RoAnn M. Destito

Welcome to my New York State Assembly Web page.

On this page, you will find a variety of information that will tell you some of the things I am doing both in Albany, and here in the Mohawk Valley region on your behalf. There also is a link on the page to provide you with information on legislation, including bills I sponsor, the committees I am on, and contact information if you need to reach my office.

Except for a few years when I was attending college out of town, I have lived and worked in the Mohawk Valley region for my entire life. I was born in Utica, but currently live in Rome. I consider it a privilege and an honor to represent these two cities, along with the towns of Floyd, Marcy, and Whitestown as the Assemblywoman for the 116th District.

To those of you who have heard me speak, whether it was in a radio or television interview or at a public event, you know that since I took office in January, 1993, I have always stressed two issues that go hand-in-hand: the education of our young people and our returning students, and working to improve economic development here in the Mohawk Valley region.

We simply cannot expect businesses to expand or re-locate here in the Mohawk Valley region if we do not invest in our educational system. Our young people are fortunate to have outstanding public schools, and to also have the opportunity to pick from a number of public and private Community Colleges and Universities within the region. I have worked through the years to deliver additional state funding to our public schools, and to improve the curriculum and facilities at the SUNY Institute of Technology at Utica-Rome; Utica College, and Mohawk Valley Community College. I will continue to bring together academic, business, and community leaders to work on ways we can improve our schools, colleges, and our workforce training and economic development programs so that the students of today can remain in the Mohawk Valley after they complete their education or training.

I also have worked tirelessly to strengthen the efforts of our community not-for-profit agencies.

Whether it is the inspiring vision and successful mission of Rev. Maria Scates in Johnson Park in center-city Utica, the agencies that serve and take care of our elderly and disabled residents, or the volunteer fire departments that are the first responders in any emergency, there is no question that residents of the Mohawk Valley support and rely on these volunteer organizations to make our community a better place to live. At a time of fiscal uncertainty here in New York State and across the nation, I am continuing to meet with and find ways to help organizations work together to provide the crucial day-to-day support they provide to our seniors, our young people, and to all the residents of our region.

The New York State Assembly’s Committee on Governmental Operations, which I chair, has the responsibility of overseeing our homeland security programs, and our network of emergency responders. When it comes to public safety, all disasters are local and it is our own first responders who must be prepared to act quickly when disaster strikes. It has long been among my most important priorities to make sure that our police and fire departments are adequately equipped and trained, and our communications network for first responders is reliable and well-coordinated.

Finally, if the Mohawk Valley region is to move forward, it is vitally important that we have an adequate transportation and infrastructure system. I have been working throughout my tenure in the New York State Assembly to make sure that our roads and bridges are a safe, direct route for local residents, and for our businesses, and I continue to advocate for a high-speed rail system connecting our upstate cities in a direct, cost-effective manner. I also have worked to improve the infrastructure at our business parks, including the Marcy NanoCenter site, the Oneida County Industrial Park in Whitestown, the Griffiss Business and Technology Park, and the Utica Business Park, and to clean up vacant former industrial sites so they can have new life for the businesses and industries that will boost our local economy.

I hope that you will find this site informative and useful to you. I will continue updating it regularly with news about my efforts in these and other areas. If you have any questions about any of the information on my website, please feel free to use the contact information for my offices that is on this site. Again, thank you for taking the time to visit my website.

Sincerely,
RoAnn M. Destito
Member of Assembly

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