Today's daily news update.

Nick Reisman reports in New York State of Politics that Siena College poll results announced Jan. 17 show only 36 percent of New Yorkers believe race relations in the state are excellent or good, while 60 percent say they are fair or negative. Last year only 31 percent of New Yorkers polled said race relations were good or excellent. In 2014 47 percent of New Yorkers believed race relations in New York were positive. Now 72 percent of New Yorkers polled say people of color face racial discrimination, while 19 percent say they do not. “The overwhelming majority of New Yorkers of every stripe think racial minorities experience discrimination in New York – including 92 percent of Blacks, 87 percent of Latinos and 67 percent of whites; 84 percent of Democrats, 66 percent of independents and 56 percent of Republicans; and at least 63 percent from every region,” Siena College pollster Steve Greenberg said. “Similarly, at least 62 percent of voters, regardless of religion, race, party, or region, say that religious minorities experience discrimination." And half of Latinos and 41 percent of Black New Yorkers reported they were treated unfairly in the last year because of their race, religion, gender, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. "This number has remained largely consistent over the last five years,” Greenberg said. “Dr. King would have turned 93 this weekend. He said, ‘Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle.’ New Yorkers say that struggle persists.” Read more about this story in New York State of Politics.

Joshua Solomon reports in the Times Union that instead of paying farm workers by the same rules as grocery store workers, Gov. Kathy Hochul wants to give agricultural employers a tax credit for overtime labor. Currently, most workers in New York receive overtime benefits after working 40 hours. But farm workers, because of a quirk in history and a weak labor union, only get overtime after 60 hours of work at regular pay. The New York Farm Bureau, a group opposed to paying farm workers in the same way as grocery workers, said they "applaud her for making agriculture a focus of her agenda" that included "sweeping investments." The state's Farm Laborers Wage Board holds its final hearings on this issue later this week. Some advocates for farm workers are skeptical of the tax credit proposal. "If it were a complete subsidy, it would destroy the incentive power to overtime pay to incentivize more reasonable, shorter work weeks," said Paul Sonn, state policy program director for the National Employment Law Project. "Otherwise it won't do anything to help reduce the dangerous work schedules that many (farm) workers face." Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Noah Zweifel reports in the Altamont Enterprise about the ongoing political feud against farmer Emily Vincent by Berne's code-enforcement officer, Chance Townsend, and the highway superintendent, Randy Bashwinger. In 2018, Vincent installed a temporary greenhouse without a permit, because a permit was not required. But Townsend said she did need a permit and that Vincent owed the town money. Then Bashwinger, Berne Supervisor Sean Lyons, and Deputy Supervisor Dennis Palow tried to get Vincent to resign from the planning board, with false allegations and insinuations about her sexuality. Democrats, who held a 3-to-2 majority at the time on the town board, defended Vincent and kept her on the board. Until 2020, when Republicans took control of the board and illegally fired Vincent from the planning board, and replaced her with Thomas Spargo, a former State Supreme Court Justice who was disbarred after a bribery conviction, for which he served two years in jail. So Vincent successfully sued the town and was put back on the planning board. Earlier this year, Vincent wanted a building permit for a barn, only to be told that Townsend had “too much on the docket.” But after she called the town’s supervisor, Lyons, that she was able to get the permit. Now though, because a contractor poured extra shale over a driveway on her property, Townsend and Bashwinger are ordering Vincent to replace a culvert, even though it was installed by the town, runs underneath a town road, and appears to terminate away from her property. Townsend won't return her calls, and neither Bashwinger nor Townsend answered email or calls from the newspaper. Vincent has 30 days, as of Dec. 22, to replace the culvert. Read more about this story in the Altamont Enterprise.

Today's daily headlines.

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

Bill Williams is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media a part of the Columbia Memorial Health hospital building in Hudson was closed off early Jan. 16, after the hospital's sprinkler system froze because of a power outage, resulting in some flooding. Part of the hospital's emergency department and the imaging area were affected by the water damage, CMH spokesperson Bill Van Slyke said. Hudson firefighters were called to Columbia Memorial after water from the sprinkler system caused ceiling tiles to fall. Ambulance traffic was temporarily redirected, but the emergency department remained open and available for walk-in care. "We expect the impacted areas will be back in operation later today or tomorrow," Van Slyke said later in the day Jan. 16. He said the large power outage that impacted more than 5,000 Columbia County National Grid customers early on Jan. 16 was to blame for the hospital's flooding. The power outage caused cold air to infiltrate a mechanical area above the imaging unit and emergency department, causing a sprinkler head to freeze and burst. Columbia Memorial ran on generator power for several hours before the sprinkler head froze. When the generator is activated, air louvers are automatically opened, which let enough cold air in to freeze the sprinkler head, said Nick Pierro, Hudson Fire Department's 2nd assistant chief. During the power outage, outdoor temperatures hovered around minus two degrees Fahrenheit. When firefighters arrived around 5:40 a.m., they found multiple ceiling tiles had fallen and a lot of water, Pierro said. Firefighters and Columbia County emergency personnel remained on the scene for several hours Sunday morning. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

HateWatchReport.com, a local tracker of racist and right-wing activity, reports that three people from the New York chapter of the hate group "White Lives Matter" held a banner Jan. 14 in front of the gazebo in the park in Chatham. The group has been recently placing recruitment stickers on park benches, parking meters, utility poles, and road signs in Hudson and Stockport and have posted a video of a “meet-up” in North Greenbush. On January 14, three white supremacists were seen holding a banner for the group in the village square in Chatham. The identity of the three racists was obscured by masks and winter clothing. The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups nationally, says the White Lives Matter group first formed in Texas about seven years ago by leaders associated with neo-Nazi groups. In response, the HateWatchReport.com group is urging local residents to attend a counter-protest at noon Jan. 19 at the Village of Chatham gazebo.

Kayla Simas is reporting for siadvance [dot] com state residents who qualify for food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, could see extra money in their accounts starting this week. Gov. Kathy Hochul announced last week that New York’s food assistance program would receive an additional $230 million in funding. “As we continue to endure the difficulties of the pandemic, too many New Yorkers are struggling to make ends meet,” Hochul said. “These additional food benefits will play a critical role in eliminating food insecurity throughout the state... " All New Yorkers enrolled in SNAP will receive the maximum allowable benefits for January, and those already at the maximum level will receive a supplement by the end of the month. Families could receive the maximum benefit level, which is $835 for a family of four. Those who already receive the maximum benefit could receive a stipend close to $100. Supplemental benefits can be used to purchase food at authorized retail food stores, and unused funds will carry over to next month. Read the full story at siadvance [dot] com.

Kate Lisa is reporting for Johnson Newspaper Corp. Gov. Kathy Hochul on Fri., Jan. 14, signed a bill into law that allows government bodies in New York to continue to hold meetings and other public business remotely until the COVID-19 public health emergency ends. Lawmakers in September voted to temporarily amend the Open Meetings Law and permit public bodies to hold municipal meetings via telephone or video conference through January 15. State Committee on Open Government Executive Director Shoshanah Bewlay said she had expected the governor to sign the extension. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Jim Gaughran, will extend the previous Open Meetings Law modifications and permit any public body to hold meetings remotely without in-person access as long as the audio or video is recorded and released to the public. The bill allows remote public meetings to continue until the governor terminates the COVID-19 state of emergency with notification to the Legislature by the state Health Department commissioner. Leaders with the Assembly Democrats did not respond to requests for comment about the measure or remote public meetings. State Coalition for Open Government President Paul Wolf is disappointed, he said, because the bill does not mandate meeting recordings be posted online for the public. The bill mandates the recordings be made available to the public, but not how. The provision also does not require public comment sessions to be held at municipal meetings. “That has been a real problem during virtual meetings,” Wolf said. “...It’s disappointing. We’ve expressed these concerns months ago and no effort has been done." Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Had a great time at Mar- A -Lago last night with @LizLemeryJoy , @EliseStefanik , @Santos4Congress pic.twitter.com/lbA92OuHRT

— Aidan Rowan (@AidanRowanNY) January 13, 2022

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 Democrat 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.

This week Reps. Antonio Delgado, who represents the 19th Congressional District in Greene, Columbia, Rensselaer and other counties, and Paul Tonko, who represents the 20th in Albany County and other areas, both voted together with most other Democrats on several measures. On Jan. 14 they both voted for a joint resolution relating to increasing the debt limit that passed 220-212 on a straight party vote. Tonko and Delgado also voted Jan. 14 for "Recommending that the House of Representatives find Mark Randall Meadows in contempt of Congress for refusal to comply with a subpoena duly issued by the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol." That measure passed 222-208, with all Democrats and two Republicans, Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, voting in favor. And both Delgado and Tonko voted for the "Combating International Islamophobia Act," that passed 219-212 on a straight party vote Jan. 14.

The biggest news this week for New York's Congressional delegation may have happened at Mar-a-Lago in Florida. Aaron Cerbone at the Adirondack Daily Enterprise reported that on Jan. 11 in a letter to the House Clerk, North Country Rep. Elise Stefanik said she’d be unable to physically attend the government proceedings that day because of “the ongoing public health emergency.” But that was not actually the reason. Stefanik lied to the House Clerk, and instead attended a fundraiser, largely unmasked, with former President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort. “Elise Stefanik outright lied when she claimed a public health emergency prohibited her from showing up to work but then appeared at a political event with former President Trump in Mar-a-Lago that day,” Matt Castelli, a Democrat running against Stefanik for New York’s 21st Congressional seat, wrote in a statement. Stefanik brought Gerry Kassar, New York's Conservative Party chair, to the event. “It was really a New York crowd,” Kassar said. “(Trump) may be down in Florida but he’s a New Yorker. He talked about the troubles due to the economy. It was a great time, my wife and I had a very good time. I was happy to see him and interact the crowd was up close.” Stefanik, who voted to throw out fair election results last January in an effort to keep Trump president, was photographed with him. Other locals at the right-wing fundraiser according to the New York Post included Thomas D’Ambra, CEO of an Albany-area pharmaceutical company Pharmapotheca A and formerly Albany Molecular Research Inc.; and John Hendrickson, Adirondack Park landowner and Saratoga Springs horse stable owner; and Edward Foy Jr, who owns the Chateau on the Lake restaurant. Liz Joy, a Republican who is running against Tonko for a second time, was photographed at the former president's fundraiser, but no photos online show her with Trump. Joy did attend the "Stop the Steal" rally at the U.S. Capitol last January 6.

On Jan. 14, Stefanik and Delgado found common ground on one issue, both signing a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Brooks La-Sure requesting some rural New York hospitals retain their Critical Access Hospital status. “While our rural New York hospitals combat COVID-19 and take care of patients, we must ensure they have the resources necessary to provide critical services,” the Democrat said. “Changing the eligibility criteria for the Critical Access Hospital designation hurts our upstate hospitals and makes it harder for rural New Yorkers to receive care. I will keep working with my colleagues on this issue to help support our hospitals and communities.” Stefanik agreed. “North Country families depend on rural hospitals to provide lifesaving care and treatments,” the Republican said. “Taking away the designation of Critical Access Hospitals will be harmful to our healthcare system and harmful to North Country patients. I am proud to take a stand with Congressman Delgado to ensure Critical Access Hospitals can maintain their status and provide critical care to residents of the North Country.”

Ted Remsnyder is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Greene County Public Health announced January 15, the department will no longer release daily statistics on the number of county residents under quarantine order. The change was made because the department does not have the staffing to handle the influx of positive COVID cases. “We can’t keep up with it,” Greene County Administrator Shaun Groden said. “I think we’re not going to contact trace anymore. Actually nobody is. The state is dropping it and counties are stopping. There are just too many cases. We’re picking up 100 or 200 new positive cases sometimes per day. That’s impossible to contact trace. You just can’t do it. So actually the state has issued guidance that they’re dropping all of their efforts because they just can’t keep up with it.” Greene County recorded two new COVID-19 deaths on January 14, bringing the total number of deaths to 103 or 104, since the beginning of the pandemic, depending on what you read. The most recent people to die from the coronavirus included a woman in her 50s and a man in his late 70s with comorbidities at the time of his death, according to Groden. Neither were vaccinated for COVID-19 at the time of their passing. As of Fri., Jan. 14, the county reported 1,633 active COVID positive cases, with 45 people hospitalized due to COVID-related illness. More than 8,300 positive cases have been reported since the pandemic began in March 2020, with 107 new cases confirmed as of Friday. The percentage of positive tests countywide reached 26.7 percent as of January 11, with a rolling positive rate of 19.5 percent during the last week. As of January 13,, there were 73 active cases in the county’s correctional facilities, including nine newly diagnosed cases. COVID-testing clinics in Coxsackie will be held on January 18 and 20 at 370 Mansion Street. The site will be open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, and from 10 a.m. to noon on Thursday. And Public Health will hold a vaccination clinic on February 8 at Fellows Cafe on Main Street in Hunter. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Melanie Lekocevic is reporting for Capital Region Independent Media newly elected Coeymans Town Clerk Laura Jane Barry quit her new job just two days after taking the oath of office. The town board then appointed Candace McHugh to the post, as of January 7. Candace previously served as confidential secretary to her brother-in-law, Town Supervisor George McHugh. “We were notified Monday of Laura’s resignation,” George McHugh said. “Time was of the essence and the town board and key staff felt that Candace was the best candidate to carry the town through the rest of 2022 until a new town clerk could be elected on Nov. 8, 2022, and take office Jan. 1, 2023.” McHugh abstained from the vote to appoint Candace. In her letter of resignation, Barry cited medical reasons for her departure, but declined to comment further. “Laura, I wish you the best of luck,” George McHugh said at the board's special meeting, January 7. “I know this is a very hard decision for you and emotional, but you have to do what is best for your health. I just wish you the very best going forward.” The new town clerk was appointed registrar of vital statistics for an annual stipend of $500, effective Jan. 8. She was also appointed freedom of information officer and records management officer. All three positions are commonly held by the town clerk. Former deputy town clerk Bonnie Keyer has agreed to return as part-time clerk to help train the Candace McHugh and the new deputy clerk, Sherle Slingerland. The board also appointed Carly Morrow to fill the position of confidential secretary to the supervisor, effective January 18. Read the full story at TheUpstater [dot] com.

MidHudson News is reporting Ulster County has established an Emergency Housing Action plan just as the state’s eviction moratorium is set to expire. Working in conjunction with the county sheriff’s office, county officials will coordinate with the Department of Social Services and other community partners to provide those evicted with emergency housing options. The county is also prepared in the event that emergency housing reaches capacity by contracting with additional hotels and establishing emergency shelters. “With the end of the eviction moratorium approaching, we are 100 percent committed to making sure no one in Ulster County is without a roof over their head,” said County Executive Pat Ryan. “...We are confident that with all the measures we have in place, we won’t see a surge in homelessness due to the end of the eviction moratorium.” The sheriff’s office and social services are able to connect residents served with a warrant of eviction to social services 14 days in advance of eviction to make sure they are offered emergency housing. Those in need will also be connected to Legal Services of the Hudson Valley for legal aid. The Ulster Co. DSS emergency housing hotline, 845-334-5360, is available for calls from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Family of Woodstock after-hours emergency hotline at 845-338-2370, is available evenings, weekends and holidays. Read the full story at MidHudsonNews [dot] com.

While the news of the anniversary of the Jan. 6 attempt to overthrow the United States government may seem far away from the Hudson Valley, there are many ripples here. MidHudson News reported this week that Roberto Minuta, the 37-year-old Newburgh tattoo parlor shop owner, on Jan. 13 was among over a dozen members of the Oath Keepers indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of seditious conspiracy in connection with the January 6 riot. Minuta, who now lists an address of Prosper, Texas as home, is charged with being among a group of Oath Keepers that forced their way into the U.S. Capitol building. The Oath Keepers are a right-wing group with many members of the military and police. And the group has ties to the Hudson Valley. This week on WGXC Columbia County resident Michael Richardson, one of the people behind the Hate Watch Report, explained that the Oath Keepers have ties to the Chatham area, a former Greene County Sheriff, and former Rep. John Faso from Kinderhook. Here is Richardson tracing some of the history of white power movements locally. CLICK HERE TO PLAY OR DOWNLOAD EXCERPT OF RICHARDSON INTERVIEW. The so-called "One America News Network" is one of the outlets groups such as the Oath Keepers use to spread propaganda. The One America Network got really bad news nationally, and good news locally this week. On Jan. 14 reports emerged that DirecTV, one of the largest U.S. pay-TV providers, will drop the One America News Network. That is very bad news for the network known for spreading misinformation and having a loyal fan in former President Donald Trump. DirecTV is its largest distributor, and losing its distribution means far fewer people will see their propaganda. The channel is still carried on Verizon FiOS but has never been carried by Comcast Corp., Charter Communications Inc., or Dish Network Corp. But OAN could announce new distribution this week, as Mid-Hudson Cable, based in Catskill, added the network and another from owner Herring Networks Inc., a lifestyle channel AWE that stands for “A Wealth of Entertainment.” Mid-Hudson Cable already carries Newsmax, another propaganda network masquerading as a news channel, and Fox News, where a judge ruled recently that Tucker Carlson's show could not be considered news. U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil's 2020 opinion, said, in part, that the "'general tenor' of the show should then inform a viewer that [Carlson] is not 'stating actual facts' about the topics he discusses and is instead engaging in 'exaggeration' and 'non-literal commentary.' "

The COVID-19 new case numbers are still mostly at record highs throughout the Hudson Valley. That has been true in Columbia County all week, with 108 new cases announced Jan. 14. And of all the current cases in Columbia County this week, 132 were discovered at the privately-owned Grand Rehabilitation and Nursing at Barnwell nursing home in Valatie. Testing there Jan. 10 showed 95 residents and 37 staff were infected in the 236-bed facility. Three residents -- two of them unvaccinated -- were in the hospital. Barnwell has been cited by the Department of Health four times during the pandemic for infection control violations, according to citation reports, with more infection control violations than any other nursing home in the state during the pandemic. Barnwell was also cited twice during the pandemic for improperly reporting COVID-19 data, according to the Department of Health. Barnwell has received 13.3 citations per 100 beds, well above the average nursing home in New York, which is 2.1 citations per 100 beds in the four years ending Nov. 30, according to the Department of Health. Meanwhile, across the Hudson River, Greene County officials have not reported any COVID-19 information in several days, but there were 119 new cases in Greene County announced Jan. 14 on the state's COVID-19 webtracker site. Elsewhere, there were 406 new coronavirus cases announced in Rensselaer County Jan. 14, 823 more in Albany County, 373 new cases in Ulster County, and 708 new cases in Dutchess County.

Today's daily news update.

Andrea Macko reports in Porcupine Soup that about two dozen people attended a vigil Jan.13 for Jason Jones, the 29-year-old Catskill man who died after being shot with a Taser by village police. Jones burst into flames after the Taser shot, and after a long stay in the burn unit of a Syracuse hospital died. The vigil was held in front of the Catskill Police Station, with organizers and attendees calling for police accountability and improved mental health services within the community. A video was released of the police incident last week, showing Jones dousing himself with hand sanitizer in the Catskill Village police station, then one of three officers fires the Taser shot, Jones bursts into flames, and the officers flee the scene rather than directing aid toward the injured man. The incident happened in the early hours of Oct. 31, and Jones died Dec. 15. The New York State Attorney General’s Office is now investigating the incident. Here is a short excerpt of the vigil through the Catskill streets, recorded on a live WGXC webstream by volunteer programmer Neva Wartell. CLICK HERE to download or play the excerpt. The “Justice for Jason” was organized by Catskill native Thomas Kearney, who said Jones was a “man in distress” who needed “compassion and empathy.” Jones’ biological mother Mary Jo Snyder attended the vigil. “Jason had his issues, but everyone loved him,” Snyder said. “I wish I could have spent more time with him.” An anonymous woman who said she was friends with Jones said, “While it’s too late for Jason, going forward my hope is that the police will be properly trained and these three men will be reprimanded, not just for Jason but also to prove to this community that there is accountability and that nothing like this ever happens again.” The names of the three Catskill Village police seen in the video have not yet been released, and the attorney general's office investigation continues. WGXC volunteer programmer Neva Wartell attended the vigil and made a recording that can be heard in the WGXC Audio Archives. Read more about this story at Porcupine Soup.

MidHudson News reports that Roberto Minuta, the 37-year-old Newburgh tattoo parlor shop owner, on Jan. 13 was among over a dozen members of the Oath Keepers indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of seditious conspiracy in connection with the January 6, 2021 attempted coup of the U.S. government. Minuta, who now lists an address of Prosper, Texas, is charged with being among a group of Oath Keepers that forced their way into the U.S. Capitol building. A seditious conspiracy charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. The Oath Keepers are a right-wing group with many members of the military and police. Former Rep. John Faso, a Republican, spoke at one of their Hudson Valley events a few years ago. Read more about this story at MidHudson News.

Shaniece Holmes-Brown reports in the Times Union that Albany County Executive Dan McCoy reported the most new COVID-19 cases in his counties history on Jan. 14, with 1,586. And he says this latest wave has not peaked locally yet. “While New York as a whole is showing signs of statewide COVID-19 infections possibly hitting their peak, that is clearly not the case for Albany County as we report nearly 1,600 new positive cases in a single day, the highest increase we’ve ever experienced since the pandemic started nearly two years ago,” McCoy said. He also announced two more deaths, a woman in her 40s and another in her 90s. There are also 113 Albany County resident hospitalized with coronavirus, which is actually down by 12 from the day before. Of those patients, 18 are in the intensive care unit. Read more about this story in the Times Union.