CHQ Chamber holds a networking event at Chautauqua Institution (September 17, 2026)
State officials for Chautauqua County say over-regulation is the biggest barrier for businesses in our area.
State Senator George Borrello and Assemblyman Andrew Molitor made the comments to WRFA at a recent CHQ Chamber event.
Borrello said that as a business owner and Chamber of Commerce member; the state does “…a lot of things that have good intentions but have unintended consequences,” “This is challenging here, particularly you know in in Western New York and the Southern Tier, because we’re right on the border of Pennsylvania. And how many businesses have we lost? They literally just pull up stakes and move to Pennsylvania, just a few miles down the road. So, it’s bad across the state, but it’s particularly bad here because we we are competing not with China, not with Florida, but with Pennsylvania. And so, how do we alleviate that? Well, instead of picking and choosing winners, which is what a lot of our economic development agenda in New York State is… we’re going to give tax breaks and money to this company and that company, but how about we just alleviate the burdens for every business in New York State? How about we just uplift everyone and make it easier for people to do business in New York State?”
Borrello said he’d also like to see legislation creating a kind of amnesty program for businesses where they can find out if they’re in violation of regulations without being fined or facing other consequences. He said when it comes to small businesses, they don’t necessarily have a lawyer or compliance officer on staff, which can make it difficult for small businesses to navigate state regulations.
Assemblyman Molitor agrees with Borrello that regulations and taxes have made it harder to do business in the state, “Whether you’re a large business or a small business, New York makes it very difficult for you to do business and grow your business, which is why we are ranked every year one of the worst states to do business.”
Molitor said he’d like to see taxes brought down for everyone. He’d also like to see something done about liability insurance, something that makes it easier for small businesses to offer health insurance for employees, and spending under better control in the State.
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