Assemblyman Brian Maher (R,C-Walden) announced on Sunday afternoon that he will officially seek a second term to represent the 101st District of the New York State Assembly. Maher was surrounded by his family and more than 100 supporters, including dozens of local elected officials, party leaders, business owners and other community stakeholders.

“It has been an honor representing the 101st Assembly District this past year,” said Assemblyman Brian Maher. “Being able to advocate for more than 130,000 New Yorkers from different counties and regions has been a rewarding experience and I have learned so much about communities I have been recently introduced to. My team and I are excited at the prospect of continuing to advocate for those we represent for many years to come.”

Maher currently serves as the ranking minority member of the Committee on Social Services and also serves as a member of the NYS Assembly Standing Committees on Mental Health, Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Children and Families, Economic Development and Consumer Protection and Affairs.

“When I was given my committee assignments, my first action was to get to know the members I would be working with, regardless of their political party,” continued Maher. “There are plenty of bills that I disagree with, but I found out quickly that there are opportunities to work with the other side of the aisle on issues that matter. During my first legislative session I was proud to co-sponsor legislation with Democrats that I knew would have a positive impact on those I represent and New Yorkers everywhere.” Maher co-sponsored and advocated for bipartisan legislation that provided free healthy meals for school districts throughout New York State. Most school districts in Maher’s Assembly District benefited from this legislation including Goshen, Washingtonville, Valley Central, Pine Bush and Chester. This bill, sponsored by a Democrat, was passed in both the Assembly and Senate and signed into law by Governor Hochul. As of January 2024, these schools and countless others throughout the state, now offer free breakfast and lunch to all students regardless of income.

Maher also co-sponsored and advocated for legislation that would ensure biomarker testing was available to more cancer patients throughout New York State. This legislation, also sponsored by a Democrat, will allow those with certain private insurance and Medicaid to be covered for biomarker testing, allowing cancer patients and their doctors the tools they need to put together the best plan of care in their effort to beat cancer. This bill was passed by both the Assembly and the Senate and was signed into law by the Governor. Maher spearheaded an effort with his fellow Republican and Democrat Social Services Committee members to pass legislation that would create a Task Force to study fiscal cliffs within our social services system. The goal of our bill would be to identify different ways we could improve our social services system to ensure more people could get back to work and not remain on the tax rolls. This legislation was passed unanimously in the Senate and the Assembly but was vetoed by the Governor. “I was very disappointed with the governor’s veto of our Task Force on fiscal cliffs,” continued Maher. “We must work to improve our social services system to identify disincentives that exist that force people to choose between taking a job or a raise or retaining their government benefits. There are a lot of ways we can fix our system and whether this Task Force gets created or not, my team and I will work together to obtain the data, come up with potential solutions and then work with my colleagues to pass bipartisan legislation.”

Along with continuing to push for the study of fiscal cliffs and social services reform, Maher plans to focus on mental health, addiction, addressing the issue of youth flight through career paths and workforce development, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and human trafficking.

“Our team plans to focus our 2024 legislative session and a potential second term on addressing issues that significantly impact our local communities,” continued Maher. “Finding career paths for our youth, fighting the addiction epidemic, supporting law enforcement, veterans and first responders and exposing the hard truth that human trafficking is taking place every day right under our noses are just some of the issues we plan to tackle. While I will always advocate against bad bills and fight to protect our second amendment rights and promote life, I will always debate respectfully and find common ground where I can. That is what the people I represent, and all New Yorkers, expect and deserve.”

Maher’s 101st District was changed once again due to another lawsuit in 2023. The latest version of the district now encompasses new towns in Delaware, Sullivan and Ulster counties while removing all parts of Otsego and Madison counties. Maher will also represent the entire Town of Goshen in Orange County. This new 101st District is now set to be in place for the next eight years.