News

Legislator Rachel Barnhart spoke at a press conference held by Rochester Firefighter Jerrod Jones, who was forced to attend a racist and misogynistic party while on duty. Watch full press conference. Below are video clips of Firefighter Jones and Legislator Barnhart from the event.

The members of the Democratic Caucus of the Monroe County Legislature, express oursincerest regrets and condolences on the killing of Rochester Police Officer Anthony P.Mazurkiewicz. Officer Mazurkiewicz served the citizens of Rochester for 29 years and his deathis another tragedy for our city. Ongoing violence in our community has led to too many lives –lost… Continue Reading Democratic Caucus Statement on the Death of Officer Anthony P. Mazurkiewicz

The Democratic Caucus of the Monroe County Legislature is deeply disturbed by the “Reawaken America Tour” stop scheduled at the Main Street Armory in Rochester in August.  This tour features speakers who support extremism, including QAnon conspiracy theories, Christian nationalism, the Big Lie, violent insurrection, attacks on LGTBQ rights, and anti-vaccine falsehoods. The tour promotes… Continue Reading Democratic Caucus Condemns Reawaken America Tour Stop in Rochester

Legislators Rachel Barnhart and Sue Hughes-Smith appeared on WXXI’s Connection to discuss their concerns about Monroe County’s proposed gas tax holiday. The average driver would save $4.17 a month under the plan. They would prefer the $10 million in lost revenue be directed to help people in need, including people who don’t have vehicles. Listen… Continue Reading Legislators Discuss Gas Tax Holiday

Members of the Democratic Caucus of the Monroe County Legislature released a document outlining their priorities to work on in the coming year. The Legislative Agenda encompasses many issues from economic recovery from the pandemic to arts, transportation, and the many issues facing our communities. Democratic Leader Yversha Roman said, “These priorities that we’ve outlined… Continue Reading Democratic Caucus Unveils Agenda

As our second pandemic year comes to a close, I wanted to take a moment to recap my work in the Monroe County Legislature on behalf of the 21st District and look ahead to what’s next. We have accomplished a great deal, and many challenges and opportunities remain. Keeping Our Community Healthy After learning parts… Continue Reading Looking Back, Looking Ahead

Read Minority Reporter Coverage of $100 Incentives Statement from Legislator Rachel Barnhart: I am grateful that Monroe County is restarting $100 incentives for vaccination. At the Connected Communities fall festival in Beechwood in September, we vaccinated 74 people, many times the number of people expected. This event was successful because of the $100 incentive, marketing… Continue Reading Barnhart Thanks County for Continuing Vaccine Incentives

The Monroe County Legislature passed the Food Delivery Fairness Act introduced by Legislator Rachel Barnhart. The bill gives restaurants more control over their businesses amid a rise in the use of third-party food delivery services, such as Grubhub and DoorDash. The Food Delivery Fairness Act would not allow third-party food delivery services to list restaurants… Continue Reading Bill to Prohibit Unauthorized Listing of Restaurants Passes Legislature

Rapid testing saves school days, keeps kids healthy Monroe County Legislator Rachel Barnhart calls on Governor Kathy Hochul to immediately revise New York’s Covid-19 school guidelines to allow a safety protocol called “test to stay.” Right now, New York requires a negative PCR test to return to class after a child is exposed to Covid-19… Continue Reading Barnhart calls on governor to allow “test to stay” in schools