ALBANY – Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro was back in Albany this week attending the New York State Association of Counties conference.

The former assemblyman said his years in the legislature are coming in handy now that he is on the other side of the state-local government equation.

“It’s amazing how your perspective changes when you are staring at a substantial fiscal challenge and you need to provide county services with such limited resources, but as a state assemblyman I understood the challenges facing Dutchess County and now coming to the table with that background as county executive, the conversation was that much more productive and that much more, I think, important for the people I represent,” Molinaro said.

Counties have been begging the state for mandate relief and Governor Cuomo says he wants to start that process to ease the burden on them.