On October 14, Andrew Cuomo signed legislation making Juneteenth an official state holiday. The designation will make June 19 a paid day of leave for state employees. Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, commemorates June 19, 1865, when the news of liberation came to Texas more than two years after […]
Policy
State will withhold funding for local governments and schools if they don’t enforce COVID rules
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday that New York state will withhold funds for local governments and schools in COVID-19 cluster zones if they fail to enforce public health laws. The state Department of Health will send a letter warning local governments in cluster zones that they will lose state funding […]
Groups plea with Education Commissioner to suspend all school testing this year
On Sept. 30, the Alliance for Quality Education and two dozen other groups released a letter to the New York State Interim Commissioner of Education, Betty Rosa, asking that she consider suspending all forms of mandatory state testing for the 2020-2021 school year. The letter states that the focus for […]
Students react to two-week pause at Binghamton and Cortland campuses
A surge in COVID-19 cases caused SUNY Cortland and SUNY Binghamton to suspend in-person classes and activities and transition to remote learning for at least two weeks. These campuses join the two New York state colleges that have faced closures so far this year: SUNY Oswego, which just ended their […]
Governor names New York team that will screen any vaccines approved by the feds
As several drug makers scramble to find a vaccine for COVID-19, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced he has assembled an independent Clinical Advisory Task Force which will review any federally authorized vaccines before they are distributed to the almost 19.5 million people living across New York state. “There are polls that […]
Gov. Cuomo and Gov. Murphy announce COVID-contact tracing apps
On Thursday, Oct. 1, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy came together for the release of COVID contact tracing apps, COVID Alert NY and COVID Alert NJ, to alert residents of infections in their area in an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The […]
Cuomo cracks down on state’s COVID clusters with closures and upped fines for noncompliance
On Oct. 5, Gov. Cuomo held a live press conference in order to announce New York state’s plans going forward in regards to the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the announcement, Cuomo emphasized the importance of increased testing, contact tracing, and enforcement of and compliance with the state’s COVID guidelines, especially amongst […]
Albany mayor announces new investments for West Hill neighborhood
Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan recently joined community leaders and other local officials to announce plans for the former Livingston Par, which has been renamed Black Lives Matter Park. Included in the plans are a $600,000 investment for the Albany Boxing Gym facility and plans for a new community center for […]