Event at West Union Fire Hall Attended by Residents from Steuben and Allegany Counties
REXVILLE, N.Y. – State Senator Tom O’Mara (R,C – Big Flats) and Assemblyman Joe Sempolinski (R,C – Canisteo) hosted a community meeting in the West Union Fire Hall Thursday night.
The region had been impacted by flooding in 2021 and again in 2024. Many residents had questions about what’s being done to mitigate flooding in the future.
At Senator O’Mara and Assemblyman Sempolinski’s request, Brian Kelly, New York Department of Transportation Region 6 Director, Tim Walsh, NY Department of Environmental Conservation Region 8 Director, Jeff Parker, Steuben County Soil and Water Conservation District Director and Tim Marshall, Steuben County Director of Public Safety, attended the meeting to update residents on the work that’s being done to prevent future floods from being so devastating.
“Southwest Steuben County was hit hard by flooding from Tropical Storm Fred in 2021 and again by Tropical Storm Debby in 2024. It’s important that we let the citizens know that we are all working together in a proactive way to protect the community,” Assemblyman Sempolinski said.
“I want to thank Senator O’Mara for inviting me and all the residents who came out on a cold December night to spend a few hours with us talking about state and local issues they’re concerned about,” Assemblyman Sempolinski said. “As their representatives in the state Senate and Assembly, it’s vitally important that we meet face-to-face. I don’t work for anyone in Albany. I work for the people of the 148th Assembly District.”
Another issue residents raised concerns about is the All-Electric Buildings mandate, which the governor has put a temporary hold on, and other efforts by the governor and majority members of the Assembly and state Senate to eliminate the use of natural gas, oil and other sources of energy to heat homes and power vehicles.
Senator O’Mara said all of these policies come from the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) which passed in the Assembly and state Senate in the wake of Democrats gaining a majority in the state Senate in 2018, creating one-party rule in Albany. Andrew Cuomo, the former governor, signed the CLCPA into law in 2019.
“They know it can’t work, but it’s the law that’s on the books,” Senator O’Mara said of Gov. Hochul and the majority regarding the CLCPA and its all-renewable, all-electric mandates.
The CLCPA requires New York to have 70 percent renewable, carbon-free electricity generation by 2030.
“At the end of the day math is math and physics is physics and the numbers don’t add up,” Assemblyman Sempolinski said. “They would have to blanket the state in windmills and solar panels to get to zero emissions. The CLCPA isn’t a responsible or realistic energy policy.”
Senator O’Mara thanked Assemblyman Sempolinski for joining him for the Rexville community meeting.
“Assemblyman Sempolinski and I appreciated the input from area residents at last night’s community meeting on a number of the key issues facing the local community and that will be on the State Legislature’s agenda when a new legislative session gets underway in Albany early next year,” Senator O’Mara said. “We appreciated the opportunity to answer questions and hear suggestions for addressing the goals and priorities we share for local communities, Steuben County, and our entire region and state.
“I also want to thank Randy Heckman, Supervisor for the Town of West Union, for coordinating the meeting and the West Union Volunteer Fire Department hosting us.”
Both Senator O’Mara and Assemblyman Sempolinski said they look forward to hosting joint community meetings in the future.
Assemblyman Joe Sempolinski represents the 148th New York Assembly District, which consists of all of Cattaraugus and Allegany counties and portions of Steuben County. For more information, visit Assemblyman Sempolinski’s website.
