New York State Minimum Wage to Increase in Stages

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on March 29, 2013, signed legislation that increases the New York State minimum wage rate starting Dec. 31, 2013. This is New York’s first minimum wage increase since July 24, 2009, when it was increased to match to federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.

The new legislation provides that the New York minimum wage will increase to:
*$8.00 on and after Dec. 31, 2013.
*$8.75 on and after Dec. 31, 2014.
*$9.00 on and after Dec. 31, 2015.

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SUNY Brockport Writers' Forum - Traci Brimhall, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 8:00 PM, Cooper Hall

SUNY Brockport

Fall 2013 - 50^th Season

Unless otherwise noted, all Writers Forum readings begin at 8 pm in the
New York Room, Cooper Hall, on the Brockport campus.

Writers Forum events are free and open to the public.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013, 8:00 PM Traci Brimhall is the author of Rookery and Our Lady of the Ruins, winner of the Barnard Women's Poets Prize, selected by Carolyn Forché. She received the 2009 Crab Orchard Series in Poetry First Book Award. Her poems have appeared in The New Yorker, New England Review, Ploughshares, and many more. This year, Brimhall received a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship in Poetry.

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3D printer at SUNY Brockport Seymour College Union on Tuesday, September 10, 2013 from 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

MakerBot 3D Printer: What Will You Make?

Demonstration of new 3D printer in Seymour College Union, September 10, 11 am – 1 pm.

Ship made from 3D printer in Drake

This fall, a MakerBot 3D printer and scanner are available for student, faculty and staff use. 3D printer applications are being used in medicine, business, education, arts, space exploration and more.

A thin resin filament is heated and extruded to form objects (e.g., nuts and bolts, bookmarks, combs, cookie cutters, toys, etc.). The set-up encourages hands-on design skills and visual thinking.


MakerBot Roadshow Schedule:
• Tuesday, September 10, 11 am - 1 pm, Seymour College Union

The three-dimensional printer and scanner will be housed along with other tech tools (iPads, Nooks, bluetooth keyboards, adapters, outlets, etc.) in Drake Memorial Library.

See: http://library.brockport.edu/techtools
Thank you to LITS and Faculty Staff Technology grant funding for the 3D printer, scanner and tech tools. If you are interested in learning more, contact Ken Wierzbowski or Wendy Prince, Drake Library.

contact: Ken Wierzbowski at kwierzbo@brockport.edu or Wendy Prince at wprince@brockport.edu

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Autumn Gardening

by Monica Beck

 Most people associate gardening with the summer, those long days filled with sunshine.  However, gardening doesn’t end after Labor Day; there is a lot to do well into the season.  Perennials (plants that come back year after year) can be divided now.  All living things want to spread their DNA, each summer they grow in size and produce as many flowers as they can.  That is what you want right, but they can outgrow their allotted space and compromise your design.  If you have the room to expand your gardens, now is the time to do it.  If this is not an option, sharing plants with fellow gardeners is an alternative too.  I maintain several gardens, and I love to spread things around. 

Some plants make propagate (spread that DNA) by sending out runners or making new plants right next to the original.  If you don’t want to research the division method for your specific plants, just take a closer look.  Hostas, a popular shade loving perennial usually needs to be divided into sections.  The first thing you need is a sharp spade or shovel to cut through root balls.  Be sure to get a good clump of roots and dig holes larger than the root ball.  .  If your soil is poor, adding some compost and peat moss will help.  Add lots of water before covering with soil.  Know how large your plants will become, and make sure they have enough room. 

Later in the fall when the leaves and woody stalks die back clip them to 4 or 5 inches above the ground, rake beds of excess debris, and mulch with leaves if possible.  Another fun thing to do is add spring bulbs.  You can plant them up until November.  I love the variety, all shapes and sizes and they should return every year if squirrels or other pests don’t eat them. Follow directions and think about their height and bloom time. Spring bulbs bloom form March to June.  The earliest ones are snowdrops, scilla, and crocuses and conclude with alliums and late tulips.  You can also easily force bulbs indoors at this time; check your local nursery for varieties and ideas.  Gardening can be a year round affair- if you love it.  Don’t let the cooler temperatures stop you.

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Town of Sweden's Star exemption letters arrived this past week

From Suburban News on 08/25/13 in an article by Kristina Gabalski entitled "Register by year’s end to receive Basic STAR:

Town of Sweden assessor Tony Eaffaldano says if you use the Basic Star exemption, be looking for a mailing from the Tax Department. “Homeowners will receive a post card at the end of this month or early next month telling them who to call through the State of New York.”
He says many local residents take advantage of the STAR exemption.

Eaffaldano says the new guidelines do not affect homeowners age 65 or above enrolled in Enhanced STAR.

The New York State Tax Department says the STAR program provides 2.6 million homeowners with savings on their school property tax bills each year, but is only available for an individual’s or family’s primary residence. The Basic STAR Registration follows a Tax Department investigation that showed some homeowners were receiving the exemption on more than one property.

“Local assessors monitor Basic STAR in their communities, but do not have the ability to know if an individual is receiving STAR in any of the other 1,000 localities statewide,” Commissioner of Taxation and Finance Thomas Mattox says. “This is the first registration in the STAR program’s 15-year history, and it will eliminate inappropriate and fraudulent exemptions.”

The State Tax Department recently unveiled a secure online STAR registration platform. The Tax Department’s upcoming mailing will include registration instructions for the online application and also provide a phone number for registration or questions: 518-457-2036. A property owner must register either online or by phone by Dec. 31.

The Basic STAR exemption is available for owner-occupied, primary residences where the combined income of resident owners and their spouses is $500,000 or less. Married couples with multiple residences are only eligible to receive one Basic STAR exemption.

According to the Tax Department, the average homeowner benefit as a result of Basic STAR is $700 annually.

Editor's note: 

Living in the Village of Brockport in the Town of Sweden, I got my Star exemption notice earlier this week. It was a letter not a post card as Town of Sweden assessor Tony Eaffaldano mentions in the letter above. I make less that $500,000.00 per year and so I guess I am eligible. Even though I am over 65 I don't think I am one of the "enhanced" Star recipients so I went on line and applied. It'll save me $700.00 bucks according to the Tax Department according to the article. A lot of people in Brockport like to complain about their taxes, and I have never heard anyone say "thanks" for their Star exemption, so I just want to say thanks to our State legislators who, in their wisdom, have worked to give home owners like me in the Village of Brockport and the Town of Sweden a break.

You have until 12/31/13 to apply for your exemption if you haven't done it already.

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To what extent is the high rate of incarceration in the United States a jobs program for working class rural folks?

From Rochester Democrat and Chronicle on 09/04/13:

Two Republican lawmakers are calling on the state Department of Corrections to rethink Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s plan to shutter Butler Correctional Facility in Red Creek, Wayne County.
The facility is one of four slated to close next July in the latest round of consolidation in the state’s prison system.


State Sen. Michael F. Nozzolio, R-Fayette, Seneca County, and Assemblyman Robert C. Oaks, R-Macedon, Wayne County, released a joint statement that said they strongly oppose the plan and argued that the negative impact on correction officers and the community would outweigh potential cost savings.

The legislators said they had shared their concerns with Donn Rowe, president of the state Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, and are joined in opposition to the closure by the Wayne County Board of Supervisors.

“For a community the size of Butler, the loss of its largest employer will have a devastating effect on the local economy,” the statement said. “From a cost saving perspective, it makes little sense since the state will ultimately be responsible for continued maintenance of the facility and for contracts for water and sewer services that extend into 2026.”

In July, the Department of Corrections said setting the closing date a year away would allow for a gradual transition and give affected employees more options to find new positions. Prisoners would transfer to other facilities.

The state’s overall prison population has declined about 24 percent since 1999, according to the Department of Corrections. Butler is a medium-security facility for men. As of July 22, it had 130 staff and 177 inmates, with a maximum capacity of 240.

Editor's note:

The United States incarcerates more of its citizens per capita than any country in the world and among the states, New York, was a leader for many years because of the Rockefeller Drug Laws which swelled the New York State prison system until the late 90s when the legislators started to realize that New Yorkers cannot incarcerate away their social problems at the cost of $60,000.00 per year per inmate. New York has been leading the way with closing some its prisons and shrinking the number of its citizens incarcerated although that number is still about 55,000 in 58 facilities across the state. There are better ways to deal with the problems that lead a citizen to incarceration.

Having said all this, it has been cynically said, the the New York State prison system is mainly a jobs program for rural folks catered to by their legislative representatives with pork barrel politics of bringing home the bacon in the form of lower middle class jobs for rural working class constituents. This point is exemplified this week with State Senator Nozolio and and Assemblyman Oaks criticizing the scheduled closing of Butler Correctional Facility in Red Creek, Wayne County. Butler has only 177 inmates with 130 staff.

The closing of Butler is a good move which will save New York Taxpayers millions of dollars. I understand that Nozzolio and Oaks are looking out for the employees in the Red Creek area, but keeping the prison open just as a jobs program for union employees makes no sense, and citizens should not support Nozzolio and Oak's poor public policy position.

One of the biggest employers in Orleans County are Albion and Orleans Correctional Facilities in Albion, NY.

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50 Years after "I have a dream" racism is alive and well in New York City

Keeshan Harley is an ordinary 18-year-old from Brooklyn. He goes to school, hangs out with his friends and writes poetry. And, since he was 13, he says he's been stopped by the New York Police Department nearly 150 times.



From Wikipedia

The New York City stop-question-and-frisk program is a practice of the New York City Police Department by which police officers stop and question tens of thousands of pedestrians annually, and frisk them for weapons and other contraband. The rules for stop, question and frisk are found in New York State Criminal Procedure Law section 140.50, and are based on the decision of the United States Supreme Court in the case of Terry v. Ohio^[1][2] About 684,000 people were stopped in 2011.^[1][3][4] The vast majority of these people were African-American or Latino.^[1][3][4] Some judges have found that these stops are not based on reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.^[5]

 On August 12, 2013, U.S. District Court Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled that the stop and frisk practice was unconstitutional and directed the Police to adopt a written policy to specify where such stops are authorized.^[16][17] Scheindlin appointed Peter L. Zimroth, a former chief lawyer for the City of New York, to oversee the program.^[18] Mayor Bloomberg indicated that the city will appeal the ruling.<sup>[19]

Editor's note:

I have been having an ongoing discussion with a friend of mine about the "attitude of African American people who are in your face". He is a 37 year old white man complaining about the "attitude" of African Americans. I'm not sure what this is about, but whites live in fear of blacks in Brockport, Rochester, and in our country. How else can we explain the toleration of "stop and frisk" in our State which is reminiscent of the "Pass" laws in South Africa, and incidents like the killing of unarmed Trayvon Martin by a neighborhood watch bully, George Zimmerman?

Last week we celebrated the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I have a dream" speech. While there has been some progress, "Stop and frisk" is a racist program implemented in New York City in our State. As New Yorkers we need to get it changed. I have a 19 year old bi-racial granddaughter and while it is my understanding that females are not as subject to the same program as African American males, I would be fearful of her going to New York City with an African American boy friend any time soon. God forbid, their visiting from Brockport, NY they would be subjected to being body slammed against a wall, having their pockets emptied, their purse and backpack ransacked and I am not sure what else this "frisking" consists of.

As a Unitarian Universalist I value the inherent worth and dignity of every person, and justice, equity, and compassion in our human relations, and the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all. These values don't seem to be in operation in New York City especially when it comes to police treatment of people of color.

It would help if you could witness for our African American brothers and sisters like Keeshan Harley and his mother and let Governor Cuomo and Mayor Bloomberg and others know that we don't agree with the racist "stop and frisk" policy in New York City or anywhere in our great state of New York. As New Yorkers we need to stand in solidarity with one another against the oppressive, racist, subjugating practices of our governmental officials.</sup>

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