Letter to the Editor: Metzger protects the environment

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Dear Editor:

If you care about the health of the planet and NY farmers and farmland, vote to re-elect State Senator Jen Metzger. She is a proven leader of bi-partisan support for NY farmers and protecting the environment. She sponsored a bill to double and indefinitely extend the Farm Workforce Retention Credit, allowing eligible farm employers to claim a refundable tax credit for each employee who works 500+ hours each year. This keeps many NY farms out of the red and enhances their ability to maintain skilled workers. Her opponent wants an almost identical tax credit, passing it off as his own idea!  As Chair of the Agriculture Committee, Senator Metzger has been illuminating the linkages between agriculture and the environment. Farms play a crucial role in sequestering carbon in the soils and roots of plants, and she introduced a bill for a Carbon Farming Tax Credit for use of soil management practices that sequester carbon emissions. She also introduced the bill to extend Warwick’s Community Preservation Fund through 2050. Warwick has seen great success using this Fund to preserve farmland, open space, and historic sites. Extending it allows a longer view in preservation, expanding farmland, and open space protection. Her opponent recently celebrated this legislation passing, while claiming she “failed to deliver” it, getting it wrong again! While it’s great that he supports her bills, he should tell the truth. Senator Metzger’s record shows she cares deeply about all New Yorkers, the planet, and a sustainable future for all of us.
 
Sincerely,
Stephanie Ellis
Tillson, NY
The opinions expressed in this letter are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Mid Hudson News.