Today's audio daily news update.

Nancy Kern reports for Columbia-Greene Media that the mayoral election in Tannersville this month between Democrat Lee McGunnigle and Republican David Schneider is a study in contrasts. Schneider is a newcomer who moved here during the pandemic. McGunnigle was first elected mayor of Tannersville in 1994, served four terms, and, after a brief interruption, was elected again in 2007, and has been mayor ever since. McGunnigle is running on his record as mayor, saying he has won millions of dollars in grants for the village. McGunnigle said. “These are the headwaters for New York City, and so there’s only certain types of economic growth you can have here. My long tenure has been [devoted] to create an environment for growth.” Schneider is from Brooklyn, and is the owner of Tabla, a Mediterranean restaurant on Main Street. He said, “My family and I chose Tannersville as our forever home." Schneider also has worked with the Hunter Foundation, which owns many buildings in the village, including the one that includes Schneider's restaurant. He says that is not a conflict of interest. Schneider also does not think the New York State Attorney General’s Office should be investigating the two village board members who recently admitted they may be breaking the law by not living in the village. Voting in the village is from noon to 9 p.m. on March 16. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Liz Montgomery reports for Porcupine Soup that State Senator Michelle Hinchey introduced her bill to permanently fund free breakfast and lunch for all New York school students at a rally at the state capitol on March 1. Hinchey, a Democrat from Saugerties, has introduced S1678A, to require all public school districts, charter schools, and non-public schools in the state that participate in the National School Lunch Program or School Breakfast Program as provided in the National Child Nutrition Act to serve breakfast and lunch at no cost. Hinchey wants Gov. Kathy Hochul to add $200 million to the state budget to fund the measure. Hinchey said, “Healthy food is a form of healthcare, and it's time for New York to be a leader in addressing child hunger in our schools.” New York City, Albany, Rochester, and Yonkers already offer universal free school meals. Read more about this story at Porcupine Soup.

Mid-Hudson News reports that Rep. Marc Molinaro, a Republican who represents the 19th Congressional District, wants to track the rural inflation rate. Molinaro has introduced a bill with a Colorado Democrat to monitor the consumer price index rate specifically in rural communities. Currently, the federal government tracks inflation overall, not specifically for urban or rural areas. Molinaro said, "Rural New Yorkers should never be the afterthought. My bill creates a rural inflation metric so cost of living increases in rural communities are thoroughly accounted for and considered.” Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.

Jammel Cutler reports in Columbia-Greene Media that the city of Hudson spent $35,000 for a Michigan company to recommend that the municipality hire a parking and mobility director. John Forster, parking and mobility director at Fisbeck in Grand Rapids, presented the results of his survey on Feb. 28. Mayoral Aide Michael Hoffman said, “The key finding is hiring a new staff member who would be at a director’s level.... The person would be in charge of overseeing the whole elements of parking so that there’s one centralized person that both city and public officials can go to when it comes to parking.” Hudson residents have long complained about not enough parking on Warren St., a situation made worse by restaurants taking over spaces for outdoor dining during the pandemic. Forster said, “Daytime and residential parkers don’t share very well because both want access to the parking 24 hours a day. Residents want to be able to come and go as they please without worrying about a parking spot, they don’t expect someone else to be in their parking spot when they return home.” Forster also recommended more backyard parking, and doing away with Hudson's parking meters, and replacing them with pay stations using credit cards for payment. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Today's daily news audio update.

Click above to download or play the "Better Weather." Produced by Joe Demanso of the Catskill Makers Syndicate.

Jammel Cutler reports in Columbia-Greene Media that a group of citizens calling themselves the Summit Lake Conservation Group successfully sued the Village of Philmont Planning Board, overturning their approval of a large high-end housing subdivision there. Third Judicial District Supreme Court Judge Richard Mott overturned the planning board approval in January in an Article 78 case. The Clover Reach Partners, LLC development is proposed alongside Summit Lake, the body of water at the center of Philmont. Karen Schoemer, a former WGXC programmer and one of the members of the group overturning the approval, said the planning board barely considered any environmental factors when it originally approved the project last year. “We were hopeful that the planning board will stop and take a hard look at the environmental impact,” she said. “Instead they just brushed everything aside and moved the project forward as complete. We’re incredibly disappointed that the planning board isn’t working harder to project that lake environment.” Schoemer explained some of the environmental concerns. “There’s a lot of documented wildlife — native plant and flower species — and bald eagles are there almost every day. We know it’s an environmentally rich area, and we’re concerned about what putting in a road and building 16 houses on this sloped hillside is going to do to the biodiversity that we have at Summit Lake.” The planning board is now taking up the proposal again, with a public hearing at 7 p.m. March 20 at Philmont Village Hall. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Nancy Kern at Columbia-Greene Media reports that the Greene County Legislature has authorized $9,000 to fund ten emergency medical technicians recruits to train with the EMS Council at a cost of $900 per individual training. The resolution authorizing the funding said that Greene County has a shortage of paramedics, and that many leaving the field could result in “an increase in deaths among [Greene County] citizens.” Steven Near, chief of operations for Greene County Paramedics, said, “You have holes in schedules with administrators having to fill open slots to provide ambulances on the road.... A lot of agencies normally had two or three ambulances pre-pandemic, but they’re struggling to put one or two now. The agency I used to work for had five ambulances. Now they’re struggling to get three. It’s difficult to hang on to the EMTs you have.” The shortage of emergency first responders is national, and since training takes six months, it is not a problem that can be quickly fixed. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

News10 in Albany reports that on March 1 the federal government ended pandemic-era payments for low-income families on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The program averaged around an extra $90 per person each month for three years. The program's demise may lead families to some of the Free Food Fridge programs or food pantries locally. There Free Food Fridges in Albany, Catskill, and Hudson, among other locations. It is a confidential, barrier-free way to access food items. Jammella Anderson, who started the Albany free fridge, said, “We knew the pandemic did so much damage, and now we’re feeling the aftereffects, so food costs are so high.... So even if you have 95 extra dollars in your SNAP benefits, that’s still not going to get you what it did maybe two or three years ago.” The Food Pantries for the Capital District Executive Director Natasha Pernicka said, “Food pantries are here to help. There are food pantries throughout the Capital Region and New York State, and if people don’t know where to turn, it’s easy to use our map at thefoodpantries.org to search for food pantries across New York State.” Both the local free fridge programs, and food pantries always need donations too, for anyone who wants to help with Hudson Valley hunger. Read more about this story at the News10 website.

WNYT reports that Rep. Paul Tonko, who represents Albany County and the rest of the 20th Congressional District, is crowing about funding for two local fire departments. The Burnt Hills Fire Department gets more than $121,000, and the South Glens Falls Fire Company will receive about $35,000. The departments will use the money for radios, equipment maintenance, and other safety equipment. Read more about this story at WNYT.

Today's audio daily news update.

Julia Rock at New York Focus reports that on Dec. 9 last year, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed a bill that would have required most freight trains to be operated by at least a conductor and an engineer. It was a safety measure that both rail unions and bipartisan lawmakers supported. But railroad companies and business groups opposed it, and now Hochul's recent claims that train safety is her top priority after an Ohio train disaster in early February are being questioned. Rail companies have cut their workforces by nearly 30 percent in recent years and are operating longer and heavier trains now with smaller crews. “This bill was one part of a bigger look at the rail industry, and attempted to strengthen protections for both workers and the communities they travel through every day,” said Democratic Senator Tim Kennedy, the transportation committee chair and the Senate sponsor of the rail safety bill that Hochul vetoed. “The devastation that continues to unfold in East Palestine is the strongest form of evidence that rail safety needs to be prioritized, both in New York and across our country.” Business groups including Railroads of New York, the statewide industry group that represents CSX, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific, and Norfolk Southern, among others, reported lobbying against the bill in state filings reviewed by New York Focus. Hochul wrote in her veto memo that she did not sign the bill because she said federal laws and pending rulemaking preempt the legislation. James Louis, National Vice President of the 57,000-member Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, said, “She had an opportunity to improve rail safety and she let it go.... If she feels [safety is important] we could get that bill reintroduced and put it through — except now the railroads are using her argument that it’s preempted.” The Obama administration was working on a similar federal bill, which the Trump administration abandoned.

The Troy Record reports that Gov. Kathy Hochul’s favorability and job approval ratings fell slightly in the Siena College poll of registered New York State voters released Feb. 27. Among New Yorkers, President Joe Biden’s favorability rating is was up slightly from the month before, to his best rating since October 2021. Those polled said crime should be Albany’s top priority, followed by the cost of living, and affordable housing, followed by public health, the environment, and racial justice. Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg said, “Both Hochul’s favorability and job approval ratings dipped a little this month, but her favorability remains slightly positive and her overall job approval rating remains strong, particularly with – and only with – Democrats." Read more about this story in the Troy Record.

Nick Reisman reports at New York State of Politics that Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin and Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi, who both unsuccessfully ran for governor against Kathy Hochul last year, announced new jobs this week. Zeldin on March 1 announced he will lead the a political action committee called Leadership America Needs PAC. Suozzi is becoming co-chair at a consulting firm, Actum LLC. Zeldin's move keeps him in politics, as the committee will be "engaging new Republican voters," he says, and also recruiting new candidates. Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.

Today's daily news audio update.

Click above to download or play the "Better Weather." Produced by Joe Demanso of the Catskill Makers Syndicate.

Joshua Solomon reports in the Times Union Democrats in the state Senate are questioning whether public financing of campaigns will be ready to take effect in 2024 as planned. They are using the excuse of the delayed redistricting in the Assembly to put off the public financing of campaigns. State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, "Certainly the Assembly is going through redistricting.... It's a part of the things that people are talking about." Public financing of elections in 2024 would give Assembly candidates up to $350,000 in matching contributions from small donations in both the primary and general election. The idea is to reduce the influence of big-money campaign donors, and give small donations more weight. Gov. Kathy Hochul's proposed budget has $25 million to fund the program and an additional $4 million to fund 54 new staff members for administration. Republicans oppose the program. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Melanie Lekocevic reports in Capital Region Independent Media that the the Holcim plant in Ravena is tearing down some its structures, and building a new access road. The company is spending $4.5 million on construction at the cement plant in southern Albany County, and said it is doing it just out of the kindness of its heart. Robert McGehee, director of Environment and Land at Holcim, said, "This was not spurred by any action other than us just wanting to be better neighbors than we have been in the past.” The skyline in Ravena will change slightly, as the company tears down structures they are no longer using. “The reclamation will take place using modern methods to dismantle equipment safely,” McGehee said. “No explosives whatsoever will be used. Obviously we are very close to the school, so that was the biggest thing for us for this project – zero use of explosives. All the processes and methods that are employed will minimize any vibration, dust, noise, etc.” The company says it will monitor air quality during the deconstruction, which should be completed by the end of the year. Holcim also is building a new access road for the quarry, to redirect truck traffic off portions of Jarvis and Mountain roads and onto plant-owned roads and county streets. “Reducing truck traffic on these roads will improve air quality, reduce noise and improve overall quality of life for residents along the roadway,” according to a statement from the company formerly known as LafargeHolcim. Read more about this story at TheUpstater.com.

Nick Reisman reports at New York State of Politics that Robert Megna will be Gov. Kathy Hochul's budget director, the third time he has served as the top official at the state Division of Budget. Megna is currently the president of the Rockefeller Institute of Government and senior advisor to the chancellor of the State University of New York, and Hochul said he wan't be budget director for long. Megna was budget director under Gov. David Paterson and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and has also served as the commissioner of the Department of Taxation and Finance and the executive director of the New York State Thruway Authority. Hochul said, "It is imperative that we continue to make New York safer, more affordable and more livable, and I know Bob's expertise will help us move these critical priorities forward. I am deeply thankful for the work of Acting Budget Director Sandra Beattie, who did an excellent job preparing the Executive Budget Proposal, and the entire hardworking team at the Division of the Budget." Megna replaces Robert Mujica, a Cuomo appointee, who left to become a financial official for Puerto Rico. Read the full story at New York State of Politics.