It’s been a challenging year for many rural New Yorkers – from high utility bills to frozen USDA funding to SNAP benefit delays.
Radio Catskill spoke with 19th Congressional District Representative Josh Riley about how those issues shaped his first year in office in 2025, what lies ahead in 2026, and what’s top of mind leading up to the midterms.
Riley, representing a sprawling district from the Southern Tier to the western Catskills—including Sullivan, Delaware, and parts of Ulster and Greene counties—is up for re-election this November. Republican New York Senator Peter Oberacker announced last October that he’d also run for the congressional seat.
While it’s been the biggest honor to serve the community that raised him, Riley says, it’s been frustrating to witness how broken Congress is from within.
“Around here in upstate New York, we care a lot less about people’s political parties. We care a lot less about scoring points in politics… in Washington, it’s not really that way.”
Here are four issues we discussed with Rep. Riley from this past year.
Healthcare
Rep. Riley said that America’s healthcare system is “borderline in shambles.” From a shortage of healthcare providers to tight financial constraints, Riley has pushed for legislation that would reverse the cuts facing hospitals from President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill.
“We need to improve the pipeline of doctors and nurses and providers in rural communities,” he said about legislation he’s introduced that would create incentives and bonuses for providers who would work in rural communities.
He also co-sponsored the Rural Hospital Stabilization Act, which would provide $500 million to rural hospitals affected by the One Big Beautiful Bill. It was referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee in April 2025.
With ACA subsidies expired on Jan. 1, he’s hoping to push for a vote in Congress as early as next week to extend the subsidies. Still, his offices have been preparing for an influx of residents who may need support in his district.
High Utility Bills
Riley said one of his biggest fights has been making life more affordable for New Yorkers, starting with skyrocketing utility bills.
He introduced a bill to ban bonuses for utility CEOs when they raise rates in December and launched an investigation into pricing practices by upstate utility companies. The bill was referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee last December.
“ You have NYSEG and Central Hudson and National Grid owned by foreign corporations that are reporting hundreds of millions of dollars in profits at our expense,” Riley said.
In June 2025, NYSEG filed rate increase proposals to increase delivery rates by more than 30 percent for some customers. If approved by the Public Services Commission, NYSEG customers could see new rates starting May 1, 2026.
War in Gaza
Rep. Riley has faced several protests at his events and at his district office over his stance on Israel’s war in Gaza. In October, protestors criticized Riley’s AIPAC-sponsored visit to Israel and pushed whether he’d support an arms embargo at his town hall at SUNY Sullivan in Loch Sheldrake.
With Israel’s war now in its third year and more than 70,000 Palestinians killed, he was asked about criticism that Congress isn’t doing enough to end the war. Riley said he “want[s] the violence to end.”
“ I’m where most people in our district are: folks want to see peace in the region. They want to see the Israelis and the Palestinians be able to live side by side in peace. Everything I’m doing on that issue is toward that end,” he said.
Farming
In December 2025, the House of Representatives passed the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act – one of the first bills Riley sponsored in office to expand milk options in schools.
In March 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture cut key federal programs that help schools, food banks, and pantries purchase food directly from local farms across the country. Riley hopes to bring these programs back in 2026.
“ I’ve led the effort in a bipartisan way with Democrats and Republicans on legislation to reinstate that funding so that those schools can continue to buy locally. That’s a huge deal for farmers. It’s a huge deal for the schools,” said Riley.
As the midterm elections approach in November, Riley says what’s top of mind for him hasn’t changed: “Listening to folks across the community.”
“It’s really just about continuing to focus on doing the work, and the politics will take care of itself.”
Image: Rep. Josh Riley speaking with dairy farmers in May 2025 (Photo Credit: Congressman Josh Riley)