July 27, 2020
ALBANY, NY – Governor Andrew Cuomo is asking Congressional Republicans in New York State, to fight for state and local aid in the federal stimulus package, the governor says, the state spent 5 billion dollars on covid 19 so far.
Month: July 2020
July 26, 2020
From ABC Digital News:
Academy Award-winning actress Olivia de Havilland, who was the last surviving star of Gone with the Wind, has passed away at the age of 104.
Her publicist confirms to ABC News that de Havilland died peacefully from natural causes on July 26 at her home in Paris, France.
July 25, 2020
From Senator Tom O’Mara:
State Senator Tom O’Mara (R,C,I-Big Flats) has been appointed as the top Republican member on the Senate Committee on Investigations and Government Operations as the committee prepares to lead upcoming joint Senate-Assembly hearings on the COVID-19 nursing home crisis.
O’Mara’s appointment as the ranking member on the Investigations Committee was made by new Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt.
O’Mara will also continue to serve as the top Republican member on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
He welcomed the new appointment to the Investigations Committee and said that he looks forward to the upcoming hearings on nursing homes, scheduled for early August, to try to lead efforts to examine the impact of the Cuomo administration’s COVID-19 response. So far, Senate Democrat leaders have resisted calls by O’Mara and the Senate GOP to use the committee’s subpoena powers to compel testimony from the governor and top administration officials.
Significant questions have been raised over the Cuomo administration’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York State’s nursing homes, assisted living and long-term care facilities, where at least 10,000 residents have died over the past four months.
O’Mara has worked closely with local officials throughout the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions, particularly in Steuben County where nursing home “hot spots” in Hornell and elsewhere have been alarming.
“New York State is home to one of the worst tragedies we have seen as a result of this ongoing pandemic,” said Ortt. “The thousands of families who lost loved ones in nursing homes and long-term care facilities across our state deserve the truth as to whether the Cuomo administration was negligent in its response to the pandemic. Senator O’Mara has been and will continue to be a vocal proponent for an independent and thorough investigation of the administration’s actions, and he will not rest until the families of lost loved ones are provided the answers they are owed.”
O’Mara said, “Simply settling for the findings of an in-house report on the COVID-19 nursing home crisis from Governor Cuomo’s own Department of Health is not good enough for those who have lost parents, grandparents and other loved ones. The Governor’s response to our calls for an independent investigation as ‘politically motivated’ is disingenuous and disrespectful to these grieving families. The seniors who have died and their families deserve to have an unbiased and independent inquiry into the actions of the Department of Health, and they should know if any mistakes were made. There is nothing political about uncovering the truth.”
O’Mara said that same standard will hold true across the many responsibilities facing the Investigations Committee.
“The need for unbiased investigations does not stop at our state’s nursing homes and long-term care facilities. We must have representatives on the Investigations Committee who will seek out the truth on state issues regardless of the specific topic at hand. I appreciate Leader Ortt’s confidence in my experience, commitment and ability to represent our conference on the Investigations Committee, and I want to reinforce my commitment to getting the answers that New Yorkers rightfully deserve,” O’Mara said.
Ortt stressed that O’Mara is well suited to represent the Senate GOP on the committee, pointing to his previous experience as the District Attorney in Chemung County, as a former Chemung County Attorney and as a former Assistant District Attorney in both Chemung County and Manhattan.
O’Mara is a graduate of the Syracuse University College of Law.
Categories
Brian K. Morgan, of Arkport
ARKPORT/BISHOPVILLE-Brian K. Morgan, 53, of North Almond Valley Road, Arkport, NY (Bishopville), died Wednesday morning (July 22, 2020) at Jones Memorial Hospital in Wellsville, NY following a long illness.
Born in North Hornell on October 31, 1966, he was the son of Arthur & Doris (Hulett) Morgan.
Brian grew up in Bishopville and attended Arkport Central School. From the age of 13, he enjoyed farming and for many years worked on several area farms including the Brown Family Farm in Bishopville, Sugar Creek Farm in Ossian and the Karr Family Farm in Fremont, NY. He was a “Multi-Tasker” and could handle any farm related job.
For many years, Brian also was employed as a truck driver, driving for several area businesses such as Covered Wagon of Hornell, Scuba Construction of Almond and Leon Lacy Trucking of Arkport. He was a self taught “Jack of All Trades” who was extremely mechanically minded and had a reputation of a man who could fix just about anything.
Having a deep love of the nature and the outdoors, Brian enjoyed hunting, especially deer hunting (both shotgun & bow) and small game hunting. He also had an affection for animals and throughout the years enjoyed the company of his many pet dogs. Brian will be sadly missed by his canine friend, “Tibber”, a “Jack-A-Poo” (Jack Russell & Poodle mix) who helped comfort him through his long illness. He was also a long-time member of the Arkport American Legion.
Brian was preceded in death by his step-son, Daniel Crane; his father, Arthur Morgan; and his sister, Sherry Woods.
Survivors include his wife of nearly 28 years, Mary, who he married on August 1, 1992; his son, Jacob (Samantha Smith) Morgan of Bishopville; his step-son, Murray (Erica) Crane of Dansville; his mother, Doris Morgan of Bishopville; 3 brothers, Richard (Gail) Morgan of Greenwood, David (Gertrude) Morgan of Canisteo and Kevin (Marcie) Morgan of Avoca; 4 sisters, Janice Kepner of Hornell, Sandra (Al) Eymer of Bishopville, Donna (Lani) Barros of Burns, NY and Shelby (Leo Seamon) Eymer of Bishopville; 3 grandchildren, Arika, David & Julius; several nieces, nephews & cousins.
At Brian’s request there will be no calling hours. Private services will be held at the convenience of the family.
Funeral arrangements are in care of the Dagon Funeral Home, 38 Church St., Hornell, NY.
Brian’s family request that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in his name be made to the Hornell Humane Society, 7649 Industrial Park Road, Hornell, NY 14843.
To leave an online condolence or share a memory, visit www.dagonfuneralhome.com.
– The Steuben County Public Health Department received notification that two additional Steuben County residents tested positive for COVID-19. This brings the total to 305 confirmed cases, 11 of which are currently active. The individuals are residents of the:
• Town of Campbell
• Town of Hornellsville
The individuals are isolated and being monitored by the County Health Department. Public Health staff investigated and identified close contacts of the confirmed cases and exposure risks. All those known to have direct contact with the individuals have been notified.
Per CDC and New York State Department of Health guidance, information is collected beginning 48 hours prior to symptom onset or date of test if asymptomatic through the day of the positive test result to identify any potential exposure risks. The investigations indicate the individuals visited the following locations:
• 7/20/20 – 7/24/20 – Hornell Gardens
• 7/22/20 Afternoon – Home Depot in Painted Post
• 7/23/20 Evening – Wegmans in Hornell
“Remember that COVID-19 is a novel virus, so new things are learned about it every day,” said Public Health Director, Darlene Smith. “While we are continuing to learn, it is so important to practice the proven prevention strategies to slow and stop the spread. Wear a mask, social distance and wash your hands regularly.”
All residents should continue to monitor themselves for COVID-19 symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, chills or repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, and new loss of taste or smell and contact their healthcare provider for instructions if feeling ill.
For the latest Steuben County updates, visit Steuben County’s website at www.steubencony.org or social media pages: www.facebook.com/SCNYPublicHealth and www.instagram.com/SteubenPublicHealth.
July 24, 2020
New York State United Teachers President Andy Pallotta released the following statement today regarding the resignation of Interim State Education Commissioner Shannon Tahoe:
“In an incredibly difficult time, Interim Commissioner Tahoe has been willing to work with us to ensure our students and school staff have the highest-quality education system possible. We wish her well in her next endeavor. Looking ahead, Regents Chancellor Betty Rosa has been and continues to be a tireless, steady leader who puts our students first. We will continue working with her to ensure our public schools are not just meeting the needs of students, but that schools also are safe and healthy as we continue to weather the impacts of this pandemic.”
July 24, 2020
The New York State Assembly Minority Conference today criticized their Majority colleagues for their decision to cast aside a public referendum and eliminate any shred of equal representation on the Independent Redistricting Commission.
In 2014, New York voters and Democrat legislators overwhelmingly approved a Constitutional Amendment guiding the Independent Redistricting Commission. The guidance was intended to ensure political interests were limited, and full representation was present during the process by which election maps and district boundaries are established.
Today’s legislation stands in complete opposition to redistricting measures Democrats previously supported and nullifies the public referendum which also passed in 2014. As a Constitutional Amendment, the bill requires a second passage by the Legislature before moving to a public vote.
“It has become abundantly clear that the will of the people and public interest are far less important to New York Democrats than their own self-preservation. It’s tough to measure the amount of hypocrisy it takes to support a bill today that they argued passionately against just a few years ago,” said Minority Leader Will Barclay (R,C,I,Ref-Pulaski). “Every part of this is offensive. The votes and voices of New Yorkers were thrown out and determined to be meaningless. Democrats jumped at a chance to usher in a generational change to New York’s elections with virtually no public review, during a legislative session conducted online with debate time cut in half. Their actions have literally nothing to do with the public good, with sound policy or with the basic principles of fair and equitable representation. What we saw today were Democrats obsessed with extending their misguided, one-party rule that drives up taxes, drives up crime and drives New Yorkers away.”
“For the Democrats to undermine the will of our voters in a transparent effort to gerrymander new, partisan district lines is just wrong. I urge them to reconsider,” said Assemblyman Phil Palmesano (R,C,I-Corning), the Conference’s representative on the Legislative Task Force on Research and Reapportionment. “In 2014, voters overwhelmingly approved a referendum requiring a two-thirds majority in both houses to authorize new boundaries for legislative districts created by a bipartisan commission. Voters passed a constitutional amendment because they wanted a fair, bipartisan and independent approach to the redistricting process. Democrats want to take this in the exact opposite direction. Their efforts to lower the threshold of votes needed to pass redistricting legislation eliminates minority party participation by allowing the bill to pass without their consent undermines the entire process. Their legislation would also allow members of the commission to draw lines without input of members from both parties. This was not the intent of the independent commission that was approved by the voters of this state in 2014. They were clear, they want fairness and they want balance. This is a power grab that would upend our Democracy and erode public confidence in our governing institutions.”
Reapportionment of legislative districts occurs every 10 years. The procedural changes approved by Democrats today include major revisions that eliminate full representation of all legislative conferences and ensure that only one political party is needed to approve final plans.
• Under current law, for a plan to receive approval of the Independent Redistricting Commission, it must have seven “Yes” votes. Because the speaker of the Assembly and temporary president of the Senate are members of the same political party at the moment, such approval must also include votes in support by at least one member appointed by each of the legislative leaders. Today’s legislation reverses that requirement, allowing a redistricting plan to be approved by the Commission with a simple seven person vote in favor of a plan, diminishing the input of the minority party in the process and eliminating the requirement that at least one member appointed by each of the minority leaders approve the plan.
• Democrats also lowered the threshold for a redistricting plan to pass in the Legislature. Currently, if a plan is approved by the Commission it is submitted to the Legislature for approval, which, in the event the speaker of the Assembly and temporary president of the Senate are members of the same political party, requires a vote of approval by at least two-thirds of the members of each house. This proposal would drastically diminish that voting threshold, and require only a majority vote of each house for passage of a plan that is approved by the Commission (or 60% vote if the Commission fails to obtain the necessary votes for approval).
BATH – The Steuben County Public Health Department received notification that two additional Steuben County residents tested positive for COVID-19. This brings the total to 303 confirmed cases, nine of which are currently active. The individuals are residents of the:
• City of Corning
• Town of Greenwood
The individuals are isolated and being monitored by the County Health Department. Public Health staff investigated and identified close contacts of the confirmed cases and exposure risks. All those known to have direct contact with the individuals have been notified.
Per CDC and New York State Department of Health guidance, information is collected beginning 48 hours prior to symptom onset or date of test if asymptomatic through the day of the positive test result to identify any potential exposure risks. The investigations indicate one individual is linked with a previously reported positive and one individual recently returned from travel to a state with high rates of infection. The individuals reported visited the following locations:
• 7/20/20 – 7/22/20 – Bath VA
• 7/21/20 – 7/22/20 – CAF USA in Elmira Heights
• 7/20/20 Evening – Mooney’s Sports Bar & Grill in Corning
• 7/20/20 or 7/21/20 – Rite Aid in Corning
• 7/20/20 or 7/21/20 – Dandy Mini Mart on East Corning Road in Corning
• 7/20/20 or 7/21/20 – Byrne Dairy on Grand Central Ave in Horseheads
“We continue to see a large number of travelers coming into or returning to Steuben County daily,” said Public Health Director, Darlene Smith. “Individuals can become positive at the end of their quarantine period, so it is still extremely important for all of us to be diligent in our prevention efforts to stop the further spread of COVID-19. Wear a mask, social distance, and wash your hands regularly.”
All residents should continue to monitor themselves for COVID-19 symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, chills or repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, and new loss of taste or smell and contact their healthcare provider for instructions if feeling ill.
For the latest Steuben County updates, visit Steuben County’s website at www.steubencony.org or social media pages: www.facebook.com/SCNYPublicHealth and www.instagram.com/SteubenPublicHealth.
July 23, 2020
ARKPORT, NY – From the State Comptrollers Office:
“Auditors found complete and accurate accounting records were not maintained, the modified accrual basis of accounting was not used and interfund activity was not properly reported. As a result, the board could not adequately monitor the water fund’s financial operations. The board did not properly segregate water billing and collection duties or establish compensating controls. In addition, late penalties were not properly assessed on unpaid water bills.” Response from Arkport Village Hall: “Village officials generally agreed with our recommendations and have initiated or indicated they planned to initiate corrective action. Appendix B includes our comment on an issue raised in the Village’s response letter.”
July 23, 2020
From Senator Gillibrand:
Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand joined her colleagues in urging Vice President Pence and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Peter Gaynor to provide ample PPE and sanitizing equipment for polling locations and workers during the November elections. As COVID-19 cases continue to climb across the United States, the Trump administration must provide comprehensive hygiene, disinfecting, sanitizing, and physical distancing protocols to ensure safety during the election process and protect voting rights amidst the pandemic.
“Elections are the lifeblood of our democracy and voters and poll workers have already had to put their health and safety at risk to exercise their right to vote. Continuing down that path during this pandemic would be a disaster for our democracy,” said Senator Gillibrand, “With the 2020 election looming closer and with no clear end to social distancing, it is imperative we provide the tools necessary so every American can safely vote and follow CDC and health guidelines. The Trump administration must do much more to secure the integrity of our elections and I am proud to join my colleagues urging for these protections.”
Public health experts continue to call for social distancing measures and have warned against long lines and crowded polling locations throughout the primary election season. As many states turn towards the November elections, voters —especially those with disabilities, those in need of language assistance, and those without access to mail, who will need to vote in person — and poll workers fear the consequences of in-person voting. Meanwhile, President Trump and top Republicans in Congress have opposed vote-by-mail stipulations, endangered our democratic values, and put American voters at risk. This April, Gillibrand called for universal vote-by-mail to strengthen and uphold democratic systems amidst a global pandemic by permitting millions of Americans to conveniently and securely cast their ballots from home.
Senator Gillibrand has continuously stressed the importance of strengthening election infrastructure and protecting voting rights during the COVID-19 crisis. Last month, Gillibrand cosponsored the Natural Disaster and Emergency Ballot Act of 2020 to expand early in-person voting and no-excuse absentee vote-by-mail to all states, and allow voters who did not receive an absentee ballot to use a printable ballot currently only provided for military and overseas voters. As the unprecedented national crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic raised concerns over election security and the need for immediate action to reinforce voting rights this November, Gillibrand called for critical provisions from the Voter Empowerment Act of 2019 (S. 549) and new emergency voting mechanisms to expand access to early voting, absentee ballots, and vote by mail. She led the introduction of the bicameral Voter Empowerment Act which would help protect the voting rights of people across the country by ensuring equal access to the ballot for every eligible voter, modernizing voter registration, and helping to eliminate deceptive practices that deter people from voting.