July 7, 2011 Dear Friend, As Majority Leader, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for your support

of the Senate Republican Conference and provide you with an update on what was one of the most positive and productive legislative sessions in New York States history. During last years campaign, Senate Republicans heard the call from taxpayers loud and clear: cut state spending, lower our tax burden and allow the private sector to create jobs. We promised to stop and reverse the fiscal train-wreck created by the Senate Democrats during their disastrous two-year stint in the Senate Majority. I am happy to report that we kept our promise. Working with Governor Cuomo, we passed an early budget that charts a new course for New York. In it, we eliminated a $10 billion deficit without raising taxes and reduced year-toyear spending for the first time since 1995. We enacted a property tax cap, the centerpiece of the Senate Republican agenda, so businesses can grow and taxpayers can get the relief they need and deserve. In addition, we provided $127 million in direct mandate relief so schools and local governments can better control their costs. We ensured that the State University of New York (SUNY) will continue to expand and create jobs in the years ahead by enacting NY SUNY 2020. We also passed the Power NY Act to secure the states energy future by expanding the availability of affordable, clean and reliable electricity, while also creating jobs and boosting the economy. In addition, we reformed our ethics laws so the public will have more information than ever about the outside employment of legislators and confidence in elected officials can be restored. Taken together, these achievements have sent a positive message to all New Yorkers that we have turned a page on the politics and divisiveness of the past and are focused on getting the people the results they expect from their government. Compare our Senate Republican record of the past six months with the Senate Democrats term in the majority and the contrast couldnt be clearer. In the midst of the worst economic times since the Great Depression, Senate Democrats raised taxes by a staggering $14 billion and increased state spending by $14 billion, sending us deeper into the economic abyss. Their scandal-scarred tenure instilled a culture of corruption in our Capitol that turned our great state into a national joke. Thanks to your help in restoring a Republican Majority, weve turned things around but we have more work to do. We will continue to focus our energy on helping the private sector create good-paying jobs so young people who grow up and are educated in New York can be given the opportunity to raise their families here too.

We will look to cut taxes so businesses can invest, and reduce needless regulations and other obstacles to job creation in this State. And, lets work together to eliminate the job-killing MTA payroll tax. Senate Republicans are committed to doing more to create jobs, and look forward to you joining us in that effort. This has been a remarkable legislative session; one that I am convinced will forever be remembered as the moment we began to turn New York State around. Thank you for your trust and for your continued friendship.

Sincerely,

Dean G. Skelos NYS Senate Majority Leader