Opposition to Paterson's directive to recognize gay marriages

Opposition is surfacing against New York Gov. David Paterson’s directive to state agencies to recognize gay marriages legally performed in other states and countries, according to the AP.

 

The Rev. Duane Motley of New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms says the Democratic governor is circumventing the Legislature and courts and slapping New Yorkers in the face, AP reports.

 

Motley says granting government benefits to gay couples will come at a cost to the state even as Paterson calls for cuts in spending because of looming deficits, AP reports.

 

Motley says Paterson shouldn’t force the state to recognize gay marriages when they remain illegal in New York, AP reports.

 

Paterson is directing agencies to recognize gay marriages performed legally elsewhere when granting state employment and other benefits, AP reports.

Legislature may hold off on some issues

With a month left in the legislative session, state lawmakers are talking about putting off the remaining thorny issues until after the November elections, according to the AP.

 

On Tuesday, Gov. David Paterson held his last in a series of closed-door meetings with legislative conferences. And as with the Senate’s Republican majority, his meeting with the Assembly’s Democratic majority was full of jokes and pledges to work together while putting the animus of the clashes with former Gov. Eliot Spitzer behind them, AP reports.

 

There were no agreements on priorities or hashing out compromise, which many lawmakers said would seem fitting with four full weeks left in the six-month legislative session, AP reports.

Paterson hospitalized

Gov. David Paterson is at a Manhattan hospital after experiencing migraine-like symptoms, according to the AP.

 

Paterson’s office said in a statement Tuesday that he asked to be brought to The Mount Sinai Medical Center for an evaluation. His office says preliminary tests were normal. It says he is resting comfortably and will undergo further tests, according to the report.

 

In April 2006, when he was state Senate Minority Leader, Paterson was hospitalized for almost 12 hours after complaining of chest pains. The tests came back normal, AP reports.

New state traffic alert system

State officials have launched a traffic alert system that provides real-time information about delays on New York’s highways, according to the AP.

 

The new system, called TransAlert, sends e-mail or cell-phone text messages to subscribers to let them know when there are significant travel disruptions, such as highway accidents or lane closures, AP reports.

 

State Transportation Commissioner Astrid Glynn says users can customize the service to receive statewide alerts or narrow the service by county.

 

The service is free. The information is distributed through the state Emergency Management Office’s electronic alert system, which officials say has more than 1.4 million subscribers, AP reports.

 

Drivers can sign up for the traffic alerts at www.nyalert.gov.

Paterson cracks down on gun laws

Gov. David Paterson is introducing legislation that would allow the state to tell the FBI if a New Yorker trying to buy a gun has been involuntarily committed to a mental health facility, according to the AP.

 

The proposal would disqualify those applicants from getting a gun, but federal law would require states to create a way for people to apply to remove their name from the registry, AP is reporting.

 

The legislation is a reaction to the Virginia Tech tragedy last year, when a mentally ill student shot 32 people dead, then killed himself.

 

The state Assembly passed a similar measure last month. Senate Republicans aren’t commenting except to say they will look at the bill, but haven’t seen it yet, according to the report.

Paterson to propose legislation to reduce gun violence

Gov. David Paterson will propose new legislation this morning to reduce gun violence.

 

The announcement will be at 10:30 a.m. in New York City.

 

To view the conference live on the Internet, go to: http://pointers.audiovideoweb.com/asxfiles-live/ca25winlive2138.asx

A felony to display a noose as a threat

Gov. David Paterson signed legislation Thursday that will make it a felony to display a noose as a threat, according to the AP.

 

The crime would be punishable by up to four years in prison.

 

Paterson says the legislation still isn’t enough and New York law will need to be strengthened more, according to the report.

 

Nooses were found last year on a black professor’s door at Columbia University, outside a post office near ground zero in lower Manhattan and in locations on Long Island.

Paterson signs bill pertaining to the Internet and sex offenders

New York officials are sending letters to the state’s 25,000 registered sex offenders telling them to disclose their Internet screen names in an effort to keep them from secretly contacting juveniles on social networking Web sites, according to the AP.

 

Those screen names will be made public. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo says at least two popular networking sites, MySpace and Facebook, plan to remove users whose names appear on the state’s Sex Offender Registry, the AP is reporting.

 

The screen name disclosures are required under a law signed by Gov. David Paterson that also prohibits certain convicted offenders on parole, probation or conditional discharge from using the Internet to contact children, according to the report.

Legislature details pork spending

The Senate and Assembly are detailing how they will direct $750 million in pork-barrel spending for construction projects in their districts this election year, according to the AP.

 

Despite the $5 billion deficit and the prospect of $20 billion in deficits in the next three years, lawmakers contend the spending — usually announced with much fanfare in their districts — is essential for boosting the economy, the AP reports.

 

The Senate’s Republican majority detailed nearly $218 million in spending, none of which will go to Democrats trying to take over the majority this fall.

 

Democratic Gov. David Paterson is expected to give Democratic senators some of his share of the $1.2 billion in capital spending approved in April, according to the report.

 

The Assembly released details of their $243 million share in April, according to the report.

Court action in prostitution ring case

Prosecutors in Manhattan say to expect court action today in connection with the prostitution ring that brought down former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, according to the Associated Press.

 

The U.S. attorney’s office says in a statement that a “proceeding of interest” will be held this morning. Further details were not available, AP reported.

 

Four people are charged in the case with conspiracy to violate federal prostitution laws, AP reports.

 

Spitzer, who’s identified in the court papers as Client No. 9, has not been charged. He announced his resignation as governor on March 12.

Griffo says stop violence on Internet sites

Legislation designed to crack down on the alarming trend of recording criminal acts of violence with the intent of distributing them on the Internet for entertainment purposes is being advanced by the Senate Majority Conference, according to the North Country Gazette, http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2008/05/13/violence_ban/

 

The legislation, announced Tuesday at a Capitol news conference, comes in response to an increasing number of violent attacks orchestrated and recorded by individuals who want to post the videos on Internet sharing sites, such as YouTube.com and MySpace.com, according to the report.

 

“It’s disturbing to see folks trying to achieve fame, attention and celebrity through criminal violent acts,” Sen. Joseph A. Griffo R-Rome was quoted as saying. “Especially those that involve children. As technology evolves to improve people’s lives or entertain them, we still need to pay attention to lawful behavior. If criminality is caught on a recorded media, then we need to use it as a tool to pursue and prosecute these offenders.”

"Ugly Betty" is coming to New York

Well, this is a little different than the usual news blogs, but it caught my interest nonetheless.

Do any of you ever watch “Ugly Betty,” the television show about a young, nerdy girl who works for a magazine company?

Well, if you do, you may be interested in learning that filming is moving to New York.

That’s the word from Gov. David Paterson, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and ABC Studios President Mark Pedowitz, according to an AP article.

They said Monday that the popular ABC drama will be taking advantage of a 35 percent tax credit from the city and state when it makes the move from Los Angeles to the Big Apple.

“Ugly Betty” is the story of an ordinary girl from Queens, starring Emmy-winner America Ferrera as Betty Suarez. It will be filmed in Manhattan in Queens, and create more than 200 full and part-time jobs, according to the AP.

New York City’s film and television production industry employs 100,000 people and generates $5 billion a year to the city’s economy.

Trash trucks must find a new route

Have you ever seen a garbage truck rollover out in the Finger Lakes region?

 

Well, you’re not the only one, and now, thanks to Gov. David Paterson, the problem may soon cease to exist.

 

Trash trucks will no longer be allowed to take short cuts across upstate New York’s scenic country highways and will be required to stay on the state’s major interstates as they transport waste to upstate landfills, Paterson said today, according to an Associated Press report.

 

Paterson directed the state Department of Transportation to immediately begin developing regulations for large truck routes and gave the agency until June 1 to finish and present its plan for public comment, according to the AP.

 

The new regulations will keep all large trucks on the national interstate network for as much of a trip as possible. They will not affect local pickup and delivery trucks, according to the AP.

 

Paterson expected to have the regulations in place before the end of the summer, taking effect initially in the Finger Lakes region but eventually expanded statewide. Violations will carry substantial fines and the new rules will be enforced by local and state police, Paterson said.

Local legislators react to Internet tax

Amazon.com has filed a suit challenging New York State’s new law that forces online retailers to collect sales taxes on shipments to state residents, the New York Times reports.

On Friday, Amazon filed a complaint in New York Supreme Court in New York City, objecting to the law. The provision is meant to contribute about $50 million to the $122 billion budget that was passed by the state legislature April 9 and signed by Gov. David A. Paterson last week, according to the Times.

The new law includes any Web site based in the state that earns a referral fee for sending customers to an online retailer, according to the report.

Here’s what some Mohawk Valley legislators have to say about the Internet tax:

Assemblywoman RoAnn Destito, D-Rome:

“I actually had mixed feeling about it. People are buying off the Internet and not having to pay sales tax. The Internet is such a unique opportunity. When you look at a county like ours that is charging 8 and three quarters percent sales tax, the businesses are bearing the brunt of that burden as well.

I believe that we should collect the revenue. Anyone who has a presence in New York state must collect sales tax. I think it’s a matter of fairness.”

Assemblyman Dave Townsend, R-Sylvan Beach:

“I don’t like any new taxes and fees to be put on the people. It’s just another way to have the government grab the residents’ money and I voted against it. I don’t like it and I don’t think it’s fair.”

Sen. Joseph Griffo, R-Rome:

“The Senate initially rejected all of those fees, but in the final weeks many of those were taken out and some were sunset and a few remained. The cigarette tax and the Amazon tax remained. In this particular tax, I think overall I don’t like it – because I don’t like imposing any new taxes. But, it also levels the playing field. One retailer shouldn’t be given an advantage over another.

I think this is going to end up in court. I don’t know how it will be resolved."