email: sherz@co.broome.ny.us
Map of Legislative District 09

2009-2010 Committees:

• Chair, Transportation & Rural Development
• Member, Economic Development & Planning
• Member, Finance
• Member, Agriculture & Farm Land Protection Board
• Binghamton Regional Airport Advisory Board
• Cornell Cooperative Extension
• Industrial Development Agency Board of Directors

Residence:
787 NY Route 79
Windsor, NY 13865
607.655.2604, or
607.222.6470

Stephen Herz (D) represents the ninth legislative district, which is comprised of most of the Towns of Windsor, Colesville, and Sanford. Measured in square miles, the ninth district is the largest of all Broome Legislative Districts.

• With the invaluable assistance of Town of Sanford Supervisor, Dewey Decker, Steve was able to finalize a long unresolved issue involving the duly negotiated payment in lieu of taxes from the Central New York Railroad Corporation to municipalities in our district.
   
• As a life-long resident of the town of Windsor, Steve conceived the Windsor Partnership, an energetic and focused group of Windsorites that has focused on the revitalization of both the Town and Village of Windsor.
   
• In a continuation of an initiative Steve started some time ago, he formed a public / private partnership with Cornell Cooperative Extension, the United States Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Broome County Farm Bureau, the Broome County Soil and Water Conservation Service, and Broome County Government to create www.farmbroome.com, a farm-friendly Broome-based website which promotes agriculture, agri-tourism, and related events.
   
• When our area was threatened by a plan from the Federal Government to close our Broome County Farm Services Agency Field Office, Steve led a strong coalition of farmers, concerned citizens, business people, and government leaders to thwart this attempt.

• Steve understands the crucial importance of increasing broadband Internet access in underserved rural areas, which describes a large percentage of his constituents. Broadband Internet access is vital for educating our young people for the 21st century, and for making our area an attractive site for smart growth. As the economy becomes more and more dependent upon high-speed access, providing this service becomes as much a part of vital infrastructure as more traditional "highways." The effort to bring universal broadband to as many residents as possible is an on-going initiative to which a number of dedicated individuals are assisting Steve. It is Steve’s hope to bring resolution to this effort in the foreseeable future.
   
• Steve has pledged his support for the Deposit Community Center and worked to be a liaison between his constituents and the Broome County administration. He has organized several meetings at which county officials, such as County Executive Barbara Fiala, the Broome County Economic Development Team, and the Broome County Office for the Aging shared their expertise and made commitments of supplemental funding to aid in this important project.
   
• In response to concerns within the community, Steve has been engaged in discussions with Broome Transit and the current administration about the viability of re-instituting a daily bus route between the municipalities of Windsor, Deposit, and Harpursville and Binghamton. There has been a strong show of interest from the communities and when Steve made a presentation on this issue at a legislative session, the proposal met with a favorable response from the Legislature, the County Executive, and the Commissioner of Transpiration, however, because of the burgeoning costs of fuel and parts, the County Transportation Budget is already deeply in the red. This new initiative cannot be funded in 2008 but Steve is working hard to at least have a trial run to Eastern Broome in 2009