Governor extends indoor mask mandate Governor Kathy Hochul announced Friday afternoon that she’s extending the “mask or vaccine” policy for indoor public spaces through February 10, 2022. The mask mandate remains in place for schools, as well. It had been set to expire February 1 and this week was the subject of back-and-forth court rulings on its constitutionality. The most recent court decision upholds the mandate. The governor said Friday that she would evaluate the mandate every two weeks.…
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Letter: Farms can’t afford threshold The future of agriculture locally may be in the hands of a three-member board. The decision they make will impact our farms immediately. The decision to be made — should the overtime threshold for farm labor move from 60 hours to 40 hours? The answer — no. According to a study from Cornell’s Dyson School and College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (commissioned by New York State) 72 percent of workers stated they would not…
Don’t underestimate her By Ted Potrikus Her beloved Buffalo Bills lost in a weekend heartbreaker, but aside from that, Governor Kathy Hochul has had a pretty good couple of weeks. She’s able to talk about turning the corner against the winter Omicron surge, with seven-day averages for new hospital admissions, new cases, and cases-per-100,000 declining in every part of the state. She laid out a blueprint for New York’s upcoming fiscal year, a $216 billion bonanza adorned with property tax…
Commission fails to agree on lawmakers’ district lines Outside temperatures might be hitting their January lows, but June’s heat and humidity aren’t too far away. Nor are June’s political primaries — those all-important preliminary contests that determine a party’s slate for next November’s ballots. Yet the boundaries of the congressional and state legislative districts remain a mystery for would-be candidates. That includes a measure of uncertainty for voters in the congressional contest that comprises Otsego County.…
Governor “Winter Surge 2.0” briefing includes mask mandate extension, school opening plans Governor Kathy Hochul today announced she will extend her indoor mask mandate by two weeks, keeping it in place across New York through January 29, 2022 rather than its original January 15 expiration.“This is all geared toward keeping the economy open,” she said during her New Year’s Eve “Winter Surge 2.0” press briefing. “The alternative is to shut it all down.”“The reason that we don’t have to do…
New York opens COVID-19 testing facility in Milford after Otsego County officials cite need for access New York Governor Kathy Hochul responded this week to a request from Otsego County officials and will locate a new, state-run COVID-19 testing site in Milford. The new site — one of only 13 throughout the state — opens Wednesday, December 29 at the American Legion Post at 86 West Main Street; its hours of operation are as follows: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from…
New York’s Styrofoam ban hits Jan. 1 New York’s ban on single-use Styrofoam food and beverage containers, as well as ‘packing peanuts,’ takes effect January 1, 2022. That brings an end to Styrofoam bowls, cartons, hinged ‘clamshell’ containers, cups, lids, plates, trays, or anything else used to ‘temporarily store or transport prepared foods or beverages.’ Also out: packing peanuts and other loose bits of packaging protection that contains Styrofoam. The law allows a civil penalty of up to $250 for…
COVID update December 21 The latest information from the Otsego County Health Department shows: 309 active cases 48 new cases 14 hospitalized…
Wassail, toddies, and, well, yes, politics By Ted Potrikus Ah, mid-December, when thoughts turn to the wrappings and trappings of the holiday season and joy-filled activities like wassailing and hot toddying and the Jenga stack that is New York State politics. New York Attorney General Tish James last week announced the end of her brief run chasing Governor Kathy Hochul for the Democratic Party nomination for governor in 2022. Surely that news brought seasonal joy to New York City Public…
County’s farmers push back on overtime Farmers across New York State, including Otsego County, are speaking out in opposition as a New York State Department of Labor Farm Laborers’ Wage Board considers lowering the threshold at which farm workers earn overtime pay from 60 hours per week to 40, a move farmers say will devastate their businesses. Farmers went to Albany Wednesday, December 1, to deliver letters to Governor Kathy Hochul opposing the move and urging the Wage Board to…