Today's audio daily news update.

Molly Burke reports for the Times Union that New York's slow rollout of legal cannabis stores has stopped moving after State Supreme Court Justice Kevin R. Bryant issued an injunction Aug. 18 halting New York's marijuana licensing program. Bryant ruled that regulators had “failed to follow the clear language of the applicable legislation” that legalized cannabis. Bryant ruled that the state did not follow the language of the 2021 legalization statute. The judge said that New York fast-tracked applicants with past cannabis convictions at the expense of other “social equity” applicants, including minority- and women-owned businesses, as well as disabled military veterans. Applicants for stores now face confusion over the rules, and this court order blocking new licensing. The lawsuit was filed by four service-disabled veterans alleging the state unlawfully prioritized applicants with prior drug convictions while excluding others. So two years after New York legalized cannabis, only a few stores are open in the state, and no more will open with this court order in place. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Patricia R. Doxsey reports in the Daily Freeman that Ulster County taxpayers will pay $75,000 and insurance costs to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by former Public Defender Andrew Kossover against the county and former County Executive Pat Ryan. Jason Kovacs, a Republican candidate for the county Legislature, released a copy of the settlement agreement after filing a request for the document under the state’s Freedom of Information Act. Kossover and his wife, Victoria, sued for $700,000 after Ryan deliberately made “false and derogatory statements” to the press in a Feb. 14, 2020 press release announcing Kossover had resigned after he “repeatedly and inexplicably failed” to submit routine and required paperwork. The press release blamed Kossover for the county to missing out on nearly $2.5 million in state aid. Later, an audit by the Ulster County Comptroller’s Office found that the county did not receive grant funds because of former County Executive Mike Hein’s office, which refused to allow Kossover to hire enough staff to receive the state funding. Kossover claimed that Ryan's comments caused “severe humiliation, loss of reputation and good standing in the community, mental anguish (and) severe emotional and physical distress,” as well as loss of employment opportunities, loss of income, and economic damage. Ryan is now a Congressperson, representing the 18th Congressional District. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

The Berkshire Eagle reports that there will be delays on I-90 in several Berkshire towns this week, as the Massachusetts Department of Transportation will be working on overnight pavement marking, slope repair, guardrail and bridge repair operations near Lee, Becket, West Stockbridge, and Stockbridge Aug. 21, through Aug. 25. There will be lane closures and slower traffic in work zones. Drivers should expect delays, reduce speed, read the construction signs, and use caution. 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.

Nancy Kern reports for Columbia-Greene Media that the Rev. Richard Turpin is retiring after leading the Second Baptist Church in Catskill since 2000. Nov. 12 will be his last day as pastor. Turpin started with a condemned building, which he eventually got repaired, and then he began breakfast programs and after-school programs for children at the church. During the COVID-19 pandemic Turpin said, “We fed over 5,000 families free food. People would drive by and we’d put food in your car.” Turpin said he’d like to write a book in his retirement. At a recent Catskill Village Board of Trustees meeting, some local residents requested that a street in Catskill be named after Turpin. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Jane Kaufman reports in The Berkshire Eagle that farmers and horse owners say this is one of the worst summer seasons for hay that they have seen. The frequent, sometimes-heavy rains this summer are the biggest reason. Mike Balawender, who owns Balawender Farm in Cheshire, said, “Hands down the worst [hay] season I’ve ever seen.... And even if you could get some good weather, the fields are absolutely saturated. You can’t really work in the fields.... You can’t string together two or three good days to get the hay to dry to put it into small square bales.... By the time you get ready to dry, it's raining again.... So you know, you're right back to zero again.” Farm animals cannot eat the wet hay. Many farmers got a first hay cut earlier in the year, but few have managed a second since the rains began. And while orchard owners and vegetable growers can get insurance, Balawender says, “When it comes to hay, it is extremely difficult to get any kind of crop insurance." He also cites high fertilizer and fuel costs, and continuing problems with the supply chain as making it a very difficult summer for some local farmers. Read more about this story in The Berkshire Eagle.

Nancy Kern reports for Columbia-Greene Media that Rep. Marc Molinaro wants the White House to declare a federal state of emergency because Republican governors in Florida and Texas are busing migrants to New York City, and the mayor there is then busing some of them upstate. Molinaro said, “Gov. Kathy Hochul and other state leaders are finally recognizing the current migrant policy lacks compassion, competence and coherence.... I have been warning about this for months — and have pressed [the Governor], city leaders and the White House to take action. Representatives Mike Lawler, Pat Ryan and I joined in calling for the President to declare a federal state of emergency, and I asked the Governor join in that request. Instead of pointing fingers at other top Democrats, we need our state leaders to get to work.” Hochul, for her part, recently commented that, “Putting someone in a hotel on a dark, lonely road in upstate New York and telling them they’re supposed to survive is not compassion.” Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Today's audio daily news update.

Emily Kenny in New York State of Politics reports that New York lost 253,500 acres of agricultural land to development between 2001 and 2016. A report from the American Farmland Trust, a nonprofit that works to protect farmland, also found that 78 percent of those lost acres were converted to low-density residential properties. So housing, not renewable energy projects, led the conversion of farmland in New York at the beginning of this century. Still, when talking about losing agricultural land, it seems all anyone wants to talk about is solar panels. State Sen. Michelle Hinchey, a Democrat from Saugerties and chair of the Committee of Agriculture, has proposed a bill that would require the Office of Renewable Energy Siting to consider agricultural impacts on active farmland when siting and constructing energy facilities. Read more about this story in New York State of Politics.

The Daily Freeman reports what has become a weekly story this summer: another injured swimmer needing rescue. Most of the problems this summer have been at the popular Fawn’s Leap swimming hole off state Route 23A in the Kaaterskill Clove. On Aug. 19 a woman escaped with only minor injuries after falling more than 50 feet down a cliff at the Greene County tourist spot. It took several agencies and several hours for the rope rescue to get her out. In all, the Kingston and Centerville-Cedar Grove firefighters were there with the Pallenville, Hunter and Tannserville Fire Departments, Greene County Paramedics, state police, The Greene County Sheriff’s Office, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and Hunter Town Police. A Brooklyn teen-ager died at Fawn's Leap earlier in the summer. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Jammel Cutler reports for Columbia-Greene Media that The Madison Theater reopened August 18 as the summer movie season neared an end. The former Fairview Cinema 3 on Fairview Avenue has had stop-start openings during the COVID-19 pandemic. But the theater has also added food delivery to seats. Joseph Masher, a partner in the new ownership group of three, said, “We’re looking to expand the entertainment selections here in Hudson.... Hudson is a great city for life, the arts and entertainment. This theater has been here at this location since the 1960s through different iterations, and we finally found the right winning combination to bring the theater into the future.” “Barbie,” “Blue Beetle” and “Strays” were the films at the theater's latest opening weekend. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Today's daily news audio update.

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

Andrea Macko reports for Porcupine Soup that the Coxsackie Area Food Pantry is looking for donations and help as the need for food increases locally. Charlotte Carter, director of the pantry, explains how demand has doubled. She said, “We provide food and supplies to around 160 families each month. In 2020 we saw an average of 80 households." The Coxsackie Area Food Pantry serves Coxsackie, West Coxsackie, Climax, Earlton, Hannacroix, and New Baltimore. But, Carter said, “The past few months have demonstrated that we can no longer continue to meet growing local needs as the price of food skyrockets." Food pantries, food banks, and free food fridges are helping some who can't get government help. Anyone who earns more than $32,580 a year can't get from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, but if they are supporting several children, paying for rising food costs becomes difficult. Jen, a single mother of two from Catskill, didn't want her last name used, but said, “Food prices have been going up, but so has everything. It just snowballed. When I found myself checking to see if we qualified for food stamps I knew it was bad. I realized we needed some help.... If it wasn’t for the food pantry we would be in trouble.” Food prices nationally increased about 11 percent from 2021 to 2022, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Carter said that after the pandemic, "cuts in federal and state support compounded by inflation, left more families than ever in trouble.” The pantry has had to reduce the amount of meat and other high-cost staples it purchases recently. Anyone can send cash donations to the Coxsackie Area Food Pantry c/o 119 Mansion St, Coxsackie, NY 12051. Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

Mid-Hudson News reports that on Aug. 16 Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the Roadway Quality Assurance Act. The measure strengthens prevailing wage requirements for construction workers in the state and mandates that utility company contractors and subcontractors pay the prevailing wage to employees on projects where a permit to use, excavate, or open a street is required to be issued. Hochul said, “Our construction workers keep New Yorkers moving but are often underpaid for their hard and impactful work.... I am proud to sign this legislation that will provide construction workers with fair wages and allow them to support themselves, their families, and our local economy.” The new law applies to all contracts for construction executed and permits issued on or after August 29, 2023. Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.

Lauren Stanforth reports in the Times Union that John Wolcott, known for attempts to preserve the Pine Bush ecosystem in Albany County, died this past week. Wolcott was a founding member of Save the Pine Bush activist group in 1978, and was 90 when he died on Aug. 17. The Save the Pine Bush group fought development proposals in the city of Albany, and Colonie and Guilderland. Wolcott also worked to save the Albany Pine Bush Preserve, a rare inland coastal pine ecosystem that is one of fewer than 20 left in the world. In 2003 he explained that when he was young his parents took him to the Pine Bush and he was mesmerized by the land's sand dunes and pine trees and said, "I never got over it.'' Wolcott's first mention in the Times Union newspaper archives came in 1988, as he led a small expedition into the Pine Bush to learn about the Karner blue butterfly, which is a native species to the Pine Bush. And five years later the Karner blue butterfly was declared an endangered species by the federal Department of Interior. Wolcott explained how the butterfly's entire life cycle was dependent on the lupine plant, which is native to the Pine Bush. He said, "If you don't have one, you don't have the other." There is a memorial service for Wolcott on Aug. 26 at 10 a.m. at St. Michael's Episcopal Church, 49 Killean Park, in Colonie, and donations can be made in Wolcott's memory Save the Pine Bush, care of Lynne Jackson, 223 South Swan Street, Albany NY 12202. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Here is this week's WGXC Congressional Report, tracking the votes, statements, positions, and campaigns of the representatives and candidates for the 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st Congressional seats in New York. Democrat Pat Ryan is representing the 18th Congressional District, Republican Marc Molinaro represents the 19th Congressional District, Democrat Rep. Paul Tonko represents the 20th District, and Republican Elise Stefanik represents the 21st District. Click here to listen to this report.

CBS News reports that three Republican political operatives agreed to pay more than $50,000 in restitution and penalties in Ohio for their parts of a phony charity that collected money purportedly to help victims of the East Palestine train derailment. One of the three men, Luke Mahoney, is a former campaign staffer for Rep. Elise Stefanik, who represents Rensselaer County and the rest of the 21st Congressional Districts. Mahoney is barred from starting, operating, or soliciting contributions for any charity in Ohio until 2027 under the agreement. The investigation alleged the trio collected nearly $149,000 from donors after the Feb. 3 train derailment. Read the full story at the CBS News website.

Joshua Solomon reports in the Times Union that New York's Court of Appeals will hear the latest redistricting case in November. Redistricting is mandated by the U.S. Constitution every ten years, so districts properly represent population shifts. So in 2020, New York changed its districts, but there have been fights in court about those changes ever since. The current court case was filed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, after Republicans won several New York Congressional districts in the 2022 elections. That helped Republicans regain control of the House of Representatives by a narrow margin. Now Democrats have until Sept. 18 to file their legal briefs with the Court of Appeals, and Republicans have until Oct. 23 to file a response. Previously in this case the lower court ruled in favor of the Republicans, and then the mid-level court ruled in favor of the Democrats. The case will decide if the current maps are kept until 2030, or if new maps are drawn for New York's Congressional districts. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Nancy Kern reports for Columbia-Greene Media that Rep. Marc Molinaro is bringing the pork home to Leeds and Athens in Greene County. Each year Congressional representatives are able to add discretionary spending projects to appropriations bills, in what is often perjoratively called pork. The hamlet of Leeds and the village of Athens will get more than $3.5 million for water-related and infrastructure projects is the spending bills are approved by Congress and signed by the president. Greene County Highway and Solid Waste Department Superintendent Scott Templeton said, “This is a big boost for Greene County, Greene County Highway Department and more specifically the Hamlet of Leeds as this Community Project Funding will greatly help improve not only the stormwater collection system but also provide safe parking for pedestrians to access the local businesses including ADA- compliant sidewalks and crosswalks in Leeds." In all, Molinaro requested $27 million in pork projects throughout the 19th Congressional District. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Paul Kirby reports in the Daily Freeman that Republican Marc Molinaro did not directly comment on the fourth indictment of former President Donald Trump. Democrat Pat Ryan, on the other hand, was not afraid to give his opinion. Ryan, who represents the 18th Congressional District, said on social media, “Donald Trump is a traitor who incited and knowingly enabled a violent insurrection, putting our entire nation at risk for his own selfish political gain.... His un-American efforts to undermine our democracy represent one of the most egregious threats against our country and our Constitution since its founding.” Molinaro, who represents the 19th Congressional District, said, “I still share the concerns that Biden, Clinton, and others are not being held to the same standard as the former president and that these prosecutions are coming during an active presidential campaign... In the United States, no one should be above the law and everyone has a presumption of innocence.” Ryan disagreed with Molinaro even if they used some of the same words, saying, “Trump must be held fully accountable under the law and must never hold public office again." Republican Elise Stefanik, who represents the 21st District including Rensselaer County, said, "President Trump had every legal right to challenge the results of the election." Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Melanie Lekocevic reports for Capital Region Independent Media that Rep. Marc Molinaro said Aug. 11 that no post offices in the 19th Congressional District that have been targeted for closure in a postal service consolidation plan. Molinaro is against the postal plan, saying, “I am deeply disappointed that the administration at the United States Postal Service is ignorant of and uncaring toward rural and upstate communities and that needs to change.” State Sen. Michelle Hinchey, Democrat, has signed on to a letter with Republican state Sen. Rob Rolison to U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, protesting the plan. Assemblyman Chris Tague, a Republican, is against the closing of post offices in theory, but did not address any specifics of the plan. He said, “I have always been against post offices closing.... It’s the one last item of convenience that we have in our small rural areas. It’s our last small-town local place where folks always go. Besides that, working in the postal service offers good-paying jobs.” Read more about this story at TheUpstater.com.

Today's audio daily news update.