Meeting set to discuss Swan Lake sidewalks

LIBERTY, NY — Swan Lake Renaissance, the Town of Liberty and the Liberty Community Development Corporation will hold a public information meeting on Thursday, November 29, at 5:30 p.m. at the Swan Lake Firehouse, with a focus on sidewalks.

“Together with engineering firm Barton & Loguidice, we have developed ideas about how to realize sidewalks in Swan Lake. Now we want to share these ideas with our neighbors and determine priorities,” said Nancy Levine, Swan Lake Renaissance’s president. According to town supervisor Frank DeMayo, construction of the sidewalks is planned to start in the spring of 2008.

The Swan Lake sidewalks project is destined to make it safer for residents and visitors to walk alongside Stanton Corners Road, and to reach the new lakeside community park.

For more information call 845/292-8202.

Pike commissioners approve affordable housing effort

MILFORD, PA — The Pike County Commissioners approved an application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for a HOME grant of $450,000 to provide affordable housing for low and moderately low income residents.

The county will match the grant with a sum of $223,000 and a $52,000 allocation for weatherization of residences. The entire cost of the program is $725,000.

“The grant will fund repairs to 30 units that will be identified as part of the application process,” said Marvin Brotter, community planning consultant to the county. “Each unit will receive $20,000 to conduct the repairs.”

The program will pay for items like repairs to heating systems, electrical systems, windows, weather-proofing and removal of lead.

The funding is for all county municipalities except Matamoras, which recently received a $343,600 grant from HUD for the same program.

Hinchey pushes for oversight of energy trading to bring down cost

WASHINGTON, DC — Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) is working on legislation to regulate over-the-counter (OTC) trading of oil that may be increasing prices at the pump. An increasing amount of crude oil, gasoline and natural gas trading is being done in such deals, as opposed to the traditional practice of trading those commodities on the New York Mercantile Exchange with oversight by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

“It’s not a coincidence that we’ve seen gas prices rise so dramatically at a time when we have the most oil-industry-friendly president and vice president since the Teapot Dome scandal,” said Hinchey. “Congress must act swiftly to regulate off-market oil and gas trading that is partially responsible for an increase in prices, and we must also prevent a closed market for retailers so that we can foster fair competition for gas prices.”

The act, the Prevent Unfair Manipulation of Prices (PUMP) Act, would require off-market traders to play by the same rules that traders participating in on-market trading already do. Economists estimate that if OTC markets were properly regulated, the price of crude oil could drop by as much as $20 a barrel.

Gunther promotes MRSA legislation

ALBANY, NY — In light of recent outbreaks of methicillin-resistant staphlococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in communities in Orange and Sullivan counties, Assemblywoman Aileen Gunther (D-Forestburgh) is promoting a bill she introduced earlier this year to fight the growing number of MRSA cases in hospitals, where many of the infections originate. (See The River Reporter, November 15-21, page 3.)

MRSA, a virulent, drug-resistant staph bacteria that causes skin infections, has been seen in hospitals since the 1960s and has been growing in the greater community for the past decade. MRSA infections can be fatal.

Gunther’s bill (A.9270) would require the Commissioner of Health to establish new best standards for antibiotic-resistant infection control in hospitals and would also require that all hospitals implement an antibiotic-resistant infection prevention and control protocol based on the federal Veteran Health Administration’s MRSA Initiative. The legislation would further require identification of infected patients through preliminary screening of each patient upon admission to the hospital, isolation and treatment of all infected patients, strict training and adherence to employee personal hygiene guidelines and measurement consistent with a statewide MRSA measurement standard system.

Schools receive funds for ‘Contract for Excellence’

REGION — Several local schools have received $10.8 million to be dedicated in “Contract for Excellence” programs to help students close the achievement gap. The districts commit to use the money to make needed improvements and increase student performance through targeted programs such as class size reduction, students spending more time on academic tasks, teacher and principal quality initiatives, middle school and high school restructuring and full-day pre-k and kindergarten.

Schools included in the program were the Port Jervis City School District, which received $1,560,556; Fallsburg Central School District, which received $724,486; and Monticello Central School District, which received $2,698,222.

Justice reopens warrantless wiretap investigation requested by Hinchey

WASHINGTON, DC — The head of the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) has informed Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) that he has reopened an investigation the congressman first requested nearly two years ago regarding the role DOJ officials played in the development and implementation of the National Security Agency’s (NSA) warrantless surveillance program. In a letter delivered to Hinchey’s office, OPR counsel H. Marshall Jarrett wrote the congressman that his office had finally received the necessary security clearance to begin its probe of the role DOJ attorneys played in the NSA spy program and in complying with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Hinchey has long maintained that senior DOJ and White House officials knowingly broke the law while working on the warrantless surveillance program.

The investigation had been started early in 2006, but balked when the necessary security clearances had been denied by President Bush.