Sam Raudins is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the Columbia County Health and Human Services building on Columbia Street in Hudson, will remain closed through Sun., Oct. 25, after three positive COVID-19 exposures were reported earlier this week. The building was closed October 20 out of an abundance of caution and will reopen after the weekend, following a thorough cleaning, county Board of Supervisors Chairman Matt Murell said. County Department of Health Director Jack Mabb said three building employees tested positive over last weekend. Approximately 150 people work in the building, that houses the departments of Health and Human Services, the Columbia County Mental Health Center, the Columbia County District Attorney’s Office and the Office for the Aging. Mabb said contract tracing was done, and the few who were exposed to the positive cases had been vaccinated. Those vaccinated and exposed did not need to quarantine, he said. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Melanie Lekocevic is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media two people are vying for town supervisor in the Claverack general election on November 2. Democrat and Working Families candidate Kathleen Proper [PROE-per] will face off against Republican and Conservative incumbent Clifford “Kippy” Weigelt (WHY-gelt]. Proper, 40, has lived in Columbia County her entire life. She is currently employed as the chief human resources officer for Canna Provisions, a cannabis dispensary in Lee, Mass. Proper says the biggest issue in Claverack is a lack of planning and leadership, which could transform it into a town that works for all residents — not just some. "Young people move away because they cannot afford to live here. Many people that live here commute a long distance to find good-paying jobs. Parents drive their children to the library to access the Wi-Fi because they do not have broadband at home. Our town hall is scheduled to be demolished and there is no plan for what will be built in its place," she said. Proper argues that she would make a good supervisor because she is honest, hardworking, and authentic. "When I set my mind to something, I don’t let obstacles slow me down. I got my first job at the age of 12 and graduated from UAlbany, debt-free, at the age of 20," she said. Proper said she is looking forward to bringing a fresh perspective to Claverack town leadership, if elected. Weigelt, 69, is also a lifelong resident of the county. He is the owner of Growmax, a manufacturer of bagged and bulk soils, located in Claverack. He previously served as a member of the town board from 2003 to 2013. Weigelt said his top priority and area of focus is the financial well-being of the town. "It’s so critically important and it’s an issue that is becoming more and more challenging as costs continue to rise. It’s so important that any government 'live within its means' and do everything possible to stretch every tax dollar as far as possible. We have a responsibility to do so," he said. Weigelt points out that town officials have cut taxes five years in a row, kept spending in check and have employed smart financial planning to maintain the town's fiscal health. As for his accomplishments, he lists infrastructure improvements, equipment upgrades for the town highway department, shared services with the county and surrounding municipalities, improvements at the town parks, the development and implementation of a new employee handbook, the addition of a new time-clock system, upgrades to security features at town buildings and the park, plus the consolidation of town operations. Weigelt said he is most proud of the plans to build a new town hall and community center. Read more at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Rebekah F. Ward reports in the Times Union that New Yorkers have 60 days to comment on new rules that would allow medical cannabis patients to grow their own plants. Medical cannabis has been legal in New York for seven years, and recreational cannabis use has been legal since April 1 this year. When they legislature legalized recreational cannabis, they also loosened rules for medical users. Currently, New York's 150,695 medical cannabis patients must purchase the drug from 10 state-licensed suppliers. “The draft regulations clearly lay out a program that will allow limited home cultivation in a safe manner, preventing diversion and abuse and allowing patients and caregivers who may be far from existing dispensaries the ability to manage their use,” State Senator Diane Savino said. The public can now comment on the proposal to allow up to three mature and three immature plants per patient. The Cannabis Control Board, announcing the public comment, did not explain how the public could comment. The Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act that passed this spring allowed limited home cultivation of medical cannabis as soon as the Office of Cannabis Management issues regulations governing it. The law says that was supposed to happen, “no later than six months after the effective date” of the law, which passed Oct. 1. Read more about this story in the Times Union. Also The New York Post reported on Oct. 19 that Albany’s labor department issued a new guidance banning employers from testing employees for cannabis unless the worker seems visibly impaired on the job. Cannabis will be treated in the same way that alcohol is, and employers can ban workers from possessing cannabis on the job site.

Today's daily news update.

Cloey Callahan reports in the Times Union that there were 1,957 evictions in Putnam, Orange, Ulster, Dutchess, Columbia, Greene, and Sullivan counties in 2020, according to the New York Unified Court System. New York had an eviction moratorium because of the COVID-19 pandemic during much of the year. So the number was about a third of the 6,020 evictions in 2019. The eviction moratorium continues until at least Jan. 15, 2022, but it appears that at least some evictions continued even with the moratorium in place. By mid-September this year, New York had distributed $399 million in rental assistance to tenants to give to landlords, and now Gov. Kathy Hochul is asking the federal government for more help. But the moratorium and the federal aid for landlords did not help everyone. “We saw people who would come to us the day before they’re about to be evicted by the sheriff,” said Justin Haines, Attorney in Charge for Legal Services of the Hudson Valley’s Dutchess County branch. “They didn’t know anything about the ERAP program or their right to be protected from eviction. We would do emergency motions to stop eviction and give them time to apply for those kinds of programs.” And the Hudson Valley's housing crisis -- demand is soaring while supply is limited by climate change-fueled storm damage to buildings, and spaces being used for short-term rentals instead of for people living locally -- has made the situation worse. “I don’t think the average person understands how changed the rental and home sale market has been as a result to the pandemic,” said Haines. “We’ve seen a tremendous impact of people moving out of New York City and to the Hudson Valley.” Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Rachel M. Cohen reports for New York Focus that few people pay for individual phone calls anymore. There are few street phone booths accepting quarters, and most phone conversations are now on cell phones. But prisoners still pay per call, as much as $9.95 for a single 15-minute call in New York, where a 2019 report by the Prison Policy Initiative found that New York had the seventh highest average cost for an in-state jail call in the nation. Some legislators now want to make the calls free because of stories such as this: Vivett Dukes tried to call her husband at Sing Sing Correctional Facility every day. “The goal was once in the morning, and once whenever else if we could,” she recalled. “I felt very alone with this. There aren’t a lot of safe places to talk about the true impact of incarceration on family connection and how it really tries to rip up love.... It was very expensive,” she said amid tears. “At times I didn’t eat lunch, or I denied myself other things. The fees that I incurred were enough for me to take a second job.” In Albany County, the local sheriff gets most of the revenue from the prisoner phone calls, and observers suggest the sheriffs will not want to give up their revenue stream. Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple did not return a reporter's call for comment. So far, Gov. Kathy Hochul has not said if she favors free phone calls for prisoners. “Governor Hochul is committed to improving justice and safety in jails, and we will review the legislation,” spokesperson Hazel Crampton-Hayes said. Read more about this story at New York Focus.

The Altamont Enterprise reports that two members of the Albany County Planning Board were slated to be removed from the board without their knowledge or any explanation. After they resigned to avoid being fired, no county official will say why they were forced out. Enzo Sofia, an engineer, and Dominic Rigosu, an architect who had acted as chair of the planning board, first learned about their removal when they were told by Albany County Legislator Mark Grimm that there was an item on the Oct. 12 meeting agenda picking their replacements. Members of the public later complained about their removal at a meeting, and several of the speakers from the Guilderland Coalition for Responsible Growth speculated that the dismissals had to do with a May 13, 2019 planning board vote against Pyramid’s proposal to build a 222-unit apartment complex on Rapp Road near Crossgates Mall. “I’m the lead sponsor and I can assure you that this action is not punishment for a vote that occurred in 2019 ....,” said Andrew Joyce, who chairs the legislature. “The two individuals that we’re replacing on the planning board have resigned.” But they only resigned because Joyce, or someone else, was having them removed. Joyce clearly had something to do with their removal, as he also said that “a fresh perspective is needed” and that “a diverse viewpoint from different parts of Albany County” is needed on the planning board. Matthew Peter, another Albany County legislator, claimed there had "numerous complaints" against the duo. He also said something about, "individuals have actually been completely unprofessional and stopped development and tried to overrule localities.” Do the removed members have an idea about why they were axed? “My guess is it’s political … I’m a professional engineer for the past 35 years; he’s an architect.” said Sofia. “We’re technical people. We make decisions based on evidence, on technical knowledge so the community doesn’t suffer with problems such as traffic, such as drainage.” Read more about this story in the Altamont Enterprise.

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Melanie Lekocevic is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media cashless tolling on the Rip Van Winkle Bridge will go into effect on Mon., Nov. 1. The New York State Bridge Authority announced October 20, that electronic gantries installed at the bridge will go live at midnight on the 1st, enabling drivers to pass through without stopping. The tollbooths, built in 2003, will be demolished shortly after the November 1 change takes place. Vehicles with E-ZPass tags will pay the toll as they drive under the gantry, which will read their tag and deduct the toll amount from their account. Drivers without E-ZPass will be billed by mail after their license plate is photographed by the gantry. All five bridges under the jurisdiction of the New York State Bridge Authority are shifting to cashless tolling. The change has already been made on the Newburgh-Beacon and Bear Mountain bridges. Two more bridges are slated for conversion — the Mid-Hudson and Kingston-Rhinecliff bridges — in the coming months, according to the Bridge Authority. All five bridges are expected to complete the transition to cashless tolling by March 2022. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Patricia Doxsey is reporting for the Daily Freeman Ulster County lawmakers on October 19, adopted policies they believe will provide much-needed care and services to those suffering from mental health and substance abuses crises. Legislators voted 21 to 2 to adopt a policy requiring the county to create a 24-hour crisis stabilization center to provide an alternative to local hospital emergency rooms for those experiencing mental health or substance abuse crises. The resolution also calls on County Executive Pat Ryan to begin the procurement process to secure the services that will be available at the facility. Minority Leader Ken Ronk and Legislator Kevin Roberts voted against the resolution. Ronk said he wants the county to choose a site for the facility first. In a separate matter, lawmakers unanimously adopted a rule requiring the creation of respite houses throughout the county, designed to provide inpatient services for those in need. The creation of a stabilization center and respite houses were among the recommendations included in reports issued by the Ulster County Behavioral Health Task Force created by County Executive Pat Ryan and the Legislature’s Criminal Justice Reform Task Force. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Melanie Lekocevic is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Robert Beaury and David Helsley will face off on November 2 in the Germantown town supervisor election. Incumbent Beaury, 62, has lived in Columbia County since 1994. He is a retired educator and is running on both the Democratic and Conservative lines. Beaury previously served as town justice from 2007 until 2017. He says many of the greatest issues currently facing Germantown are environmental. "We are addressing climate change currently and have a committee working on energy efficiency and green energy. We have another committee addressing the waterfront and they are working on a master plan... Next year we will update our zoning law. Affordable housing will be prioritized. Economic development is also a focus of our local government," he said. Beaury believes he should be re-elected for a variety of reasons, such as his success at reducing costs and improving efficiencies across the board. The town also opened a satellite office for the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, thereby increasing a police presence in Germantown while reducing the overall costs of police protection. Helsley, 50, has lived in the county for his entire life. He is employed as a project manager for Taconic Biosciences, Inc. He is an unaffiliated voter, but his name will appear on the Republican line. Helsley said one of the largest issue in Germantown "...is a decline in cooperation and collaboration. Failure to maintain inter-municipal agreements with neighboring towns and the Columbia County highway departments have resulted in decreased service to the town." He said if elected, one of his first objectives would be to restore agreements between Germantown and various agencies. "I believe my 20-plus years of management experience would make me a good supervisor. I am passionate about Germantown as I have lived here my entire life and I love the diversity of the community. I have a strong work ethic that I will use to reach out to both long-time and newly settled residents to get as many people involved in order to promote cooperation. ...." Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Voting this year begins Oct. 23, and ends Nov. 2, with town posts, countywide positions, five statewide ballot propositions, and a few state Supreme Court seats at stake. In Greene County, the Board of Elections office on the fourth floor of the Greene County Office building in Catskill is the only polling station Oct. 23 through Halloween. This year Columbia County has two sites to vote between Oct. 23 and 31: the board of elections office in the Columbia County Office Bldg. in Hudson, and also the Martin H. Glynn Municipal Center in Valatie. The so-called early voting hours in both counties change every day, from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Sat., October 23; 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Sun., October 24; noon-8 p.m. Mon., October 25; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue., October 26; noon-8 p.m. Wed., October 27; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Thu., October 28; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri., October 29; 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Sat., October 30; and 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Sun., October 31. Then traditional local voting spots are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Nov. 2. Absentee ballots in this year's election can be mailed in through Nov. 2. One change in this election: A new state law passed in 2021, restores the right to vote for a person convicted of a felony upon release from incarceration, regardless of if they are on parole or have a term of post-release supervision. If a convicted felon is not incarcerated, they are now eligible to register to vote in New York.

Today's daily news update.

Daniel Moritz-Rabson reports for New York Focus that the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision is resisting oversight, according to lawmakers and watchdog organizations. The story says that, "the Correctional Association of New York cannot currently conduct monitoring of state prisons and had to abort a September visit to one prison." David Weprin, a Democrat from Queens who chairs the State Assembly's committee on correction, said he is “deeply disturbed” by the conduct of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. “We want them to be as unrestricted as possible,” Weprin said, “so they can do their job and effectively get us the most independent picture of what’s actually really going on.” Correctional Association of New York executive director Jennifer Scaife says the group’s oversight capacities had been limited since 2004. This year, though, In 2021, the legislature passed a bill opening up prison records, the ability to visit prison facilities without advance notice, and the possibility of court action if the prison agency failed to respect the organization’s new charter. But former Gov. Andrew Cuomo weakened the law, requiring that the Correctional Association of New York give prisons three days notice before visiting a facility and have its oversight members sign a waiver. Prison officials are now trying to weaken the law, saying information obtained during visits cannot be used in lawsuits and they also want to “indefinitely” ban visitors they deem to have violated any security procedures, or other issues. Current Gov. Kathey Hochul, though, won't address the issue so far. “Governor Hochul is committed to improving transparency and restoring trust in government, and we have directed all agencies, including DOCCS, to develop plans to be more transparent," Hazel Crampton-Hayes, the governor’s press secretary, said. Read more about this story at New York Focus.

Raymond Pignone from Columbia-Greene Media rounds up information about the candidates running for seats on the New Baltimore town board. Thomasina Winslow, Shelly VanEtten, and Kelly C. Downes are competing for two seats on the board. Winslow is a New Baltimore-based musician and music educator running on the Democratic and Working Families lines on the ballot, and attended University at Albany. Winslow was a board member of Hudson River Sloop Clearwater Inc. and the Tribes Hill Heritage Center. Winslow said, "transparency is a concern in that there really is not much communication.... What I am looking forward to accomplishing is having a positive, collaborative town board that works together to keep out community safe and forward thinking." VanEtten lives in New Baltimore and co-owns an excavating company and is running on the Republican and Conservative lines, and has been on the board since 2013. I think we need to address the infrastructure for Water District 2. We have received a grant to do so and are currently working on the project. We are also working to redo the parks," VanEtten said. I am most proud of the work that we have done in the parks. It was a lot of work to get the grant money but it is a major upgrade to our community and I see people enjoying it all the time. I am also very proud of my Veterans Committee. We have had several picnics and luncheons for the veterans and always get a great turnout." Downes, from Climax, is a retired state internal auditor and is running on the Republican and Conservative ballot lines, and has been on the board since 2018. "I feel taxes are an issue for our landowners; unfortunately, as a town board member we cannot control taxes imposed by the state or the school districts. If I am reelected, I will continue to work on reducing town taxes as we have done for the last eight years," Downes said. "With being an auditor, your mindset is always how to make the process better and more efficient and ensuring the safeguarding of town assets and monies. Along with these skill sets comes the talent of working on decreasing the risk that the town may have which includes the development of policies and procedures that allow for complete transparency." Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

WGRZ reports that Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill Oct. 19 requiring documents that are discussed at meetings to be made available to the public upon request, or posted to the public body's website at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. Previous to this law, local town boards often vote on laws without the public able to read the text beforehand. The Village of Catskill recently passed a short-term rental regulation bill and would not post the text publicly for a week after the vote. That all changes now. "At minimum I believe that every government agency in the state of New York that's subjected to the Open Meetings law should provide this information because the best constituents we have are informed constituents," Hochul said. "They have a right to know what's on the agenda, they have a right to contact their elected officials are to share their concerns. And in cases where that information is not available until the last minute, or at the meeting, that denies the public of what I believe they are rightly entitled to." Read more about this story at the WGRZ website.

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Chris Bragg is reporting for the Times Union that the majority of New York ethics commissioners present for a vote on October 19, favored revoking approval of former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's book deal. But the motion failed to carry by one vote because so many commissioners had left the meeting by the time the vote was taken late in the afternoon. On a vote of 7 to 2, commissioners overseeing the Joint Commission on Public Ethics voted against undoing its staff’s approval for Cuomo to write the book, “American Crisis: Leadership Lessons From the COVID-19 Pandemic." Eight votes in favor were needed to pass the motion. At the time of the vote, five of the 14 JCOPE commissioners were not present. The commission had held an unusually long, closed-door executive session where various matters were discussed before taking the vote in public. The lone dissenting votes were cast by William Fisher and Jose Nieves, the panel's new chairman. Commissioner Gary Lavine said after the vote on Oct. 19, he plans to request a special meeting where another vote could be taken on the same motion. After gaining praise for his early handling of the pandemic, Cuomo secured a $5.1 million book deal with Crown, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House. Cuomo resigned from office in August while facing impeachment. At a special meeting earlier this month, JCOPE commissioners also voted to hire an outside law firm to investigate other circumstances of the staff's approval of the Cuomo book deal. Read the full story in the Times Union.