The New York State Budget Has Passed, But Are the People of New Amsterdam Any Freer?

6/11/2026

The New York State budget for fiscal year 2027 has finally arrived on Governor Kathy Hochul’s desk after passing through the Senate and Assembly (eight weeks late, of course), and whether you like some, all, or none of the provisions included, the fact of the matter is that New York City has more control over these items than does New Amsterdam (Upstate New York). The Democratic one-party government does not reflect the values of all residents, and we must deal with whatever downstate policies that officials in charge want to force onto us here in the over fifty counties outside of the New York metropolitan statistical area (not to be confused with the wider combined statistical area that includes up to Poughkeepsie and Kingston).
Whether we are talking about a new universal childcare pilot program (in Monroe County), utility-bill checks to taxpayers, an aggressive operation to target insurance fraud claims, a five-year delay on the electric bus mandate (we are so shocked that this would not work on her majesty’s timeline), billions of tax dollars to school districts to supplement their budgets, or a restriction on 3-D printed “ghost guns” that was snuck into the budget bill; we the people of New Amsterdam have little to no say on these crucial topics. In the fray, the New York State Legislature also put through a one-year moratorium on restricting new artificial intelligence (AI) data centers that require more than twenty or more megawatts of electricity, thus possibly preventing increased energy costs to struggling families (why are taxpayers funding data centers directly or indirectly?) and government overreach in the area of limiting free speech and monitoring our every move (data centers provide new surveillance opportunities). Governor Hochul, along with many Republicans, largely supports data centers being built (for alleged business growth) but in ways that keep costs for residents low, so it is possible that she will shoot down the restriction at the same time that she is signing the absurd bill to replace “mother” with “gestating parent,” “father” with “non-gestating parent,” and “paternity” to “parentage” in state law (you can still call these things what you want in your personal life, for now).

Did the legislature or the governor ask for our opinions on these topics? Rather, she was able to get a majority of voters from downstate to check a box on a ballot, and from that, she inferred that she was free to do whatever she wanted with us citizens of New Amsterdam (who largely disapproved of her being in office in the first place). We simply do not have the population up here to counteract any of the actions that the state partakes in, and we essentially have taxation without adequate representation.
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we should reflect on the regression in government that we face not only at the federal level, but also at the state and local levels. Government has expanded so much that many of us have been conditioned to just accept that this is the normal way of life in the twenty-first century. We do not question, for example, why New York agencies, which have a monopoly on violence, can have their law enforcement officers carry guns in places that the average New Yorker is not permitted to do so. Why are we forced to have our hard-earned dollars sucked away from us to feed the fraud, waste, and abuse of government power and our income redistributed to areas that our parental authorities believe is appropriate?
After we reflect on these ideals at the upcoming anniversary and Fourth of July events, maybe it will encourage us to take action and join the movement that already exists to attempt to grant New Amsterdam autonomy from New York City and allow us self-governance. For more information on how you can help make this dream become a reality, please visit the website.
Thank you for reading,
Craig Peterson, Jr.
Divide NYS Treasurer

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The New York State Budget Has Passed, But Are the People of New Amsterdam Any Freer?

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