Dear Friends:

This past week, our nation lost a champion of women's and equal rights, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I found out about her loss in the midst of Rosh Hashanah dinner with my family, and we cried in mourning. Justice Ginsburg was a brilliant legal strategist who strategically brought major cases before the Supreme Court, on which she would later serve, based upon the Equal Protection clause of the Constitution's 14th Amendment: "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; ...nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Based upon the Equal Protection clause, she worked to overturn discriminatory laws against women (and men). These decisions subsequently provided a framework for overturning discriminatory laws against the LGBTQ+ community. In her own words, Justice Ginsburg said she wished to be remembered as "Someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability. And to help repair tears in her society, to make things a little better through the use of whatever ability she has." May her memory be a blessing.

On Tuesday, September 23rd, the Albany Times Union published an OpEd I co-wrote with my Senate colleagues Jen Metzger and Roxanne Persaud about ensuring that families have the necessary broadband and child care resources to make schooling work during the Coronavirus Pandemic.

We wrote:

Click here to read the full OpEd. New Yorkers worked hard to beat back COVID-19. Let's ensure students and families have the tools they need—including free broadband and affordable, quality child care for parents balancing work & hybrid or distance learning. To that end, I will be introducing legislation to require free, expanded and quality broadband access for students and schools during the duration of the pandemic.

On Monday, September 21st, I was deeply humbled to be honored by ACDS at its preschool in my district. It was wonderful to work with Executive Director Michael Smith and the entire ACDS team as they moved from concept to opening a school in Westchester to serve preschool students with developmental disabilities. Thank you also for the beautiful poster the students showed through the window! I will continue to fight for resources and opportunities for children with developmental disabilities and the nonprofit providers that educate and serve them.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer announced a Community Build Back Program to assist Westchester residents who are struggling to pay housing costs due to the financial impact of the Coronavirus Pandemic. The four pronged Program includes Eviction Prevention for Landlords, Eviction Prevention in Consortium Communities, Foreclosure Prevention, and Medium-Term Rental Assistance. The Program is funded through HUD and funding from the federal CARES Act. Click here to learn more about each effort and how to apply. Applications are available in English & Spanish.

The NYS Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is expanding the number of services it offers online, making it easier for New Yorkers to do business with the DMV right from home. This past week, the DMV announced that it will launch a pilot program to offer the written learner permit tests online for passenger cars (Class D) and motorcycles (Class M). Additionally, for the first time ever, New Yorkers who live in counties with state-run DMV offices—this includes Westchester—can now register their vehicles online on the DMV website. There are more than 60 online transactions available on the DMV website. Customers can renew or replace their registration, renew their driver license, obtain a driving record, or change their address. Click here to read more about all of the services available through the DMV's website.

The General Election on Tuesday, November 3rd is less than six weeks away, and the deadline to register to vote is fast approaching. For those who still need to register to vote, the deadline to postmark your voter registration form is October 9th. Voter registration forms can be printed from here and mailed to the Westchester County Board of Elections (25 Quarropas St., White Plains, NY 10601). Click here to check whether your voter registration status is up-to-date. This year, you have three options to choose from to vote:

Tuesday, September 22nd marked the first day of fall. When it comes to experiencing the beauty of peak foliage or other fall activities, it's hard to compete with what we have available in the Hudson Valley and throughout the state. I Love NY, a branch of the NYS Department of Economic Development, has compiled a list of activities to experience the magic of New York in the fall. Click here for its guide to apple & pumpkin picking, apple cider donuts, ziplining, fall foliage hikes, and more.

As always, feel free to contact my office at (914) 934-5250 or smayer@nysenate.gov if there is an issue with which we can offer assistance.

Kind regards,

Thank you to all who submitted beautiful photos for my Garden Contest. The inspiration for the contest was to ask us to look for the beauty around us during this difficult time and to acknowledge the hard work of local gardeners who add so much beauty to our community. I was delighted to look through the numerous submissions of photos of home gardens, community gardens, apartment balcony gardens, and even plots of sidewalk that gardeners had adopted and cultivated.

The stories they wrote along with the submissions were quite touching. Many wrote about how they found gardening during the pandemic and what a wonderful outlet it has been; how they share their vegetable harvest with neighbors and friends (and even nature’s little friends!); and how they've enjoyed spending quality family time with their hands in the dirt. Gardening is a deeply fulfilling pastime, and as one of them noted, “plant people are generous and kind folk.”

Click here to view the submissions for the Garden Contest.

Westchester Land Trust's Sugar Hill Farm in Bedford Hills produces an average of 7,000 servings of food for local food pantries every year. Socially distanced volunteers of all ages and from every corner of Westchester help plant, water, weed, and harvest crops in this garden from April through October. Small groups of volunteers farm four times a week and learn all about regenerative farming in the process. This year, due to the threat of COVID-19, they have strict volunteer protocols in place, but their work in the garden is more important than ever before since more and more families have had to turn to food pantries due to loss of job or income.

The Bronxville Giving Garden (BCG) is a community-based vegetable garden that donates organic produce to families in need in lower Westchester County. BCG is a volunteer organization under the umbrella of the Bronxville Green Committee (BGC), which spearheaded the initiative to bring the Garden to life. In 2016, seed money from the Village of Bronxville and the Bronxville Rotary Club made this project a reality. The BGG operates solely on the generosity of volunteers and donors and is responsible for all funding duties. Over 400 pounds of vegetables were donated last season.