Meet The Candidates: Dean Murray In The 3rd Senate District

EAST PATCHOGUE, NY — Republican Dean Murray is seeking reelection to the 3rd Senate District on Nov. 5.

With Election Day just around the corner, Patch has been reaching out to the candidates to find out why they are running this November.

Here is what the senator had to say:

Name: Dean Murray

Campaign website: www.Murray2024.org

City or town of residence: East Patchogue

Office sought: NYS Senate, 3rd District

Party affiliation: Republican, Conservative

Education: High School graduate, and graduated with honors from the Broadcasting Institute of Maryland

Occupation: New York State Senator and small business owner of an advertising agency

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? No

Age: 60

Previous public office, appointive or elective: Served for seven years in the New York State Assembly and the last two years in the state Senate.

Why are you seeking this office? To continue much of the work that I've started. In particular, to make Long Island and all of New York, safer and more affordable.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post? I do not know anything about my opponent but I ask the voters to judge me based on my experience and my record while serving in the Assembly and the Senate.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign? I am working with Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney to tackle the fentanyl epidemic and the increase in drunk and drugged driving that is leading to more and more hit-and-run accidents.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job? I've fought and won many fights in my time in office, such as... repealing most of the MTA payroll tax, repealing the saltwater fishing license fee, bringing Mixed Martial Arts back to New York, legalizing daily fantasy sports, passing the I-Stop legislation that dramatically reduced the opioid and prescription drug problem, and passed Angelica's Law, which cracked down on those driving with suspended licenses.

I also brought back millions in funding for schools, fire departments, first responders, and not-for-profits.

What problems facing your district would you look to solve if you are elected/reelected? Like most of New York State, we have a housing problem but we also are seeing a dramatic increase in drunk and drugged driving and hit-and-run accidents. We also must continue to work on protecting our water supply by adding more sewers and upgrading the many outdated septic systems.

Cancer is a prominent health issue for Long Islanders and is a leading cause of death for children. What measures would you take to help lower cancer rates and bolster research in the field? Helping to protect our water supply by eliminating chemicals such as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, otherwise known as PFAS, will go a long way in reducing the spread of cancer and other diseases. We need to continue taking steps to ban the use of these substances in some of our everyday products.

What would you do to help small businesses struggling with inflation and the cost of goods needed to manufacture their products? We must improve the business climate in New York State and it starts with decreasing the number of unfunded mandates we impose on them and frankly help encourage them to succeed, rather than punishing success. When businesses succeed, they tend to grow, which means they create more jobs, putting more New Yorkers to work, increasing our tax base. All of this is good for New York.

Water quality is critical to the region. What plans do you have to help improve water quality and keep it safe for generations? In addition to addressing the PFAS issue, earlier this year, we passed the "Suffolk Clean Water Restoration Act" which will raise billions of dollars over the next few years to be put towards installing new sewers and new IA septic systems, which will dramatically improve water quality.

How can the immigration crisis be addressed at the federal and local levels? Can federal and local officials work together? On the federal level, they obviously need to do a better job of securing the border. On the state level, we must reverse the "Sanctuary City/State" designations and stop spending billions of taxpayer dollars on housing, clothing, feeding, and handing out $1,000 per month debit cards, to those who have come to this country and our state illegally.

There is a right way and wrong way to come into the country and those who do it the wrong way, should not be rewarded.

What can be done about inflation, which some say can be attributed to price gouging? Inflation is not a "one issue" problem, but most of what leads to inflation is handled on the federal level. On the state level, we have already passed laws against price gouging.

The median cost of renting on Long Island falls between $2,000 and $3,100. How can more affordable housing options be created? It will take a combination of increasing the housing stock while also reducing property taxes. In many cases, it's not the price of the house that's the problem, it's the amount of property taxes that makes it unaffordable.

What is your stance on SALT (State and Local Tax Relief) What needs to be done to keep Long Island streets safe from crime? This is primarily a Federal issue as the Feds capped the amount of state and local taxes that taxpayers can deduct at $10,000. It's up to the federal elected officials to determine if they will raise or lift that cap. As for keeping Long Island safe, we need to reverse or fix the terrible, so-called criminal justice reforms that have come out of Albany since 2019 (Cashless Bail, Discovery Reforms, Less is More, Clean Slate, etc.).

These laws have severely limited the ability of police and judges to do their jobs.

The DWI/DWAI rate is escalating island-wide. What measures can you fight for, to address the escalating addiction crisis? I am sponsoring and co-sponsoring several pieces of legislation that severely cracks down on deadly driving as well as hit-and-run drivers, but when it comes to addiction, we must do more to offer help and treatment. Unfortunately, the bail reform laws put more addicts back out on the streets instead of letting law enforcement hold them and provide them with treatment. That needs to be addressed.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you? Do the right thing when no one is looking and you'll never have to worry when they are looking.

Finally, I'm asking for the voters to send me back to Albany to continue to serve and represent those who live in the 3rd Senate District because I truly love what I do and feel grateful to be in a position that allows me to help those who need it. I also love being in a position that allows me to help shape the future for our next generation and hopefully make New York, and Long Island, the kind of place where people want to come to live, work and raise a family.