May 17, 2013 — The state Office of Mental Health could decide as soon as Monday whether it will close the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center in Ogdensburg.

This week, the state held a meeting to listen to the community's comments about the center. One topic many people brought up was jobs: The Ogdensburg facility employs more than 500 people.  Go to full article

May 16, 2013 — Good news for homeowners impacted by 2011's Tropical Storm Irene: Essex County will get grant money to cover the 25 percent non-federal share for up to 37 property buyouts.

Governor Andrew Cuomo announced this week that funds for Hurricane Sandy recovery will be used to make those enrolled in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's property acquisition program whole.  Go to full article

May 16, 2013 — The state plans to decide next week which mental health hospitals it's going to close, and which will be chosen as what the state's calling "Regional Centers of Excellence." That's the word from New York's Acting Commissioner for Mental Health. Kristin Woodlock wrapped up her "listening tour" of hospitals around the state in Ogdensburg on Wednesday.  Go to full article

May 16, 2013 — A New York prosecutor says he's found no crime after investigating sexual harassment allegations by female staff members of Assemblyman Vito Lopez, a Brooklyn Democrat.

But Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan said what he found was "alarming," and he admonished higher-level state officials who he said allowed Lopez's behavior through secret settlements and confidentiality.

Meanwhile, the state Joint Commission on Public Ethics found Lopez's actions violated the public trust.  Go to full article

May 16, 2013 — Governor Cuomo is calling on Assemblyman Vito Lopez, the subject of a scathing ethics commission report on sexual harassment, to resign from office or be expelled.  Go to full article

May 15, 2013 — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is turning his attention to a previously announced plan to help communities in financial distress.

The governor is offering more details of his plan to set up a restructuring panel to help local governments on the brink of insolvency. He's also putting some money behind the plan...according to the Associated Press, $80 million.

Cuomo says his proposed financial restructuring panel will help local governments in distress merge and consolidate services, possibly lay off more workers and to permanently restructure operations.  Go to full article

May 14, 2013 — Lawmakers in Albany tried to carry on as usual in the wake of one of the worst scandals in recent decades. Recent corruption arrests have overshadowed most other news coming out of the Capitol. And much of this week's legislative session has been cancelled.

But politicians who were in town insisted that their agendas are not being derailed.  Go to full article

May 13, 2013 — The state ethics commission report on the Assemblyman Vito Lopez sexual harassment scandal might finally be made public later this month.  Go to full article

May 10, 2013 — Gov. Andrew Cuomo, joined by union and business leaders, and representatives from county governments, offered more details of a plan to build three new gambling casinos.
The governor says he wants to limit the locations to upstate regions for now, to prop up the failing economy. He says upstate needs jobs like it needs "oxygen". And he says having a downstate location would devalue the upstate centers.  Go to full article

May 09, 2013 — Nine more names of State Senators and others potentially involved in corruption were made public Wednesday, when a judge ordered prosecutors in the case of convicted ex-Senator Shirley Huntley to make public the names of her colleagues that she had secretly recorded.  Go to full article