SCHUYLER COUNTY, Oct. 13, 2016 -- Spectacular October beauty greets me at every turn as I crisscross the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes. Grapes are ripening on the vines along the shores of Seneca and Keuka Lakes, big bins of apples, squash and pumpkins are for sale at roadside markets, a solitary farmer navigates a tractor through a field as he brings in a final crop of hay. Superb fall hiking, fishing, and game bird hunting beckon, and tourists have caught on that our vacation season extends long after it gets too cold to swim in our lakes and rivers.

Even though our region is the only part of the state that didn’t see job growth last year in the wake of the 2008 recession, tourism is one sector of our economy that is growing. To build jobs, we should build on that. Record numbers of visitors come to our world-class cultural institutions like the Mark Twain writing study in Elmira, the Corning Glass and Rockwell Museums in Corning, and the Cornell Plantations in Ithaca. Watkins Glen boasts the only NASCAR track in the state, and growing crowds each year benefit the entire Finger Lakes region.

With 128 wineries, 82 brewers, and 25 spirit distilleries, tasting tours are an agritourism mainstay. Thousands of people pour in to sample bounty at the Finger Lakes Cheese Festival in Odessa and Ithaca’s Apple Fest, or to work off calories at the Wineglass Marathon in between Hornell and Corning, or the AIDS Ride for Life century cycle around Cayuga Lake.

Each one of these economic boons is the result of tremendous work and collaboration among our local businesses, who deserve our support. In 2015, travelers to our region spent $2.9 billion, not including what tourists spent at wineries. That’s an increase of 14% since 2010, and everything points toward continued growth. Close to 40 million people live within a five or six hours’ drive of the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes, and we have the potential to surpass Napa and Sonoma Valleys as the premier wine and agritourism destination in the United States.

Yet challenges are emerging. Back in 1976, the NY Farm Winery Act eased the way for local wineries, breweries and distilleries to take root. But because Albany pushes its own bills down to the county level, property taxes are becoming oppressive. The movement toward locally produced foods encouraged our farmers to expand into new markets, and restaurants to showcase regional foods and drink, but today New York State’s horrific red tape frustrates one enterprising agritourism farmer after another. Local business owners from winemakers to B&B proprietors to farmers are loudly opposed to expanding gas infrastructure at a time when fossil fuels are down and tourism is up, yet our elected leaders downplay any risk.

Instead of sending away our money through tax-free schemes that only benefit out-of-state interests, let’s get back to basics. Let’s bolster the local businesses who built our $2.9 billion tourism industry, cut property taxes by getting rid of Albany’s unfunded mandates, and get rid of the red tape that hinders the transition into sustainable ag, and prevents small farmers from scaling up. Let’s invest in our own; let’s get to work.

Leslie Danks Burke is running for New York State Senate in the 58th district against incumbent Senator Tom O’Mara. The district includes the counties of Schuyler, Chemung, Steuben, Yates, and part of Tompkins.

Poto in text: Leslie Danks Burke