| Pam Helming and her husband, Gary, have been residents of Canandaigua for over 30 years and have raised their two children, Catherine and Evan, in the local schools and community.
Pam has more than 30 years of private business experience. She has worked in commercial building, regulatory affairs, and land use planning.
It was immediately after graduating from college when Pam worked with developmentally disabled individuals that Pam recognized her desire to dedicate her life to serving others.
Her desire to make a difference in the community led to public service, first as a Canandaigua Town Board member, later as Canandaigua Town Supervisor, and now as New York State Senator for the 54th District.
As Canandaigua Town Supervisor, Pam worked hard on behalf of local taxpayers and was successful in her efforts to make local government more efficient and transparent. She fought to reduce property tax rates, cut unnecessary expenses, repair infrastructure, and grow jobs by attracting new businesses and development.
As a Town Board Member, Pam wrote and introduced a resolution in opposition to Governor Cuomo's disastrous SAFE Act. As a County Board Supervisor, Pam stood up for Second Amendment rights and supported legislation to allow rifle hunting in Ontario County. As NYS Senator, Pam sponsored successful legislation to permit rifle hunting in Seneca County.
Early on in her tenure as Senator, Pam faced the Lake Ontario flooding that ravaged communities along the lake in Cayuga, Wayne, and Monroe Counties. She responded with a series of bills aimed at providing relief for the affected municipalities and the people whose homes and businesses were destroyed by the natural disaster. These measures include making emergency funding available immediately to municipalities through the Clean Water Infrastructure Act, setting aside money through New York State Homes and Community Renewal for homeowners impacted by the flooding, and creating a new flood recovery grant program for homeowners, small businesses, and local governments.
A longtime champion for the vast local natural resources in the region, Pam also helped secure $110 million in the New York State budget for projects that will preserve drinking water at its sources by conserving lakes, watersheds, and other buffer areas and protecting against pollutants and invasive species. As Town Supervisor, Pam was a member of the Canandaigua Lake Watershed Council, and she remains committed to preserving, protecting, and promoting water quality and the overall environment in the region.
With agriculture being the biggest industry in the Finger Lakes Region, Pam aims to work with local farmers and residents to bolster the industry. Throughout the New York State budget process, Pam successfully advocated for vital investments that support family farming across the state. These efforts include increased funding for agricultural education to build the next generation of farmers, fully restored funding to provide business consulting services and mental health services through New York FarmNet, and support for agricultural research and development through the New York Farm Viability Institute, Cornell University, and other organizations.
People throughout the 54th District cite jobs as one of their main concerns, and Pam shares that concern as she advocates on their behalf. In this regard, she supported a package of bills boosting the state economy by training job seekers and existing employees for the job opportunities that are in demand. To help small businesses, she supported measures to save them millions of dollars by reducing their workers' compensation contributions and to boost investment in technology, reduce burdensome regulations, and create significant tax savings to spur job growth.
Pam has continued to work tirelessly to protect the Second Amendment rights of all New Yorkers. She successfully ensured no funding for the SAFE Act was included in the 2017-2018 New York State Budget, has worked in conjunction with many of her colleagues on legislation to repeal the SAFE Act in part and as a whole, and has successfully prevented numerous misguided measures from becoming law, such as- requiring gun owners to purchase additional liability insurance, enabling police officers to confiscate legally owned firearms without due process, and further limiting what type of firearms may be sold and owned in New York State.
As New York State Senator, Pam serves as the ranking member of the Commerce, Economic Development, and Small Business Committee and the ranking member of the Commission on Rural Resources. She also serves on the Agriculture Committee, the Racing, Gaming, and Wagering Committee, and the Housing, Construction, and Community Development Committee.
The Helming family are parishioners of St. Mary's Church in Canandaigua. Pam has also been involved in volunteer efforts for the church.
Pam's daughter, Catherine, is a Physician Assistant at the Womack Army Medical Center in North Carolina, where she resides with her husband, Charlie, a West Point Graduate and Captain in the U.S. Army. Her son, Evan, graduated from the College of St. Rose and resides in Canandaigua. |