Today's daily headlines.

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

Aliya Schneider is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the Hudson Common Council July 20, unanimously approved a local law to create a department of senior services. Mayor Kamal Johnson will hold a public hearing on the measure at 3 p.m., Tue., Aug. 3. This week the council also approved an $8,000 transfer to pay for a part-time cleaning service at the city Senior Center. Commissioner of Aging Robyn Waters said. “Historically, the senior center has been part of the youth department in terms of how our invoices are entered, how people are paid and all of the procedural matters are [directed] through the youth department." The new law would amend the city charter to establish an independent senior department, thereby allowing the hiring of staff and maintaining operations, Waters said. According to the resolution approved by the council, creating a department for senior services in the city charter will embody the council’s belief that senior services should be a priority of city government. The goal of becoming a department is to fulfill the Senior Center’s mission and also to expand programing, Waters said. Note: Johnson is a WGXC on-air volunteer. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Porcupine Soup is reporting the Greene County Legislature July 21, voted unanimously to establish a countywide animal abuse registry. Local Law No. 2 of 2021 restricts anyone convicted of committing serious animal welfare crimes from owning or living with an animal for a period of 15 years and requires that they be listed on the county Sheriff’s website in order to hinder their ability to obtain an animal. Greene County residents convicted of an animal abuse crime after July 21, must register with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office and their name(s) will appear on the registry. Anyone transferring ownership of an animal is required to review the registry to see if the person obtaining ownership is listed. Patrick S. Linger, chairman of the Greene County Legislature said, “Our ultimate goal is to have N[ew] Y[ork] S[tate] recognize the importance of this registry, and pass legislation to create a statewide registry.” The registry was spearheaded by county resident Jamie Hyer-Mitchell and Hyer Ground Rescue. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Greene County Sheriff’s Office and is available online at greenegovernment [dot] com. Read the full story at porcupinesoup [dot] com.

Seamus Lyman is reporting for State of Politics the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance has announced it is starting to make payments to applicants in the Emergency Rental Assistance Program. The state began accepting applications on June 1 for the $2.7 billion that is available. OTDA began processing test payments this week. Roughly $117,000 has been paid out and additional payments will go out on July 23. Democratic Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz issued a statement July 22, criticizing the delay in payments. “...New Yorkers may soon be faced with an avalanche of eviction filings such as we have never seen before. OTDA needs to get their contractors together and figure out how to fix this huge mess before people start needlessly losing their homes.” Dinowitz was behind the bill extending the eviction moratorium through August 31. OTDA said roughly 160,000 applications have been submitted for the program as of July 16 and more than 100,000 were submitted during the priority period. The office adds that processing times vary based on how complete the applications are and if the correct documents are submitted. State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie has scheduled a hearing to examine the rental assistance program. The August 10 hearing will look at the application process, program implementation and how quickly assistance is being distributed. Landlords statewide have complained about delays in payments. Read the full story at nystateofpolitics [dot] com.

The Daily Freeman reports that Columbia-Greene Community College has created a game of chance to lure students to get COVID-19 vaccines. An Aug. 4 vaccine clinic at the college will offer a $10 gift card to Stewart's Shops and a chance to win free tuition to all students who get a dose. One student will win free tuition for 12 credits for full-time students and nine credits for part-time students.. The COVID-19 vaccine doses will be given out from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 4 in the Professional Academic Center on the college's Greenport campus. Any student already vaccinated is also eligible to win by showing proof to the college’s director of health services. “The college is proud to partner with Columbia and Greene counties by offering the COVID-19 vaccine to any registered student who seeks one and looks forward to reopening its doors to students and the community at large in the fall,” C-GCC President Carlee R. Drummer said. All State University of New York schools, including community colleges, require all in-person students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 before returning to campus this fall. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Today's daily news update.

Christopher Cicchiello reports in the Times Union that 23 people under the age of 12 at Camp Pontiac, a seven-week coed sleepaway camp in Copake, have contracted COVID-19. The Columbia County Department of Health sent a team of nurses to the camp to evaluate the outbreak, after it was discovered July 17. The infected campers are now at home or isolating at the camp if they came from out of state. About 65 other campers there have been sent home to quarantine and should return after two weeks. Even with the outbreak, Columbia County is still reporting only 14 current cases, as they are only counting the two Camp Pontiac youth who are actually from Columbia County. “We were sort of rolling along with zero and one [cases],” said Jack Mabb, the Columbia County health director. “Today we have six [new cases] as part of the spike that is hitting the Capital Region. Columbia is a much smaller county than let’s say Albany County, so with our numbers proportionately, we’re seeing a spike just like they are, and just like much of the rest of the Hudson Valley.” Mabb praised Camp Pontiac officials for quickly addressing the situation. “I think that they are going to get a quick grip on this and I’m glad to see the camps open,” Mabb said. Only 57 percent of Columbia County residents are fully vaccinated currently. Vaccines for those under 12 are not expected until the winter. The Associated Press reports that COVID-19 cases nearly tripled in the U.S. over the last two weeks. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Andrea Macko reports in Porcupine Soup that the town of Greenville has set up a committee to decide whether or not to opt-out of cannabis sales. New York legalized cannabis April 1, and towns and cities have until Dec. 31 to pass a rule blocking retail sales in their jurisdiction. “Whether it is something we want to do, or something we do not want to do, we have to come up with a plan,” said Supervisor Paul Macko. Planning Board Members Don Teator and William Bardel, Zoning Board of Appeals Members Tom Vance and John Ingalls, and Town Board Members John Bensen and Richard Bear make up the committee. Already, the Greenville Town Board voted unanimously to not allow smoking of any kind on any town-owned property. The town would have to pass a local law against cannabis retail sales, with a public hearing and subject to a permissive referendum. This entire process will be repeated in every town across the state ahead of the Dec. 31 deadline. Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

Aliya Schneider reports for Columbia-Greene Media that the church bells in Hudson have been returned, then turned back off, and then back on, after two complaints that said the noise was too loud. The clock is located at the First Presbyterian Church, at 369 Warren St., and bells have rung in the city since it was built in 1837. “I don’t even notice the bells because I grew up here, so to me it’s just like second nature,” Hudson Mayor Kamal Johnson said. Normally, the clock chimes every hour, day and night. It is run by the city, not the church. But more people complained about the lack of bells than those who wanted them quieted. Now the church and the city are discussing having them only ring during the day, but they have to figure out how to do that. But it is a very old system, according to Department of Public Works Superintendent Robert Perry. “It’s weights and levers,” he said. NOTE: WGXC rents a studio in the basement of the First Presbyterian Church, and Johnson is a volunteer programmer with WGXC. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

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

Today's daily headlines.

Brendan J. Lyons is reporting for the Times Union the village of Hoosick Falls has reached a settlement with three of the companies believed to be responsible for the pollution of its public and private water supplies, left contaminated with perfluorinated chemicals that were used at factories in the village. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics and Honeywell International — and later 3M and DuPont Co. have agreed to pay $65.25 million to settle a federal lawsuit that will secure cash payments and long-term medical monitoring for thousands of property owners and residents. The preliminary settlement must be approved by a federal judge. "This is an excellent outcome for the residents of Hoosick Falls and the town of Hoosick who have suffered the consequences of PFOA contamination to their drinking water," said Stephen G. Schwarz, lead plaintiffs' counsel in the class-action case. The settlement is intended to compensate current and former residents for the potential health consequences of their exposure to the chemicals, as well as the potential loss of property value, and to provide a system of early detection for any related health issues they may suffer in the years ahead. The payments under the proposed settlement could be divided among roughly 1,800 qualifying property owners, and the amounts each would receive will depend on multiple factors. "I am just absolutely grateful; I’m overwhelmed," said Michele Baker, one of the plaintiffs whose private well in the town of Hoosick was polluted with PFOA. "I'm just thankful for all the hard work that everyone put into this. I hope and pray the families that have been affected [to] find some hope and peace in the settlement that has been reached." Read the full story in the Times Union.

Bloomberg Law reports that the U.S. House of Representatives voted for a comprehensive bill 241-183 to require the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate the most concerning “forever chemicals.” Local Democrats Reps. Antonio Delgado, Paul Tonko, and Sean Maloney all voted for the PFAS Action Act of 2021; while Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik voted against the measure. Only 23 Republicans supported the bill. The chances of it passing in the U.S. Senate with 10 Republican voted seem slim. If it does pass, and President Joe Biden signs the bill, it would require the EPA to establish a national drinking water standard for PFOA and PFOS within two years. It would also prohibit unsafe incineration of PFAS wastes, and require the EPA to place discharge limits on industrial releases of PFAS. Read more about this story at Bloomberg Law.

Susan Arbetter is reporting for Capital Tonight former U.S. National Speed Skating champion and child advocate Bridie Farrell Wed., Jul. 21, announced she is running for Congress, looking to unseat Republican Elise Stefanik. “Listen, I think that we need someone who is going to go to Washington and remember us. Elise hasn’t, right? We need someone who is going to work on the issues that are important to us. Elise hasn’t done that and I will,” the Saratoga Springs Democrat said. Farrell was a member of the U.S. National Speed Skating team between 1998 and 2014, setting three American records during her tenure. She later disclosed that she had been abused by her much older coach. Farrell frequently spoke about her experience to the members of the media as well as lawmakers. Her advocacy was widely seen as integral to passage of the Child Victims Act in 2019. Farrell later founded a nonprofit organization, America Loves Kids, that supports survivors of abuse. As for her ability to defeat the incumbent, Farrell argues that Stefanik is playing into the nation’s divisive political rhetoric, and that her extreme partisanship is not helping the district. “Is it going to be hard? Yeah, it’s going to be hard, but I’m used to hard challenges and fighting for other people, and that’s why I’m getting into this,” she explained. Farrell said her priority issues include access to health care, good public schools on the K-12 and college level and universal broadband. Farrell is the third candidate to enter the race to unseat Stefanik; the other candidates include Matthew Putorti and Ezra Watson. Read the full story at nystateofpolitics [dot] com.

The Mid-Hudson News Network is reporting the Dutchess County Board of Elections is being sued by Bard College, its president Leon Botstein, and several other petitioners, to have its Bertelsmann Campus Center designated as a polling location for Red Hook District 5. Similar action in 2020 resulted in state Supreme Court Justice Maria Rosa allowing two polling places in the district — at the Annandale-on-Hudson campus and at the nearby Church of St. John the Evangelist — as a one-time compromise. Bard has been trying since 2005 to have a permanent polling place located on its campus. Each year, though, the college has been denied, which their attorneys say “defies fact, logic and, most importantly, the law.” Former Dutchess County Democratic Elections Commissioner Beth Soto, and other say the polling place should be moved to Bard. The Red Hook Town Board also support having the polls at Bard, but unless county Republican Elections Commissioner Erik Haight and Democratic Elections Commissioner, Hannah Black, agree, the voting location cannot be moved unless a judge orders it. A postcard mailed to voters by the Board of Elections in April was “confusing,” according to court papers. While it cited the church as the official District 5 polling place it also said, "You may continue to vote at the accessible polling place on this card.” Attorneys argue that because the church is not accessible under the terms of the American Disabilities Act, the postcard is misleading. For that reason, the lawyers are asking the state Supreme Court to designate Bard as the polling place for District 5. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Today's daily news update.

Roger Hannigan Gilson reports for the Times Union that Tim Mattice, the executive director of the Hudson Housing Authority, has resigned. Mattice will continue as the executive director to the Catskill Housing Authority across the river “for a period of time,” but the 59-year-old said he is close to retirement. “That’s kind of why I’m trying to wind down,” Mattice said. The authority manages two buildings: Bliss Towers, a nine-story high-rise, and Columbia Street Apartments, often called “the low-rises." The Hudson Housing Authority board voted last month to tear down and replace the buildings. "We are still on the same timeline," HHA Board of Directors Chair Revonda Smith said. "I know it’s sad that we're losing our executive director, but we still see it as a brighter future, and we are still moving along while at the same time looking for a new executive director." Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Andrea Macko reports in Porcupine Soup that the Greenville town board on July 19 denied a request for the new rescue squad headquarters on State Route 81 to bypass planning board approval. “To make it clear, we did not request the board change the rules,” said Ted Nugent, president of the Greenville Rescue Squad, Inc. Instead, Town Attorney Tal Rappleyea suggested the town could ignore the rules. “I did suggest it,” said Rappleyea. “It was worth asking the question. If you don’t ask you don’t know.” He cited a rule where a municipality can permit another municipality to sometimes bypass its zoning and planning boards. But the town board said that rule did not apply to the Greenville Rescue Squad, which is a non-profit organization that contracts with the town. The Rescue Squad will now need to submit an application to the planning board for site plan review. The property for the new station, located east of the intersection of County Route 41, and the planning board has already given approval for the 2.16-acre subdivision. “We are in the process of the sale right now,” said Ted Nugent, president of the Greenville Rescue Squad, Inc. Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

WTEN in Albany reports that on July 20, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that construction began for the first of five new high-speed electric car charging stations at Stewart’s Shops in the area. The new charging station is in Schodack in Rensselaer County and is expected to be completed by September. “More New Yorkers are opting to drive emission-free electric vehicles which helps to reduce greenhouse gas pollution from the transportation sector,” Cuomo said. “By working with Stewart’s Shops, and other private entities to strategically deploy charging infrastructure across the state, we will all benefit from an expanded network that will make it easier and more affordable to drive electric resulting in reduced emissions and improved air quality in communities throughout New York.” At each of the new charging stations there will be 20 chargers which will take 15 to 30 minutes to fully charge a vehicle. The new construction is part of the EVolve NY Initiative to install 150 fast chargers across New York in 2021. Read more about this story at the WTEN website.