Rachel Silberstein reports in Capitol Confidential Gov. Andrew Cuomo told reporters March 28 that a bipartisan “working group” of female legislative staffers from both houses — including a delegate from the Senate Democrats — was working on updating the state’s sexual harassment policies. But Senate Democrats said that was not true. “Our Counsel has been briefed on the status of negotiations, but unfortunately not involved in the negotiations and when she made suggestions or offered input into bill language we were told that discussion has already been shut down,” said Mike Murphy, communications director for the Senate Democrats, in a statement. “Every year we receive briefings on the budget that has been negotiated by the Governor and the majorities. The only difference this year was that Governor’s office made a promise to include the first female leader. That has not happened." Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, though, sided with the governor. "My senior staff participated in meetings with members of the Governor’s senior staff and the senior staff of the Senate Democratic Conference to discuss this critical issue and incorporate various recommendations made by all parties to address the scourge of sexual harassment,” Heastie said. Read the full story in Capitol Confidential.

The Mid-Hudson News Network reports that Dutchess County buses may stop running next week, as Dutchess Mass Transit workers voted 54-4 to strike. Represented by Teamsters Local 445, the bus drivers, call-center staff, mechanics, and utility workers say they will announce a strike at least 12-hours before it begins. "We've negotiated about 90 percent of what we need, but that last 10 percent is extremely important to the employees," said union representative Jerry Ebert. A federal mediator is working to get both sides to agree on a deal. A strike would be the fourth transit system work stoppage since 1986. Read the full story at The Mid-Hudson News Network website.

The Daily Freeman reports that a single southern pine beetle was caught in a trap in the Albany Pine Bush Preserve, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation. That's the farthest north the invasive pest has been found. The southern pine beetle has killed thousands of pine trees on Long Island since 2014. No dying pines have been found yet north of Long Island, but the DEC is urging the public to report dying pitch pines and red pines. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.

Roger Hannigan Gilson reports at The Other Hudson Valley that while most of the contributions for Democrat Jeff Beals campaign for the 19th Congressional District seat come through the national fundraising site ActBlue, ActBlue is not listed on Beals’ Federal Election Commission (or FEC) filings. ActBlue is a website that allows people from across the country to contribute to Democrat candidates. "FEC Deputy Press Officer Christian Hilland said contributions from individuals over $200 received through a conduit are supposed to list the conduit in FEC filings," Gilson writes. But the FEC filings of the Beals campaign don't mention ActBlue. “We review our quarterly FEC filings with the help of a compliance officer,” a statement from the Beals campaign read. “If the reporting of a conduit is found to need amending by our compliance officer, we will not hesitate to do so.” In a Feb. 25 letter to the Beals campaign, the FEC listed three errors in a previous filing. Five other candidates receiving donations through ActBlue appear to properly credit the conduit, according to Gilson's review of the FEC filings. Read the full story at The Other Hudson Valley.

DOWNLOAD or PLAY the audio version of the local news headlines for Thu., Mar. 29 (6:08). (Produced by Philip Grant.)

Amanda Purcell is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the Hudson Development Corporation is proceeding with plans to develop the former Kaz warehouse site located in the city's First Ward. The corporation last year put out a call for proposals for the purchase or long-term lease and mixed-use development of the 4-acre site at 14-17 Montgomery and South Front streets. The warehouse formerly served as a storage facility for Kaz, a manufacturer of vaporizers, humidifiers, air purifiers and fans. The company, at the time one of the largest employers in Columbia County, closed its Hudson plant in 2008. HDC has received three proposals from developers: Saratoga Springs-based Bonacio Construction Incorporated, a collaborative venture by Redburn Development Companies and Sequence Development, both of Troy; and one from the Kearney Realty & Development Group in Carmel, said Hudson Development Corporation Executive Director Sheena Salvino. Developers are expected to invest approximately $25 million in general costs to develop the site. “It’s a tremendous to opportunity to expand [the] commercial and entertainment area on the waterfront and to broaden our tax base,” corporation Treasurer Don Moore said, adding the process to develop the site could take a few years. The details of the developers' proposals for the Montgomery Street Redevelopment Project will be discussed at a special HDC public meeting at noon, Wed., Apr. 4, at 1 North Front Street in Hudson. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

The Daily Freeman is reporting the 10th person looking to unseat incumbent U.S. Rep. John Faso announced his candidacy March 28. Steve Greenfield, a former member of the New Paltz school board, said he will seek the Green Party nomination to challenge the Kinderhook Republican, in the Nov. 6 election. Greenfield described his approach to governing as “solve the problem” but without lobbyists. “No corporate lobbyists will ever step foot in my office,” said Greenfield, 56. “They are the problem and the easiest one to solve.” Greenfield said he is the only candidate in the group who has held office and has a legislative record and also the only one "not beholden to corporate donors or party bosses." Greenfield is a 1982 graduate of Columbia College, where he majored in economics. He has made his career in music. Greenfield served two terms on the New Paltz school board. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Rachel Silberstein is reporting for the Times Union New York Daily News Albany Bureau Chief Ken Lovett was detained by the state police for approximately 45 minutes on March 28, for talking on a cellphone in the state Senate lobby. Lovett was arrested around 1 p.m., following a confrontation with a Senate sergeant-at-arms. "The incident escalated quickly, and unfortunately he was detained by the State Police," Senate GOP spokesman Scott Reif said in a statement. Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office contacted Lovett while he was in lock-up and asked what they could do to help. Lovett said he told them he did not want special treatment. But shortly thereafter, Cuomo, his secretary and a plainclothes investigator arrived. "I'm here as the state-appointed attorney for Ken Lovett," the governor joked to a trooper before entering the office. A short time later, Cuomo walked out with Lovett. "Freedom of the press is alive and well in the city of Albany," Cuomo said. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Mid-Hudson News Network is reporting the number of passengers traveling to and from Stewart International Airport nearly doubled during the first two months of this year compared to the same period in 2017. In January and February, nearly 83,000 people used Stewart for travel. During that same two-month period in 2017, 42,000 people passed through the hub. Airport officials reported the continued rise in the use of Stewart is attributable to Norwegian Air's international service, which began in June 2017. Airport Business Development Director Michael Torelli told the Stewart Airport Commission March 27, the trends will continue at least through mid-June. The volume of cargo moving through Stewart has also increased -- the tonnage processed through the New Windsor facility increased by 27 percent in January and February 2018. Stewart is owned by New York state and operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Local weather forecast:

TODAY: A chance of rain, mainly after 11 a.m. Cloudy. High near 50. Thursday night, rain likely. Patchy fog. Otherwise, cloudy. Low around 44.

FORECAST FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS:
FRIDAY: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy. High near 55. Friday night, partly cloudy. Low around 32.
SATURDAY: Sunny. High near 55. Saturday night, a chance of showers. Mostly cloudy. Low around 36.

Sunrise today: 6:41 a.m.
Sunset today: 7:18 p.m.
LENGTH OF THE DAY: 12:36 hrs.

PUBLIC MEETINGS and POLITICAL EVENTS for Thu., Mar. 29:
Please see the WGXC Community Calendar.

Ars Technica reports that Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai wants to stop U.S. companies and organizations that receive broadband funding from the FCC from buying from Chinese technology vendors Huawei and ZTE. A 2012 Congressional report encouraged American companies to "consider the long-term security risks associated with doing business with either ZTE or Huawei for equipment or services" and to seek other sources, and a December 2017 letter to the FCC from 18 lawmakers objected to Huawei smartphones being sold by AT&T or other carriers. Both companies have ties to the Chinese government. The implication seems to be that a smartphone, or other Internet-connected device, could be set up as a spying device for the Chinese government. "Hidden ‘back doors’ to our networks in routers, switches—and virtually any other type of telecommunications equipment—can provide an avenue for hostile governments to inject viruses, launch denial-of-service attacks, steal data, and more," Pai said. The Wall Street Journal reports that many, "regional American providers of wireless, TV, and Internet services have flocked to Huawei, attracted by what they say are Huawei’s cheaper prices, quality products and attentive customer service." The FBI's Director Christopher Wray told the Senate Intelligence Committee last month that they are "deeply concerned about the risks of allowing any company or entity that is beholden to foreign governments that don’t share our values to gain positions of power inside our telecommunications networks." Huawei and ZTE deny their products are used for spying, and the U.S. has yet to present hard evidence. The FCC can't ban the Chinese products, but can stop companies receiving money from the Universal Service Fund from working with Huawei and ZTE.

Larry Styles recorded and uploaded this video of the March 28 Athens Village Board meeting.

DOWNLOAD or play the audio version of the local news update for Wed., March 28 (3:36). (Produced by Alanna Medlock.)

Millions of young people around the country marched in Washington D.C., Poughkeepsie, Albany, and elsewhere March 24 to change gun laws, organized by the students from the Feb. 14 Florida school shooting. But that was not the last action the students from Parkland, Florida are taking. They have next called for all Congressional representatives to host town hall meetings on April 7, as elected officials are back in their home districts. WGXC reached out to both New York senators and Rep. John Faso (R-Kinderhook) to see if they would be holding town hall meetings that day. They are not. Faso and Sen. Chuck Schumer did not get back to WGXC, but both do not list any public events on their websites. A spokesperson for Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand did get back to WGXC, but did not address any upcoming town halls, only listing past events. While none of the current representatives are listening to the Parkland students on this issue, six of the seven Democrats who want to replace Faso will be at a town hall-styled event on April 7 at Cooks Falls/Horton Fire Hall, at 116 Cooks Falls Rd in Delaware County. Zephyr Teachout, who ran against Faso in 2016, will moderate the forum. Candidates Pat Ryan, Gareth Rhodes, Brian Flynn, Antonio Delgado, David Clegg, and Jeff Beals are expected to attend. The Parkland students are also organizing a second school walkout on April 20.

The Associated Press reports in The Daily Freeman that state legislators could vote themselves a raise in the new state budget that must be passed this week. Lawmakers currently get $79,500 a year, plus bonuses for leadership posts. Republican Senate Leader John Flanagan said March 27 that the raises are being discussed between himself, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Democrat and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, and Independent Democratic Conference leader Jeff Klein, who conferences with Republicans. April 1 is the deadline to pass the budget. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.

Adam High in The Cornell Sun reports that scientists have discovered a new species of Hudson River oyster that could help clean up the waterway. Researchers from the Hare Lab in Cornell’s Department of Natural Resources found a previously unknown species of wild Hudson River oysters near the Tappan Zee Bridge. Few wild populations of oysters have survived the pollution put into the Hudson River in the last few centuries. The filter feeders clean waterways, and wild oysters have stronger genetics than hatchery-bred oysters now being placed into the Hudson River to help clean the water. Read the full story in The Cornell Sun.

Jordan Fenster reports in the Poughkeepsie Journal that the ticks are back out in the Hudson Valley. "It’s not unusual to begin seeing adult black legged (or deer) ticks in spring, or even occasionally in winter, once temps are over about 40 degrees," said Thomas Daniels who is in charge of Fordham University's Louis Calder Center in Armonk, where he counts ticks. He explains about the type of ticks one would find under leaves in the woods now: "The adults you see in the spring are the holdovers from the fall population," he said. "They’re literally starving to death so we only see them early in the season – it’s their last chance to get a blood meal. They then die off and we begin to see the nymphs come up in late spring; they will persist through the summer and into early fall." Read the full story in the Poughkeepsie Journal.

DOWNLOAD or PLAY the audio version of the local news headlines for Wed., Mar. 28 (6:45). (Produced by Philip Grant.)

Richard Moody is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media following the recent spate of water main breaks in Greenport, town officials have proposed repairing more than two miles of deteriorating water lines around Joslen Boulevard and Fairview Avenue. The town board will hold a public hearing on the proposed $4.26 million water facilities improvement project April 4. The project would replace nearly 14,000 feet of water infrastructure -- 7,700 feet of aging 6-inch water main and 6,200 feet of 12-inch transmission line. “It’s a brand new and a big project,” Town Water Superintendent John Mokszycki said. “Most of the water mains are between 80 and 100 years old. They are 6-inch caste water pipe that are faceted together and it is failing.” The town has weathered five water main breaks this year so far, Mokszycki said. The town board's public hearing on the project will be held 6:30 p.m., April 4 at Greenport Town Hall, 600 Town Hall Drive. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

The Daily Freeman is reporting a Kingston court has ruled the trespassing charge made against community activist and radio host Callie Jayne will be dropped in six months if she does not repeat the offense. Jayne was charged with trespassing after the operator of Seven21 Media Center alleged she was repeatedly warned to stay on the sidewalk and out of the parking lot during weekly rallies at the midtown building where U.S. Rep. John Faso has his district office. Jayne, did not admit guilt during her appearance in City Court. Judge Philip Kirschner said that “under normal circumstances,” any arrest in the next six months would result in the trespassing charge being reopened. But in this instance, Jayne can only be convicted of the charge if she stages a protest on the property, he said. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.