Paula Elaine Kay has been part of the 100th Assembly District for over 28 years. She and her husband, Jonathan, raised their two children in Rock Hill.
Paula graduated with a bachelor’s degree in government from Wesleyan University (as the Captain of the Women’s Ice Hockey Team) and a Juris Doctorate from Brooklyn Law School. She began her legal career working as counsel at the New York City Council to the Housing and Buildings Committee, General Welfare Committee, and Speaker Peter Vallone’s Special Commission on the Homeless. She wrote legislation and staffed public hearings on the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, conditions in city-owned housing, and incentives for private developers to produce affordable housing.
After moving to Sullivan County, Paula became Director of Special Projects for Assembly Member Jake Gunther, where she championed the one-of-a-kind Adopt an Exit Program in the State of New York on Route 17 (I-86). In 2004, when she was first elected, Paula became Legislative Director for Assembly Member Aileen Gunther. In that position, she wrote proposed legislation, reviewed bills, and worked to advance them. She also provided direct services to constituents in Orange and Sullivan counties.
In 2008, Paula formed the Law Office of Paula Elaine Kay, specializing in municipal law, land use and zoning, corporate law and estate planning, including providing legal services to volunteer fire departments and not-for-profit corporations. For the last 20 years, she has represented the Planning and Zoning Boards of the Town of Thompson, first as Deputy Town Attorney and later as a Consulting Attorney. The projects she reviewed included Resorts World Catskills, The Kartrite Resort and Indoor Water Park, and YO1, as well as numerous housing developments and improvements to the Thompson Square Mall. Paula was the Town Prosecutor through 2021, working closely with law enforcement personnel. In addition, Paula represented the Town of Fallsburg as the Town Attorney where she handled Town Board, Planning Board, and Zoning Board matters, including helping shepherd the town through a major Comprehensive Plan Update.
Paula performs pro bono work for local community organizations and not-for-profits. She is a member and past President of the Rock Hill Business and Community Organization and Rock Hill’s Sullivan Renaissance Committee. She also volunteered in various positions for her children’s public schools and extracurricular activities and is a former President of a local homeowner’s association.