workers federally ineligible to receive traditional unemployment insurance benefits: illegal immigrants and convicted felons. 

Noncitizens and other cash-economy workers would be the primary beneficiaries of such funds, as they are ineligible to receive unemployment benefits under current federal Department of Labor regulations. Some beneficiaries would be eligible for payments of up to $27,000 under current Assembly Majority proposals.

“In this unprecedented time of need, as thousands of families struggle to keep the lights on and put food on their tables, we shouldn’t be spending billions to help people who should not be here in the first place,” said Hawley.

“Rewarding those who ignore our laws will only further erode the rule of law in our state. In doing so, we would disrespect all who come to our nation legally, as well as those who otherwise live here lawfully but are still struggling to make ends meet.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley joined other members of the Assembly and Senate Minority Conferences on Wednesday in calling on Gov. Cuomo to release $1.3 billion in CARES Act housing assistance funding to aid tenants and landlords.

If the money were to go unused by the end of September, it is possible the federal government could take the funds back, leaving tenants and landlords without much-needed assistance. Tenants have struggled to pay rent due to the pandemic, causing many small landlords to face difficulty in paying their mortgages.      

“People need this money now more than ever, and to leave it sitting around during this time of great need is unconscionable,” Hawley said. “Helping every day New Yorkers should be our number-one priority during these times, and for most people their priority number one is keeping a roof over their heads.

"This money will go a long way toward keeping people’s rents and mortgages paid, and I see no reason we should wait any longer in getting it to those who need it most.”  

A statement from Assemblyman Steve Hawley:

“What passed in the Assembly today has no basis in justice or science, and I fear that the revenue this bill projects our legal marijuana program will bring in has blinded them to the real costs of this legislation.

"What we know is that in other states, driver impairment rates have risen nearly universally, and these factors have caused states like Colorado to pay about four dollars in damages for every dollar earned in revenue.

"The passage of this legislation will come with real consequences that we will be left to pay for in the years to come, both financially and in terms of human health and human lives. I feel this will be a decision we look back on, wishing we had given it more thought.”