Reps in Action: Oct. 2, 2019

INTRODUCING REPS IN ACTION

North Country representatives at the state and federal level are involved in myriad issues. In order to better inform our readers what they are up to, we will be featuring a new item on our news pages entitled Reps In Action. These will be tidbits of news generated from the representative's offices that normally are not featured in full-blown news stories.

Fire Department Grant

PLATTSBURGH — The Essex Fire Department will receive $45,333 in an Assistance to Firefighters Grant.

The funding will be used to purchase updated and enhanced firefighting gear, including the purchase of 17 complete sets of structural firefighting gear (helmet, coat, pants, gloves, and boots.)

“North Country firefighters serve our communities selflessly and keep us safe day in and day out,” Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-Schuylerville) said.

"It is absolutely critical they have the funding they need to effectively do their jobs while also keeping themselves safe. I’m grateful that Craig Jackson and the entire Essex Fire Department will be receiving this Assistance to Firefighters Grant, and I’m proud to advocate for Essex County and the full North Country firefighting community in Congress.”

Essex Fire Chief Craig Jackson said they were extremely pleased to receive the funding.

"This was our second attempt at applying,” Jackson said.

"Once the gear is received, it will replace about 85 percent of gear that is damaged or considered outdated according to National Fire Protection Association. I would like to thank the Essex Fire District #1 Board of Fire Commissioners for their support in our almost 2-year effort to secure this much needed funding.”

The Essex Fire Department, established in the early 1800's, has 20 volunteer firefighters serving a 37 square-mile area, including 6 miles of waterfront.

The department averages 85 calls for service a year, many of which are mutual-aid responses to neighboring Fire Districts.

Stefanik Seeks Tax Repeal

PLATTSBURGH — Congresswoman Elise Stefanik sent a letter to House and Senate Leadership last week along with a bipartisan group of the New York Congressional delegation urging the repeal of the medical device tax.

This comes ahead of the expiration of the medical device tax suspension occurring on December 31, 2019.

“New York’s workforce boasts a significant amount of medical technology manufacturers which contribute significantly to our economy and improve the lives of countless patients," Stefanik said in a release.

"With the upcoming expiration of the medical tax suspension, the bipartisan New York delegation urges House and Senate leadership to take swift action to ensure patients, the health care industry, and our state economy are not negatively impacted.

Legislation to repeal this overburdensome tax has broad bipartisan support, and I look forward to working with leadership to deliver this result to the North Country and New York State as a whole."

Stec Calls for Repeal

PLATTSBURGH — Assemblyman Dan Stec (R,C,I,-Queensbury) called on the governor to repeal bail reform measures that are set to take effect in New York on Jan. 1, 2020, in light of a recent car chase in Warren County which resulted in the death of an innocent man.

The changes, which were adopted with the passage of the state budget in January, would allow defendants who are not accused of violent crimes to be issued appearance tickets and subsequently set free until their trial.

Skyler Crouse, the man who allegedly led authorities on a high-speed chase that killed an innocent man, was charged with second-degree manslaughter among other offenses.

Under the new bail reform measures, Crouse would be set free without bail, despite his long criminal past and history of skipping out on bail, Stec said in a news release.

Stec and many county district attorneys throughout the state and other law enforcement officials have expressed concerns with the bail reform changes, stating that there are far too many loopholes that allow dangerous criminals often with a laundry list of convictions to walk without bail.

“I was vocally opposed to and voted against these bail reform changes during budget negotiations,” Stec said.

"There are far too many loopholes that allow dangerous criminals to walk free. This should never have been a budgetary item, and I am calling on the governor to scrap the reforms now before it is too late, and to take up these reforms as a standalone bill so it can be reworked and properly debated on the floor.

We lost an innocent man this past week while this person recklessly fled authorities in Warren County. If this took place three months in the future he would have been able to walk free despite his criminal history. This is absolutely unacceptable and a public safety concern for all of us.”

Schumer Supports Specialty Crop Research

PLATTSBURGH — U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer said the recently-passed federal budget extension includes a policy fix to an issue in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative that threatened to block Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, as well as other institutions, from millions of dollars needed to conduct research on specialty crops like grapes, fruit, apples and more on how to increase crop yields, boost resiliency and adjust to other 21st century challenges.

A requirement for SCRI limited access to grant funding for researchers and other grant applicants who had to provide an equal amount of matching funds to their own projects, which is often not possible for researchers working with constrained budgets.

To address this issue that threatened Upstate New York’s access to this critical funding, Schumer along with the Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow, successfully fought for a provision in the budget extension to eliminate this matching requirement, to ensure that the state’s specialty crop industry continues to have the support it needs to thrive and boost New York’s agricultural economy.

“New York’s specialty crop industry, from the best apples in the country, to the highest-quality grapes you’ll find, is a fundamental driver of the Upstate agricultural economy, maintaining and creating thousands of good-paying jobs from the Hudson Valley to Rochester and everywhere in between," Schumer said in a news release.

"However, for this industry to continue being grown and cultivated, it depends on critical USDA research funding being sent to first-rate institutions like Cornell. That’s why, in the recently-passed budget extension, I fought relentlessly to pass a provision to eliminate a matching requirement for the vital Specialty Crop Research Initiative, that threatened these organizations’ access to millions of dollars of necessary funding."

Jones Supports Chocolate Milk

PLATTSBURGH — State Assemblyman Billy Jones came out in support of chocolate milk in public schools.

"As a dad and a former dairy farmer myself, I can tell you there are few children who don’t love a delicious serving of chocolate milk. The slogan, ‘Milk Has More’ often seen painted on barns, reminds us that this delicious, locally produced beverage has key nutrients for growth and development of our children like calcium, vitamin D and potassium," Jones (D-Plattsburgh) said.

"Proposals to ban chocolate milk in schools, like those in New York City, would only set our state backwards by keeping vital nutrients from our kids and hurting hardworking dairy farmers in the North Country. Instead of banning chocolate milk, we should be encouraging our children to drink milk as part of a healthy, well-rounded diet."