Earlier today, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed a package of bills to enhance support and bolster protections for New Yorkers who serve or have served in the armed forces. The package consists of 14 bills that protect the rights of active duty military members and veterans in a number of areas, including access to education, employment, voting, discharge status protection, and general services and benefits.
A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:
Well good morning. Good afternoon, technically. It's a great day to be here to celebrate Veterans Day, the 100th anniversary. It's my pleasure to be joined by colleagues, starting with General Raymond Shields, who is the Adjutant General of the State of New York. We have with us the 369th sustainment of the Harlem Hellfighters, who we're going to be marching with. General Patrick Murphy, who is now our Commissioner of the Department of Homeland Security. Jim McDonough, who is the Director of New York State Division of Veterans' Affairs, a retired Colonel from 2007. We have our Gold Star mom Mecca Nelson. And we have Dr. Kelly Posner, who is the founder of the Columbia Lighthouse Project and who has done extraordinary work and literally saved the lives of many.
We celebrate on this beautiful New York day our veterans who we owe the ultimate debt of gratitude. Starting from World War II, more and more today, we understand who important the fight for freedom is and how the fight for freedom goes on every day and how so many women and men put their lives in danger for us every day. And sometimes we tend to take it for granted, but this country has paid a terrible price in human lives. New York, we have about 750,000 woman and men who are veterans and we honor them all today. I like to say the best way to honor them is not just on Veterans Day, but by honoring them every day and by reciprocating every day.
And we passed another set of initiatives this year, fourteen initiatives, to help veterans and help their families From additional education services to employment services to healthcare services, we are going to be investing in the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor in Orange County. We are going to be expanding that with the $17 million dollar construction expansion. I think that is going to be a national point of honor for heroes who have received our purple heart.
We are going to build the first New York State Veterans Cemetery ever. And I think that will be a comfort for older veterans and their families, but it will also be a monument for all New Yorkers to be able to go and honor veterans. It is about time this state of New York had its own veterans cemetery.
So, I am going to sign this bill which is the signing of all fourteen bills for this veterans initiative package that says thank you, we appreciate you, we appreciate your service, and we remember it every day and this our way of reciprocating in the honor of your service. I want to thank all the people who were here today to march with me and it is a beautiful day. It's about 60 degrees. Upstate New York, thirty-six degrees and snowy. So lucky we are marching in New York City today. Thank you.