RISE 2019 Conference

First elected in 2012, NYS Assemblymember Patricia Fahy represents the City of Albany and the Towns of Bethlehem, Guilderland, and New Scotland. A leading advocate for job creation and education, Pat has been the prime sponsor of over 100 bills – 47 of which have been signed into law including: providing critical cost saving measures for municipalities to own and update streetlights; ensuring access to quality legal representation for all New Yorkers while lifting an expensive unfunded mandate off the counties by reforming Indigent Legal Services; providing tax relief for owners of undeveloped land to encourage conservation; and expanding funding sources for Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) programs.

Pat has also introduced legislation that protects residents and businesses from potential petroleum disasters; provides state funding for Pre-K transportation; protects consumer credit from the impact of data breaches; and bans the possession of devices designed to increase the rate of fire of semi-automatic weapons.

Pat serves on six committees, including Environmental Conservation, Higher Education, and Tourism. She is the Chair of the Assembly Task Force on Women’s Issues. Pat was awarded Freshman Legislator of the Year by the New York State School Boards Association during her first term in office and the Advocate for Choice award by Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood. In 2017, she was awarded the “Promoting Excellence in Mandated Representation” Award by the New York State Bar Association for her legislation overhauling New York’s public defense system.

Prior to her election, Pat served as Associate Commissioner of Intergovernmental Affairs and Federal Policy in the NYS Department of Labor, where she advocated for federal economic stimulus funds, extended unemployment benefits, and youth training initiatives. Pat is a former elected member of the Albany School Board. She serves on the Board of Directors of the UAlbany Center for Women in Government & Civil Society, and previously served on the Board of the Boys and Girls Club of Albany.

Before moving to Albany, Pat served as the Executive Director to the Chicago Workforce Board. Prior to her work in Chicago, she spent nine years in Washington D.C., including: in the Clinton Administration as the Associate Director for Employment and Training in the Congressional Affair’s Office of the U.S. Department of Labor under Secretary Robert Reich; as a legislative analyst in the U.S. House and Senate; and as a Presidential Management Intern in the Department of the Treasury.

Pat is married to Wayne Bequette, a professor at RPI in Troy, NY. They have two children and live in the City of Albany. She has a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from University of Illinois at Chicago and a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Northern Illinois University.