Apr 18, 2013 — This week we've been looking at the fortunes of the North Country's dairy industry and some of the hurdles faced by farmers and processors.

Over the last few months, our Prison Time Media Project has also been looking at the way prisons shape communities and the local economy in the North Country.

There are more than a dozen state and Federal prisons in the region, along with eleven county jails. That makes corrections work one of our top employers.

One activist group based in Brooklyn thinks these two issues -- prison jobs and the dairy industry -- should be linked in people's minds, as we think about ways to grow the rural economy. That group's called "Milk Not Jails."  Go to full article

Watertown, NY, Nov 05, 2012 — The race for state Senate in the 48th district - which includes Jefferson, Oswego and St. Lawrence counties - pits incumbent Republican Patty Ritchie against underdog Democrat Amy Tresidder.

Both women stress the need for state mandate relief for local communities, and for measures to boost the upstate economy, although the strategies they'd take for doing that differ.  Go to full article

Canton, NY, Sep 08, 2011 — State Senator Pattie Ritchie announced Wednesday she's introduced legislation that would require every SUNY college to have its own president.

The legislation comes after the state university system announced last month it's planning to merge the leadership of several pairs of SUNY colleges including Canton and Potsdam, Morrisville and Utica, Delhi and Cobleskill.  Go to full article

Apr 08, 2011 — The North Country State Senators are suing to block a new law for redistricting this year. It would count prison inmates in the districts where their home residence is, not in the North Country town where they're held. David Sommerstein reports.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Mar 22, 2011 — A joint budget conference committee has restored money for the Tug Hill Commission in the state budget. According to State Senator Patty Ritchie's office, the Assembly agreed to the Senate's funding level of $1.1 million. That's a 10 percent cut from last year, on par with other state agencies. Todd Moe has more.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Feb 02, 2011 — Governor Andrew Cuomo delivered the painful news he has been promising yesterday. He released an austere state budget that leaves no aspect of state government untouched. There are deep cuts to schools, health care, the prison and university systems, and the potential for almost 10,000 state worker layoffs. Karen DeWitt reports from Albany and David Sommerstein has reaction from North Country lawmakers.  Go to full article

Canton, NY, Jan 06, 2011 — Cuomo's speech drew praise from North Country Republicans. Freshman Republican Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush of Jefferson County said Cuomo's tax cutting message was "on point."

New State Senator Patty Ritchie, also a Republican, gave the speech high marks.  Go to full article

Nov 01, 2010 — The 48th Senate district race between incumbent Democrat Darrel Aubertine and Republican Patty Ritchie is one of a handful in New York that will determine who controls the State Senate. A new poll shows the race remains locked in a near dead-heat. Ritchie goes into the final day of campaigning riding the momentum of two key endorsements. David Sommerstein reports.  Go to full article

Fulton, NY, Oct 28, 2010 — The 48th State Senate district is shaping up to be one of the most closely watched races in New York State on Election Day. Republican Patty Ritchie's effort to unseat Democratic Senator Darrel Aubertine could tip the balance of power in the Senate back to the GOP.

State campaign committees of both parties have spent more than a million dollars in the 48th just since October 1st. Most of that money went to TV ads.
Darrel Aubertine is seeking his second full term in the Senate after several years in the Assembly. He's the legislature's only farmer. And he's running as a bipartisan lawmaker who lives rural issues and knows how to get things done. David Sommerstein has this profile.  Go to full article

Canton, NY, Mar 31, 2010 — Patty Ritchie says she's running to unseat Darrel Aubertine. Martha Foley has more.  Go to full article