Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo reports in the Poughkeepsie Journal that smoke from raging wildfires in western Canada has been wafting into the Hudson Valley this week. The National Weather Service Tweeted, "When larger particles in the atmosphere such as smoke or dust scatter light, they scatter longer wavelengths better." So the smoke from distant Canadian wildfires has caused vivid, red sunsets in the Hudson Valley this week. A passing cold front with a small bit of rain on May 24 may clear the air locally. Read more about this story in the Poughkeepsie Journal.

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Austin Jefferson reports for the Daily Freeman that Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger is proposing a $15 million Housing Action Fund to increase the housing supply there. State and Hudson Valley officials have identified an affordable housing crisis in New York and locally. Metzger proposed the fund at a special meeting of the Health, Human Services and Housing Committee on May 18. Metzger would take $15 million from the county's surplus fund balance to start the fund, and then keep it going with 25 percent of the hotel occupancy tax. Metzger says rent for one- and two-bedroom apartments has risen by 40 percent locally, while wages have stayed stagnant or declined. She says that 12 percent of homeowners and 29 percent of renters in Ulster County spend more than half of their monthly income on housing. Metzger said, “The trends are very bleak," and that "these trends are unsustainable from an economic perspective.” Oversight for the fund would come from a new Housing Policy and Oversight Committee, with representatives with experience in housing, finance, development, and land use. Metzger would appoint four members, and the legislature would appoint three, under Metzger's proposal. Officials in Kingston and Hudson have also discussed efforts to help the affordable housing crisis, but little has been done anywhere locally on the issue. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Nick Reisman reports for New York State of Politics that a bill to stop the discharging of radioactive material into the Hudson River has advanced this week through both the State Senate and Assembly Environmental Conservation Committees. Anyone releasing fines radioactive material into the Hudson River would be fined up to $25,000 a day, with daily $50,000 fines for a second violation. The only opposition for the bill is Holtec International, the company that owns the decommissioned Indian Point nuclear plant, that plans to release radioactive material into the Hudson River later this summer. Holtec said in a statement, “As a part of both the operation of nuclear power plants and during the decommissioning of reactors plants discharge treated liquid effluent according to state and federal permits, and well below safe release limits set by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.... Indian Point is no different, with valid state and federal permits in place the facility has discharged treated water to the Hudson since 1962. The data on these releases are publicly available on the NRC’s website for Indian Point and all reactors." Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.

Tim Williams and Nick Reisman report for New York State of Politics that New York's tax on cigarettes increases from $4.35 to $5.35 a pack in September. The state Department of Health says that an all-time low rate of New Yorkers are smoking now, at 12 percent. But officials hope the higher tax rate will mean fewer than 1.7 million New Yorkers smoking regularly. Nationally, Sarah Ravenhall, executive director of the New York State Association of County Health Officials, says that every ten percent increase in cigarette taxes reduced youth smoking by seven percent, and overall smoking rates by four percent. Lawmakers also proposed a menthol flavor cigarette ban in the state budget, but that encountered opposition from some legislators, who got it out of the budget. Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.

Mid-Hudson News reports that Bard College wants to build five new dormitories and a performance lab on its Dutchess County campus. College officials went before the Dutchess County Local Development Corporation on May 23 to get $155 million in tax-exempt bonds issued for the construction. The LDC board approved a preliminary inducement resolution, but now must hold a public hearing before the board takes a final vote on the request. Read the full story at Mid-Hudson News.

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Steve Hughes reports in the Times Union that Albany County Executive Dan McCoy was the latest local leader to declare a state of emergency and issued an emergency order on May 23 because of the possibility that asylum seekers from New York City might temporarily be bused to the county. McCoy's directive means the county’s Department of Social Services will work with the state to plan for the relocation of up to 200 families in Albany County. But McCoy's order also bans any businesses, including motels, or people ,from bringing migrants or asylum seekers to the county without the county’s permission. McCoy said, “I am hopeful that these requirements ensure the proper dignity and respect for all persons.” And he also criticized those governors in Florida and Texas, and mayor of New York City, who are busing migrants around the country. McCoy said, “Allowing for the transportation of busloads of migrant families within our county communities without a plan and without clear communication does not protect our residents and it does not protect the migrant families seeking asylum.” The state may also be trying to put some migrants at the University of Albany over the summer. The State University of New York is in discussions to house asylum seekers at two other SUNY campuses, so University of Albany could be a third. Assemblywoman Pat Fahy, chair of the Assembly’s Higher Education Committee, said, "My understanding directly from SUNY is that at this point it is still not final.... I'm proud to live in Albany, where we are a welcoming community." Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Joshua Solomon reports in the Times Union about what New York Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado has been up to. It has been about a year since Delgado quit on the 19th Congressional District, leading to a special election that Democrats won, and a general election that Republicans won. Delgado was seen widely with Gov. Kathy Hochul during her reelection campaign last fall, but since then Delgado has not been very visible. Now Solomon writes, "he has been relatively absent during the governor’s biggest political fights since the election: the failed nomination of Justice Hector D. LaSalle as chief judge; an unprecedented (and now failed) proposal to increase housing; and recent changes to the state’s bail laws intended to increase public safety." Delgado declined to be interviewed for the story, instead sending a statement that said, in part, that he has “worked in partnership with Governor Hochul to build a safer, fairer and more affordable state.” Instead, Solomon caught up with Delgado speaking in Herkimer, "read[-ing] lines that can be traced back to state websites and administration news releases." Delgado has almost become Hochul, who as number two to Andrew Cuomo, did little but tour the state and meet many local officials. Delgado has been meeting folks such as Assemblyperson Chris Tague, a Schoharie conservative, who at the Olde Tater Barn in Schoharie County saw the Lt. Gov at an annual Chamber of Commerce awards dinner. Delgado said, “This community embraced me, and whether you were a Democrat, a Republican or an independent, there was at least an attempt to be civil, thoughtful.” Delgado then turned to Tague, and said, “We’re not going to agree on every single issue, right, Chris?” Tague said he wishes Delgado had a louder voice in the Hochul administration, saying, “Maybe things would be a little different in Albany if he was able to play a little bigger role.” Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Andrea Macko in Porcupine Soup reminds readers that turtles are, slowly, on the move this spring. In May and June turtles are often on the move, looking for sandy areas or loose soil to lay their eggs. Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos is asking motorists to "give turtles a brake.... While a turtle's shell provides protection from predators, it does not protect against being struck by vehicles while crossing roadways.... Vehicle strikes are a major cause of mortality among turtles. Especially in these coming weeks, DEC urges drivers to be on the lookout for turtles and slow down, particularly on roads near rivers and marshy areas." Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

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Paul Kirby reports in the Daily Freeman that Rep. Pat Ryan keeps insisting that Republicans are proposing to slash veteran services. Currently, Congress must approve a new debt ceiling to cover past spending, and instead of just approving the new limit as in the past, Republicans in the House of Representatives say they will only approve a new limit if there are massive spending cuts in the next budget. Ryan said, “Far-right, extreme Republicans in Washington have offered two bad options: either we default on the full faith and credit of the United States, which is unprecedented in our nation’s history, or we agree to their cruel cuts to veterans’ services.... These are the men and women who risked their lives for our country. American heroes I served with in Iraq who were told this country would always have their back. My response is simple: ‘Hell, no.’” Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro claims there will be no cuts to veterans services, saying, “Cuts to the veterans services and benefits are off the table.... The Limit, Save, Grow Act sets a topline number for the entire federal budget. It does not include cuts to the VA.” Molinaro did not say what spending cuts he is in favor of, or what cuts Republican negotiators are demanding of President Joe Biden's team. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Nancy Kern reports for Columbia-Greene Media that only 137 of the 1,254 firefighters on the Greene County tax rolls are using the emergency workers’ real property tax break approved by the Legislature in February. That low usage means taxes for everyone else will not rise as much as expected. Greene County Director of Tax Services Ray Ward that taxes are only going up $3.50. “Originally I told you that there were around 1,200 firefighters on the rolls,” Ward said. “One hundred thirty seven of them — a little over 10 percent — applied for the exemption. The impact was much lower, because I was working with the number of 1,200. I gave you the worst-case scenario of $17 to come in on an average home last year which was valued at $250,000. The impact is about $3.50. If they’re in the village, increase that by $1.50.” First responders eligible for the tax credit could have gotten $200 off their taxes. Besides Greene County, many towns, and school and fire districts, also passed the tax credits. “Of the ten of the 14 Greene County towns, five of the school districts, three of the five villages and seven of the 26 fire districts have adopted the new RPTL 466-a Volunteer Firefighters and Volunteer Ambulance Workers Exemption. With a tight time frame to get this accomplished in time for the March 1 Taxable Status Date, it was good news that our encouragement to them appears to have worked,” Ward said. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Jammel Cutler reports for Columbia-Greene Media that Habitat for Humanity started building two new homes on Eagle Street in Philmont on May 19. Currently, state and local officials have said their is an affordable housing crisis in New York and the Hudson Valley. These will be the 26th and 27th homes that Columbia County Habitat for Humanity has built over three decades. The group keeps the price of the homes no more than 30 percent of gross family income, and limit construction costs to $300,000 each. Al Bellenchia, executive director and CEO of Habitat for Humanity, said, “The family pays what they can afford, so we can fill that gap in what the family can’t afford to pay.... That gap is where the community comes in. The community has always helped raise the money to fill that gap. That is why we’re a nonprofit organization, because we’re able to do that through fundraising, grants and donations.” These are the first homes they group has worked on since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Andrea Macko reports for Porcupine Soup that the Village of Coxsackie won a $1.5 million Restore New York Communities Initiative grant to fix up some buildings at 22-34 South River Street. That is a block of abandoned storefronts with apartments above, and an old theater and opera house. The three-story brick buildings were built between 1870 and 1882. The properties are owned by Aaron Flach’s development firm, Empire Riverfront Ventures that recently renovated the nearby Patrick Henry’s Tavern, converted the old iron foundry into the Wire Event Center, and is building the James Newbury Hotel. In March, Coxsackie won a $4.5 million NY Forward grant for other restoration and renovation in the village. Andrea Macko reports for Porcupine Soup.

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Raymond Pignone reports in Columbia-Greene Media that the Catskill Village Zoning Board of Appeals on May 17 denied an application for a variance to convert the former St. Patrick’s Academy building into 43 rental units. The state, and the Hudson Valley, are in the midst of an affordable housing crisis, and Greene County says it has too few hotel rooms right now for homeless people or migrants. The now-empty school is in an area zoned for just single-family homes, and the board would not allow the former school to change a variance to create apartments there. The Zoning Board of Appeals released a statement that said that if they granted the variance, it would remain with the property, so another, future owner could take also use the variance and create apartments. The school has been closed since 1988, and if it not economically capable of being a school, and cannot be broken up into apartments, the question is what use the the school building, the two-floor gymnasium, and a large playing field with a view of the Hudson River could be for Catskill. The Village Board would have vote to rezone the property if it wanted to allow another use of the building. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Rick Karlin reports in the Times Union that an appellate division court upheld a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit by local activists who want to stop Shepherd’s Run solar farm from being constructed in Columbia County. The lawsuit sought to annul parts of New York’s three-year-old fast track system for approving large new solar farms, administered by the three-year-old Office of Renewable Energy Siting, or ORES. The policy recognizes that global warming has forced a faster switch away from fossil fuels, so it clears certain regulations to allow solar farms to be approved more quickly than usual. The appellate justices concluded that ORES rules overrode the local regulations. Part of the May 18 decision says, “Where State interests are involved to a substantial degree, in depth or extent[,] the State may freely legislate without home rule approval, notwithstanding the legislation’s impact on local concern.... Petitioners' remaining contentions, to the extent not expressly addressed herein, have been evaluated and determined to be without merit.” The opinion from the Third Department appellate justices was unanimous, but attorney Gary Abraham said they were considering appealing to the Court of Appeals, the highest state court. Read the full story in the Times Union.