State and National News

Gov. Hochul's DEC has proposed logging of the old growth forest of Zoar Valley

Hochul’s DEC set to Clear-Cut Zoar Old-Growth Forest

Climate Change, State and National News October 29, 2024 at 10:52 am

  Several years ago, I attended a hike through the wild and majestic Zoar Valley, located a half hour’s drive south of Buffalo, led by forestry expert Bruce Kershner. A living legend among the local environmental community, Kershner was an acknowledged expert and the “go to” guy when it cameRead More

Governor Hochul Announces Nation-Leading Legislation to Restrict Addictive Social Media Feeds and Protect Kids Online

Governor Hochul Announces Nation-Leading Legislation to Restrict Addictive Social Media Feeds and Protect Kids Online

State and National News June 23, 2024 at 3:15 pm

New York Attorney General Letitia James, Governor Kathy Hochul, and bill sponsors Senator Andrew Gounardes and Assemblymember Nily Rozic today announced that nation-leading legislation to combat addictive social media feeds and protect kids online has been signed into law. The bill signing ceremony included union leaders, advocates, parents, and childrenRead More

FIREFIGHTERS SOUND THE ALARM: PROPOSED CHANGES TO FEDERAL OSHA REGULATIONS COULD HAVE A PROFOUND IMPACT  ON LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND RESIDENTS’ PROPERTY TAXES

FIREFIGHTERS SOUND THE ALARM: PROPOSED CHANGES TO FEDERAL OSHA REGULATIONS COULD HAVE A PROFOUND IMPACT ON LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND RESIDENTS’ PROPERTY TAXES

State and National News June 20, 2024 at 1:00 pm

The Firefighters Association of the State of New York (FASNY) are expressing their serious concerns about proposed changes to federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations governing both career and volunteer fire departments.  If these proposed regulations are implemented as presently written, there will be a profound negative impactRead More

Attorney General James Announces Election Protection Hotline Ahead of June Primary Elections

Attorney General James Announces Election Protection Hotline Ahead of June Primary Elections

State and National News June 17, 2024 at 4:05 pm

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced that the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) will make its Election Protection Hotline available for the upcoming June 25, 2024 primary election and during New York’s early voting period, which runs from Saturday, June 15 through Sunday, June 23. The hotline willRead More

Attorney General James Recovers $50 Million from Crypto Firm Gemini for Defrauded Investors

Attorney General James Recovers $50 Million from Crypto Firm Gemini for Defrauded Investors

State and National News June 15, 2024 at 7:31 am

  New York Attorney General Letitia James today recovered approximately $50 million from the cryptocurrency platform Gemini Trust Company, LLC (Gemini) for more than 230,000 investors, including at least 29,000 New Yorkers, who invested in the Gemini Earn program and were defrauded. Gemini allegedly misled thousands of investors on theRead More

OPINION: Republican Hubris in Courting Black Voters

OPINION: Republican Hubris in Courting Black Voters

State and National News June 13, 2024 at 10:08 pm

BY: Andrew Moss There’s a breathtaking hubris at work when a political party seeks to suppress the votes of an entire people, then claims its leaders are the champions of that same people. You don’t have to look far to find such hubris in the Republican Party today. When DonaldRead More

OPINION: Is It Time for The Gaza-Israel War to End? Evidently Not

OPINION: Is It Time for The Gaza-Israel War to End? Evidently Not

State and National News June 11, 2024 at 12:35 pm

Is It Time for This War to End? Evidently Not BY: Mel Gurtov  In a major speech May 31, Pres. Biden offered a three-phase plan for ending the Israel-Hamas war, saying “it is time for this war to end.” (I have appended the White House outline of the plan toRead More

American Heart Association bestows highest award for meritorious community service

American Heart Association bestows highest award for meritorious community service

State and National News June 11, 2024 at 12:30 pm

The American Heart Association, celebrating 100 years of lifesaving service, recognized the National Football League (NFL) with its Award of Meritorious Achievement Monday night. The award, the highest honor the organization bestows, was presented to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell during ceremonies celebrating the founding of the American Heart Association. TheRead More

Attorney General James Secures $350,000 from Long Island Nissan Dealers for Cheating Consumers

Attorney General James Secures $350,000 from Long Island Nissan Dealers for Cheating Consumers

State and National News June 8, 2024 at 9:17 pm

New York Attorney General Letitia James today secured more than $350,000 from two Long Island Nissan dealerships, Route 112 Nissan and South Shore Nissan, for overcharging more than 200 New Yorkers who wanted to purchase their leased vehicles at the end of their lease term. An investigation by the OfficeRead More

Second Amendment Foundation Declares ‘We Will Defend Donald Trump’s Gun Rights!’

Second Amendment Foundation Declares ‘We Will Defend Donald Trump’s Gun Rights!’

State and National News June 7, 2024 at 10:19 am

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) has announced it will defend former President Donald Trump’s gun rights in the wake of his conviction in a New York courtroom, which could result in the confiscation of his firearms. “If Donald Trump is further prosecuted for owning firearms,” said SAF founder and ExecutiveRead More

A chimera seen swimming near the seafloor during the first midwater transect of Dive 10 of the Deep Connections 2019 expedition.

Biden-Harris administration publishes final management plan for Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument

State and National News June 5, 2024 at 9:06 am

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) and NOAA Fisheries today released the final management plan and environmental assessment for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, the first and only marine national monument located in the Atlantic Ocean. The monument was established to protect and conserve unique andRead More

OP-ED: Spoiler Candidates, RFK Jr., Cornell West, Ranked Choice Voting

OP-ED: Spoiler Candidates, RFK Jr., Cornell West, Ranked Choice Voting

State and National News June 3, 2024 at 8:49 am

  BY: Barry Rosenberg There are currently three third party candidates for president: Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Jill Stein and Cornell West. All three candidates claim they are running to give voters a choice and a chance to voice their views. All three insist they are not “spoilers.” Let’s examineRead More

SENATE REPUBLICAN LEADER ROB ORTT ON PASSAGE OF SENATE BILL RELATING TO OVERSIGHT OF LOCKPORT CAVE AND BOAT TOUR

SENATE REPUBLICAN LEADER ROB ORTT ON PASSAGE OF SENATE BILL RELATING TO OVERSIGHT OF LOCKPORT CAVE AND BOAT TOUR

State and National News May 30, 2024 at 7:29 pm

Today, the New York State Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill S9241, relating to the duty to inspect vessels operated on non-navigable underground waters. This important legislation resulted from the tragic incident at the Lockport Cave and Boat Tour that sadly took the life of a Niagara Falls man and injuredRead More

Attorney General James and Coalition of 13 AGs Call for DOJ Investigation into Murder of Garrett Foster Following Texas Pardon

Attorney General James and Coalition of 13 AGs Call for DOJ Investigation into Murder of Garrett Foster Following Texas Pardon

State and National News May 30, 2024 at 7:29 pm

New York Attorney General Letitia James and a coalition of 13 attorneys general today urged the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to open a civil rights investigation into the July 2020 murder of Garrett Foster, who was protesting racial injustice when he was shot and killed by Daniel Perry inRead More

Attorney General James Takes Action to Defend Protections for Pregnant Workers

Attorney General James Takes Action to Defend Protections for Pregnant Workers

State and National News May 27, 2024 at 4:45 pm

New York Attorney General Letitia James today led a coalition of 23 attorneys general defending a proposed rule issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission(EEOC) to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) of 2022. The PWFA is landmark federal legislation that requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnantRead More

Attorney General James and DEC Interim Commissioner Mahar Sue Contractor for Illegal Construction Near Protected Wetlands on Long Island

Attorney General James and DEC Interim Commissioner Mahar Sue Contractor for Illegal Construction Near Protected Wetlands on Long Island

State and National News May 27, 2024 at 4:43 pm

New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar today filed a lawsuit against Anthony Labriola and his two affiliate companies—ALAC Realty, LLC (ALAC Realty) and ALAC Contracting Corp. (ALAC Contracting)—for illegally building a storage lot to park heavy-duty constructionRead More

Attorney General James Sues Live Nation and Ticketmaster for Monopolizing Live Events and Overcharging Consumers

Attorney General James Sues Live Nation and Ticketmaster for Monopolizing Live Events and Overcharging Consumers

State and National News May 25, 2024 at 6:32 pm

  New York Attorney General Letitia James, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and a bipartisan coalition of 30 attorneys general today sued Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (Live Nation) and its subsidiary Ticketmaster for monopolizing the live events industry and harming consumers, artists, venues, and competitors. The lawsuit, filed inRead More

Erie County GOP Applauds Congressman Nick Langworthy and House Republicans for Voting to End Non-Citizen Voting in Washington, DC

Erie County GOP Applauds Congressman Nick Langworthy and House Republicans for Voting to End Non-Citizen Voting in Washington, DC

State and National News May 25, 2024 at 6:30 pm

Erie County Republican Committee Chairman Michael Kracker issued the following statement in response to Congressman Nick Langworthy and the House Republicans voting to repeal Washington D.C.’s non-citizen voting law: “I want to thank Congressman Nick Langworthy and the House Republicans for taking a strong vote against allowing non-citizens to voteRead More

Senate Republicans Introduce Bill to Close Loopholes that Allowed Harvey Weinstein Conviction to be Overturned

Senate Republicans Introduce Bill to Close Loopholes that Allowed Harvey Weinstein Conviction to be Overturned

State and National News May 22, 2024 at 9:56 am

New York State Senator Anthony Palumbo, State Senator Steve Rhoads, Senator Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick and members of the Senate Republican Conference today introduced legislation aimed at fixing the glaring loopholes that resulted in the shocking decision by the  Court of Appeals to overturn the conviction of serial sexual assaulter Harvey Weinstein.Read More

Broadband for All? Mapping and Discussing Progress and Remaining Challenges Across NYS

Broadband for All? Mapping and Discussing Progress and Remaining Challenges Across NYS

State and National News May 21, 2024 at 9:19 am

More than 1.8 million New Yorkers live in households that do not have any access to broadband Internet through a subscription or through a cellular data plan. Community partners, policy makers, and decision makers across NY are invited to join Rusty Weaver, Director of Research, ILR Buffalo Co-Lab, and communityRead More

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