Connections

Assemblymember Jen Lunsford on the 2026-2027 NYS budget

By Evan Dawson,

Megan Mack, Julie Williams

Published July 13, 2026 at 2:10 PM EDT

Two people wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a woman at left has long red hair and is wearing a white and orange print blouse; a man at right has very short dark hair and is wearing eyeglasses, a dark grey button-down shirt, white pants and sneakers. — Jen Lunsford with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Monday, July 13, 2026

We kick off our series of conversations about the New York State budget with Assemblymember Jen Lunsford.

She shares her takeaways regarding auto insurance, utilities, and childcare, among other budget items.

You can join the discussion and ask her your questions about state business.

In studio:

Assemblymember Jen Lunsford, District 135

Connections

Evan Dawson

Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.

See stories by Evan Dawson

Megan Mack

Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.

See stories by Megan Mack

Julie Williams

Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.

See stories by Julie Williams