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

Rick Karlin reports in the Times Union that on Nov. 4 New York State Attorney General Letitia James filed suit against 3M, DuPont, and other chemical and firefighting foam makers for contaminating water in a number of spots across the state, including Greene County. The lawsuit says there is 13.3 ppt PFOA and PFOS in drinking water at the Greene County Training Center in Cairo. Locations nearby in Hyde Park, Poughkeepsie, and East Fishkill also figure in the lawsuit over products derived from PFOA and PFOS. “Manufacturers designed, manufactured, marketed, and sold aqueous film-forming foam and related products that were discharged into the environment at or from sites throughout New York,” the complaint filed in state Supreme Court in Albany County says. The lawsuit alleges the companies long knew that PFOAs could cause tumors in rats and was toxic to monkeys. In all, 18 sites are listed in the lawsuit, but that could change. “The state may also discover that other natural resources have been injured due to such contamination,” the complaint states. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Cayla Harris reports in the Times Union that the number of active Democrats grew 4.8 percent since President Donald Trump was elected in November 2016, while Republicans numbers have fallen .7 percent in New York State. That's an additional 274,000 Democrats and 18,300 fewer Republicans since 2016. In the four Capital Region counties -- Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady -- Democratic numbers rose 4.9 percent, while Republicans fell two percent since 2016. And early voting numbers hint that might have an effect in Nov. 5 town elections, as early turnout was stronger in the Democratic majority Albany and Schenectady counties, and lower in Republican strongholds Rensselaer and Saratoga counties. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Lauren Stanforth reports for the Times Union that a tugboat and a barge it was pushing loaded with gasoline and diesel fuel ran aground on the Hudson River Nov. 3 in Bethlehem in Albany County. There was no reported damage to the tug, the barge, or the cargo: an estimated 68,000 barrels of gasoline and 29,000 gallons of diesel fuel. A higher than usual tide, caused by the heavy rains a few days before, freed the tug and barge. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Sarah Trafton in Columbia-Greene Media reports that though the meeting is not listed on the Village of Catskill website, "officials said Monday" that there will be a public hearing on the final draft of the village’s comprehensive plan on Nov. 7. The story does not say, but Catskill Village Trustee Joseph Kozloski claimed recently on Facebook that the meeting would be held at 7 p.m. at the Senior Center located on Academy St. Officials did not say in the story why this second public hearing on the comprehensive plan, after a first Oct. 10 public hearing, was not listed online. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Click above to download or play the audio version of the local news update for Mon., Nov. 4. (Produced by Philip Grant.)

Columbia-Greene Media is reporting the Chatham varsity football team is heading to a Section II championship game for a second straight year after defeating Whitehall High School 33 to 0 in the Section II Class D football semifinal at Schuylerville High School, November 2. The Panthers will now meet Warrensburg for the Section II Class D championship November 9 at Schuylerville High School. After a scoreless first quarter, Chatham took the lead with a little more than two minutes to go in the first half when a four-yard run by Jacob Sorros put the Panthers up 6 to 0 at halftime. In the second half, Tyler Kneller threw touchdowns passes of 43 yards to Thomas Van Tassel and two yards to Jayshawn Williams in the third quarter. Quinten Kastner added a two-point conversion run. Sorros rushed for a game total of 116 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. Sean King led the Chatham defense with three solo tackles, seven assists, and one sack. Chatham has a record of 7 wins and 2 losses for the season. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Beth Adams is reporting for WRVO-FM a survey by Excellus BlueCross BlueShield of more than 2,000 adults in upstate New York found that four in 10 people do not get enough sleep. The age group least likely to get seven hours or more hours of slumber each night are those between the ages of 35 and 44. Women are much more likely than men to be sleep-deprived. "Unfortunately," Dr. Gregory Carnevale, vice president and chief medical officer at Excellus, said, "it could be that caregiving falls on females more than males, and there are some hormonal things that go on, in terms of being a female versus a male that interfere with sleep." More than half of adults who took the survey said they feel tired during the day. Excellus recommends several habits to promote sound sleep, including, a dark, cool bedroom; a consistent sleep schedule, even on weekends; and, turning off electronic devices at least 30 minutes before bedtime. Read the full story at WRVO [dot] org.

Craig Schneider is reporting for Newsday on the state law that went into effect November 1, requiring that infants and toddlers travel in rear-facing car seats until they are at least 2 years old or reach the maximum height and weight for the seat being used. Traffic crashes are a leading cause of death for children — more than 4,000 children under the age of 4 were injured or killed in car crashes statewide last year, according to the Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research. Young children's heads are disproportionately large and heavy compared to their bodies, and if a child is facing the front of the vehicle, the momentum of a crash can force their head forward, damaging their neck and spine. The rear-facing seats help to lessen the back-and-forth motion of the child's head. Car safety advocates worry that too few parents know about the new law, and they are spreading the word. Violators are subject to a minimum fine of $150, but if they show they are using the seat properly before their court date, the fine can be dropped. Read the full story at Newsday [dot] com.

Larry Rulison is reporting for the Times Union the Greenwich Journal and Salem Press newspaper in Washington County will stop publishing following the death of owner Craig Phalen. Phalen died October 21, at the age of 44. The paper is 177 years old, making it one of the oldest continuously published newspapers in the country. Phalen's wife, Meghan Phalen, ran the paper while her husband worked as a chef and ran a roadside BBQ and catering business. The couple financially supported the paper for years, Meghan Phalen wrote in a story published in the final edition, published October 31. Daughter Cait Johnson, who also wrote for the newspaper, said the family is hoping to find someone to take the paper over. The Greenwich Journal and Salem Press newspaper was founded by John Curtis and first published as The Journal Press on Oct. 13, 1842. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Benjamin Weiser is reporting for The New York Times a panel of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals November 4, ordered that President Donald Trump’s accounting firm must turn over eight years of his personal and corporate tax returns to Manhattan prosecutors. The three-judge appeals panel did so without taking a position on Trump’s primary argument — that he was immune from all criminal investigations. Instead, the panel said that because Trump's accounting firm, not the president himself, was subpoenaed for the documents, it did not matter whether presidents have immunity. The case now appears to be headed to the United States Supreme Court. A spokesman for the Manhattan DA said the office had no comment on the appeals court decision. Read the full story in The New York Times.

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Brendan J. Lyons in the Times Union plays back audio recordings of a meeting last month where top Rensselaer County Republicans pressured Troy mayoral candidate Tom Reale to drop out and endorse a Democratic challenger. The audio recording is full of expletives, and County Executive Steve McLaughlin calls himself the "boss of the party." McLaughlin implores Reale to end his campaign and support a Democrat. "If you don’t do it ... trust me when I tell you, there’s going to be consequences all the way around.... I want you endorsing (Democratic mayoral candidate Rodney Wiltshire) ... and I want it done tonight," McLaughlin says. At another point in the meeting, Richard Crist, the county operations director and McLaughlin's campaign manager, threatened that Reale could lose his State Senate job with Rep. Daphne Jordan, or that the county GOP operation would not gather petitions next year for Jordan. Reale dropped out of the election a few days after the meeting, but a few days ago restarted his campaign against incumbent Democrat Patrick Madden, and Rodney Wiltshire, who lost the Democratic but is running on the Independence and Green party lines. Former Congressperson John Sweeney, county services director James Gordon, and Jason Kippen, the county's human resources director, were also heard in the audio recording of the meeting. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Amanda Purcell reports for Columbia-Greene Media that the Hudson Common Council voted Oct. 30 to convert its public housing units to a project-based voucher assistance program. The Hudson Housing Authority will now rent out units through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Rental Assistance Demonstration program. Residents of the 135-unit Columbia Apartments, are now tenants under voucher-based Section 8 housing guidelines. Common Council President Tom DePietro said the effects will be immediate. “The council enabled the HHA to begin the process of making available 25 units of affordable housing. All in one fell swoop,” he said. The Hudson Housing Authority has 25 units it can now rehabilitate, instead of waiting for the federal government. FULL DISCLOSURE: DePietro is a volunteer WGXC programmer. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Jeanette Wolfberg reports for the Columbia Paper that the Columbia County Board of Supervisors voted for a County-Wide Shared Services Plan Oct. 9. Columbia County towns will share auditing services; Real Property data verification and revaluation services; county planning personnel woking on the Geographic Information System mapping of property parcels; and time and attendance software. The county estimates $2,183,800 in savings in 2019 from the Shared Services Plan. The county holds is next Board of Supervisors meeting at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 401 State St., Hudson. Read more about this story in the Columbia Paper.

The Daily Freeman reports that construction work is expected to close Route 32 in Saugerties beginning Nov. 4. Northbound and southbound lanes of state Route 32 between James and West Bridge streets will be closed between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., until further notice. The construction is near the bridge that crosses Esopus Creek. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

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Today's forecast.

Emilie Munson is reporting for the Times Union an ethics complaint has been filed against freshman U.S. Rep. Antonio Delgado, alleging he violated House rules concerning the use of congressional funds. R. Bruce McLean of Kingston filed the complaint, accusing the Rhinebeck Democrat of using video footage of town halls paid for by official congressional funds in his campaign ads that were distributed on television and social media. House rules strictly limit the use of congressional funds for official purposes, not for campaign use. The complaint appears to have been drafted by the National Republican Congressional Committee, which has been involved in a aggressive campaign against Delgado since he announced his support for the presidential impeachment inquiry, according to Munson. Delgado said he is proud to have held 27 town halls regionwide since being elected. “Each one has been completely open to the public and the press. I made a promise to listen to my constituents, and that means being accessible, transparent and accountable. ... Baseless and frivolous attacks from those who want to silence me will not change that,” he said. Thousands of citizen complaints are made to the Office of Congressional Ethics against members of Congress yearly, and most do not result in official findings of wrongdoing. McLean, is a registered Republican and a resident of the 19th Congressional Distirct. He filed the complaint October 15. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Melanie Lekocevic is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media thousands of residents in Greene and Columbia counties were without power Fri., Nov. 1, as the result of powerful winds and a rainstorm overnight. As of mid-day, more than 4,500 in Greene County were still in the dark. The hardest hit areas were Cairo and Catskill; Coxsackie village, Durham, New Baltimore and Hunter, were all significantly impacted, as well, according to John Maserjian, spokesman for Central Hudson. In the areas of Columbia County served by Central Hudson, there were outages reported in Ancram and in Gallatin. "The estimated restoration times for power outages in Columbia and Greene counties are being reevaluated and have been extended to the late afternoon and evening today, and possibly overnight for some locations," Maserjian said. He said more substantial repairs will be needed to restore service, requiring more time than originally anticipated. With high winds in the forecast, there may be more outages coming. There were small numbers of outages scattered around Columbia County in National Grid’s service area, including locations in Gallatin, Stuyvesant, Taghkanic, Chatham, Clermont and Kinderhook. In most of those cases, power is expected to be restored by Friday afternoon, according to National Grid. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.