Knickerbocker Blog

. . . after February 1.

Commentary:

N.Y. can't spend way out of mess (editorial/Poughkeepsie Journal)

Spitzer aide mentions local income tax to Suozzi (Sid Cassese and William Murphy/Newsday)

Consultant's report pushes new licenses for Indian Point (Allan Drury/Journal News)

The closing of the nuclear plants at Indian Point could cause electricity prices in Westchester County to rise more than 150 percent by 2017, severely depressing job growth and property values, a coalition of business groups and its consultant said yesterday.

The average residential electricity bill in the region would increase from about $1,000 a year to $2,500 while job growth would drop by 11,000, Energy Strategies Inc. said in a report prepared for the Westchester Business Alliance.

Jobs in health care, real estate, government, education and retail would be among those hit the hardest if the region's electrical costs--which are already among the highest in the United States--rose by the projected amounts, the report said.

More on why this matters:

Cold weather, high demand push electricity bills up (Michael Levensohn/Middletown Times Herald-Record

IDA tax breaks expire (Jay Gallagher/Gannett News Service)

Reform bill aims to raise IDAs' accountability; Critics say "prevailing wage" provision would undermine effort to cut construction costs (Chris Churchill/Albany Times Union)

Health planning task force challenges hospital expansion projects (Chris Swingle/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

Hospital Closures About To Reach Dobbs Ferry (E.B. Solomont/New York Sun)

Dobbs Ferry 'hybrid hospital' to merge with St. John's (Candice Ferrette/Journal News)

Commentary:

Looking anew at care (editorial/Journal News)

Commentary:

Watching the toll takers (editorial/Elmira Star-Gazette)

Stopping toll hike is just a first step (editorial/Middletown Times Herald-Record)

Wrong Road; Thruway Authority needs oversight, not toll increase (editorial/Syracuse Post-Standard)

Taxpayer's spare change costs Cicero more money (Tom Leo/Syracuse Post-Standard)

Former Cicero Supervisor Roy Mallette thinks his taxes are too high.

He's complained. He's grieved his taxes. He's sued the town.

Wednesday, Mallette paid most of his $11,389.88 bill for county and town taxes in coins and small bills.

Davis defends tax-free housing; Council member calls incentive deal ethical (Brian Meyer/Buffalo News)

Some city homeowners who live in economically distressed zones are eligible for tax breaks and might not know it.

But Ellicott Council Member Brian C. Davis' family has cashed in on the incentives. The lawmaker is living tax-free in a home his wife built on former city-owned land that's located in a state Empire Zone.

Davis insists there's nothing improper about the fact that the family's home at 409 Hickory St. is exempt from paying nearly $2,800 in annual city and county property taxes. The full exemption continues for seven years, followed by partial tax breaks through the 11th year.

Nor does Davis think there was anything wrong with his 2004 vote to extend the life of an incentive zone that was created in the mid-1990s. He said he had no interest in the property when the vote was taken.

But six months later, in January 2005, Davis' fiancee bought a city-owned parcel in the zone for the $3,300. Davis was absent from the meeting when the Council approved the sale.

Elmira cuts down on borrowing; City takes big step, has cash on hand to pay 2008 expenses, Burin says (Ray Finger/Elmira Star-Gazette)

Lawsuit over hire freeze is approved (Jenny Lee/Poughkeepsie Journal)

Tax covers arena's debt; Hotel levy raises more than needed in '07 for $3.1M payment on Times Union Center (Carol DeMare/Albany Times Union)

Commentary:

Keep [Buffalo control board] independent; Taxpayers will suffer if Albany pressures the city's control board (editorial/Buffalo News)

Save the city's fiscal lifeline (op-ed/New York Post)

Budget Cuts Raise Wrath of Principals (Elissa Gootman and Jennifer Medina/New York Times)

New Paltz school board will explore renovation (Jeremiah Horrigan/Middletown Times Herald-Record)

Local schools could see $21 million less from state (James Hawver/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

Ruling angers school leader; Superintendent says bill from charter school, which state wants paid, based on inflated enrollment (Lauren Stanforth/Albany Times Union)

Teachers and principals rip le$$en plan (Yoav Gonen/New York Post)

Commentary:

Merger may be option for N.Y. Mills (editorial/Utica Observer-Dispatch)

Stern Challenge From Milwaukee (op-ed/New York Sun)

Finally, finally $$ for Roosevelt; Money is flowing, but keep oversight (editorial/Newsday)

Commission issuing plan to charge drivers entering Manhattan (Adam Goldman/Associated Press)

State Commission Approves a Plan for Congestion Pricing (William Neuman/New York Times)

Commission Votes For Congestion-Pricing Plan Modification (New York Sun)

Green light for fee; 2 dissent as panel OKs congest plan (Patrick Gallahue/New York Post)

Congest plan panel agrees with weekday toll for drivers below 60th St. (Adam Lisberg/Daily News)

Commentary:

The Reverse Commuter Tax (Andrew Wolf column/New York Sun)

A Good Plan for Traffic Relief (editorial/New York Times)

On congestion pricing (editorial/Journal News)

Big Bets Made by Democrats on Gambling; Governors Seek Revenues in Casinos, Lotteries (Jacob Gershman/New York Sun)

Experts say economic rebound may take time; Local experts say rate cuts, tax rebates may not be enough to boost economy (Jeff Aaron/Elmira Star-Gazette)

Commentary:

State tax payment loss threatens Adirondacks, Catskills (Fred LeBrun column/Albany Times Union)

Mapping Medicaid's future (op-ed/Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin)

Commentary:

Leaders must keep dialogue open; Now is no time for the community's leaders to stop talking (editorial/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

MSG's money game (editorial/Daily News)

Higgins seems to have lost his way (Donn Esmonde/Buffalo News)

Tioga Downs aid on track; Racino seeks boost in gaming revenue (My-Ly Nguyen/Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin)

Vernon to lose in Spitzer plan; Governor tells town, village he'd cut in half what state pays racino municipalities (Glenn Coin/Syracuse Post-Standard)

Sitel Corp. call center to bring 400 jobs to upstate NY (Associated Press)

Call center seeks 400 workers; Sitel plans to start training work force this month at CCC (Larry Wilson/Elmira Star-Gazette)

Homeland officials expected to give big boost to NYC area transit (Devlin Barrett/Associated Press)

Smooth start for border rules; No significant delays reported as new ID regulations begin (David Runk/Associated Press)

Region to get security funding; U.S. government widens eligibility for homeland protection dollars (Jim Odato/Albany Times Union)

City transit to get 151M for security (Pete Donohue/Daily News)

Syracuse listed as terror target (Mark Weiner/Syracuse Post-Standard)

Machining group gets grant to bolster work force; $125,000 will help RTMA train workers, fill vacancies (Claudia Vargas/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

Think tank gives valley high marks for growth (Craig Wolf/Poughkeepsie Journal)

2007 grape crop one of best in recent history (Syracuse Post-Standard)

Local leaders back $106 million plan to upgrade UB (David Robinson/Buffalo News)

Commentary:

Border crossing changes are here (editorial/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

Commentary:

Wyeth leaving behind a legacy of model citizenship (editorial/Plattsburgh Press-Republican)

New York Leads the Field in a High School Science Competition (Amanda M. Fairbanks/New York Times)

Democrats Resist Parts of Spitzer's Budget (Karen DeWitt/ New York Public Radio)

Governor brings budget-pitch tour to Dutchess (Jenny Lee/Poughkeepsie Journal)

SUNY leader decries budget cuts; Interim chancellor says Spitzer spending proposal would force tuition hikes at community colleges (Marc Parry/Albany Times Union)

Region to gain from $1B plan; Albany, Rensselaer and Schenectady all part of governor's upstate revitalization project (Jim Odato/Albany Times Union)

Commentary:

Mr. Silver doesn't get it (editorial/Albany Times Union)

Nice to hear, isn't it, from the all-knowing Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver that New York can always afford the political slush funds known as member items? That sure puts the state's $4.4 billion deficit into context.

Mr. Silver's priorities are clear enough. There's that raise for legislators that he's lobbying Governor Spitzer to support, even before the Legislature itself adopts the reforms that would make its members worthy of higher salaries. And, now, there's somewhere in the neighborhood of $175 million to $200 million for favored legislators to dole out to causes and projects back in their districts.

It's business as usual in Albany, all right.

Power plant rules sought; Governor makes priority of passing new law to combat impending energy shortage (Larry Rulison/Albany Times Union)

County leaders wary of new job-creation standards (Jay Gallagher/Gannett News Service)

Plans by the state's major economic-development agency to tighten requirements for state aid to private companies could hamper attempts to create jobs in some rural parts of New York, county officials said yesterday at a meeting with the head of the state's upstate-development office.

"It's unrealistic for small communities'' to meet the new requirements, said Jerome Grasso, a Genesee County legislator, since few new projects generate large numbers of jobs.

He had just heard Dan Gundersen, the co-chairman of the state Empire State Development Corp., describe how the state plans to start to require firms to invest $20 for every $1 they get in state help, up from a 15-to-1 ratio now. He said the state also wants to reduce the amount of time taxpayer-aided firms have to fulfill economic promises made in exchange for public help from five years to three.

Previously, "firms were not held accountable,'' Gundersen said at a meeting of the state Association of Counties. Tougher standards "will allow us to focus in on better deals,'' he said.

But the new higher ratio "could be a deal-breaker for some of our projects,'' said Chuck Nesbitt, chief administrative officer of the Orleans County Legislature.

Amid Secession Talk, Mayor Warns State on Taxation (Grace Rauh/New York Sun)

Commentary:

Parks merger ahead some day? (editorial/Syracuse Post-Standard)

Collins orders more part-timers hired to save on paid time off (Matthew Spina/Buffalo News)

Hallquist Has Help On Health Insurance (Dennis Phillips/Jamestown Post-Journal)

Tina Hallquist is no longer alone in her quest to reduce local taxpayer’s burden for legislator health insurance.

In December, the Conservative Party legislator proposed to eliminate health insurance for legislators, but it was defeated by a 20 to 5 vote. Mrs. Hallquist said she made the proposal because she thought it was unfair that legislators were one of the few part-time county employees with the option for insurance. Plus, she said eliminating the insurance would save the county money. She said in 2007 the county paid $142,203 for legislator insurance and in the last six years the county, altogether, has paid almost $900,000.

However, Mrs. Hallquist now has partners in the legislature working with her to find the best way to reduce the cost of insurance to save taxpayer money, but also find a reasonable compensation package for legislators.

Legislature nearer to suing over freeze (Jenny Lee/Poughkeepsie Journal)

Cutting cla$$: Every school takes budget hit (Yoav Gonen/New York Post)

Change at top for bad city schools (Erin Einhorn/Daily News)

State cracks down on Empire Zone companies; Three Capital Region businesses are among 180 officials say fell short of job, investment goals (Larry Rulison/Albany Times Union)

Assemblyman Gantt refuses to meet with Brooks — again (Joe Spector and Jill Terrerri/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

Mayor's Congestion-Pricing Plan Advancing, With Some Changes (Jared Irmas/New York Sun)

Panel to vote Thursday on NYC traffic fee plan; not final step (Associated Press)

Albany trouble for congest plan (Daily News)

Final congestion plan ready to roll (Patrick Gallahue/New York Post)

Congestion Pricing Plan Is Panned in Albany (William Neuman/New York Times)

Commentary:

Congestion plan's moving (editorial/Daily News)

Super Bowl ads to build UR Medical Center's brand (Patrick Flanigan/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

Spitzer due at launch of call center; Sitel Corp. to hold ribbon-cutting for new business in old Corning Inc. plant in Erwin (Larry Wilson/Elmira Star-Gazette)

Fares see slight drop at Albany airport; Survey finds Stewart International in Newburgh to be second cheapest facility (Eric Anderson/Albany Times Union)

Border changes start today (Joe LoTemplio/Plattsburgh Press-Republican)

Commentary:

Does this help? (editorial/Syracuse Post-Standard)

New travel requirements go into effect Thursday for those traveling between the United States and Canada. U.S. border agents will no longer allow travelers to simply state their citizenship when entering the country. Instead, those without passports will have to produce a driver's license or other government-approved ID to prove identity, and another document, typically a birth certificate, to demonstrate citizenship.

With the economy struggling and millions of dollars exchanged in goods and services with Canada, can the timing be worse?

Hospitals team up for low-cost care; Plan would cut costs, give care for patients without insurance (Jonathan D. Epstein/Buffalo News)

State University system notes record high enrollment (Brandon Bain/Newsday)

Billion-Dollar Blitz; Spitzer urges CNY to get out, lobby for his Upstate revitalization proposal (Rick Moriarty/Syracuse Post-Standard)