Dean Balsamini reports in the New York Post that human composting is now legal in New York, after Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill legalizing natural organic reduction. On Dec. 31, Hochul signed the law making New York the sixth state in the country to allow an eco-friendly burial. Washington was the first state to legalize the practice, in 2019. The composting is a 60-day, chemical-free process where a person’s remains are put in a “vessel” with organic material such as straw, alfalfa, or sawdust. The box is sealed and attached to an HVAC system, for the decomposition. After 30 days, the contents are screened for inorganic material and remaining bone is broken up and put back in. Families get the remains after another 30 days. The New York State Catholic Conference opposed the legislation. “Composting and fertilizing may be appropriate for vegetable clippings or eggshells, but not for our mortal remains,” said Dennis Poust, executive director of the New York State Catholic Conference. Read more about this story in the New York Post.

Liz Montgomery reports for Porcupine Soup that two longtime national businesses are closing local franchises this week. The Just-A-Buck store in Greenville and the Pizza Hut in Catskill are shuttering. “After 24 years of business in Greenville, Just-A-Buck has decided to close this location,” the company reported, without explaining why. The store first opened in 1998 and recently announced that prices were going up to $1.25. The Pizza Hut, on Maple Avenue in Catskill, opened in 1991. Manager Greg Smith posted social media how he felt about the decision. “Pizza Hut is the reason I moved to Catskill in 1994 and I believe my life to be better for it. Some of the people I met because of Pizza Hut I am still very close with today. Today I was allowed to make the very last pizza there and I’m very grateful.” Pizza Hut’s corporate office did not explain why the restaurant was closing and Larry Fugate, who owns the franchise, could not be reached for comment. Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

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Zach Williams is reporting for the New York Post Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed legislation raising state lawmakers' pay from $110,000 to $142,000 per year. The increase will make New York lawmakers the highest paid legislators in the country. The legislation was sponsored by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins. In exchange for the raise, however, lawmakers must accept some limits on outside income that will essentially amount to $35,000 per year and will become effective at the beginning of 2023, according to the legislative language. According to the Post account, Hochul had "played coy for more than a week" about whether she would sign the pay raise bill following a special session last week called by Stewart-Cousins and Heastie. But in early December, she said a salary increase was fine by her if legislators approved limits on outside income as well. Read the full story at nypost [dot] com.

The Columbia Paper is reporting the Chatham Board of Education December 13, adopted a proposed capital improvement project "to improve its educational facilities and address issues with aging infrastructure." The project proposed is eligible for 49.6 percent state aid, which reduces its impact on local property taxes. For every dollar the district spends it would receive approximately 50 cents in state building aid. “This project represents an important moment for Chatham. Along with keeping our buildings operating safely and efficiently, it is an opportunity to make our facilities future ready and advance our instructional programs,” said Chatham Superintendent Sal DeAngelo. The project includes two propositions that will be decided by voters on Tue., Feb. 14. Proposition 1 seeks voters' approval of an $18.22 million plan to shore up aging infrastructure, improve classroom and community spaces, and address safety, security, and health concerns at all three school buildings and the district bus garage. Officials would apply $8.43 million from the capital reserve fund and issue bonds to fund the remainder, resulting in a property tax increase. Owners of a home valued at $300,000 would see their property taxes increase by $23.37. Proposition #1 is a stand-alone project. Proposition #2 will ask voters to permit the spending of $3.9 million proposal to install air conditioning at Mary E. Dardess Elementary School. Bonds would be issued for the portion of the project thereby requiring a separate, additional tax increase for property owners. For a home valued at $300,000, that tax increase would be $28.08. Proposition 2 is dependent on Proposition 1 and would only pass if voters okay both propositions. Read more in The Columbia Paper.

David Robinson is reporting for the Poughkeepsie Journal New York will soon begin enforcing a 2021 state law establishing staffing minimums at nursing homes. Offending facilities will face fines of up to $2,000 per day for failing to meet the new staffing levels and related financial standards. Roughly 75 percent of the state’s 600 nursing homes have been violating the standards as of early 2022, industry officials said. At this point, hundreds of nursing homes either must hire more staff or reduce the number of residents to avoid fines during the coming months. State health officials also can waive fines in specific communities based on a formula for declaring a local labor shortage. Enforcement of the staffing minimums had been delayed for almost a year during executive orders and legal challenges involving the law. At the same time many nursing home operators argue they are struggling to attract and afford new workers. Some have already started rejecting new residents, leaving hospitals across upstate facing bed shortages due to the large number of well patients awaiting placement at nursing homes. The state law requires every facility to maintain daily staffing hours equal to 3.5 hours of care per resident per day by a certified nurse aide, licensed practical nurse or registered nurse. The law also requires nursing homes to spend at least 70 percent of its revenue on direct resident care, and at least 40 percent of revenue on resident-facing staffing. Read the full story at poughkeepsiejournal [dot] com.

Because New Year's Day falls on a Sunday this year, the holiday will be observed on Mon., Jan. 2. The Daily Freeman has a rundown of how various services and offices will be affected.

• Amtrak: Sunday schedule
• Banks: Closed
• County Offices: Closed
• Federal offices: Closed
• Financial markets: Open.
• Mail delivery: None on Monday
• Metro-North: Enhanced Saturday schedule on January 2.
• Schools: Closed
• State offices: Closed
• Trailways: Visit trailways [dot] com.

Karen DeWitt is reporting for WSKG-TV Kathy Hochul will make history January 1, when she is sworn in as governor and begins her first full term in office. In November, Hochul became the first female governor to be elected in the state’s history. “The glass ceiling, like the one that’s above us here today, has finally been shattered in the state of New York, and you made it happen,” Hochul told supporters in lower Manhattan on November 8. She will begin her term with a swearing-in ceremony and speech on New Year’s Day. The Buffalo native replaced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who resigned in August 2021 over sexual harassment and other scandals. Hochul raised a record $45 million for her campaign and won election in the closest gubernatorial race in the state in nearly a quarter-century. She will oversee a budget during a time when the state does not have as much money as it did last year and is also facing an increasingly independent-minded State Legislature, where Democrats hold supermajorities in both houses. In addition, Hochul faces calls from Republicans, who are in the minority in the Legislature, to enact more anti-crime legislation. And she begins the new year with obstacles for her choice as the state’s next chief judge, appellate court Justice Hector LaSalle. At least a dozen senators from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, including Saugerties Democrat Michelle Hinchey, say LaSalle’s record is too conservative and they will not vote to confirm him. After she is officially sworn in, Hochul has two more major speeches in January — first to lay out her plans in a State of the State message, followed by a budget presentation, outlining the state’s spending priorities for the coming year. Read more at WSKG [dot] org.

Columbia-Greene Media is reporting Gary C. Valik has been named Chief Executive Officer of the Johnson Newspaper Corp., effective January 1. Johnson Newspaper Corp. locally publishes The Daily Mail, Register-Star and more than 10 other local newspapers statewide. Valik is Johnson Newspaper's first non-family chief executive officer in four generations. He previously served as vice president, has been with the company since 2014 and has decades of newspaper experience working in advertising, circulation and marketing. Valik has a degree in communications from Ithaca College and a masters from Syracuse University. Before joining Johnson Newspaper Corp., he was employed by the Syracuse Post Standard. Alec E. Johnson, company president, editor and publisher, said Valik’s commitment to the company over the past eight years and his vision for the future made him an easy pick for the role. “... As we looked to the future it is time to set specific roles and clearly delineate responsibilities. ... It is in the best interest of our company to have someone outside the family, with new and different ideas, in the chief management role,” Johnson said. “Gary has a proven track record of success. I have worked with him daily and he has risen to every occasion that has presented itself. ...," he said. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Melissa Manno is reporting for the Times Union all new passenger cars and trucks sold in New York will be zero-emission vehicles by 2035, the state Department of Environmental Conservation said. New York is the most recent state to adopt the Advanced Clean Car II regulations. Those regulations are intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide significant air quality and health benefits, especially in low-income communities burdened by transportation-related pollution. The state will invest more than $1 billion in zero-emission vehicles over the next five years to meet its 100 percent all-electric vehicle sales goal by 2035. The plan intends to promote sustainability and renewable energy. The regulations include revised pollutant standards for passenger cars, light-duty trucks and medium-duty vehicles with internal combustion engines made between 2026 through 2034. The adoption of Advanced Clean Cars II has been in the works since the enactment of the Climate Plan in 2019 and it will support the state in achieving its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent by 2050 from 1990 levels as required by the Climate Act. The state will launch initiatives including zero-emission vehicle purchase rebates through NYSERDA to expand electric vehicle use. And the Advanced Building Codes, Appliance and Equipment Efficiency Standards Act of 2022 will go into effect on January 1, to set minimum energy and water efficiency requirements for residential and commercial products. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Today's daily news update.

Paul Kirby is reporting for the Daily Freeman in a statement Thu., Dec. 29, state Senator Michelle Hinchey said she will vote against Gov. Kathy Hochul’s nomination of Judge Hector LaSalle to serve as the next chief judge of the Court of Appeals. In a statement Thursday and tweets posted on December 22, the Saugerties Democrat said, “While I expressed my support for the many other accomplished and experienced Chief Judge candidates, I had also made it clear that I cannot support a nominee who has delivered anti-choice, anti-union rulings. If Hon. LaSalle’s nomination comes to the floor, I will vote no.” Hinchey said LaSalle’s nomination should be opposed, “Especially at a time when our rights are being attacked by a highly conservative [U.S.] Supreme Court, it’s of the utmost importance that, here in our state, we appoint judges who deeply believe in and defend our New York values.” Hochul nominated LaSalle on December 22, to head the Court of Appeals. If approved, LaSalle would be the first Latino to lead that court and serve as head administrator for the statewide court system. LaSalle is a Long Island native and former prosecutor. He is currently the presiding justice of the state’s 2nd Appellate Division, which handles appeals from state courts in Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island. His nomination is supported by a number of Democrats including Attorney General Letitia James and Kingston Mayor Steve Noble. However, the nomination has drawn criticism from others particularly progressive lawmakers and advocates who cite his history of controversial opinions and past work as a prosecutor. The Senate has 30 days from December 22, to vote on the nominee. Read more in the Daily Freeman. 


Andrea Macko is reporting for Porcupine Soup town of Cairo residents and officials received unpleasant news this week when they determined the town’s 2023 tax levy increase is 7.5 percent, nearly 15 times higher than the 0.513 percent that Town Supervisor Jason Watts projected when the town board adopted the budget on November 7. Because 7.5 percent far exceeds the state’s tax cap, the board held a short emergency meeting on the afternoon of December 29 and adopted a local law to override that cap. However, questions remain as to whether the board acted too late and exactly how the mistake was made in the first place. “We realized just last night, notwithstanding the fact that we thought the tax levy was going to go up by 0.5 percent, that when tax bills came out it is actually 7.5 percent,” Town Attorney Tal Rappleyea explained during the emergency meeting. “We don’t know how this happened,” he said. “The only thing we can think of is there was some type of typographical or accounting error in the document that the town presented on the night of the public hearing.” The board ultimately voted unanimously to override the tax cap, with Watts, board members Mary-Jo Cords and Debra Bogins present. Members Tim Powers and Michael Flaherty were absent. In an email, Powers said that while he had voted to adopt the 2023 budget in November, he did so because Watts told the board the tax levy increase was going to be less than percent. What's more, he said, “The emergency meeting was supposed to be at 7 p.m. [on Thursday], but after I indicated that I was against overriding the tax cap and wanted to rescind the entire budget they moved the meeting to 1 p.m. They knew I couldn’t be there due to work.” The announcement of the emergency meeting, called Thursday morning, was posted on the door to town hall. No notices were placed on the town’s website or Facebook page and, to date, there is no 2023 budget information available at townofcairo [dot] com. Under state law, local governments must keep the annual tax levy increase at or below the cap or adopt a local law to override the cap. In October the Cairo Town Board conducted the required public hearing in anticipation of adopting a local law, but never followed through. Resident and local attorney Monica Kenny-Keff told Rappleyea from the audience the state does not allow local governments to retroactively override the tax cap. “This has to be in place and passed before the vote on the budget,” she said. Read the full story at porcupine soup [dot] com.

Jammel Cutler is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the Hudson Common Council Wed., Dec. 28, adopted a new local law taking the first step toward the creation of a sidewalk improvement district that would be subsidized by a fee assessed to residents. At the special meeting held to discuss the city's deteriorating sidewalks Wednesday, the Council immediately went behind closed doors for 25 minutes to discuss with legal counsel the proposed local law that would create a sidewalk improvement district. Elected officials were working under a January 1 deadline to act on the resolution or face an undetermined penalty for noncompliance from the state. Under the measure the annual maintenance feel for undeveloped lots and sliver lots is zero; for low-foot-traffic lots it is $100; and for all others is $200. The frontage fee will be $30 and the square footage fee is 15 cents per square foot. The fees will be reviewed annually by the council. Fees will be determined by the property classification. Common Council President Thomas DePietro said he was pleased with the meeting's outcome. “After a bumpy start with the council, we cleared up all of the misinformation and arrived at unanimous support for moving this forward,” he said. Note: DePietro is a volunteer WGXC on-air host. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Today's daily news update.

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Jammel Cutler is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the city of Hudson has received $1.3 million to support the restoration of the historic Crescent Building at 750 Warren Street, through Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Restore New York Communities Initiative. More than $19 million was awarded to three municipalities in the latest Restore New York round for special projects. Other recipients in the region included the city of Albany, which received nearly $10 million, and the city of Schenectady, which received $2.3 million. The Crescent building has had many uses, but is probably best known as the former home of Ackerman Appliances. In 2012, it was sold for $737,000 — the current value of the property is approximately $1.1 million, according to property records. Top Of Warren Property Bros., LLC, is the current owner. The project supported by the grant calls for the redevelopment of the 18,000 square foot, now vacant, building into a mixed-use space. Once renovated, the structure will feature 6,500 square feet of commercial space for a film production company projected to create up to 30 new jobs, 2,500 square feet of art gallery space on two floors, three new apartments, and 3,000 square feet of new roof-top event space that will accommodate up to 250 people. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Eduardo Cuevas is reporting for the Poughkeepsie Journal landlords will now have to disclose flood risks to renters under a new state law signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul on December 23. The measure is a response to increased flooding due to the impacts of climate change. “As flooding becomes more frequent and intense due to climate change, we must make sure New Yorkers have the information they need so that they can protect their property and their families,” said Assemblymember Robert Carroll, the bill author. New York has lagged behind other states in covering prospective tenants with flood risk, he said. The Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy nonprofit, gave New York a failing grade in its tracker of state laws across the country. Joel Scata, a senior attorney at the NRDC, said the new law will make it possible for renters to get the flooding history of their property so they can prepare. The new law takes effect in June and requires residential leases to include information on prior flood history and the current risk of leased premises. This includes disclosing whether the unit is located in part or totally within a Federal Emergency Management Agency-designated floodplain, as well as 100-year and 500-year floodplains. Property owners are now required to include information about whether the leased property has experienced flood damage from a natural event such as heavy rainfall, coastal storm surge, tidal inundation or river overflow and tenants must also receive information about FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program. Read the full story in the Poughkeepsie Journal.

Ben Mitchell is reporting for News10 [dot] com $11.6 million has been awarded to 25 municipalities across New York to fund Climate Smart Communities projects intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and flood risk, and to help communities adapt to the ongoing impacts of climate change. In total, the Department of Environmental Conservation has awarded to date more than $50 million in support of local climate mitigation and adaptation projects. Gov. Kathy Hochul said, “These grants help empower locally-driven, bold action to help meet New York’s ambitious climate goals while setting an example for other municipalities to follow.” Among the Climate Smart Communities Grant awards: $35,000 for Albany County for the development of its first-ever climate action plan; the city of Kingston will receive $50,000 to support the development of a municipal refrigerant management plan along with an implementation program; and $1.69 million has been awarded to Ulster County for its Golden Hill Renewable Energy Project. The county will partner with Family of Woodstock, Ulster County Housing Development Corporation, and a developer to build the Golden Hill affordable housing project in the city of Kingston. The grant will go toward the cost of the solar system. Read more at News10 [dot] com.