News from Assemblyman Goldfeder

December 5, 2014 In This Issue More Support for Rail Line Hold FEMA Accountable Safety for our Kids Small Business of the Month _________ Office Locations Ozone Park   108-14 Crossbay Blvd Ozone Park, NY 11417 718-641-8755 Rockaway Beach 2-14 Beach 96th Street Rockaway Beach, NY 11693  718-945-9550  Albany Office LOB 834 Albany, NY 12248 518-455-4292    Quick Links   ______  News    More About Us   Sign Petition to Quiet Airplane Noise    Sign Petition to Restore Rail Line MGP Community Survey Dear Neighbor,  A few months ago, I testified before the MTA Reinvention Commission, a panel formed by Governor Cuomo, made up of leading national and international transit experts. The Commission was tasked to consider the challenges facing the MTA in the next century and investment opportunities to address these challenges.  In their recently released report, the Commission called for an "aggressive expansion" of the city's transit network.Specifically, the report said that taking advantage of unused rail rights-of-way, like the Rockaway Beach Rail Line, can quickly and cheaply achieve this goal. Our coalition has grown to include residents, elected officials, community leaders, unions and now a group of nationally recognized transit experts who all agree that restoring the Rockaway Beach Rail Line is the most cost effective way to expand transit, create jobs, improve our economy, clean the environment and ease congestion on our roads.    You can stay up to date with community news and daily updates by following me on Facebook and Twitter. Stay Strong, Holding FEMA Accountable I teamed up with Congressman Gregory Meeks to announce a new bill that could protect families from drowning in debt to FEMA. If passed, this law would reauthorize the Disaster Assistance Recoupment Fairness Act (DARFA) of 2011. This would allow FEMA to waive clawbacks of disaster funds when victims received extra money because of FEMA's clerical errors, or if paying back the funds will cause more hardship and debt. DARFA may have expired in 2012 but by renewing it, we can protect families from FEMA's mistakes. Keeping Our Children Safe No parent should have to worry about their child's safety while they travel to and from school every day. I have called on the Department of Transportation to immediately repair the fences separating the Conduit from surrounding neighborhoods. Ozone Park students have been using gaps in the fence as a shortcut to cross the dangerous highway, instead of crossing safely at the nearby pedestrian bridge. Closing these gaps will help keep our children out of harms way and prevent any serious injuries or even death.  Small Business of the Month Small Business of the Month for November went to my great friends Sarah and Chris Romulo of CROM Martial Training in Rockaway! Talk about resilience. This amazing couple has been dealt many blows and yet they continue to fight for their business and the entire community. It was my pleasure to honor them with this award. Just don't ask me to get into the ring!