The schedule for Saturday’s town hall meeting featuring Assemblyman Bill Nojay, (R,C) 133rd District, and State Senator Tom O’Mara, (R) 58th District, consisted of topics such as school funding, the SAFE Act, and minimum wage. 

Although it was minimum wage which drew the most discussion from the lawmakers and voters at the meeting. 

The meetings such as the one on Saturday, as well as the most talked about topic, are nothing new for Nojay and O’Mara.

“Today was no different than other town hall meetings we have, the economy and jobs are what people are most concerned about, says O’Mara.

“A lot of concerned expressed today was about the impact of minimum wage on the economy.”

That minimum wage talk of course, driven by the proposal from Gov. Andrew Cuomo for $15 an hour minimum wage statewide. A proposal which, according to O’Mara, has already hurt one unnamed business in the Elmira area. 

“It had a company looking to come in, to the lease the facility in Elmira. it was from out of state, and just this week, they notified them that they were no longer interested because they were concerned of what the impact of that type of business operation would have with the minimum wages being increased,” O’Mara said. 

Aside from minimum wage, the influence of NYC lawmakers’ decisions also gathered a lot of attention, especially from Assemblyman Nojay. 

“Manufacturing jobs have left, first to places like China now to places like Texas and Florida and North Carolina,” says Nojay.

“We’ve got to start pushing back very hard against the New York City politicians, not that they’re trying to do us harm, but they just don’t think about us when they pass these laws and the impact it has on our jobs and economy.”