Archive: News

Washington, DC - As students from across the country prepare to march across the country on Saturday, the Problem Solvers Caucus announced last Friday that they are continuing to work together to find bipartisan consensus on meaningful legislation to reduce gun violence in our communities. The caucus reached agreement on commonsense measures to improve school safety and fund mental illness research, which successfully passed the House of Representatives and Senate in the omnibus funding agreement.

The Town of Lansing Planning Board seemed skeptical Monday that a plan to move shooting ranges and periodically clean up lead in and around Salmon Creek at the Lansing Rod and Gun Club will be financially feasible.  In response to a US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)  order that would halt the shooting of lead in and around Salmon Creek, the club presented a two-pronged plan that would move shooting ranges across the creek to a more northern location, and hire a company to clean up lead from the area every five years.  But Planning Board members feared the cleanup plan is likely beyond the financial means of the club, and other alternatives should be considered.

"Some people want to close the gun club down," said Planning Board member Al Fiorille. "You don't want to do that.  If they cease to be in operation my understanding is that it becomes labeled a toxic site.  If it's a hazardous site, if you live in Ludlowville and you want to mortgage your property -- if you want to sell it or get a home equity loan or refinance it -- the appraiser has to mention that there is a hazardous site within a half mile of the subject property.  That could throw up a red flag and they could deny your application for finance."

After several confrontations that Village Planning Board Chairman Mario Tomei characterized Tuesday as 'slug-fests' the Board and developer Eric Goetzmann were finally in agreement on a new design for the Lansing Meadows senior housing project.  Building a residential housing project for seniors who might want to walk to the mall, the Ithaca Y, doctors offices or other nearby businesses was a condition, over seven years ago, of being allowed to build the BJ's Wholesale Club building.  After a large number of designs, each less palatable to the Planning Board than the last, board members said they like the newest plan, and may vote to issue a special permit to construct it as early as April 9th.

"People are on board and I have seen good comments," Tomei said.  "This is something that we've been asking for.  So we're going to try to keep this on a positive level and hear about what this is.  Because it took so many years and so many changes, the definition of what we were looking for got lost.   That's why we had some really hot meetings.  I think we're at a point now where we have a meeting of the minds."

New Three-Year Contract Approved with White Collar Employees
The Legislature, by unanimous vote (Legislator Glenn Morey was excused), ratified a new three-year bargaining agreement with the County's White Collar employees, Civil Service Employees Association, the County's largest employee union. The agreement, retroactive to January 1, which runs through the end of 2020, increases base pay by 2% each year, and also increases annual employee Longevity payments—providing, in part, an annual Longevity payment of $500 for employees with at least five years of service, beginning in 2019. Longevity payments for employees who have completed ten or more years of service are also increased under the contract. Members of the employee union have already ratified the agreement. By policy of the Legislature, the County's Confidential employees are also covered under provisions of the White Collar agreement.

Washington, DC - In response to President Donald Trump's recent announcement on opioids, Congressman Tom Reed (R-NY) stressed his support for strengthening criminal penalties for dealing and trafficking in fentanyl and other opioids. Reed's legislation, the Help Ensure Lives are Protected (HELP) Act, would accomplish this objective.

"Victims of overdose and their loved ones deserve justice. The opioid epidemic is plaguing our communities and killing far too many of our young people. The HELP act will give the law enforcement community more authority and new options to put a stop to this problem," Reed stated.

The Tompkins County Legislature's special Housing Committee took a look at the critical issue of housing in our community from several different perspectives today, receiving preliminary orientation to various programs and initiative, as well as resources to assist the committee's work.

Ithaca Board of Realtors Executive Officer Norma Jayne introduced the committee to available Realtors Property Resource data, from which reports can be produced to document housing-related data and trends. That data could assist the committee in examining the problem and where needs exist.

A public hearing to consider issuing a special permit to relocate trap, rifle, and handgun ranges at the Lansing Rod and Gun Club was held March 12, and what appeared to be a simple matter of relocating the ranges to protect Salmon creek from lead poisoning raised more concerns than it addressed.  Gun club attorney Michael Oropallo said the plan is in cooperation with an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) order to stop shooting lead shot into Salmon Creek and nearby wetlands and prevent lead from entering those areas.  But public concerns about existing lead contamination, local traffic, and locating new shooting ranges near a residence raised questions for Planning Board members.

"When the issue of shooting and lead deposition came up, the club immediately talked with the EPA about it," Oropallo explained to Planning Board members. "They voluntarily worked with the EPA.  In about 2014 we began talking with the EPA about ways to eliminate shooting that goes on into the creek and into the wetlands in the area."

Senator Pam Heming announced Wednesday legislation (S.7582A) she sponsors to crackdown on contraband in New York's state correctional facilities passed the Senate 57-4. The bill would require the Commissioner of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) to establish a contraband screening plan in correctional facilities. As Vice-Chair of the Senate's Committee on Crime, Crime Victims, and Corrections, Helming believes more effective screening of packages and visitors is essential to keeping weapons and dangerous drugs out of State prisons.

"Over the last several months, I've met on a number of occasions with NYSCOPBA President Michael Powers and many correction officers who see firsthand the growing contraband problem inside our state correctional facilities. Whether its drugs or weapons, contraband continues to find its way into prisons at alarming rates – leading to more violence amongst prisoners and more attacks on our brave correction officers. This legislation updates the current contraband screening policies and procedures to give our correction officers the tools they need to ensure a safer environment. I want to thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for supporting this critically important legislation. As State Senator, I will continue to support our brave correction officers and ensure that we do everything possible to keep them safe," said Senator Pam Helming.

A project that will bring sewer to the Town of Lansing while expanding the Village of Lansing's sewer service was presented at a Town Board working meeting in the Village of Lansing March 7th.  The joint project between the two Lansings and the Village of Cayuga Heights is the result of about two years of negotiations between the three municipalities.  The new infrastructure will benefit eight properties in the Town of Lansing, and extend Village sewer along Cayuga Heights Road in the west of the Village.

"This sewer business has been a long, long path," said Village mayor Donald Hartill. "Somehow the stars have aligned well enough that it looks like we have a path forward.  Due to a lot of people's efforts we're making good progress.  One question is, is there enough capacity at the Cayuga Heights plant?  The answer is yes."

Senator Pam Heming announced Wednesday legislation (S.7582A) she sponsors to crackdown on contraband in New York's state correctional facilities moved through the Senate Committee on Crime Victims, Crime and Corrections. The bill would require the Commissioner of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) to establish a contraband screening plan in correctional facilities. As Vice-Chair of the Senate's Committee on Crime, Crime Victims, and Corrections, Helming believes more effective regulation of packages and materials brought into these facilities is a good step to creating safer environments for both officers and inmates.

"Contraband in correctional facilities – whether drugs or weapons – is a growing problem that endangers both corrections officers and inmates. More and more, we are seeing visitors finding new, innovative ways to get contraband into our state facilities. This often leads to a more hostile environment for the inmates and more attacks on corrections officers. This legislation updates the current contraband screening policies and procedures, and I am proud to stand with our corrections officers to help make our prisons safer for everybody in the facility," said Senator Pam Helming.

A report on students who qualify for free or reduced-cost school lunches at Monday's Board Of Education meeting underscored a growing poverty rate in Lansing.  Lansing's residents with income below the poverty level is 15.2%, making the town better off than the state average of 18.9%.  According to City-Data.com as many as 10% of Lansing children are below the poverty level.  But a look at ten years of school lunch data shows a trend where Lansing is facing more poverty as the school population rises.

"There are some very obvious trends here," Data Coordinator Angie Russell told school board members. "First and foremost, as a district your free lunch numbers have going up 85%.  Your reduced lunch number has decreased.  You have a 7% enrollment change, but at the same time you have a 10% increase in your free and reduced lunch.  You can see your free and reduced lunch numbers have clearly gone up, yet your enrollment has decreased."

Washington, DC- Congressman Tom Reed recently met with President Trump regarding trade policies. Reed communicated the need to have fair trade policies that put American manufacturers on an even playing field. "We need to have strong negotiators at the table to make sure that American interests and American workers are the top priority when we negotiate with our worldwide trading partners," Reed said.

Reed recognizes the need to renegotiate our trade policies so that we have rules in place that are realistic and enforceable so that countries, such as China, cannot continue to break the rules.