This petition is to create a new state consisting of the counties located north of Orange and Putnam counties of The State of New York. The current residents of these counties pay state taxes that are then given to the southern counties with out any actual or valid representation in the state government. There is a fundamental cultural split between upstate New York and downstate New York. But due to the sheer number of Residents of the downstate area the upstate area essentially has no voice in state issues or government, thus creating a "taxation without representation" situation that has left many upstate residents upset. By creating a new state, the voices of all residents will be better represented in both state government and federal government.