JAMESTOWN – Jamestown’s representative in New York’s Senate says the population shift that caused the state to lose one congressional seat is just another side effect of bad governing.
Senator George Borrello released a statement on Monday following the U.S. Census report announcing the population shift he attributes to New York’s Democratic leaders.
“We need only look to the states who are the beneficiaries of the flight from New York – Florida, Texas, North Carolina, among others – to see what is luring away our citizens and our jobs,” wrote Borrello. “It isn’t complicated: they offer low personal income and property taxes and business policies that stimulate, rather than stifle, expansion and investment.”
Borrello blames the state’s Governor and New York City-controlled Legislature for the migration.
“We have the opportunity to heed the warnings in this data and commit ourselves to a government that will stop bowing to radical special interests and, instead, prioritize the pro-growth policies we need to reverse our population loss and secure our future,” furthered Borrello.
The state’s population grew by more than four percent over the past decade, according to the census, but that increase didn’t keep pace with big jumps in other parts of the country.
New York is one of seven states losing a member of congress as a result of the 2020 census. Five states will gain a seat in congress. Texas will gain two.
The state stands to lose out on more than political clout: The census also determines the distribution of $1.5 trillion in federal funding each year.
While the loss of at least one seat was expected in New York, the political world has been in some suspense over whether it might lose two in next year’s congressional elections. It’s not yet clear how voters’ districts will change.
That process hinges on more detailed census data that isn’t expected until August, at the earliest.
Traditionally, state lawmakers and governors have redrawn voting districts for seats in the U.S. House and state legislatures. But some states, including New York, have shifted that job to special commissions or made other changes intended to reduce the potential for partisan gerrymandering.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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