About Roy McDonald

Roy McDonald, was born and raised in the Lansingburgh section of Troy, New York and has resided with his family in the Saratoga County for many years. He graduated from the Lansingburgh Public School System and received his Associate Degree from Hudson Valley Community College followed by his Bachelors and Masters Degrees from the State University of New York at Oneonta. Roy has since received Distinguished Alumni Awards from both of these colleges.

Additionally, Roy is a decorated Veteran of the Vietnam War having served as an Artillery Forward Observer with the U.S. Army’s First Calvary Division. He participated in several combat assaults on the South Vietnamese-Cambodian border as well as in Cambodia. Roy is a member of the Saratoga VFW, Saratoga American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America and the Lansingburgh Veterans Association.

Roy was first elected to the New York State Assembly in a special election in February of 2002. Prior to the Assembly, Roy had a distinguished record for 23 years as the elected Town and County Supervisor from the Town of Wilton. He also served as Chairman of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors. While Supervisor some of his achievements included the total elimination of local town property taxes (both general and highway funds) for twenty straight years, the creation of the 3000 acre Wilton Wildlife Preserve and Park, building the Town’s Gavin Park complex, building the Wilton Veteran’s housing facility and playing a major role in the extremely successful economic development of Wilton as well as Saratoga County.

During his tenure as Assemblyman, Roy has had a number of his major initiatives passed by the legislature and signed into law. The New York State Patriot Plans I, II & III were designed to provide safeguards, benefits and incentives to our New York State military personnel including the National Guard and Reserves. He was also the author of the Saratoga-Washington on the Hudson Partnership; legislation to address collaborative agriculture, open space protection, tourism as well as to promote preservation of the cultural and historic significance of the Revolutionary War sites within the Saratoga Region.

McDonald has become a leading advocate among his assembly colleagues regarding disability and autism awareness, and has introduced a package of legislation to help provide services to families that are faced with relatives diagnosed with these disorders. McDonald is currently working on a fourth Patriot Plan initiative that would expand on the incentives introduced in the three prior Patriot Plan Bills. Additionally, he is also working on a Rural Recovery proposal aimed at helping Volunteer Emergency and Fire Services as well as addressing rural health care, education, infrastructure, transportation, health care and economic development. This initiative also includes the proposed creation of the Agricultural Empire Zone Program, creating major economic incentives to assist the farming community.

Professionally Roy is a Director and Investment Banker for the UBS Corporation. Roy is proud of his career journey which began several years ago as a laborer in the same local steel mill that employed his father and many other relatives who also worked as laborers.

Roy currently serves as a foundation board member for Hudson Valley Community College, the Rensselaer County Commission on Economic Opportunity as well as the Saratoga County Economic Opportunity Council. He is also an active member of the Friends of 112 th Street Park in Lansingburgh, the Saratoga-Wilton ELKS and the American Irish Legislators Society. Roy is proud of his past service as a member of the SUNY Oneonta President’s Advisory Committee, the Saratoga YMCA Board of Directors and the Saratoga County Retired Seniors Volunteer Program.

In recognition of his leadership and hard work, Roy has been the recipient of many awards including those from the Saratoga County ARC, the Saratoga Economic Development Corporation, the Wilton Grange, the Wilton Volunteer Fire Department, the Wilton Emergency Medical Squad, the Wilton KIWANIS Club, the New York State Correction Officers Police Benevolent Association and the New York State Nature Conservancy. Roy has also been the recipient of the Saratoga Good Scout Award; he has also been named as the Saratoga-Wilton Elks Man of the Year and has recently been inducted into the Lansingburgh High School Foundation Hall of Fame.

Roy currently serves as Chairman of the New York State Assembly Minority Program Committee and also sits on the Ways and Means, Agriculture & Markets, Racing & Wagering, and Veterans’ Committees. In 2002 Roy was named as the Vice-Chairman of the Minority Task Force on the condition of New York Agriculture.

Roy and his wife, Angelina Zaccagnino-McDonald, are the proud parents of daughters Julie, Jessica and Stephanie, son-in-law Matt Veitch and grandsons Jacob and David McDonald Veitch.

Standing Committee Assignments 2008: Labor; Racing and Wagering; Veterans’ Affairs; Ways and Means.