When it comes to serving constituents as a DeWitt town supervisor, James DiStefano had a simple trademark: The telephone call.
“There’s absolutely no one who called who didn’t get a call back once, or twice, or three times,” he said.
Now, DiStefano is the Republican candidate for New York State senator from the 49th District. In addition to the Republican Party, DiStefano is also endorsed by the Conservative Party, Independence Party and Veteran’s Party.
He’s running against Democratic incumbent David Valesky. The district is made up of parts of Oneida, Onondaga, Madison and Cayuga counties. Republicans have a slight edge in voter registration. As of March of this year, the district had 56,195 registered Republicans and 55,207 registered Democrats.
The election is Nov. 4.
This is DiStefano’s second run for a seat in Albany. In 1998, he ran unsuccessfully for the Assembly from the 119th Assembly District. In 2000, he ran for DeWitt town supervisor and won. In 2004, he was re-elected but this year he lost the seat to Democrat Edward Michalenko.
DiStefano describes himself as fiscally conservative. He attributes his viewpoints and values to his family background. Those who have worked with him say he puts priority on constituency service.
DiStefano was raised in Tupper Lake, N.Y. He is one of three boys. His father was an Italian immigrant who owned his own bar. DiStefano earned his undergraduate degree in accounting from Fordham University, and graduated from Syracuse University College of Law in 1963.
After graduation, DiStefano entered the U.S. Army as a judge advocate and was stationed in Panama for three years. After leaving the service, he came back to Syracuse where he met and married his wife, Anne Marie.
They have two sons. DiStefano worked on civil litigation cases for the New York State Attorney General’s office from 1968 until 1981, when he opened his own practice. He continues to specialize in civil litigation including condemnation cases and car accidents.
DiStefano attributes his interest in law to family experiences and necessity.
“My father, as an immigrant, spoke broken English. So I was always helping my father with this form or that form, so I gravitated to law,” he said. DiStefano’s decision to pursue law was supported by his father. His dad insisted his oldest son practice law, DiStefano said.
As a fiscal conservative, he said, he is sharply critical of the Republican Party’s spending and its inability to keep taxes low.
He doesn’t toe the party line and support everything President George W. Bush stands for, he said. He calls himself a “maverick.” In 2004, he said, he voted for Bush only as the “lesser of two evils.”
DiStefano’s brother Larry credits his brother’s frustration with high government spending to his first job for the family’s business. “My parents had a restaurant and that place was open seven days a week, 14 hours a day, 365 days a year. We worked all the time, never went on vacation,” recalled Larry DiStefano. “So it was a difficult life. I think that shaped him in terms of his frugality.”
DiStefano credits his focus on frugality and opposition to high taxes for attracting him to politics. He was frustrated with a growing state debt and high taxes, he said.
As Town Supervisor in DeWitt, he won praise from colleagues. Republican DeWitt Town Board member Ken Andrews cites constituent services as an example of DiStefano’s commitment to residents.
“I haven’t seen anyone be as attentive to the needs of the constituents. If someone had a problem he called them back personally. He was high on constituency service,” Andrews said.
Accessibility and cutting the town’s spending were two things DiStefano was known for as Town Supervisor, Andrews said.
“We cut legal fees in the town by more than 100 percent going from the previous administration to Jim’s administration. And he stepped on spending as much as he could throughout everything we did,” Andrews said.
The Web site OpenBookNewYork, run by the state comptroller’s office, provides information on town revenue and expenditures. It confirms the DeWitt town’s frugality in DiStefano’s time on the town board. Over the first four years of DiStefano’s tenure, the town’s debt decreased by $52,248. Government spending decreased by $123,704 from his first year in office in 2000 to 2006, the last year on record.
Don Gendron works for the Town of DeWitt Parks and Recreation. He’s also a DeWitt resident. DiStefano’s main mode of operation was working for constituents, Gendron said. For example, Gendron recalled once asking the Town Board for new stop signs in his neighborhood. Other board members rejected his request. But DiStefano supported him, arguing that extra stop signs would only improve safety, Gendron said.
“To me that was just common sense and common sense is something he seems to have more than most people,” Gendron said.
DiStefano supports local veteran’s associations. He is also a member of the Lincoln Republican Club, a political group aimed at helping local GOP politicians get into office.
Al Julian is also a Lincoln Republican Club member. He ran unsuccessfully for the Syracuse Common Council in 2007. DiStefano, he said, made it a point to give him useful advice. DiStefano told him to reach out to as many constituents as he could, and make an effort to cross party lines, Julian said.
“He said to make sure that you reach out to every person you can and let them know that even if you don’t agree with them on everything that you’d appreciate their consideration,” said Julian.
And DiStefano insists that he also follows his own advice. The 49th District is made up of many different people spanning a wide geographic area, he said. All these people have different concerns they want addressed, he said.
But the biggest issues the state faces right now are universal, DiStefano said. “The bottom line in the state of New York is the same,” said DiStefano. “Taxes are too high and the economy is not good.”
DiStefano on Issues:
Wants to enact a property tax cap.
Wants to permanently reduce state gas taxes.
Promises to repeal what he considers as “wasteful government spending policies,” especially in Medicaid, the federal-state insurance program for the poor and elderly in nursing homes.
Promises to repeal what he sees as “wasteful tax policies” like New York State taxes on truckers. He says that getting rid of these taxes, or reducing them, would lower costs for truckers and farmers. He says that in turn, this would lower the cost of food for consumers.
Wants to secure state money for road and bridge repair around Central New York.
Promises to honor veterans by advocating for those who serve. This includes making sure veterans receive exemptions, educational benefits, financial assistance and support as they transition back into civilian life.
Promises to sponsor programs that will market Central New York products worldwide.
His Record:
As DeWitt Town Supervisor, DiStefano:
Worked to reduce legal fees.
Challenged the city of Syracuse to try and increase pilot money, or payments in lieu of taxes, from the Hancock International Airport. That case is still in the courts.
(Torie Wells is a junior broadcast journalism student.)
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