Archive: News

Local anti-tobacco advocates say that the Surgeon General’s Report on teen smoking that was released this week highlights a problem they’ve been talking about for some time: teens are influenced by prominent tobacco marketing in convenience stores, pharmacies and other retail locations where tobacco is sold.

The report, titled A Report of the Surgeon General: Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults, is expected to report that the nation is falling far short of our national youth smoking goals and call for immediate and urgent action to protect children from the predatory marketing tactics of the tobacco industry, according to the American Cancer Society.

State Senator Mike Nozzolio today announced that he and his colleagues in the New York State Senate have developed a State budget proposal that will implement an unprecedented job creation plan which includes significant tax relief, sweeping measures to control State spending, and other reforms to attract new businesses and employers to our State. The 2012 NEW JOBS-NY Job Creation Plan will be included in the Senate budget resolution to be acted on next week.

“My Senate colleagues and I are continuing to work with Governor Cuomo to adopt the first budget in State history that, for the second year in a row, reduces overall spending and once again avoids tax increases.  Now, we are taking another major step forward in addressing the most pressing challenge in New York’s economic recovery- the creation of new jobs,” said Nozzolio.

Following many months of research, a working group associated with the Tompkins County Council of Governments (TCCOG) is urging New York State to refrain from issuing drilling permits until it can capture appropriate taxes and fees and allocate them to cover costs to all levels of government, based on sound policy and verifiable data.

The recommendation is part of a White Paper issued last week by the Tompkins County Workgroup on Assessment and Land Valuation, a subcommittee of the Tompkins County Council of Governments’ Gas Drilling Task Force. “Many changes to current policies are required to properly measure and collect tax revenue from Marcellus or Utica shale gas production,” maintains Tompkins County Legislator and Working Group chair Carol Chock.

One might think that the mild winter weather would have a positive impact on Tompkins County Highway’s operating budget. But Highway officials note that, in actuality, the effect has been minimal, since the division is operating on a reduced budget with reduced manpower.

The 2010-2011 snow and ice season expense, based on a fiscal year of October 1 through April 30, was 14.9% higher than the previous season, Interim Highway Manager Cheryl Nelson reports. The Highway Division’s 2012 operating budget is based on a calendar year, and the snow and ice operating budget includes the rest of this season, as well as October-December 2012.

State Office for Technology (OFT) officials ignored state finance law and procurement guidelines in awarding business to favored companies, and in some cases did so for personal gain, according to an audit released today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. The actions of OFT officials cost taxpayers millions and may have violated the state Public Officers Law. DiNapoli has referred the findings of the audit to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics.

“These officials were supposed to lead New York State’s efforts to modernize technology, but my office found flagrant misconduct and that no one within OFT stepped forward to question these actions, indicating a systemic breakdown in agency ethics,” DiNapoli said. “OFT’s executive team needs to take immediate steps to address shortfalls in their organization that lead to this brazen abuse. My office will continue to monitor and scrutinize OFT procurement activity in the foreseeable future to ensure that similar problems do not recur.”

New York Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton told a crowd last Friday that she has not decided whether she will run for retiring U.S. Congressman Maurice Hinchey's  seat.  Lifton said she is seriously considering a run, but it will depend on what the NY-22 Congressional District looks like after redistricting.

"I've said from the beginning that I do want to look at it.  But we don't have the lines yet for the Congressional districts," she said.  "I don't believe that district that Congressman Hinchey had will survive.  It was an unusual district spanning half the state.  I think they're going to take that away and put in some more contiguous districts in the central part and in the Hudson area.  It's going to be a very different district."

Industry Profits Down by Half from Prior Year

Cash bonuses paid to New York City securities industry employees are forecast to decline by 14 percent to $19.7 billion during this year’s bonus season, according to an estimate released today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

“Cash bonuses were down in 2011, reflecting a difficult year on Wall Street,” DiNapoli said. “Profits were down sharply and securities firms in New York City resumed downsizing in the second half of the year. The securities industry, which is a critical component of the economies of New York City and New York State, faces continued challenges as it works through the fallout from the financial crisis and adjusts to regulatory reforms.”

New York State Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton met with close to 60 people at Kendal At Ithaca last Friday, where she spoke about the proposed state budget,education, Medicaid, hydrofracking, and other issues.  The event is part of a series of 'town hall' meetings Lifton periodically holds to meet with constituents and keep them up to date with goings-on in the State Legislature.

"The Governor's budget proposal is $132.7 billion total funding," she said.  "When you put the federal money together with the money New Yorkers send to Albany in different forms you get the total state budget.  That number is actually down from last year, a slight decrease of .2%, $200 million lower than last year.  That is extremely unusual to see a real cut in the state budget."

Often, we consider ourselves as independently minded persons who do not fall into a particular category. It is our uniqueness that makes us who we are.

Yet while we desperately try to remain a unique entity, we put great effort into associating ourselves with a larger movement. In essence, many of us live in a paradoxical world of struggle with being one yet belonging to the many. We Americans love to associate ourselves with a group, an ideology, or system of thought. After all, our nation's motto, embossed on our coin and paper currency reads, E Pluribus Unum, from many, one.

Pat PryorAbout 30 people gathered at the Lansing Town Hall Tuesday for an update on recommendations the Tompkins County Broadband Committee recently made to the county legislature.  The committee is recommending a fixed wireless delivery system along the lines of systems local Internet providers are already implementing in Dryden and Newfield.

"It is realistically deployable and supportable," said committee member Larry Berger, who presented the recommendations Tuesday.  "We came to the conclusion that fixed wireless enables us to achieve our goal of universal access now, and at moderate cost.  It also preserves our options for future upgrades."

With a nearly $3 million projected expenditure to revenue gap for the $26,560,000 2012-2013 Lansing school budget, Superintendent Stephen Grimm has been presenting various scenarios for how that could be handled.  Monday he presented a new draft of a reductions list that would cut nearly a half million from the new budget, slightly less than half of cuts he proposed at the end of January.

The cut list started at about $2 million at the beginning of the budget cycle, so this is good news for Lansing programs, or at least better news than it could have been.  Last night Grimm said it will prevent having to lose some of the district's best teachers who have a dozen years in the school system.

Local sales tax collections across New York grew by $650 million, or 5 percent, in 2011, a slower rate than the previous year, according to a report released today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Sales taxes are an important source of revenue for New York State’s local governments, helping them cope with the rising cost of providing services and mitigating property tax increases.

“The positive growth last year in sales tax collections are a good sign for the economy, but continued caution is warranted,” DiNapoli said. “New York’s economy has improved over the past two years, but growth has been sluggish and unevenly distributed throughout the state. The degree to which local governments depend on sales taxes varies, but it is an important source of revenue for many. As localities adjust to the property tax cap, more may turn to sales tax revenues to fill in budget gaps.”