New York chapter leaders met with Assembly Member Rob Walker in Nassau County. From left are Chapter Secretary-Treasurer Joe Habib, Assmebly Member Walker, chapter executive committee member Dave Sgorbati, and Chapter President Gregory Morris.

Chapter Leaders Meet Assembly Member Walker

Hicksville – On the first full day of spring, the executive committee of the New York State Chapter of REP launched an aggressive outreach program to state and local green Republican officials by calling upon State Assembly Member Rob Walker in his district office. Young and energetic, Walker was a champion of open spaces and sustainable economic development since his days as a Town of Oyster Bay official. His district encompasses Oyster Bay, Westbury, and Hicksville, the heart of heavily Republican Nassau County on Long Island, and the area around Theodore Roosevelt’s home at Sagamore Hill. The New York Chapter was represented by President Gregory Morris, Secretary/Treasurer Joe Habib, and executive committee member Dave Sgorbati.

“My district has the most open space of anywhere in Nassau County,” said Walker, who is turning his attention to power and energy conservation. “This is a bigger issue than taxes in the long run. The trouble is that it is not on people’s minds until they flip the switch and there is no power.” Walker explained that Long Island gets a substantial portion of its power via feeder cables from New Jersey and Connecticut, which could leave his constituents vulnerable in the future. He is working on easy and simple ways for consumers and businesses to conserve power, and is also supporting alternative energy initiatives. One major push is for an alternative-energy development zone. “It would bring in high-tech jobs, research, and economic diversification.”

Walker also bemoaned the reality that he and other like-minded environmental Republicans rarely seem to get credit for their green credentials. On that front, he was excited to learn about REP’s efforts nationally and within the Empire State. Walker plans to join the organization, and to invite the chapter to participate in events and meetings throughout the year.

At the same time the chapter will be expanding its outreach to state, county, town, and local officials starting on Long Island, then moving up the Hudson Valley and eventually to western and northern New York. In each case the message to each elected official will be simple and direct: please join REP, please mention us in your constituent mailings and on your Web site, please invite us to events and meetings, and please consider us a resource for issue support. In this way, we will drive membership and raise the profile of the organization and its message.

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