Martucci endorses Houle for state senate

GOSHEN, NY — Sen. Mike Martucci announced his endorsement of Monroe Town Councilwoman Dorey Houle for the 42nd State Senate district, which will cover Orange County. “Dorey has earned the support of the Republican and Conservative parties and will be a reliable voice for all Orange County residents in Albany. I know she will work hard to protect taxpayers, reduce violent crime, preserve open space and stop government overreach in our lives and businesses,” said Martucci.

NY to protect abortion and reproductive rights

ALBANY, NY — New York State has passed a legislative package to protect the rights of patients and empower reproductive healthcare providers, in anticipation of a final decision by the Supreme Court on abortion access. The legislation takes specific actions to address a variety of legal concerns unleashed by the Supreme Court’s leaked opinion on Dobbs v. Jackson, which would overturn the landmark decision of Roe v. Wade on the eve of its 50th anniversary.

The legislation includes bills to establish a cause of action for unlawful interference with protected rights, creates a statutory exception for the extradition of abortion-related offenses and prohibits professional misconduct charges against healthcare practitioners who perform, recommend or provide reproductive healthcare services for a patient who resides in a state where such services are illegal, among others.

Statewide address-level broadband map

ALBANY, NY — New York State Public Service Commission released an interactive broadband map to provide a detailed depiction of broadband infrastructure in New York state. The map and its accompanying report is the result of months of field assessments conducted by the commission in the state’s most remote areas. It covers more than 80,000 miles. Visit mapmybroadband.dps.ny.gov to view the map, and on.ny.gov/3OoW2NQ to download the report.

Federal coalition pushes for Scranton-to-New York rail service

SCRANTON, PA — U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) and U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA-8) are leading a coalition of regional partners from Pennsylvania and New Jersey in urging the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to reestablish direct passenger rail service between Scranton, PA and New York City. Rail service previously ran on the Lackawanna cut-off, but was discontinued in 1970. The 28-mile stretch of track fell into disrepair and requires significant investment to restore train service, a statement said.

Interested parties, including Cartwright, sent a letter to the FRA requesting funding from the FRA’s Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail grant program. The letter lists support from the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Rail Authority, which owns existing track through Monroe and Lackawanna counties; the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which has invested $18.2 million in the project, and has authorized up to $125 million in state capital budget authorizations; and the state of New Jersey, which has invested $17 million.

Lead testing in PA

HARRISBURG, PA — The Pennsylvania Senate has unanimously passed legislation to protect children from lead poisoning, according to the bill’s prime sponsors, Sen. Lisa Baker (R-20) and Sen. John Yudichak (I-14). Senate Bill 522 is bipartisan legislation intended to ensure that all pregnant women and all children in Pennsylvania receive blood tests to detect lead poisoning.

EPA updates PFAS health advisory

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has updated its health advisory levels for PFOA and PFOS and has issued final health advisory levels for two compounds that companies are currently using as replacements—the GenX compounds and PFBS. The new interim levels are dramatically lower than the EPA’s previous health advisory levels. The old levels allowed for 70 parts per trillion for PFOA and PFOS, singly or combined, where the new levels alow for 0.004 parts per trillion for PFOA and 0.02 parts per trillion for PFOS. (See related letter, page 6.)

Early voting at government center

MONTICELLO, NY — Early voting for the New York State governor primary began June 18 and continues every day through Sunday, June 26 at the Sullivan Government Center, 100 North St. Times vary, but all Sullivan County voters (registered Democrats and Republicans) can  come vote early. For more information, visit the Sullivan County Board of Elections at sullivanny.us/Departments/Elections, call the board at 845/807-0400, or email the board at scboe@sullivanny.us.

Public hearings on disadvantaged communities criteria

ALBANY, NY — The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), in partnership with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), will hold virtual public hearings on Wednesday, June 29, and Thursday, June 30, and an in-person public hearing in Buffalo on Thursday, June 23, to receive input on the Draft Disadvantaged Communities Criteria. New York’s Climate Justice Working Group developed the draft criteria to ensure that frontline and otherwise underserved communities benefit from the state’s historic transition to cleaner, greener sources of energy, reduced pollution and cleaner air, and economic opportunities, a statement said. For more information or to register, visit climate.ny.gov/Our-Climate-Act/Disadvantaged-Communities-Criteria.

Correction

The article “Come together, right now” in the June 16-22 issue of the River Reporter indicated that 10,000 Maniacs performed as the opening act for the Milford Music Festival on June 10. While originally scheduled to perform, 10,000 Maniacs had to postpone its performance to July 15 due to a medical emergency. Local artists Bobby Kyle & the Administers and Scott Weis performed in its place. Additionally, the original article misspelled “Luckey Girl Studio” as “Lucky Girl Studio.”