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Endy Cepeda is reporting for The Legislative Gazette that Gov. Kathy Hochul last week signed legislation into law mandating that minutes of public meetings be posted online within 14 days of a meeting. The legislation originated with the New York Coalition For Open Government, who reached out to Assemblymember Amy Paulin, who introduced the bill in the Assembly, with Sen. Anna Kaplan introducing the bill in the Senate. The new measure is significant because the state's Open Meetings Law does not currently require that meeting minutes be posted online. At present meeting minutes must be available within 14 days of the meeting at the office of the local government or school board if a person requests a copy. But now government bodies with a regularly updated website must post their minutes online within 14 days of the meeting taking place. In an analysis of 20 local governments conducted by the coalition, only 30 percent of local governments posted minutes of the previous meeting before the next meeting occurred. The law does allow an exemption if a government body chooses to post a video or audio recording of the meeting itself. This exemption was met with some criticism from the coalition. Coalition president Paul Wolf said, “It is also important to have a written record of meeting attendance, motions made and votes taken. It is quicker and easier for an organization like ours to monitor compliance with the Open Meetings Law by reviewing meeting minutes or transcripts than it is by viewing several hours of a meeting recording.” Read more at legislative gazette [dot] com.

Bill Williams is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media that hundreds of law enforcement officers, family and friends paid their last respects November 12, to Columbia County Sheriff’s Deputy Bernard Allen Roberts. He was 52. The funeral procession was led by the Sheriff’s Office motorcycle color guard, from the Sacco Funeral Home in Greenport to the sheriff’s office on Industrial Tract, where the procession stopped so Roberts could receive his final call. They continued back onto Route 66 and over Paul Avenue to the Cedar Park Cemetery in Hudson, where Roberts was laid to rest. He was an 18-year veteran of the sheriff’s office. Roberts was born Aug. 23, 1969, at Columbia Memorial Hospital in Hudson. After high school he served in the U.S Marine Corps. Upon leaving the service, Roberts began his career with the Sheriffs Office. He was found dead by first responders November 7, when they were called to his home in Rensselaer. The cause of death has not been released. Roberts leaves behind his wife Fulgencia Roberts and six children. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Kenneth C. Crowe II reports in the Times Union another water well in Poestenkill in Rensselaer County has tested positive for a toxic "forever chemical," county officials announced Nov. 12. There are now eight private wells that have tested above the state level of 10 parts per trillion for PFOA or PFOS, out of 72 wells with test results so far. Officials are waiting for test results on another 36 wells. State-required testing in January found toxins in wells at the Algonquin Middle School, and the latest sampling results came from sites located north and west of the school. “We can also report the four rounds of testing have yet to reveal a source for the contamination, and we are in fact reviewing whether there are multiple sources involved in the Poestenkill situation,” Rensselaer County Public Health Director Mary Fran Wachunas said. Manufacturing facilities in Hoosick, Hoosick Falls, and Petersburgh have previously poisoned wells with the forever chemicals, and fire-fighting foam used in Cairo in Greene County, and the city of Newburgh, have also poisoned local drinking water supplies. Residents in Rensselaer County have formed “Concerned Citizens for Clean Drinking Water," to share information, and advocate for clean drinking water. “The pace of testing has not given us confidence that all parties will determine the source in a timely manner”, said Phil LaRocque, a member of CCCDW. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Tony Dobrowolski is reporting for The Berkshire Eagle the Schaefer family has spent more than $15 million to upgrade the Catamount Mountain Resort since purchasing the ski area three years ago. The resort is adding two new chairlifts, has put in the resort's first snow tubing park, is upgrading the snow-making system, and has new food options available in a newly renovated lodge. The new chairlifts are expected to be in operation when Catamount opens for the upcoming season. "Mother Nature has the final say on that," said Dave Kulis, Catamount's new assistant general manager. "But, we're looking at early December. We're probably, give or take, a month away right now." Catamount is one of the region's oldest ski areas, having been founded in 1939. It straddles the New York-Massachusetts line with an official street address in Hillsdale. Kulis said the technology of snow-making has greatly improved. "It's much more energy efficient. ... A lot of the new snow guns we've purchased are using enhanced technology ... so we can use more water and less air. We have the ability to make more snow with less energy," he said. The new snow tubing park is located near the base of the mountain and has a separate entrance from the main ski area.  Read the full story in The Berkshire Eagle.

Today's daily news update.

Natasha Vaughn-Holdridge is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Copake town officials have voted to allow retail cannabis dispensaries and are considering opting out of on-site consumption locations. The town board held a public forum prior to its regular monthly meeting November 11, and residents offered their opinions on the potential benefits of retail marijuana sales. “I had the sense here that clearly everybody who came to this meeting or sent us something was in favor of us proceeding,” Town Supervisor Jeanne Mettler said. “I do think when people are talking about allowing the sale of cannabis, what I believe they’re saying is that they want to allow dispensaries.” New York cannabis law allows for any village, town or city to create a local law opting out from allowing retail cannabis dispensaries and or on-site consumption sites within its jurisdiction. Any municipality that creates a local law opting out has the ability to opt back in at any time. Numerous Copake residents spoke in favor of allowing retail sales at the meeting. When it was time for the vote, the board broke the opt-out-in decision into two parts, first votng on opting out of dispensaries and then making the decision on opting out of consumption sites. The motion on the dispensaries question passed with three votes in favor, one against and one abstention. The motion on consumption sites will be decided in December. State law allows municipalities to opt-out of allowing adult-use cannabis retail dispensaries or on-site consumption licenses from locating with their boundaries, but they cannot opt-out of adult-use legalization. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Bethany Bump is reporting for the Times Union a new report from the Community Service Society has found that some hospitals systems in New York commonly garnish wages and place liens on the real property of patients with back medical debt. While most hospitals in the state do not report taking such action, the practice is common among some hospital systems that sue for back-owed debt and win. At the top of that list is St. Peter's Health Partners in Albany, followed by Northwell Health and Albany Med, of which Columbia Memorial Health is associated. The report is based on data collected in 2017 and 2018, the most recent available. The practice impacts thousands of New Yorkers a year. The median outstanding debt that triggers the lawsuits is $1,900, according to CSS. When a lien is filed on a person’s home, they generally cannot sell the property without paying off the debt. It can also prevent them from refinancing or obtaining additional loans, such as a home equity loan. CSS found that the practice of taking liens out on patients' homes is most widespread among hospitals in just 15 counties, including Albany, Dutchess, Rensselaer, Schenectady and Ulster counties. Albany Medical Center and its affiliates filed liens on the homes of 482 patients in 2017 and 2018, Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville filed 358 liens, and Ellis Hospital in Schenectady filed 230, the report shows. Not long after the CSS report was released, state lawmakers introduced a bill that would prevent hospitals from this practice. The measure proposed by state Sen. Gustavo Rivera and Assemblymember Richard Gottfried would bar New York hospitals from placing liens or from garnishing wages when they win court judgments in medical debt collection cases. The bill had 16 co-sponsors as of last week, including Senate Finance Committee Chair Liz Krueger. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Patricia R. Doxsey is reporting the Daily Freeman Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan and the union that represents corrections officers and civilian employees at the county Sheriff’s Office have reached an agreement that would give employees a pay increase over the next five years. The pact between the county and the Ulster County Sheriff’s Employees Association now goes to the county Legislature for approval. If okayed by the Laws and Rules and Ways and Means committees, it will go to the full Legislature on November 16. “I am proud that we have reached this agreement with UCSEA, one of the largest labor unions in county government,” Ryan said in a statement, November 12. “This new contract recognizes the hard work of our employees, especially given the challenges that they have faced since the outbreak of COVID-19...” As proposed, the contract would run from Jan. 1, 2020, to Dec. 31, 2024. Employees would receive a 3.5 percent increase in base salary retroactive to Dec. 31, 2020, and April 1, 2021; plus a 2 percent increase in base salary and more, annually from 2022, to 2024. The settlement package will cost county taxpayers $2.12 million over the five-year agreement. The Ulster County Sheriff’s Employees Association is the second-largest employee union in the county, second only to the Civil Service Employees Association, or CSEA. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Today's daily news update.

Roger Hannigan Gilson reports in the Times Union that the Chatham Planning Board on Nov. 10 approved the "Pavilions Project" developed by Art Omi in Ghent, a 190-acre site with permanent installations of artists' works. "The premise of the Pavilions Project is that many accomplished and highly distinguished artists would welcome the opportunity to create a legacy stand-alone exhibition of their work in a setting that they control and help design, but that is also part of a larger art center which provides cultural context, museological standards, and visitor services management," according to the project description. Up to 18 artists would create enclosed "pavilions" at the Chatham site that would serve as galleries for their works. Artists would design the structures, which could be up to 5,900 square feet and two stories tall. Art Omi would also build a visitor center and the nonprofit would maintain roads and grounds and split the cost of constructing the pavilions with the artists. Three artists and one collector have signed up so far: Alice Aycock, a New York City-based sculptor; Tadaaki Kuwayama and Rakuko Naito, married minimalists; and the collector Ariel Aisiks, who founded the Institute for Studies on Latin American Art. Art Omi will begin work on the site, off Route 66, in the spring. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

William J. Kemble reports in the Daily Freeman that the Saigerties Village Board has granted an easement to Arm of the Sea Theater for public access to the planned Tidewater Center performance campus along the Lower Esopus Creek. The mask and puppet performance troupe founded in 1982 will build a performance center on a 1.5-acre property at the site of a former paper mill along the creek. The easement previously was as a right-of-way for the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater. “Clearwater Inc. no longer had [a] need for such an easement, but Arm of the Sea did [after it] contracted to acquire private lands adjacent to Tina Chorvas Park,” the resolution approved by the board states. The planned Tidewater Center also will include a waterworks playground and public access for fishing and kayaking. The site of the center is under a mile from where the Esopus Creek meets the Hudson River. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Melanie Lekocevic reports for Capital Region Independent Media that citizens in Coeymans can give their opinion Nov. 22 about a proposed law in Coeymans allowing cannabis sales, but barring cannabis consumption sites. “This local law being proposed would allow for the retail sale and purchase of cannabis in our town, outside the boundaries of the village, but it would not allow for the consumption on site, meaning there would be no smoke rooms in the cannabis shops that you could go to and consume the cannabis once you purchased it,” Town Supervisor George McHugh said. Local towns have until Dec. 31 to opt-out, or else cannabis sales will be allowed, after state legislators legalized the drug in April. McHugh said the town wrote the law to mimic one recently passed in Colonie. The public hearing will be at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 22 at Coeymans Town Hall, 18 Russell Ave., in Ravena in southern Albany County. Read more about this story at the Ravena News-Herald.

Today's daily headlines.

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

Sam Raudins is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media that the Hillsdale Town Board decided November 9, to permit the sale of cannabis in the town. The board held a public hearing on October 4. Approximately 35 people participated and the board then unanimously chose to allow cannabis dispensaries to be established in Hillsdale. The state's deadline for municipalities to opt-out of the legislation is December 31. Hillsdale Town Supervisor Chris Kersten expressed his support for having the town take no action on opting out. “We’ve all had an opportunity to reflect on this issue,” Kersten said. “For myself, I’m in favor of opting in. And it offers, in my opinion, advantages to the town." Town attorney Matt Cabral said he would investigate what actions residents can take if they disagree with the board's decision. “Only because I think that if people disagree with what our decision is tonight, they probably would like to know what they could do to be able to get it on a ballot, so the citizens could vote,” Over three fiscal years, the town of Great Barrington, just over the border in Massachusetts, collected more than $6.7 million in sales tax revenue and community impact fees from cannabis sales. The town of Lee, Massachusetts, had its first cannabis retailer open in 2019, and during its first year of operation, generated more than $494,000 in revenue for the town. The New York legislation, signed into law on March 31, imposes a nine percent state excise tax on sales and a four percent local tax. Counties will receive 25 percent of the local tax revenue and 75 percent will go to the host city, town or village. To opt-out of allowing adult-use cannabis retail dispensaries or on-site consumption licenses, a municipality must pass a local law by December 31. If a municipality does not opt-out by that deadline, it will be unable to do so in the future. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Paul Kirby reports for the Daily Freeman that State Sen. Michelle Hinchey tested positive for COVID-19, she announced Nov. 11. Hinchey said she was vaccinated, and her symptoms are “mild, easily confused for a cold or severe allergies.” Hinchey, a 34-year-old Democrat in her first term in Albany, said she found out Nov. 10, and is isolating at home in Saugerties. She did not say if she knew when she contracted the virus. Photos from a Democratic Party event in Kingston on Nov. 2, showed Hinchey and many others not wearing face masks. Hinchey used the announcement to urge others to get vaccinated. She said COVID-19, “is very much still here, and I encourage everyone who has not yet been vaccinated to schedule an appointment today.” Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Larry Rulison is reporting for the Times Union National Grid told its customers this week to expect to pay $46 more a month for their home heating bills this winter. The increases are caused by inflation and other factors. The company warned customers that average monthly bills will go up nearly 50 percent. The news comes as consumers face increases in the cost of everything from groceries, clothing, pet food, car parts and home improvement supplies amid the worst price inflation since 1990. National Grid told customers last month that their heating bills would be 31 percent higher than last winter because of a huge spike in wholesale natural gas prices. The revised forecast will mean the average customer, who typically paid $100 a month for heat last season, will now pay $147 a month to stay just as warm this winter. Inflation is having its biggest impact on energy prices, which have already increased 30 percent over the past 12 months, according to data released this week by the U.S. Department of Labor. The pandemic played a role in the increase, as well. With the economy rebounding as businesses reopened and people have been vaccinated, rising demand for oil and gas has outpaced industry production, causing prices to spike. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Larry Parnass is reporting for The Berkshire Eagle the General Electric Co. will change its structure beginning in 2023, but that decision will not release the company from its obligation to remove toxins from the Housatonic River. In the coming year, General Electric will decide how its corporate obligations will be divided, including the ordered cleanup in the Berkshires, linked to its former transformer manufacturing business in Pittsfield. On November 9, company officials announced a plan to split operations into three distinct companies, in the health care, aviation, and renewable energy and power sectors. A Boston-based spokesperson for the Environmental Protection Agency said this week that the Rest of River cleanup announced in February 2020, and finalized in December, would stay in effect, regardless of corporate reshuffling.. “GE remains fully committed to conducting a comprehensive cleanup of the Housatonic Rest of River that protects the environment and the community,” a GE spokesperson said. “... [The planned organizational] changes do not alter the fact that [the company] is obligated by a court settlement to deal with the aftermath of its long release of PCBs, a probable carcinogen, into the river and its flood plain," the spokesperson said. GE is expected to work in the coming year on which corporate obligations will be attached to which new entity. The Rest of River project is estimated to cost $576 million and be completed in more than 13 years. GE has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to deal with the pollution it left behind in the region. Read the full story in The Berkshire Eagle.

Today's daily news update.