Assembly Member Stacey Pheffer Amato announced on Monday her decision not to seek re-election in 2026. She was first elected to represent South Queens and the Rockaway Peninsula in Albany in 2016 in a seat previously held by her mother for nearly a quarter of a century, Queens County Clerk Audrey I. Pheffer. They became the first mother-daughter team in New York history to be elected to the State Legislature.
“I love being in public service and representing the people of the 23rd Assembly District has been the honor of a lifetime,” Pheffer Amato said. “My team and I have built a seven-days-a-week, 365-days-a-year operation to make sure this district is well served, and through that, I have had the joy of meeting with and delivering for thousands of our neighbors when they need help. But after 10 years in this position, it is time to move on and serve my community in other capacities.”
Pheffer Amato is known as a tireless community advocate and prolific lawmaker, having passed the most bills out of the New York City Assembly delegation during the last legislative session and helping pass hundreds of pieces of legislation, particularly for the police, firefighters, EMS, teachers, nurses and other public employees throughout New York State. In July, she succeeded in getting the men and women of the FDNY a 20-year retirement plan, something that had been thought by many to be unobtainable. The proudest moment of her career came in October 2022, when Governor Kathy Hochul enacted Pheffer Amato’s nation-leading legislation, A.8537, making New York the first state in the country to mandate insurance companies provide full coverage for any and all types of post-mastectomy surgery.
“This work has ensured that a woman can choose how she wants her post-mastectomy body to look,” Pheffer Amato said in October, marking the third anniversary of her legislation being signed into law. “We all know someone who has been impacted by breast cancer, and this law ensures that women don’t just survive, but thrive, and feel good about their own bodies.”
Most recently, Pheffer Amato was chair of the Resorts World New York City Community Advisory Committee which voted unanimously to approve the proposed expansion of the casino and application for one of three downstate full gaming licenses, which is expected to be awarded next month.
Pheffer Amato is known as a tireless community advocate for the neighborhoods of Ozone Park, Lindenwood, Howard Beach, Hamilton Beach, Broad Channel, Breezy Point, Roxbury, Neponsit, Belle Harbor, Rockaway Park, Rockaway Beach,
Arverne, Edgemere, Bayswater and Far Rockaway. She has always been able to make government work for the residents of her district, as she has been responsible for resolving more than 10,000 individual constituent cases over the past decade.
“This district is a pure snapshot of New York State; we are diverse, hardworking, big-hearted, and have countless opinions on every topic,” Pheffer Amato said. “The people inspire me every day and have been the best part of this job. I am proud to be part of this wonderful community and proud of the work we have done together.”
