Photo provided by the office of NY Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas
Jan. 20, 2025 By Shane O’Brien
Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas has been appointed chair of the State Assembly’s Task Force on Women’s Issues, which promotes gender equality and women’s rights in the state legislature.
González-Rojas, who represents Assembly District 34, which includes parts of Astoria, Corona, East Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, and Woodside, was appointed chair of the Task Force by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. Heastie made a slew of leadership appointments on Jan. 12 for the 2025 legislative session.
González-Rojas said she plans to begin holding regular task force meetings soon to develop a package of legislative priorities on gender justice.
She commented that she had spent her entire career advancing gender, racial, and economic equity for all women, trans, and gender-expansive communities and said Albany needs to take bold action in the face of the incoming Trump presidency.
“In the face of a Donald Trump presidency we must be even more bold than we have already been and fight for universal access to basic needs that make it easier for all to live and thrive in our state. I’m excited and ready to get to work,” González-Rojas said in a statement.
González-Rojas pointed to several pieces of legislation that she has successfully introduced and passed in Albany, which have helped advance protections, rights, and access to care for women across the state. These include Lian’s Law, which ensured outreach and education programming on the serious pregnancy disorder preeclampsia.
She also noted that she has passed legislation to improve mental health screenings for women of color and legislation to protect workers from retaliation when they submit complaints involving unlawful discriminatory practices by employers.
González-Rojas additionally pointed to her work advocating for mothers by opposing school budget cuts and advocating for child care access.
She will head the 33-person Task Force, which consists entirely of women and equals roughly one-quarter of the Assembly.
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