# Bill Ferris | Best in Government Affairs NY 2026 > Bill Ferris of AARP New York is a 2026 Best in Government Affairs New York honoree, recognized as Longtime Legends in Government Affairs. Canonical: https://www.uslege.ai/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/bill-ferris --- [Best in Government Affairs](/best-in-government-affairs)› [New York](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york)› [2026](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york#honorees)› [Longtime Legends in Government Affairs](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/longtime-legends)› **Bill Ferris** USLege · Best in Government Affairs · New York New York · 2026 Honoree ![Bill Ferris, NYS Legislative Representative at AARP New York — winner, Longtime Legends in Government Affairs, 2026 Best in Government Affairs New York](/assets/awards/ny-2026/bill-ferris.jpg) Category [Longtime Legends in Government Affairs](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/longtime-legends) Organization AARP New York Title NYS Legislative Representative [02 · Longtime Legends in Government Affairs](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/longtime-legends) # Bill Ferris **NYS Legislative Representative**, AARP New York > an honest and trusted voice in the Capitol > > one nominator Bill Ferris has spent nearly three decades as AARP New York's state legislative representative, advancing state policy on financial security, consumer protections, health care access, and building more livable communities for older New Yorkers. As one nominator put it, he's "an honest and trusted voice in the Capitol" — the kind of advocate other lobbyists, legislative staff, and even legislators themselves turn to for a straight answer. His own account of the work reads like a checklist of the state's landmark consumer-protection legislation and regulatory reform: protections against predatory mortgage lending, enhanced residents' rights and stronger state oversight of assisted living facilities, the maintenance and expansion of New York's Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage (EPIC) program, and the creation of the Secure Choice Savings Program, giving private-sector workers without an employer plan a path to retirement security. Ferris has also been deeply involved in energy affordability initiatives to help residential ratepayers manage rising utility costs and keep access to essential services — work that, over his career, has helped secure hundreds of millions of additional dollars in heating assistance funding, alongside a low-income utility rate and automatic data matching to enroll eligible households. His reach extends into the long-term care system as well: he helped pass the Assisted Living Reform Act and New York's Complete Streets law, increased funding for the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program, and pushed through nursing home staffing standards and new investment in home- and community-based services. "His untiring advocacy for energy affordability," one nominator wrote, "has helped tens of thousands of New Yorkers avoid terminations from their utility companies." Colleagues describe a career defined as much by mentorship as by legislative wins. "He has mentored countless interns and helped encourage the careers of more junior staff," one nominator wrote, describing how they themselves rose from AARP support staff to Director of Government Affairs with Ferris's guidance along the way. Another, who has worked alongside him for more than a decade, called his impact "not defined by any single victory, but by a sustained, decades-long record of advancing policies that meaningfully improve the lives of older adults and vulnerable consumers across New York." In a field where credibility is everything, nominators agree Ferris has built his the old-fashioned way — one relationship, and one policy win, at a time. Same category ## More _Longtime Legends in Government Affairs_ honorees. [![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/perry-ochacher.jpg) **Perry Ochacher**Willett Public Affairs](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/perry-m-ochacher)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/rick-ostroff.jpg) **Rick Ostroff**Ostroff Associates ](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/rick-ostroff)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/christine-rutigliano.jpg) **Christine Rutigliano**Roffe Group of Robinson+Cole ](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/christine-rutigliano)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/robert-megna.jpg) **Robert Megna**Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government ](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/robert-megna)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/patricia-reilly.jpg) **Patricia Reilly**Patricia Reilly Consulting ](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/patricia-reilly)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/ross-frommer.jpg) **Ross Frommer**Columbia University Irving Medical Center](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/ross-frommer) [All New York honorees](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york#honorees) [Longtime Legends in Government Affairs](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/longtime-legends) [The September 16 ceremony](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/ceremony) The platform behind the awards ## Track the New York Legislature the way _honorees do_. USLege covers the New York Legislature and New York City Council with live video, searchable transcripts, and cited AI answers, the same coverage Capitol Confidential Pro is built on. 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