On Tuesday, May 9th, the State Assembly successfully passed Assemblyman Kevin Byrne’s first piece of legislation (A02998), amending the highway law to re-designate the ‘Army Captain Clayton Carpenter Memorial Highway’ as the “Major Clayton Carpenter Memorial Highway.’ This is also the first Republican bill to pass the Assembly this year. The legislation updates the highway law to reflect Clayton Carpenter’s true rank.
Following Carpenter’s tragic and untimely death during a training exercise in 2014, legislation was passed designating this particular stretch of road as the ‘Army Captain Clayton Carpenter Memorial Highway.’ However, Carpenter was posthumously promoted to the rank of Major in the time subsequent to the original designation. This most recent bill, which received overwhelming bi-partisan approval in the Assembly, certifies that the highway named in this local hero’s honor will bear not only his name, but his true military rank.
“Major Clayton Carpenter was an American hero, and an exemplary citizen of Westchester County who bravely and selflessly served his country and community,” said Byrne. “His service and sacrifice will never be forgotten, and I am honored to have played a role in ensuring that the official name of the ‘Major Clayton Carpenter Memorial Highway’ will reflect his true rank.
“When we hear and see so many negative things about our state government, it’s refreshing to see people unite behind good pieces of legislation like this. I’d like to personally thank all my Assembly and Senate colleagues who supported this measure.” Byrne continued. “For this worthy piece of legislation to be not only our conference’s first passed bill of this legislative session, but also my first bill passed as a state legislator, gives me great pride.”
Born in 1983, Clayton Carpenter, a Cortlandt Manor resident and graduate of Lakeland High School and West Point, served multiple tours of duty in both Iraq and Afghanistan as a platoon leader of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, an elite Army helicopter unit. In addition to his military service, Carpenter was an active member of his community, volunteering his time with multiple organizations, including the Yorktown Volunteer Ambulance Corps.
The bill was previously passed earlier this year by the State Senate sponsored by Senator Terrence Murphy, and is currently awaiting final approval from Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Once signed, the act will take effect immediately.