Category: Local News

August 31, 2026

FROM HORNELL CITY CLERK HEATHER LISI: Hornell City Hall will be closing at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, September 4, 2026 and will be closed on Monday, September 7, 2026, in observance of Labor Day. City offices reopen Tuesday, September 8, 2026. Hornell Area Transit will not run any routes on Labor Day. There is no trash collection in the City of Hornell on Labor Day. Regular trash collection resumes the morning of September 8, 2026. This means collection citywide is delayed one day throughout that week. Residents, still, must have their vehicles off City streets ON THE NIGHT BEFORE TRASH IS NORMALLY PICKED UP.

August 31, 2026

STATEMENT FROM THE NEW, INTERIM, SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT FOR CANASERAGA CENTRAL SCHOOL:

Dear Canaseraga Families and Community Members-
It is my pleasure to be working with you as your new Interim Superintendent of Schools. I have been learning so many wonderful things about the District and community over the past few weeks.
For a bit of background, I have held a variety of superintendent and principal positions locally, including the Arkport, Dansville, Wayland-Cohocton and Corning- Painted Post school districts, along with GST BOCES.
In 2021, I retired from the Orchard Park Central School District after 11 years as Superintendent of Schools. In all of those districts, I have taken pride in focusing on buildings and districts as communities and families. When there is a strong school/family partnership, it truly benefits all. The beginning days of the school year are very exciting, with all of the events and activities within the District. I look forward to meeting our families and community members as the Fall season unfolds.

Sincerely,
Matthew McGarrity

August 31, 2026

FROM ALLEGANY COUNTY: Join us as we unveil and remember those veterans we have lost and will lose to suicide during September. This visual representation is to remind us every day during September that these are not just statistics but husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, sons and daughters who battle the war within every day and suffer from the invisible wounds of war, and to remind us to talk with our veterans about those battles!

August 31, 2026

Allegany County crews say that County Road #4 in the Town of Hume, between Bottsford Hollow Road and Crotty Road, will be closed to traffic during working hours from 7a.m. until 4 p.m. from today till Wednesday, September 2, to replace two culverts.

The road will be opened each night. There will not be an on-site detour.

Augsut 31, 2026

Hammondsport, NY — Steuben County Department of Public Works Commissioner Eric Rose announced that the scheduled closure of County Route 76 (Hammondsport-South Pulteney Road) in the Town of Urbana has been revised. The closure is now scheduled for Wednesday, September 9, and Thursday, September 10, 2026, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day for pipe replacement work. The affected section of County Route 76 will extend from Sanford Road to Middle Road. There will be no onsite detour during the closure. Motorists are advised to plan accordingly and use an alternate route while the work is underway. The closure is expected to be in effect only during the scheduled work hours. This is a revision to the previously announced closure dates.

August 31, 2026

ON INTERNATIONAL OVERDOSE AWARENESS DAY, GOVERNOR HOCHUL HIGHLIGHTS MAJOR DECLINE IN OVERDOSE DEATHS ACROSS NEW YORK STATE
Overdose Deaths Have Fallen by Approximately 45% Statewide Since 2022

Governor Hochul’s Administration Has Made Nearly $500 Million in Opioid Settlement Funds Available Since Fiscal Year 2023 For Historic Investments in Programs and Services to Address Drug Addiction

New York State Landmarks To Be Illuminated Purple on Evening of Aug. 31 To Honor Lives Lost to Overdose Epidemic

As New York marks International Overdose Awareness Day, Governor Kathy Hochul today announced a major decline in overdose deaths across New York State following her administration’s historic investments in programs and services to address drug addiction and the overdose epidemic. Overdose deaths have fallen by approximately 45 percent statewide since 2022. The Governor also announced today that landmarks across the state will be lit purple in recognition of International Overdose Awareness Day. The illumination honors the lives lost to the overdose epidemic and acknowledges the grief of the family members and friends who have been impacted by the deadly epidemic. The awareness day is also a reminder of the continued support needed for those who are still struggling with substance use disorder. “International Overdose Awareness Day serves as a reminder that every life lost to drug overdose is one too many,” Governor Hochul said. “The progress made in recent years shows that our historic investments in the fight against drug addiction are making a difference. As this deadly epidemic continues to impact every community, I’ll never stop fighting to protect New Yorkers and ensure we’re bringing lifesaving resources to communities in need.”

New York State Department of Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said, “International Overdose Awareness Day is a reminder that each life lost is a family member, loved one, friend, colleague and community member. While the deadly drug epidemic remains a public health crisis, encouraging progress has been made through the work of countless dedicated community partners, investments in innovative harm reduction programs and access to prevention tools, education and resources. Today and every day, the Department remains dedicated to advancing this important work and achieving an overdose-free generation.”

New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports Commissioner Dr. Chinazo Cunningham said, “Every part of New York State has been impacted by the overdose epidemic, and while we have made significant progress in reducing deaths, we continue to lose too many New Yorkers. These are not just numbers, they are people, and their losses impact all of us. International Overdose Awareness Day is an important observance that reminds us all of the toll this epidemic has taken on not only the state, but on the rest of the country and even across the world, as well as a chance to renew our commitment toward doing everything we can to ensure no more lives are lost.”

State Senator Nathalia Fernandez said, “Today, we remember every New Yorker lost to overdose and stand with the families and communities who carry that loss with them. This decline in overdose deaths is meaningful progress and proof that harm reduction, treatment and sustained investment save lives. As Chair of the Senate Committee on Alcoholism and Substance Use Disorders, I remain committed to building on that progress and ensuring every New Yorker has access to the care and resources they need.”

New York State has seen great progress in reducing overdose deaths. Data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show predicted overdose deaths in New York fell from more than 6,630 individuals (about 18 people each day) in 2022 to 3,775 individuals (about 10 people each day) in 2025. This represents an approximately 45 percent decrease in the number of drug overdose deaths.

Tonight, landmarks and buildings across the state will be illuminated purple in recognition of International Overdose Awareness Day, to honor those lost to drug overdose and acknowledge the work that still needs to be done to prevent overdose deaths in New York State and beyond.

Landmarks to be illuminated include the following:

1WTC
Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge
Kosciuszko Bridge
The H. Carl McCall SUNY Building
State Education Building
Alfred E. Smith State Office Building
Empire State Plaza
State Fairgrounds – Main Gate & Expo Center
Niagara Falls
The “Franklin D. Roosevelt” Mid-Hudson Bridge
Grand Central Terminal – Pershing Square Viaduct
Albany International Airport Gateway
MTA LIRR – East End Gateway at Penn Station
Fairport Lift Bridge over the Erie Canal
Moynihan Train Hall
Roosevelt Island Lighthouse

The gains observed in recent years are an encouraging sign. However, the drug overdose epidemic continues to impact every community across New York State and disparities highlight the continued importance of directing resources and services to high needs areas, ensuring every community benefits from the State’s progress. Addressing the epidemic and achieving an overdose-free generation includes continued public awareness and a commitment to harm reduction that makes lifesaving overdose reversal medications like naloxone available to the public, increases access to harm reduction resources and supports community-based organizations that work directly in communities impacted by the overdose epidemic. Governor Hochul’s historic investments and the establishment of innovative programs have been vital components in addressing the drug epidemic and bringing new services to all areas of the state. New York State has made approximately $500 million in Opioid Settlement Funds available for a range of initiatives across the prevention, treatment, harm reduction and recovery continuum of addiction care, which is the most of any state in the country. This funding has gone to every region of the state and is supporting initiatives including medication for addiction treatment (MAT) expansions, programs to link high need individuals to treatment and other resources, funding for recovery centers to provide recovery support services, recruitment and training for the addiction workforce and public awareness activities to inform people on the risks of substance use and where they can find help. The New York State Department of Health and the Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) work to ensure harm reduction strategies are reaching all communities and all demographics. The State Department of Health has over 1,400 opioid overdose registered programs with over 6,000 sites across New York State that provide opioid overdose prevention training and naloxone at no cost to the participant. Registered programs, including community-based organizations, not for profits, libraries, bookstores and schools, are registered with clinical providers, receive naloxone administration training and report on naloxone distribution and administration. Since August 2022, the State Department of Health has shipped more than 1.4 million naloxone kits to registered programs statewide.

The State Department of Health’s Drug Checking Service offers people who use drugs timely and detailed information on the contents of their drugs, helping them to make more informed decisions. Since May 2023, New York State Drug Checking Programs have tested over 5,000 samples. Currently operating out of 11 programs and 18 unique sites, trained technicians provide participants with point-of-care testing results, offer linkages to other supportive services and restore agency to people who use drugs. OASAS has established an online portal for any state resident to order fentanyl and xylazine test strips, as well as naloxone, free of charge. To date, OASAS has distributed more than 28 million fentanyl and xylazine test strips and more than 574,000 naloxone kits. The State has made significant expansions to the availability of medication for addiction treatment (MAT). Since 2021, 27 counties have expanded access to methadone and 14 counties with no prior methadone access now have a methadone program. The state has also established mobile medication units (MMUs), which bring services directly to high-need communities in an effort to eliminate some of the barriers that people face accessing treatment. Currently there are 5 MMUs operational, with an additional 4 in development. New York now offers all Food and Drug Administration-approved forms of MAT in all 58 jails and 41 prisons in the state, reaching more than 16,000 incarcerated individuals. The State has increased funding to amplify the range of services provided by the State Department of Health’s community-based drug user health hubs. These hubs act as a safety net for the most vulnerable New Yorkers, offering services and information on overdose prevention, hepatitis C treatment, harm reduction services and rapid access to buprenorphine treatment for opioid use disorder. The Department is continuing to expand its understanding of the drug supply so that it can alert people who use drugs and the wider community of the emergence of new drugs.

The State has also focused its support on communities vulnerable to overdose, including communities of color, locations with a high burden of overdose, veterans, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) communities and young people. Information on how to locate a harm reduction program, become an opioid overdose prevention program or access buprenorphine through the Buprenorphine Assistance Program (Bupe-AP) can be found on the Office of Drug User Health website. Information on available addiction treatment including crisis/detox, inpatient, residential or outpatient care can be found on the NYS OASAS website. New Yorkers struggling with an addiction, or whose loved ones are struggling, can find help and hope by calling the state’s toll-free, 24-hour, 7-day-a-week HOPEline at 1-877-8-HOPENY (1-877-846-7369) or by texting HOPENY (Short Code 467369).

August 31, 2026

FROM U.S. SENATOR KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND: U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) joined 12 of her Senate colleagues in urging the Department of Education to disburse the funds abruptly and unlawfully canceled for the School-Based Mental Health Services (SBMH) and Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration (MHSP) grant programs and to halt its attempts to undermine the grant programs. “Protecting our children’s mental health should not be a partisan issue,” said Senator Gillibrand. “The Trump administration’s appalling efforts to terminate SBMH and MHSP grant funding are harming our students, particularly as the shortage of mental health professionals and school counselors persists nationwide. The Department of Education must immediately disburse the funds our schools are legally owed and restore the support that students are counting on.”
Upon canceling over 200 of these grants in April 2025, the Trump administration attempted to justify their cuts to school-based mental health funding by claiming that grant programs promoted diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and did not adhere to the administration’s policy priorities. The senators pushed back against this false claim, pointing to the significant impact to mental health staffing and resources that thousands of students relied on. “The Department’s recent actions create significant operational uncertainty for local school districts, interrupting student access to care and stalling the recruitment of future school-based mental health care professionals,” the senators wrote in a new letter to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon. “These choices will increase the financial and administrative barriers to obtaining a quality education. We therefore demand that the Department disburse the funds grantees are contractually owed in a timely manner to ensure local school programs face no further disruption.”

These grants – part of the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act – address the shortage of mental health professionals, social workers and services in our nation’s schools, especially those in rural and underserved areas. “Despite these grants’ clear effectiveness, the Department sent boilerplate notices in April 2025 to 70 SBMH and 153 MHSP recipients claiming that these grantees did not adhere to the Trump administration’s priorities and policy preferences,” the senators continued. “The notices failed to provide specific, individualized explanations for why the grants were abruptly discontinued. Consequently, grantees were forced to pause hiring and training and lay off school counselors, psychologists, and social workers. MHSP-supported graduate programs could also no longer fund the scholarships needed to recruit students.”

After a court-ordered injunction and restraining order stemming the grant cancellations, the Trump administration imposed additional requirements upon grantees before deciding to release funding for the second half of the year – causing greater uncertainty for schools. “We insist that the Department honor the statutory funding directives enacted by Congress, resolve the administrative barriers affecting the pipeline of mental health professionals in our nation’s schools, and ensure that students have access to these crucial services. To cut, delay, and otherwise obstruct these grants is not only unlawful, but also unconscionable in light of the mental health crisis facing our youth. It’s not an exaggeration to say that young lives are at stake. Please step in to help,” the senators concluded. In addition to Senator Gillibrand, the letter was signed by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Angus King (I-ME), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).

The full text of the letter can be found here and below.

Dear Secretary McMahon:

We write to request immediate clarification regarding the Department of Education’s (the Department) termination of $1 billion in School-Based Mental Health Services Grant (SBMH) and Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant (MHSP) programs. The Department’s recent actions create significant operational uncertainty for local school districts, interrupting student access to care and stalling the recruitment of future school-based mental health care professionals. These choices will increase the financial and administrative barriers to obtaining a quality education. We therefore demand that the Department disburse the funds grantees are contractually owed in a timely manner to ensure local school programs face no further disruption. Funded by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the SBMH and MHSP programs address the dire shortage of mental health service providers in our nation’s schools. More than half of schools in the nation reported their ability to provide mental health services to students was limited in a significant way by inadequate funding, while 40 percent described insufficient access to mental health professionals as a barrier. SBMH grants help schools hire and retain counselors, psychologists, and other mental health professionals, specifically targeting areas with a demonstrated need, like rural and low-income communities. MHSP grants enable institutions of higher education and school districts to enter partnerships to recruit and train mental health professionals to work in schools. The efficacy of SBMH and MHSP is supported by clear performance metrics. In just one year, grantees reached nearly 775,000 K-12 students nationwide, reduced absenteeism and behavioral issues, lowered suicide risk, trained and hired nearly 1,300 mental health professionals, and retained a vast majority of new and existing mental health professionals. These programs fill crucial gaps in mental health care for youth in our nation’s schools. A 2023 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey found that 40 percent of high school students reported feeling sad or hopeless, an increase from 30 percent in 2013. Twenty-nine percent of high school students reported experiencing poor mental health and nine percent shared that they had attempted suicide.

Despite these grants’ clear effectiveness, the Department sent boilerplate notices in April 2025 to 70 SBMH and 153 MHSP recipients claiming that these grantees did not adhere to the Trump Administration’s priorities and policy preferences. The notices failed to provide specific, individualized explanations for why the grants were abruptly discontinued. Consequently, grantees were forced to pause hiring and training and lay off school counselors, psychologists, and social workers. MHSP-supported graduate programs could also no longer fund the scholarships needed to recruit students. In June 2025, 16 states, home to 140 of the canceled grants, sued the Department, arguing that the discontinuation of the grants violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). A district court subsequently issued a preliminary injunction against the discontinuation and then granted summary judgment and a permanent injunction to the plaintiff states, finding that the Department’s actions were inconsistent with statutory requirements. The U.S. Court of Appeals for Ninth Circuit denied the Department’s request to stay the permanent injunction. The Department resumed 122 of the grants through June 30, 2026, imposing additional reporting requirements before deciding whether to release funding for the second half of the year. This process caused serious administrative uncertainty because grantee organizations could not reliably and effectively project budgets to determine if they would have the funds to hire and train mental health professionals. Some grantees were forced to lay off employees, exacerbating the challenges they face in addressing student mental health.

Furthermore, the Administration has indicated plans to permanently discontinue these grants, raising serious concerns regarding compliance with standing federal permanent injunctions and the July 27, 2026, Temporary Restraining Order. The Department’s decision to withhold this funding from our nation’s schools will reverberate as the new school year starts in the fall, and the harm will be exacerbated if the Department continues to disrupt or withhold SBMH and MHSP funding. Our nation’s schools are already facing significant barriers to retaining mental health professionals, who serve as trusted adults for students and their parents. These interruptions in student services disrupt the continuity of care. The Department’s actions will also slow the recruitment of new mental health professionals, disincentivizing prospective counselors and therapists from serving in our nation’s schools.

In light of the Department’s actions, we request answers to the following questions by September 18, 2026: How many grantees have received an additional six months of funding after June 30, 2026? Please provide a list containing the name, a description of the grant, the amount, and any associated reporting requirements for each grantee. Will the Department continue to impose similar requirements on these grantees for the remainder of their grant period? What objective evaluation criteria were used to determine program compliance? Please provide a written justification for each discontinued grant including grant-specific reasons that go beyond the generic justification currently offered in the notices. How does the Department plan to address the interruptions and uncertainty for grantees caused by the discontinuations?

We insist that the Department honor the statutory funding directives enacted by Congress, resolve the administrative barriers affecting the pipeline of mental health professionals in our nation’s schools, and ensure that students have access to these crucial services. To cut, delay, and otherwise obstruct these grants is not only unlawful, but also unconscionable in light of the mental health crisis facing our youth. It’s not an exaggeration to say that young lives are at stake. Please step in to help.

August 28, 2026

CLICK TO ZOOM IN, IF YOU NEED TO

August 28, 2026

FROM REP. NICK LANGWORTHY: “The Safer Skies Act is a commonsense step to strengthen passenger safety. It closes a critical security gap that protects passengers and our national security. Closing this loophole will help ensure that aircraft can never again be used as a weapon.” Langworthy says that the Safer Skies Act would Require the TSA to update its security screening requirements for Part 135 and Part 380 operators that offer individual seats in advance, provide publicly available schedules, and operate passenger seat configurations of more than nine seats. He says it would also ensure that these operators are held to the same security standards as any other scheduled commercial airline. “Due to the reforms following the September 11th attacks, Americans have come to expect a high level of safety and security when they board a plane on American soil,” said Congressman Langworthy. “As the chair of the Aviation Safety Caucus, I’ve worked closely with partners and experts in the federal government and aviation industry to identify existing security gaps and maintain our high safety standards. The Safer Skies Act will close a loophole that has allowed certain operators, like ticketed charter flights, to bypass the rigorous screening requirements that ensure the safety of all passengers. It is vital for protecting our skies and the lives of passengers and crew alike.”

August 28, 2026

Steuben County Sheriff Jim Allard reports that on August 26, 2026, members of the Steuben County Sheriff’s Office, Village of Bath Police Department and the Bath VA Police honored retired Bath Village Police Sergeant Les Brown at the Bath Rod and Gun Club Law Enforcement Range.
In 2006, Sergeant Brown and Sheriff Tweddell applied for and received a grant from New York State to build a regional training facility for law enforcement firearms training. Sergeant Brown partnered with the Bath Rod and Gun Club to build, from the ground up, a state of the art firearms training center, which he still is in charge of to this day, even in retirement. On August 26, Sergeant Brown was honored with a plaque and dedication of the training center as the “Sergeant Lester Brown Law Enforcement Range” in recognition of his tireless dedication to law enforcement training.

August 28, 2026

FROM NEW YORK STATE GOP CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR BRUCE BLAKEMAN: “Kathy Hochul is beholden to NYC’s Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Mamdani asked for $5 billion to bail out NYC without requiring a single penny in spending cuts, and Hochul fell right in line. She gave away your hard-earned tax dollars. I’m running for Governor to end the blank checks, cut government waste, and protect your hard-earned money.”

August 28, 2026

FROM STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL LETITIA JAMES: New York Attorney General Letitia James and Governor Kathy Hochul today announced a lawsuit against the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office for failing to comply with New York’s Local Cops, Local Crimes Act (LCLCA), which requires local law enforcement agencies to dissolve all agreements under Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act by August 25, 2026. The law prohibits local governments and law enforcement agencies from entering or remaining in 287(g) agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). These agreements deputize local law enforcement officers to perform federal civil immigration enforcement functions.

“All law enforcement agencies are expected to uphold New York’s laws,” said Attorney General James. “The Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office has been given every opportunity to follow the law, yet has chosen not to. My office is suing to enforce New York’s laws and ensure that local law enforcement agencies remain focused on their most fundamental responsibility: keeping New Yorkers safe.”

“Compliance with the Local Cops, Local Crimes Act is not optional. Rensselaer County’s failure to act in accordance with the law sends a clear message: these elected leaders are not serious about New Yorkers’ safety,” said Governor Hochul. “Today, we are taking action to ensure the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office performs the duties required of it under state law, because no one in New York State is above the law.”