Nothing is more important to Chuck than helping New York's economy
grow and flourish. Chuck has especially focused on removing barriers
to growth in the Upstate region.
One of the first things Chuck learned after entering the Senate
was the key role played by site selectors in determining where businesses
locate their offices and factories. Chuck brought site selector
consultants from the Wadley-Donovan Group, Ernst & Young's Kenneth
Leventhal Real Estate Group, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers to
meet with Central
New York economic development officials. Deloitte and Touche,
KPMG and other firms also accompanied Chuck to a similar meeting
with the Buffalo-Niagara Enterprise (BNE) and other economic development
groups to sell
Western New York as a great place to do business.
Chuck's plan also calls for bringing local entrepreneurs the resources
they need to grow their businesses. He brought
leading venture capitalists to Rochester to boost the area's
burgeoning information technology, biotech and other growing industries
by giving the venture capitalists a firsthand look at the city's
investment climate. The Wall Street to Rochester event builds upon
over a year of work on creating the Rochester
Center for Excellence a high-tech hub based on the area's unrivaled
expertise in optics. Chuck brought together local leaders with executives
from Corning, Kodak, and Xerox and secured
millions in federal funding to help optics to for Upstate what
the microchip did for Silicon Valley.
Other economic development initiatives include:
- Helping New York Recover and Rebuild: Chuck, working
with Senator Clinton, secured a $20
billion commitment for federal aid for New York from President
Bush immediately following the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Chuck also helped create the federal Victims
Compensation Fund, which helps the families of those lost
on September 11 or anyone physically injured in the attack continue
with their lives by providing the family with all of the money
the person killed or injured would have earned over his or her
lifetime, all within five months of filing the claim. Chuck and
Senator Clinton also successfully lobbied for $5 billion in aid
for New York in the economic stimulus package pending before the
Senate. Chuck played a key role in legislation providing federal
terrorist reinsurance, helping private sector companies obtain
insurance in the face of potential terrorist attacks. Chuck also
lobbied the NFL to move the Super
Bowl to New York (to be played in the Meadowlands), which
would have generated over $300 million in tourism and entertainment
related revenue.
- Better Transportation: Chuck followed through on his
commitment to bring JetBlue to Rochester,
Buffalo,
and Syracuse.
He's expanded air service to Oneida
County, and brought Trailways
and Southwest
to Albany.
- Supporting Agriculture: Chuck has defended the Northeast
Dairy Compact from his earliest
days in the Senate, and continues to fight for it on the Senate
floor. He defended the interests of New
York apple growers, seeking to protect a vital industry during
a difficult period, and protected New
York wheat farmers from disaster when Nabisco closed its Niagara
Falls plant by convincing Kraft to continue buying locally-produced
wheat.
- Building Federal Investment: Chuck has brought federal
investment dollars to the Buffalo,
Rochester,
and Schenectady
areas, and helped launch the Rome
Labs.
- Supporting Long Island Wineries: Chuck secured the creation
of an official American Vinicultural Area on Long Island,
giving the area's $65 million wine industry the security it needs
to grow.
- Giving New York City Room to Grow: Chuck put together
the Group of 35 leaders from the business, labor, and academic
communities to develop a plan
for New York City's long-term growth needs.
For a complete index of press releases on economic development,
please click
here.
|