Democratic Caucus Wins Issue on Looking at Number of Oswego County Legislators

A new committee has been formed to explore the possibility of reducing the number of legislative districts in Oswego County.

Legislature Chairman Barry Leemann has named Legislator Dan Chalifoux (R) as chairman of the redistricting committee and Legislator Amy Tresidder (D) will serve as vice chairman.

Majority Leader Fred Beardsley (R) is the third member named to the committee.

The exploration of reducing the number of legislators from 25 to possibly 19 was requested by the Democrat caucus in June.

Tresidder said she has done extensive research on the issue and presented her finding to the legislature’s Strategic Planning and Government Committee.

Full Story

Official Twitter account for the Governor of New York State.

Storm Updates:

http://twitter.com/#!/NYGovCuomo

Perry

Thousands spent for legislators’ medical benefits

Last December, a majority of the Oswego County legislators were unwilling to give up a perk that allows up to $1,000 annually for uninsured medical expenses for themselves and their qualifying dependents.

The cost to taxpayers to provide the benefit for 2010 was $15,657.80, according to County Administrator Phil Church.

Each legislator is entitled to $1,000 per year for reimbursement of uninsured medical expenses. The perk can be used by either the legislator or their qualifying dependents regardless of whether they are enrolled in the county’s health insurance plan.

During budget talks last December, Democrats proposed eliminating the benefit for all legislators. Only Republican legislators Mary Flett, Terry Wilbur and Shawn Doyle voted with the four Democrat lawmakers in support of elimination.

Full Post

Stop Coddling the Super-Rich

OUR leaders have asked for “shared sacrifice.” But when they did the asking, they spared me. I checked with my mega-rich friends to learn what pain they were expecting. They, too, were left untouched.

While the poor and middle class fight for us in Afghanistan, and while most Americans struggle to make ends meet, we mega-rich continue to get our extraordinary tax breaks. Some of us are investment managers who earn billions from our daily labors but are allowed to classify our income as “carried interest,” thereby getting a bargain 15 percent tax rate. Others own stock index futures for 10 minutes and have 60 percent of their gain taxed at 15 percent, as if they’d been long-term investors.

These and other blessings are showered upon us by legislators in Washington who feel compelled to protect us, much as if we were spotted owls or some other endangered species. It’s nice to have friends in high places.

Last year my federal tax bill — the income tax I paid, as well as payroll taxes paid by me and on my behalf — was $6,938,744. That sounds like a lot of money. But what I paid was only 17.4 percent of my taxable income — and that’s actually a lower percentage than was paid by any of the other 20 people in our office. Their tax burdens ranged from 33 percent to 41 percent and averaged 36 percent.

Full Post

History Repeating Itself......

Rick Perry Is 'An Idiot'

Bruce Bartlett, who served as an adviser to Ronald Reagan and as a Treasury official under George H.W. Bush, called Republican presidential hopeful Rick Perry "an idiot" Friday, referencing negative comments the Texas governor made about Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke this week.

While campaigning in Iowa Monday, Perry said it would be "almost treasonous" for Bernanke to print more money between now and the 2012 election. "I don't know what y'all would do to him in Iowa, but we would treat him pretty ugly down in Texas," he said.

Bartlett reacted to the comments Friday during an appearance on CNN's "American Morning." "Rick Perry is an idiot, and I don't think anybody would disagree with that," Bartlett said. "The thing is, the politics of the Fed itself are really a more serious problem."

Full Post

Jon Huntsman Blasts Rick Perry Over Evolution, Climate Change, Ben Bernanke Comments

WASHINGTON (AP/The Huffington Post) -- Presidential candidate Jon Huntsman is pounding away at rival Rick Perry's skepticism of manmade global warming and criticism of the nation's central banker, saying those stands hurt the GOP and make the Texas governor come off as a not so serious national figure.

Huntsman, a former Utah governor who was President Barack Obama's first ambassador to China, has trailed in early polls nationally and in early voting states, leading his campaign to pledge more aggressive attacks on the top candidates.

Perry, who entered the race last weekend and has surged to a prominent role, has provided Huntsman with an ample opening to take shots.

Perry said in New Hampshire this past week that he didn't believe in manmade global warming, branding it an unproven scientific theory. He also defended the teaching of creationism in schools because evolution "has some gaps to it."

Huntsman responded in a tweet, saying "To be clear, I believe in evolution and trust scientists on global warming. Call me crazy."

Full Post

Weekly Address: Putting Country Ahead of Party

Williams, Bacon reprimanded by Oswego County Ethics Board

Oswego County Clerk George Williams (R) and Deputy Clerk of Operations Matthew Bacon have been reprimanded by the Oswego County Ethics Board for having drinks with the owner of Info Quick Solutions, Inc. less than one hour after the company pitched its services for the county clerk’s office during a county committee meeting.

The ethics board, however, did not render a penalty or sanction.

In an Aug. 12 decision, the ethics board stated, “It is very disturbing that the county’s designated contacts for a competitively-let Request for Proposals (RFP) would find nothing untoward in having drinks with representatives from IQS not even an hour after a legislative committee finished hearing proposals from three vendors (including IQS) regarding a lucrative contract pertaining to the Clerk’s office.”

Full Post

Owens in Oswego Today

Fulton, NY -- Rep. William Owens, D-Plattsburgh, will be at an Oswego County Democratic Party event at 6 p.m. today at Tavern on the Lock in Fulton.

Owens is running for re-election this year for his seat representing the 11-county 23rd Congressional district. The district includes Oswego and Madison counties.

The Weprin campaign sent out the following video last night on the anniversary of Social Security...but...

the same question has to be asked of the Republican Congressional Majority!!

GOP 2012: Pledging Allegiance to the Tea Party

The Day of Reckoning in Wisconsin Recall Fight

Wisconsin is tired of standing.

First the state was told to "Stand with Walker."

Ever since then, it's been "Stand with Rob Cowles." "Stand with Shelia." "Stand with Senator Kapanke." "Stand with Senator Dave Hansen." Nationally, the AFL-CIO asked all of America to "Stand with Wisconsin." Meanwhile, outside parties are waterboarding Wisconsin voters with cash as wild accusations become the norm and the entire state devolves into a Tennessee Williamsian dysfunctional family.

On Thursday, Republican Senator Dale Schultz leveled a shocking allegation that Governor Walker had dry-gulched him into missing the vote on the budget bill that eliminated collective bargaining, where, Schultz claims, he had planned to offer a compromise amendment. Schultz, a moderate, avoided recall earlier this year, even though he faced an outraged constituency.

Full Post

It’s redistricting roulette in upstate New York

After former congressman’s Anthony Weiner’s (D-N.Y.) resignation in June, a whole bunch of members of Congress in the New York metro area breathed a big sigh of relief.

The state is losing two congressional districts before 2012; Weiner essentially sent his district to the gallows, relieving the anxiety of downstate politicians of being targeted. But, when it comes to upstate New York everyone is still holding their breath about where the seat will be removed.

One of the state’s nine upstate districts will be destroyed. That much we know. But, the rest is fuzzy.

The Fix aims to bring clarity in all political matters so below is a look at how the situation Upstate could be resolved. Of course, the redistricting process in New York won’t start in earnest until next year so this situation could could in any number of directions.

Before we get to that, though, make sure to take a look at the current congressional map to get a sense for where things stand,

There are a few relatively safe assumptions we can make at the start:

1. Since the state is losing two seats and control of the state legislature is split, each party is likely to lose one seat. Since Weiner’s district is a Democratic one, it follows that the Upstate district that gets cut will likely be a Republican one.

Full Post

President Obama outlines a number of steps that can be taken right away to create jobs and help grow the economy.

Obama Pushing Jobs For Unemployed Military Veterans

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama is asking Congress to approve new initiatives to help some of America's 1 million unemployed military veterans find work, including tax credits for companies that hire out-of-work vets.

The proposal Obama is to outline Friday is part of the president's efforts to return to a focus on jobs after spending weeks mired in the contentious debt-limit debate that consumed the White House for much of the summer.

His announcement was to follow the Labor Department's release of a new round of nationwide unemployment data showing that hiring picked up more than expected in July, with employers adding 117,000 jobs and the jobless rate inching down to 9.1 percent from 9.2 percent in June.

Full Post

U.S. Adds 117,000 Jobs In July As Jobless Rate Falls, Beating Expectations

NEW YORK -- A day after the Dow Jones Industrial Average had its worst drop since the financial crisis, fresh data showed a slightly less pessimistic view of the American economy.

Full Post

Comptroller: Area residents burdened with tax exemptions

A comprehensive review of the performance of Industrial Development Agencies statewide shows the effectiveness of the agencies is questionable.

The report, issued July 12 by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, indicates that Oswego County’s IDA is not performing on par with a majority of the IDA’s and local development corporations in the state.

“Notably, in several of the counties with relatively large tax exemptions compared to total levy, there were job losses between 2002 and 2009 – including Greene County (tax exemptions at nearly 25 percent of total levy), Niagara County, Oswego County, and Wyoming County (all with tax exemptions exceeding 6 percent of total levy),” the report noted. The high net property tax exemptions for IDA projects results in more of the tax burden being shifted to other taxpayers, DiNapoli said.

“Based on an analysis of the exemption and employment data by county, there does not appear to be a positive correlation between higher tax exemptions and job growth,” the report concluded. “This apparent lack of any positive impact of IDA tax exemptions on job growth reinforces the need for IDAs to provide more and better data on the job creation and retention goals and performance of all IDA projects, so it can be determined if the projects are indeed performing the intended economic development function.

Full Post

Matt Damon on debt limit: 'I'm so disgusted,' 'it's criminal' the wealthy are not paying more from Nicholas Ballasy on Vimeo.

Legislator calls for bidding reform

The Oswego County Legislature’s minority leader is calling for bidding reform in light of a host of controversy that has surrounded county government this year.

“We need a fair overhaul of our entire bidding process,” Minority Leader Mike Kunzwiler said Wednesday.

The most recent bidding controversy erupted when an advertising and design vendor raised concerns about the county’s request for proposal process.

Shane Stepien of Step One Creative alleged the playing field was not level when a RFP (request for proposals) was issued to provide advertising and design services for the county’s tourism department (see related story).

“This is again showing that the county has a long way to go in improving their method and bidding to be fair and equitable to all and to give taxpayers the best benefit,” Kunzwiler said of the most recent vendor complaint.

Full Post

Deficit-Reduction Plan Would Threaten Economic Recovery, Not Remove Downgrade Threat

NEW YORK -- The deficit-reduction deal that emerged late Sunday runs the risk of exacerbating two opposite problems at the same time: It cuts enough government spending to imperil a weak economy, yet not enough to spare the United States from the prospect that its credit rating will be downgraded.

The plan would cut $2.4 trillion in federal government spending over the next decade, an initiative that economists say could harm the economic recovery as growth remains painfully slow. With home prices falling, the unemployment rate rising and gross domestic product expanding at a rate that's worryingly close to zero, federal spending cuts or tax increases could hinder what little progress is being made, experts say.

But seen another way, the deficit-reduction plan might not be big enough: It falls short of the criteria that the credit rating agency Standard & Poor's alluded to last week. Fears that the U.S. government's debt might be downgraded have not been allayed, with some experts saying a downgrade could come this week.

Full Post

Statement of Representative Owens on Deficit Reduction Compromise

Washington, Aug 1 - WASHINGTON – Congressman Bill Owens released the following statement tonight after voting in favor of The Budget Control Act of 2011. The legislation passed the U.S. House of Representatives tonight by a vote of 268-161.

“Over the course of this debate, I have heard from concerned constituents across Upstate New York – from seniors, soldiers and veterans worried about receiving their earned benefits on time to middle class families and small business owners anxious about government spending and the health of our economy. Although this was an unnecessarily ugly process that exposed the worst of Washington, tonight’s compromise will ensure that we avoid a catastrophic default while protecting Medicare and Social Security and making a serious down payment on deficit reduction,” said Owens.

“I know many of my constituents are not happy with this deal, and I share many of their concerns. But compromise is about making tough choices, and defaulting on the debts we owe was not an option. Had this deal not been approved by Congress, the effects of a default would have rippled across the economy and harmed every American. Mortgage and credit card interest rates would have increased, local job creators would have faced higher costs in obtaining a loan, the full faith and credit of the United States would have been damaged, and seniors, the disabled and veterans reliant on federal benefits would have seen a delay in their checks.

“Unfortunately, we came perilously close to default because many in Washington insist on adhering to ideology rather than fact. While there is clearly tremendous risk associated with the growing deficit and debt, there is equal danger according to leading economists in excessively deep cuts that stifle job creation. These same experts, as well as the bipartisan Simpson-Bowles Commission and the Senate Gang of Six, have concluded that to solve this fiscal crisis we must both cut spending and raise revenue. That is why I have consistently supported streamlining the tax code and allowing the Bush-era tax cuts to expire for the wealthy. We had a unique opportunity during these negotiations to reform our tax code, and I am disappointed that because so many of my colleagues refused to abandon politics and ideology this compromise contains no revenue.

“While Congress averted a crisis in the eleventh hour by passing this compromise, we can do better. It is my hope that the select committee created under this plan will produce additional, reasonable cuts that will allow our economy to continue to recover and that we will return to the critical issue of raising revenue in the coming months. With the debt ceiling raised and the possibility of a government default out of the picture, we must turn our focus to job creation.”

# # #

Our Government Has Now Given Up The Concept Of Right And Wrong

Keith Olbermann excoriated Washington for the debt ceiling deal it struck over the weekend--and called for a protest movement to rise up against it.

In a Special Comment on his Monday show, Olbermann did not mince words about the deal, which passed the House on Monday and is headed for a vote in the Senate.

"Our government has now given up the concept of right and wrong," he said. "...Those who defend [the deal] have called it a credit to a pragmatic president who wins some sort of political 'points' because, having stood for almost nothing here, he gave away almost nothing for which he stood." Full Post

Eliot Spitzer For Mayor?

New Yorkers are slowly coming around to Eliot Spitzer again, a new Marist poll suggests.

In April of 2010, only 24 percent of New York voters wanted Spitzer to run for mayor of New York City. Now, 33 percent want him to run.

By comparison, only 26 percent of voters, according to the same poll, want the much more recently humiliated-by-a-sex-scandal-New-York politician, Anthony Weiner, to run.

Spitzer, who resigned as Governor of New York in 2008 after an FBI investigation revealed that he had been a customer of a high-end prostitution service, has refused to say he won't run for mayor in 2013.

Full Post