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Molly Burke reports for the Times Union that Gov. Kathy Hochul signed two domestic violence laws and announced $1 million for further expansion of the "Red Flag Law" at a a roundtable with domestic violence survivors on Oct. 23. "Red Flag Laws" allow a judge to issue a temporary “extreme risk protection order” to prevent someone from having a firearm if they are believed to be a danger to themselves or others. One woman at the forum said her alleged abuser threatened her with a gun while she was pregnant with her son, but her abuser’s mother took the gun away from him. She told Hochul, “If he had access to that gun, I would not be here talking to you.” Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Cornell University reports that Andy Turner, the former executive director for Cornell Cooperative Extension in Greene and Columbia counties, has been appointed director of the statewide Cornell Cooperative Extension. Turner was also named as associate dean for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the College of Human Ecology at Cornell. The extension offices oversee food systems, natural resources, sustainable energy, 4-H youth development, nutrition, parent education, and economic development work in all counties in New York. Turner was instrumental in developing the Cornell Cooperative Extension Agroforestry Resource Center in Acra in 2003. Later, he helped get community radio station WGXC on the air in 2011 as part of the station's initial advisory board. Turner said, “I am incredibly fortunate to provide leadership for CCE at such an important time for the communities of New York state.... CCE’s mission of bringing research-based knowledge together with local wisdom and experience has never been more critical as we address climate change, build community resiliency, support positive youth development and rebuild the civic ties that bind our communities together.” Read more about this story at Cornell University.

Voting begins Saturday in this fall's election, and every polling season there are accusations of candidates stealing each others lawn signs, though rarely any proof. Now Mid-Hudson News reports that current Town of Fishkill Councilperson John Forman, now a Republican candidate for town supervisor, has been arrested by the East Fishkill Police Department for stealing an opponent's lawn signs. Forman was allegedly found, Mid-Hudson News reports, with a sign that was equipped with a GPS tracking device. That campaign sign, from his opponent incumbent Town Supervisor Ozzy Albra, alleges that Forman resides in East Fishkill, not Fishkill, and is not eligible for the supervisor position. Mid-Hudson News says Forman was charged with criminal possession of stolen property, a misdemeanor, after the sign was found in his vehicle in Hopewell Junction on Oct. 24. Voting begins Oct. 28 and continues through Nov. 7, and Forman will be arraigned on Nov. 1. Retired New York State Trooper Louise Daniele, who is also on the town board, attached an AirTag to one Albra's signs. Daniele says, “I placed the sign at Cary Road and State Route 52 in the Village of Fishkill last night (October 22) around 5:50 p.m.... This morning I checked to see if it was still there and it was missing and on my phone app, I could see that it was then at 2424 State Route 52 in East Fishkill.” Daniele knew that address was one of Forman’s work locations. Daniele says Forman admitted to police that he had more than 30 additional signs at his Sylvan Lake residence. Read more about this story in Mid-Hudson News.

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Heather Bellow reports in The Berkshire Eagle that voters in four of eight towns voted against a merger between the Berkshire Hills and Southern Berkshire regional school districts, enough to stop the proposal. Seven towns held simultaneous special town meetings on Oct. 23, and a majority of Egremont weighed in against the plan on Oct. 21. Sheffield residents voted 503-to-99 against the proposal. Monterey voters were 87-to-73 against. In New Marlborough, the vote was 165-112 against the merger, and Egremont's vote was 143-78, also against the merger. Alford voters supported the plan 106-to-23. Great Barrington voters went 374-to-88 vote for the proposal, while West Stockbridge voted for it 86-to-14 and Stockbridge voters were 107-to-14 in favor. Lucy Prashker, chair of the 8 Town Regional School District Planning Board, said, "That split brings the work of our eight-town planning board to an end." But Prashker also said that "the challenges remain unsolved — the challenges of low and declining enrollment, the increasing burdens those declines place on our taxpayers, and, most importantly, the limiting of choices and opportunities for our children." Read more about this story in The Berkshire Eagle.

New York State of Politics reports that the Rensselaer County election for sheriff is a little odd this year. Former Troy Police Chief Brian Owens, a member of the New York Conservative Party, is running with the backing of Rensselaer County Democrats against a Republican opponent, Kyle Bourgault. Owens said, “I’ve never run for office before, so all of this is a little bit unusual to me.” Incumbent Sheriff Pat Russo is not seeking re-election, so the race is more wide-open than usual. Bourgault, the Republican candidate, is campaigning to continue the county’s existing agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is called 287(g). Owens has questions about the program. He said, “There’s… a lack of information that has been publicly available. I’d be curious to know who’s been trained, what is the cost to the county, and then is this useful in terms of both protection of county residents, but also is it useful in terms of federal immigration enforcement.” Bourgault did not respond to multiple requests to have his side heard. Voting this year begins at limited locations Oct. 28 through Nov. 5, with all precincts open on Nov. 7. Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.

Michael Mahar reports for News10 that New Yorkers views on the current situation in Israel and Gaza are all over the map. A new Sienna College poll found that 57 percent of New Yorkers support government aid to Israel. Aid to Hamas is not being considered, so instead the poll asked about the effects of the Israeli attacks on Palestinian civilians, and 50 percent of respondents said they were concerned. Also, 32 percent of New Yorkers in the poll said they believe the Israeli attacks on Gaza are justified no matter the human cost. Thousands have died on both sides of the conflict between the Hamas terrorist group and the Israeli government. Currently thousands of Palestinians are trapped without food, water, and electricity, and the Israeli army is expected to invade at any time. Read more about this story at the News10 website.

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Rachel Silberstein reports for the Times Union that while activists continue to work to keep the Burdett Birth Center in Troy open, St. Peter’s Health Partners on Oct. 23 said it would delay the closure date of the only birthing center in Rensselaer County. In June, St. Peter’s executives announced the closure of the facility, but they later agreed to a Health Equity Impact Assessment, an analysis of a community survey before a hospital reduces or eliminates a service. Dr. Steven Hanks, president and CEO, St. Peter’s Health Partners and St. Joseph’s Health, said, “The information we have received from this Health Equity Impact Assessment has been most valuable in highlighting the community concerns surrounding the closure of Burdett Birth Center.” If the Burdett Birth Center is closed, there would not be any maternity ward in Rensselaer County. There already are no birthing services in Greene and Columbia counties. More than 750 community members, leaders, health care providers and parents contributed opinions for the survey, with 98 percent opposing the closure. The study’s authors recommend St. Peter’s pay the full cost of travel expenses for patients with no access to transportation and St. Peter’s should adopt Burdett’s midwifery model, which is popular with patients. But Ashley Saupp, working to keep the birthing center open, said, “Chartis suggests St. Peter’s provide vouchers for local bus or taxi services to help patients reach other hospitals and states that the community can rely on EMS services for emergency delivery services.... Our own assessment revealed that the local EMS is already overwhelmed and cannot take on additional trips to out-of-town hospitals. Moreover, buses and taxis are not available throughout Rensselaer County and do not run 24 hours a day when they are available.” Attorney General Letitia James said, “I am pleased that the decision has been made to delay the closure date, and my office will continue to do everything within our power to ensure this essential facility remains open.” Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Phillip Pantuso and Joshua Solomon report for the Times Union that Rep. Marc Molinaro has become a key player in deciding who will be the next Speaker of the House. For three weeks, Republicans in Congress have been unable to determine who should be their speaker, effectively shutting down the government. The House of Representatives cannot take any action without a speaker. Molinaro said, “I’ll be very, very candid: These have been distressing, disappointing weeks.... The temperature has been turned up, emotions and harbored ill will remain, and we are surrounded by individuals and groups of members who are more interested in seeing someone or something lose than making sure the people we represent win.” Molinaro voted two times for Rep. Jim Jordan, an ultra-conservative member who worked to undermine the legal and fair results of the 2020 presidential election. Then Molinaro said he was backing the speaker pro tempore, Rep. Patrick T. McHenry, but instead voted for Republican Lee Zeldin, who is not in Congress and lost New York's governor election last year. Molinaro only won his 19th Congressional District election in 2022 by about 1 ½ percent. A court will rule next month whether the District will remain drawn to favor Republicans or altered to favor Democrats. So Molinaro has little room for error in next year's election. He said, “There is animosity, there’s anger, and there’s bitterness.... I want to be clear: I’m a red-blooded Italian; I’ve got a lot of emotions. But I did not come to Congress to express my feelings to my colleagues. And so I don’t necessarily embrace this as a governing philosophy.” For now, though, dysfunction is the governing philosophy of House Republicans. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Porcupine Soup reports that on Oct. 19 the Questar III BOCES school in Durham was renamed the Marilyn A. Noonan School at Durham. Questar III District Superintendent Dr. Gladys I. Cruz, and Assemblymember Chris Tague were among those in attendance at the naming ceremony. Cruz said of Noonan, that "She was an extraordinary person who cared deeply about public education and who dedicated her life to public service." Noonan was as a school board member, on different boards in Greene County, for 57 years. The Marilyn A. Noonan School at Durham serves career and technical education and special education students with Heavy Equipment and Agriculture Science programs and elementary, middle, and high school programs in special education. Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

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Raymond Pignone reports for Columbia-Greene Media that Greene County’s legislature voted on Oct. 18 to spend $100,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds on an Exit 21 development project that originally cost $2,139,000. The Greene County Industrial Development Agency plan is to add a Hampton Inn hotel to a Tourism Center, Stewart's Shop, and another unknown business next to the I-87 highway entrance in Leeds. Already, the former Greene County Tourism Center has been demolished, and the Stewart’s Shop will move into its new building as soon as the company removes the store’s underground gasoline storage tanks and gas islands at its former location across the street. Greene County Administrator Shaun Groden has hopes for a restaurant to go in next to the hotel. Groden said, “Most likely the hotel developers will be instrumental in landing a restaurant deal, because as they’re building their hotel they’ll want a companion piece.... It will most likely be a franchise. At that location you probably want a national name. That’s not to say if someone local wanted to build there they couldn’t.” Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Mid-Hudson News reports that the Cook Political Report is forecasting that the Congressional elections in New York's 17th and 19th Congressional Districts as "toss-ups." Republicans Mike Lawler and Marc Molinaro unseated incumbent Democrats in 2022 in those districts, helping to give the GOP a five-seat majority. The Cook Political Report is also saying that Democrat Pat Ryan's 18th Congressional District “leans Democrat.” So far each of the three incumbent candidates has at least one opponent. Attorney Josh Riley, a Democrat, is running again after losing to Molinaro in 2022. Democrat Mondaire Jones is challenging Lawler, and Republican Alison Esposito wants to unseat Ryan. Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.

Mid-Hudson News reports that Bard College is getting $69,886 from the Hudson River Foundation for Science and Environmental Research, Inc., a New York not-for-profit, for a two-year project to update and improve water quality datasets. Elias Dueker, associate professor of environmental and urban studies, and Gabriel Perron, associate professor of biology, are analyzing microbiological micropollution samples and comparing those results with historical water quality data from the Saw Kill tributary from the mid ’70s to early ’80s, and from 2015 to present. Deuker said, “This partnership with Hudson River Foundation allows the Bard Center for Environmental Science and Humanities to strengthen its commitment to using science as a tool for environmental and social change.... We hope this unique effort to utilize and elevate community-fueled science will serve as a model for contemporary and meaningful approaches to creating climate resilient communities in the Hudson Valley.” Read the full story at Mid-Hudson News.

Today's daily news audio update.

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

Lauren Stanforth reports in the Times Union that a mudslide off a residential property in Westchester County covering all Metro-North train tracks halted all passenger train service between New York City and Albany over the weekend. The mudslide was blamed on recent soaking rains. All four Metro-North Railroad tracks near Scarborough station in the village of Briarcliff Manor were covered in the mudslide. Now most train service between Albany and New York City will be restored on Oct, 23, officals said, after the tracks got cleared on Oct. 22. Gov. Kathy Hochul said, “Hundreds of thousands of commuters will be able to use Metro-North to commute to work Monday morning because of this extraordinary effort." Read more about this story in the Times Union.