By M.J. STAFFORD

mstafford@observertoday.com

Local state Assembly candidates Michael Bobseine and Andrew Molitor debated earlier this month during an event hosted by WRFA Radio in Jamestown. The Post-Journal, OBSERVER and WJTN-AM in Jamestown also participated.

Bobseine, a Democrat, and Republican Molitor are seeking to take over Republican Andrew Goodell’s seat as representative for the 150th District. Here’s a rundown of what they had to say on certain issues:

Andrew Molitor

LONG TERM HEALTH CARE

Bobseine said, “We are asking people to take care of our loved ones and they are understaffed and they are underpaid. The reimbursement rate for long term health care caretakers has not really been changed since 2007. We need to re-rate and we also need to ensure that there are cost of living adjustments, and that should be every year. And we need to take care that we provide the staffing.”

Bobseine touted his endorsement by the local Service Employees International Union branch.

Molitor said, “Our health care industry is facing a lot of issues, especially in New York, because again, we put a lot of strain on our businesses. We make it really hard for people to do business in New York because business taxes are incredibly high.” He said many young health care workers are leaving the state because it is more affordable to live elsewhere.

In a rebuttal, Bobseine said staffing and compensation at long term care facilities is a “more significant part” of the issue than business taxes. Molitor can talk about broader issues “but we’ve got to be in these facilities, that’s where it’s at.” Bobseine again mentioned the reimbursement rate for care.

“But here’s the problem,” Molitor replied. “If you’re a nurse and you get violently assaulted in a hospital you’re not going to want to work in that hospital anymore. And that happens a lot in our county, we have a high incidence of violent assaults — I prosecute them — in our nursing homes, our hospitals.”

Molitor is currently an assistant district attorney for Chautauqua County.

COUNTY SALES TAX

Bobseine wants to cut Chautauqua County’s 8% sales tax rate. But Molitor said it would have “a disastrous effect on county finances and municipalities,” cutting enough revenue equivalent to a 28% hike in property taxes.

Bobseine said revenues have gone from $29 million to $54 million, and unappropriated fund balance from $20 million to $46 million, in the past few years in Chautauqua County.

“If we really want to… help counties we need to cut Medicaid costs, which are the highest in the nation,” Molitor said.

Bobseine criticized Molitor’s refusal to back a sales tax cut. “I think we need to be open to these sorts of things,” Bobseine said.

FRESHWATER WETLAND ACT

Many landowners near Chautauqua Lake are upset about the new state law. Molitor called it “a terrible law” that “drastically expanded” the wetland designation to include lakes. He said he submitted a comment to the state Department of Environmental Conversation, during the public comment period while the act was still just a proposal, asking to clearly eliminate lakes from the wetland designation.

Bobseine said, “I don’t think I heard anything from our representatives back in 2022 about what this wetlands act would mean.” Current 150th District Assemblyman Goodell, along with State Senator George Borrello and County Executive PJ Wendel, “said in March, ‘there’s really nothing to see here, it’s not going to be a problem.’ However, then people got excited about it, and the bandwagon started.”

Bobseine proposed statutory exemptions for landowners. He added, “To suggest that we are going to exclude freshwater lakes from wetlands protection is a dream. Wetlands protect our lakes. We need wetlands.”

Molitor replied, “Nobody’s saying we should eliminate wetlands. It’s just that wetlands aren’t lakes.”

EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT

The amendment to the state Constitution is on the November ballot for voters to consider. Bobseine called it “long overdue,” most significantly because it will protect the rights of women relative to reproductive health. He criticized the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, stating that “After 50 years, women had reproductive choice taken away.”

Molitor called the Equal Rights Amendment “the most dangerous piece of legislation that New York has ever passed.”

He said it will “Violate parental rights, it will strip them away. It will violate your free exercise to practice your religion.” He encouraged people to read the entire amendment. “It gives the government the power to discriminate against anyone they want for the purposes of dismantling or preventing discrimination. That is unfettered power to the government. It should terrify every single one of us.”

Bobseine responded, “When we talk about terrifying, I think about kids who need to be supported. I think about kids with different abilities… we’ve got it by law, but it’s time that instead of the pencil, we put it in ink.” Molitor “opposes women’s right to make personal decisions about their lives and health care,” he said.

Molitor called it the “most anti woman piece of legislation the state has ever passed.” Bobseine shot back, “We need to protect women against themselves, is what I’m hearing.”