Mid-Hudson News reports that Rep. Pat Ryan took to the floor of the House of Representatives on Nov. 1 in support of the current ban on dangerous barges being parked on the Hudson River. The Port of New York recently made an administrative change to its rules, allowing large barges up on the Hudson River. Here is what Ryan said on the House floor: Click here to download or play what Ryan said. Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.

WNYT reports that New York Attorney General Letitia James announced on Nov. 2 two settlements totaling $328 million with rideshare companies Uber and Lyft. The settlements come after a New York investigation into the companies cheating drivers of money, and denying them benefits. Uber will refund employees $290 million, while Lyft will be giving back the other $38 million. James has set up a website for drivers to get their payments. Read more about this story at WNYT.

Today's daily news audio update.

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

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives failed to oust Rep. George Santos from their body on Nov. 1, with a vote for the expulsion of the Long Island Congressperson failing 213-to-179. Local Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro was one of the sponsors of the effort to remove Santos, who has been indicted for multiple crimes and exposed for multiple lies. Molinaro and Democrats Pat Ryan and Paul Tonko voted to expel Santos, but Rep. Elise Stefanik did not. Only 24 Republicans voted to expel Santos, while 182 voted to keep him in Congress. For the Democrats, 31 voted to keep Santos, with 155 for removal. The expulsion measure needed two-thirds support to pass. Santos, meanwhile, faces 23 felony charges.

Paul Kirby reports in the Daily Freeman that in July the Saugerties town board voted unanimously to place Police Chief Joseph Sinagra on administrative leave, as a state investigation found inappropriate sexual behavior by one of his officers. In August Sinagra said he was retiring. Now on Nov. 1 he says he has been terminated from a state position as a law enforcement liaison for the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee. Sinagra said he was put there by the New York state Police Chiefs Association and was terminated without justifiable cause. Previously, Sinagra had been Saugerties Police Chief for 12 years. The state traffic safety committee released a statement this week that said, “The Law Enforcement Liaison position is funded through a federal grant provided to the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police, which is directly responsible for interviewing and appointing a current or former member of law enforcement to that role.... Recently, the Association chose retired Chief Joseph Sinagra for the position. Although the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee has no involvement in that process, [the committee] raised significant concerns about Mr. Sinagra’s appointment and is working with the Association to have him replaced. While that is happening, Mr. Sinagra is not working with or for [the committee].“ Sinagra says he was told, "that I was going to be terminated because of all the media attention and controversy surrounding my departure from the Saugerties Police Department.... I explained.... that I had done nothing wrong other than to protect the due-process of a black male police officer.” Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

The first snowfall locally was recorded on November 1. Berkshire County residents saw the most, with up to 3 inches in the higher elevations, according to the Berkshire Eagle. In parts of Greene County, snow flakes fell with rain, and there were other reports of sleet and hail. The National Weather Service in Albany also reported scattered snow showers across the region on Nov. 1. Temperatures are expected to warm over the weekend, so there is no more snow in the immediate forecast.

Today's audio daily news update.

Mid-Hudson News reports that landlords in Ulster County who keep rental units affordable can now able to access funds to upgrade energy efficiency and building electrification, and accessibility in their buildings. Under the program, small landlords with eight or fewer units, can receive up to $15,000 per rental unit and no more than $30,000 per building if their rentals serve households at the 80 percent to 61 percent area median income rent level. Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger. said, “This new incentive-based program will help small landlords make investments that improve safety and comfort and reduce tenants’ utility bills while committing them to keeping rents affordable for the next five to seven years.” Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.

Paul Kirby reports in the Daily Freeman that Rep. Pat Ryan believes that Americans should be able to watch sports for free and on Oct. 31 demanded an investigation by federal officials into sports “blackouts.” Ryan sent a letter to the United States Comptroller General and the commissioners, saying that team owners have exclusive control of their private business and who airs games, and they sell the rights to a patchwork of networks and streaming services, “leaving fans with no option but to pay thousands of dollars to watch their favorite teams on streaming services like Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video, and ESPN+.... Because of these monopolistic practices and ‘blackouts,’ fans still can’t do the one thing they want: watch their favorite teams play ball." Monday was a rare day when all four major professional sports leagues all played games, and Ryan seems miffed that they were not all on free television. Ryan says he has regulatory oversight over sports teams because of the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, where Congress granted sports leagues an antitrust exemption for their broadcasting agreements. This year Mets and Yankees games were blacked out 25 times each because the league sold exclusive rights to the games to streaming services such as Prime Video, Apple TV+, and Peacock. Ryan said, “Fans who wanted to watch every Mets game this season had to fork over more than $1,400 to a variety of streaming services to avoid blackouts." Ryan wants the Government Accountability Office to investigate. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Heather Bellow reports in The Berkshire Eagle that two of The Triplex Cinema's screens in Great Barrington will reopen on Nov. 17. The other two screens should open by Christmas, according to the group that bought the theater four months ago. The Save the Triplex nonprofit group bought the Triplex Cinema from Richard Stanley four months ago, closing the cinema for renovations. The group is trying to raise $1.7 million this year for the renovations. Read more about this story in The Berkshire Eagle.

Today's daily news audio update.

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

Liz Montgomery reports in Porcupine Soup that the Public Utility Law Project of New York filed a lawsuit on Oct. 31 to get the Public Service Commission to block a proposed rate increase from Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. A nonprofit advocacy organization said it “felt compelled to file after hearing the public’s consistent and ongoing concerns about the company’s billing problems that were raised recently at four virtual and four in-person hearings in Catskill, Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, and Kingston.” Central Hudson is trying to charge 16 percent more on the average residential electric bill and around 19 percent on the average natural gas bill. Joe Hally, vice president of Regulatory Affairs for Central Hudson. said, "We believe that this proposed rate plan is essential to address our infrastructure needs, recover from the impacts of COVID-19, and ensure that we can respond effectively to extreme weather events―which are occurring more frequently." Central Hudson is under investigation by the Public Service Commission over its 2021 rollout of a new billing system that led to thousands of customer complaints about overcharges and delayed bills. State Sen. Michelle Hinchey, a Democrat from Saugerties, cheered on the lawsuit, saying, “When a utility company is under active investigation by the PSC for its billing problems, giving that company a rate increase would set a dangerous precedent.” About 309,000 electric customers and 84,000 natural gas customers get service from Central Hudson in the Hudson Valley. Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

Mid-Hudson News reports that Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed a new state law raising the legal age for driving all-terrain vehicle in the state from 10 to 14 years of age. Children under 16 operating an ATV will now also need to be supervised by someone 18 years old or older. Assemblyperson Amy Paulin sponsored the bill and said, “ATVs are very dangerous and it’s unbelievable that until now children as young as 10 years old, 4th graders, have been allowed to operate them legally in New York State.... ATVs weigh hundreds of pounds and reach speeds of 70 miles per hour or more.” According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, off-highway vehicles have an annual average of more than 700 deaths and 100,000 injuries that required emergency department treatment, with ATVs making up three-quarters of those fatalities and injuries. Read more about this story in Mid-Hudson News.

Luke Parsnow reports for New York State of Politics that it is now November, so applications for home heating assistance are now being accepted, the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance said. The Home Energy Assistance Program provides up to $976 to help low- and middle-income households and older adults keep their homes warm this winter. Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Acting Commissioner Barbara C. Guinn said, “HEAP provides valuable financial assistance that will help hundreds of thousands of our most vulnerable New Yorkers pay their energy bills.... I encourage all eligible households to apply to help reduce the costs they incur to keep their homes warm throughout the heating season.” Families of four making less than $70,059 a year qualify for the benefits. Last year, more than 1.7 million New Yorkers got HEAP benefits. Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.

Today's audio daily news update.

Josh Meyer reports for USA Today that police, and the governor of New York, responded to anti-Semitic threats posted to a Cornell University fraternity and sorority forum over the weekend that mentioned killing Jews on campus. There have been a series of similar incidents on college campuses across the nation since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in early October. The posts to Cornell forums included threats to rape female Jewish students and behead Jewish babies in front of their parents and to follow Jewish students home from campus and slit their throats. That brought Gov. Kathy Hochul to campus to talk to students. Hochul said, “We will not tolerate threats or antisemitism or any kind of hatred that makes people feel vulnerable and exposes people and makes them feel insecure in a place where they should be enjoying their campus life, without fear that someone could cause them harm.” The Anti-Defamation League reports incidents of harassment, vandalism, and assault against Jews so far have increased by 388 percent over the same period last year since the war began. An Anti-Defamation League report showed 312 antisemitic incidents between Oct. 7-23 this year, 190 of which were directly linked to the war in Israel and Gaza. The Council on American Islamic Relations, the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, said on Oct. 30 that it has received 774 complaints, including reported bias incidents, since Oct. 7. CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad said, "The American Muslim community's determination remains unshaken and, God willing, we will continue to speak up for the human rights of all people, including Palestinians." Read more about this story at USA Today.

Jeanette Wolfberg reports for The Upstater that a majority of Columbia County Supervisors think it is just fine to have judges without law degrees. The State Senate recently passed a bill requiring town and village judges in “high volume” courts to have law degrees, and many local politicians are upset that someone ruling on a local case might be well acquainted with the law. On October 11, a majority of the Columbia County supervisors voted to urge the state legislators and governor to reject the bill. Columbia County Board of Supervisors Chair Matt Murell said, "I don’t want the state to tell us how local courts should go." Hudson Supervisor Michael Chameides and New Lebanon Supervisor Tistrya Houghtling were among those who did want judges to have law degrees saying, “I’ve been against resolutions that say, ‘New York State, you’re doing it wrong.’ I don’t think we should get involved in state legislation that does not affect us.” Read more about this story in The Upstater.

Mid-Hudson News reports that sales of single family homes have dropped dramatically in Ulster County this year. The Ulster County Board of Realtors says that in the first three quarters of 2023 home sales fell by almost 23 percent from the same period last year. The average selling price was up by 5.6 percent, from $475,244 in the first three quarters of 2022 to $502,039 during the same period this year. And the trend might be growing. In just September this year, sales fell by 21.6 percent. Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.