Mid Hudson News is reporting power utility Central Hudson Gas and Electric is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the people who broke into substations located in Madison and Dutchess counties, stole copper wiring, and caused significant damage to equipment in the facilities. Company Vice President of Electric Engineering and Operations Ryan Hawthorne said their “primary concern in preventing the theft of copper and metals is to protect our employees and the public and maintain the safety of our facilities.” He said the trespassers at the Smithfield, Hibernia, and Stanfordville substations put themselves in harm’s way by cutting out copper ground wire that resulted in significant equipment failure. Removal of the wires could cause serious injury or death to thieves as well as utility workers and others who may later approach the facilities, Hawthorne said. Anyone with information about the thefts are asked to call the State Police at 845-677-7300 or the Central Hudson theft of services hotline at 877-728-3465. Read the full story at MidHudsonNews [dot] com.

Here is this week's WGXC Congressional Report, tracking the votes, statements, positions, and campaigns of the representatives and candidates for the 19th and 20th Congressional seats in New York. Current Reps. Antonio Delgado and Paul Tonko vote with the positions of President Joe Biden 100 percent of the time, according to the fivethirtyeight.com website. Click here to listen to this report.

Chris McKenna from the Times Herald-Record reports about where charges stand against 13 Capitol riot suspects from Hudson Valley. Authorities know about at least 13 people from the Hudson Valley who were part of a violent attempt to overthrow the U.S. government on Jan. 6, 2021. They include a retired cop-turned-landscaper from Goshen, a Newburgh tattoo artist, and a Metro-North railyard worker. Only one of the 13 is currently behind bars, while two have pleaded guilty and have yet to be sentenced. Three plan to stand trial. And eight other defendants are awaiting plea deals or trials. Edward Lang, a 26-year-old from Newburgh, was arrested after boasting about his participation on social media. He can be seen in photos swinging an aluminum baseball bat at police, and charges against him include assaulting an officer with a dangerous weapon and inflicting bodily injury. He is in a Washington, D.C. jail in September and spoke by phone from jail last week with the ultra-conservative Newsmax TV channel, claiming he acted in "self-defense" against police officers who were "brutalizing protesters who were unarmed — just loving American citizens who were there to use their First Amendment." Anyone who has seen video knows police officers were defending the U.S. Capitol and democracy, as the mob successfully delayed the electoral count that day. Court papers opposing his release last month said Lang "has not articulated how he was defending others from immediate danger by shoving a door into the head of a vulnerable sergeant, or repeatedly kicking a detective after he fell to the ground, or using a baseball bat to beat officers standing sentry." Others arrested include Roberto Minuta, who owns of a tattoo shop on Broadway in Newburgh and is a member of the right-wing Oath Keepers militia. He unwittingly discussed his involvement to an off-duty FBI agent who came to his shop for a tattoo. Dutchess County resident William Vogel, 27, faces four charges, two misdemeanors and two lower-level offenses is is due back in court on March 4. The story details the case status of each of the 13 Hudson Valley men charged in the riot. Read more about this story in the Times Herald-Record.

MidHudson News is reporting nearly one year after protesters stormed the U.S. Capitol and disrupted the certification of the 2020 presidential election, many Americans support the investigation into the incident, according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll. More than six in 10 Americans, or 62 percent, think the investigation is appropriate and do not view it as an unwarranted campaign aimed at Donald Trump and his supporters, while 35 percent do not agree with the inquiry. Forty-nine percent consider the events of January 6, to be an insurrection and a threat to U.S. democracy. Twenty-five percent believe it was a political protest protected under the First Amendment, while 19 percent say the incident was unfortunate but does not have implications for the future. “Both Democrats and Republicans believe that U.S. democracy is under threat,” said the director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion in Poughkeepsie. “But they overwhelmingly disagree over the meaning of the events of January 6th and the motivation behind the investigation into the events of that day.” Read the full story at MidHudsonNews [dot] com.

WGXC's partner station WOOC in Troy interviewed Tonko a few days after Jan. 6 last year.

Mike Gwizdala reports in the Troy Record Rep. Paul Tonko's memories of an armed attempt to overthrow the U.S. government one year later. On Jan. 6 last year, an armed mob, directed there by former President Donald Trump, delayed the counting of electoral votes. The U.S. Capitol was ransacked for the first time since the War of 1812. A police officer was beaten, a rioter was shot, and three others died during the rampage. Tonko described what he saw. “One of my colleagues was with [my staffer] Kate, she had just had knee surgery. Another colleague was flat out on the floor hyperventilating. People were really stressed as they were trying to figure out how quickly can we get to that exit door? Then realizing that you had to go down several sets of stairs to make your way to the tunnel that connects the Rayburn office building to the House chamber to the Capitol building. It was all of that happening with great intensity and a lack of direction basically because it was an unusual set of circumstances," he said. In the long interview, the Congressperson who represents Albany County does not mention holding the coup plotters or rioters accountable. "As we approach the first anniversary of the attack on the Capitol, it’s important for us I believe to come forward in a united way that enables us to put first the country to make certain that we all work together toward a common goal, to make certain that our democracy, our republic that was challenged in a very powerful and forceful way that produced death and destruction and the attempt to undo a process, all of those dynamics need to be addressed and I think that as we go forward I would hope that we could do this out of love for country, respect for country and a sense to make us an even stronger voice for freedom and opportunity,” Tonko said. Read more about this story in the Troy Record.

The Daily Freeman reports Rep. Antonio Delgado's thoughts on the anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection. “One year ago, the peaceful transfer of power to a legitimately elected president, came under siege, as violence and malice tore through the hallowed halls of the Capitol. More than 100 police officers were injured in the line of duty that day. Five officers died in the days, weeks, and months that followed,” said Delgado, who represents the 19th Congressional District. “Their bravery saved the lives of countless individuals trapped in the Capitol.” The congressman added that in the “darkness of January 6, 2021, let us never forget the many acts of valor and bravery that made it possible for our government to resume its work and fulfill what our Constitution obligates.”

Today's daily news update.

Andrea Macko is reporting for Porcupine Soup Questar III BOCES has announced plans to move its special education programs from Catskill to the former Durham Elementary School in Durham. “Beginning this summer, Questar III BOCES will relocate its Special Education programs ... currently at Catskill Academy to the Durham school located on NY-145 in Durham,” Shauna Maynard, director of special education for Questar III, and Catskill Academy Principal Mark Nizer wrote in a January 5, letter to school families. Questar III delivers more than 275 educational and administrative services to 23 school districts in Rensselaer, Columbia and Greene counties. It has leased space for the Catskill Academy on West Main Street from the Catskill Central School District since 2011. Questar III purchased the former Durham Elementary School in 2020. That building offers larger classroom space, a separate gym and cafeteria, as well as outdoor space for the special ed program. “We look forward to creating this new learning environment for our students,” Niver and Maynard wrote. The Catskill Academy currently serves 34 students in grades K-12 from districts in Greene and Columbia counties, and from other neighboring counties, as well, Maynard said. The move to Durham will offer a collaboration with BOCES career and technical education programs located at the Durham site. This includes an existing heavy equipment program and a new agriculture science program that begins in the fall of 2022. Read the full story at porcupinesoup [dot] com.

Patricia Doxsey is reporting for the Daily Freeman Ulster County Sheriff Juan Figueroa has announced that he is seeking a second four-year term as the county’s top law enforcement officer. The announcement was made in a press release detailing plans for a virtual event on January 13, when he will officially launch the re-election campaign. According to the statement, Figueroa will talk about the successes his office has to date making the county “stronger, safer and more united,” and will detail his plans for the future during the campaign kick-off. Figueroa, 57, a former state police investigator and U.S. Marine, was elected sheriff in 2018 when he beat incumbent Sheriff Paul VanBlarcum by more than 4,000 votes. A registered Democrat, Figueroa lives in Clintondale and is a 1983 graduate of Wallkill High School. He served in the Marines from 1983 to 2006, and was a member of the state police from 1994 to 2013. Figueroa’s campaign launch was originally scheduled to be an in-person event, but he opted to make it virtual because out of concern for public safety due to the increase in COVID-19 cases. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Noah Eckstein is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the city of Hudson is returning to a two-day recycling pickup schedule. Under the new schedule, if a resident's garbage is collected on Monday, their recycling will now be picked up on Wednesday. If a resident's garbage is collected on Tuesday, their recycling will be picked up on Thursday. The Department of Public Works suggests that residents put their recyclables out the night before because most pickups take place in the early morning. Recyclables are accepted in an open container as long as sanitation workers can tell if perishable trash is mixed in with the recycling. DPW Superintendent Rob Perry said the new two-day recycling schedule is similar to the one used by the department from 1988 to 2014. This is mainly because the influx of new residents is too much for the department to handle with one day of pickup. “We used to do 4 to 5 tons of recycling,” Perry said. “Now we do 11 to 12 tons per week.” DPW workers will pick up Christmas trees if they are left at the curb until January 28. Anyone with questions is invited to call 518-828-9458. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

This weekend local new COVID-19 case counts are at record numbers, with deaths increasing. In Columbia County there were 172 more cases announced Jan. 6, and 188 more and another death announced Jan. 7. In Greene County, officials reported 215 more cases and one more death on Jan. 6, and 108 more cases Jan. 7. Meanwhile in Ulster County, officials reported a surge in COVID-19 cases with 509 more cases than the day before, and a total above 4,400 for the first time since the pandemic began in March 2020. Ulster County also reported two more deaths on Jan. 7. Dutchess County, on the other hand, had a decline in both coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. But Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro the dip in numbers there is “not a trend.... We do expect cases to continue to grow,” Molinaro said. “We might experience a bit of a break, not much, before we experience cases associated with New Year’s Eve celebrations and interactions.” Molinaro said hospitalizations in Dutchess are still at, “a number that is obviously of concern and is putting stress on the hospital systems throughout the Hudson Valley.” And many of those cases are young people. Nineteen percent of the cases in Dutchess County are among 20- to 29-year-olds, with 17 percent between 30- to 39-years-old. And in Albany County, officials announced another death Jan. 7, a resident in his 90s. Albany County officials also announced 939 new positive cases. That is a giant number, but a slight decrease from the record high of 1,010 reported on Jan. 6. Also, the number of hospitalized coronavirus patients in Albany County has doubled since Christmas, with 102 county residents in a hospital Jan. 7 with coronavirus, and 16 patients are in intensive care. “Unfortunately, the number of our residents in ICUs with the virus is trending up as well, now at the highest level since February 12,” said Albany County Executive Dan McCoy.

Today's daily news update.

Brendan J. Lyons reports in the Times Union that a video shows Catskill police officers ran and hid instead of helping 29-year-old Jason Jones after they Tasered him and he burst into flames. Jones later died after an extended stay in the burn unit of a Syracuse hospital. The video shows two Catskill police officers running out of their station's lobby after he burst into flames, and another who instead of helping, stood "around the corner of an interior wall rather than rush to the aid of the man who was burning in front of him." Instead of the police helping a man who needed medical attention, a civilian who witnessed the scene through a window can be seen on the video entering the station and trying to console Jones by hugging him. Jones was a well-known athlete at Catskill High a decade ago, and just after midnight on Oct. 31 he walked into the Village of Catskill police station on Main St. and doused himself with hand sanitizer. The video does not show Jones attacking police, but one of the officers fires a Taser at him, and his head catches on fire immediately. Then, just as quick, the three officers disappear from the video. "Jason was unarmed, in the police station, and not threatening anyone when the police hit him with 50,000 volts of electrical current and he ignited," Kevin A. Luibrand, an attorney representing Jones' family, said in response to the release of the video. "Instead of helping Jason, the police ran out the room, shut the door and let him burn." The Times Union quotes an anonymous police official who is not involved in the case said that his officers are trained to never use a Taser on an individual who may have been recently exposed to a flammable liquid, including hand sanitizer, which contains alcohol. He also said officers should have helped the man immediately. "Once the threat has been stopped, you don't just say, 'I'm going to let that person burn,'" the official said. The state attorney general's Office of Special Investigation has taken over the case from Greene County District Attorney Joseph Stanzione because of a 2015 Executive Order empowering the attorney general to investigate fatal encounters between police and unarmed civilians. Jones died last month after spending 48 days on a ventilator in an intensive care unit at Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse. The investigation is continuing and the attorney general's office said in a statement, "The release of this footage is not an expression of any opinion as to the guilt or innocence of any party in a criminal matter or any opinion as to how or whether any individual may be charged with a crime." Read more about this story in the Times Union.

On January 4, Hunter-Tannersville schools announced that so many staff had called in sick with COVID-19, that school was going virtual all week. On Jan. 6 Catskill schools made similar announcement, staying closed through the MLK holiday next week. In Dutchess County, the Dover school district, the Millbrook district, Pawling Elementary School, and the Arlington district all were closed at least some of the past week because of staff shortages from coronavirus. Nick Reisman at New York State of Politics reports that on Jan. 6 the association that represents state supreme court justices in New York said it wants court proceedings to go virtual again because of the sharp rise in COVID-19 cases this month. Queens State Supreme Court Justice Carmen Velasquez, the president of the Association of Supreme Court Justices, said, "I am fully vaccinated and am quarantining at home with symptoms. I am extremely concerned about the health of our justices and court employees, and the health of all those who come into our courthouses," she said. "That must be our paramount consideration." Most local counties are now reporting a record number of new COVID-19 cases, with rising hospitalizations and deaths. Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.

David Robinson reports in the Poughkeepsie Journal that on Jan. 7 Gov. Kathy Hochul mandated a COVID-19 booster shot for health care workers in the state, because of the rising numbers of vaccine breakthrough infections caused by the omicron variant. A state Health Department panel must approve the mandate on Jan. 11. If they do, workers at hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care settings need to get the booster shot within two weeks of becoming eligible, Hochul said. New York implemented one of the nation's first vaccine mandates for health care workers on Sept. 27. "We're asking them to do the right thing once more," Hochul said. The state's hospitals are struggling with nearly 11,600 hospitalizations Jan. 6 from COVID-19. As of Jan. 4, 22 percent of the 94,000 direct care workers in New York nursing homes have gotten a booster shot, while about 35 percent of fully vaccinated Americans have taken a booster shot. Read more about this story in the Poughkeepsie Journal.

Today's daily headlines.

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

Andrea Macko is reporting for Porcupine Soup the Greene County Legislature held its annual organizational meeting January 3, and included on its agenda: swearing-in new and returning lawmakers, making 2022 appointments and approving the first pay raise for county lawmakers in 15 years. In an 11 to 2 vote, legislators approved a 25 percent salary increase for themselves, bringing their annual pay $18,750. “The annual salary for members of the Greene County Legislature has not been updated since 2006 and is in need of adjustment to match cumulative average employee salary increases over the past 15 years,” the resolution stated. Republicans Michael Bulich of Catskill and Thomas Hobart of Coxsackie were the only dissenting votes. “I don’t think we should be in the business of voting ourselves pay raises,” said Bulich, adding that county residents should get to decide on the increase in the 2022 general election. “We are serving them, and I think that is how we should handle this,” he said. The legislators also voted to reappoint Republican Patrick Linger of New Baltimore to serve as their chair through 2024. Those in leadership receive additional pay — the chair gets an additional $8,400 per year, while the majority leader, Republican Matthew Luvera of Catskill, and minority leader, Democrat Harry Lennon of Cairo, are paid an additional $1,250 each. Republican Greg Davis of Greenville will serve as parliamentarian in 2022; Republican Charles Martinez of Coxsackie was reappointed budget officer through 2024. Jonathan Palmer was reappointed Greene County historian for one year, and Angelo Scaturro was reappointed to a three-year term as the full-time public defender. The Times Union and the Mountain Eagle were approved as the official newspapers of Greene County for the publication of printed local laws, notices, and other matters required by law to be published. Noticeably missing from the meeting was Jack Keller of Catskill. In November he was elected to his second term on the legislature, but Keller died unexpectedly of heart failure on December 30. Keller’s seat will be filled by appointment. Luvera said the Catskill Republican Committee will meet and then submit a recommendation to the full Legislature for consideration later this month. Read the full story at porcupinesoup [dot] com.

Nick Reisman is reporting for State of Politics a law enforcement labor union blames staffing shortages for the mental health crisis its members are dealing with, the PBA of New York State said January 5. The union's president urged Gov. Kathy Hochul and state lawmakers to address the problem in the middle of ongoing concerns about overcompensation. The union represents the New York State Park Police, New York State University Police and Encon Officers and Forest Rangers from the State Department of Environmental Conservation. “We’re losing officers every day across the state to local police departments that provide better retirement benefits and compensation and that’s creating serious staffing and experience shortages that will prevent us from being able to respond to people experiencing mental health crises,” said PBA of New York State President Manny Vilar. At issue are staffing levels brought on in part by contracts and pay disparity between officers in the PBA's agencies and local law enforcement, as well as poor recruitment, a failure to run academy classes and an antiquated retirement system, according to the union. The labor union's push comes as the state budget season is set to start in Albany, with Hochul scheduled to release her first spending proposal in the coming weeks. Read the full story at nystateofpolitics [dot] com.

Ted Remsnyder is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media that the village of Hunter has received a $1.97 million state grant to relocate its firehouse outside of the 100-year and 500-year flood hazard areas of the Schoharie Creek. As part of a statewide initiative, the state Department of Environmental Conservation this week awarded $11 million in funds as part of the Climate Smart Communities Grant program. The Hunter project was the only proposal in Greene County to receive money in this funding round. “We’ve needed a new firehouse for decades,” Hunter Village Mayor Alan Higgins said. “Since we did the local flood analysis, some things were identified in the village that would be helpful with our flood zones. One of them was to replace the bridge on Bridge Street and we see that as a real major need for the village as well.” The award is a 50 percent matching grant which will cover half of the cost of the $3.8 million firehouse project. “The property that we were looking at that’s in the grant has since pulled out of that deal,” Higgins said. “So we’re actively searching for a property now. It’s just a little wrench in the gears. We needed to move that firehouse so we applied for that grant and it’s amazing that we got it. It’s a competitive grant, so there were no guarantees there.” The mayor said the village will reconvene its relocation committee in the next two weeks with the intent of identifying a new property for the project. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Sarah Taddeo reports in the Democrat and Chronicle that mobile sports betting in New York begins Jan. 8. The New York State Gaming Commission announced Jan. 6 that Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, FanDuel, and Rush Street Interactive have been approved to begin accepting wagers. Five other operators are still working to meet the statutory and regulatory requirements necessary to launch. State Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr., a Democrat from Queens, who has championed sports betting said Jan. 6 that it was, “great news for New York in terms of revenue, new funding for education, addiction programs and youth sports, as well as new jobs.” Sports betting has been legal in New York since 2019, but only at four casinos: Resorts World Catskills, del Lago in the Finger Lakes, Rivers in Schenectady, and Tioga Downs in the Southern Tier. Now, anyone with a smart phone or computer can make a bet inside the state. New York's neighbors New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut also legalized sports betting recently. Read more about this story in the Democrat and Chronicle.

Today's daily news update.

Catskill schools on Jan. 6 moved to remote learning through at least Jan. 14, due to COVID-19. They began the remote learning with a two-hour delay. "The reason for the shift to remote instruction is a high number of positive cases being reported at the high school and the shift applies to CHS students only," Dr. Ronel Cook, the Superintendent of Catskill schools, wrote in an online message. "Students will log in to their classes as they did last year. They can use a Chromebook or log in to their Google account and use a Chrome browser on another device. Students should also check their email for further instruction from their teachers," he wrote. The day before, Albany city schools announced they were closing through the MLK holiday too because of so many COVID-19 cases. And new case counts are skyrocketing throughout the Hudson Valley, so more announcements from schools may be coming.

MidHudson News reports that the Dutchess County Jail has been closed to the public since Jan. 1 because of an increase in COVID infections among inmates and corrections officers. Jail Administrator Therese Lee said that as of January 6, the jail had 176 male and 21 female inmates, with 76 of those inmates testing positive for COVID-19. And 149 inmates are either quarantined or in medical isolation. Currently 39 of 165 full-time corrections officers and 20 part-time officers are out sick with coronavirus. “The safety and security of our staff and inmate population is our first priority. We want to keep everyone and their families healthy and safe as we see a spike in COVID cases,” Acting Dutchess County Sheriff Kirk Imperati said. Read more about this story at MidHudson News.