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Downstate Outages Spur A Boatload Of Bills

Sep
14
2020

Flushing Democrat Nily Rozic thinks New Yorkers shouldn’t have to pay for utility services they don’t actually receive due to an outage.

Rozic recently introduced A.10896 in the state Assembly to amend the Public Service Law to require electric and gas corporations to provide a $100 a day credit to customers for power outages lasting 24 hours or more. Rozic’s bill is among more than a dozen that have been introduced in recent weeks in the wake of Hurricane Isaias, which left hundreds of thousands of state residents without utilities after 70 mile an hour winds, heavy rain and tornadoes hit New York in early August. In addition to gas and electric outages, the aftermath of the storm left some...| read more ››

Elected Officials Share Their Thoughts on 19th Anniversary of 9/11

Sep
11
2020

State Sen. James Gaughran (D-Northport) spoke with the TBR News Media on the eve of the 19th year since the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

TBR: What do you think of when you reflect on 9/11 today?

Gaughran: When I think of 9/11, I obviously think of the heroism and the number of people I know who died. I certainly think of the police officers and the firefighters and the first responders who, without hesitancy, ran right into those buildings. Probably, some of them knew they were going to get killed. Maybe others figured it was another day when they were going to try to save people.

TBR: Who is the first person you think of in connection with 9/11?

On Sept....| read more ››

Oyster Bay 9/11 Memorial Ceremony: Start Time, How To Watch

Sep
10
2020

OYSTER BAY, NY — An annual 9/11 memorial ceremony is planned Friday in Oyster Bay that will be hosted by New York state Sen. Jim Gaughran and former state Sen. Carl Marcellino.

The ceremony will begin at 6:30 p.m. Friday at the Western Waterfront 9/11 Memorial. The names of Oyster Bay residents lost in the Sept. 11 attacks will be memorialized.

The memorial features a beam from the World Trade Center towers that was acquired by the Atlantic Steamer Fire Department.

To abide by social distancing guidelines, the public is asked to watch a livestream of the ceremony on Gaughran's Facebook page. Limited seating will be available for family members of those who died in the attacks. They will be...| read more ››

Sen. Gaughran: Voting easier than ever this year

Sep
10
2020

In spite of national controversy over vote-by-mail procedures, New York State Senator James Gaughran, who represents Oyster Bay, Syosset, Woodbury and Long Island communities in the 5th State Senatorial District,urges residents to join him in voting in the November 3rd election in a process that he says has been made “very easy.”

In an interview with the Advance and News-Journal at his Underhill Boulevard, Syosset office on September 2nd, Sen. Gaughran said concerns over what has transpired with operations of the United States Postal Service drove the State of New York to move up mail-in ballot timelines to allow votes to be cast up to seven weeks prior to the election.

New York State has legislation allowing residents three different...| read more ››

Senator Gaughran Proudly Touts 'F' Rating from NRA

Sep
9
2020

Senator Jim Gaughran today proudly announced he has received an 'F' rating by the NRA. The score came from the NRA's 2020 political scorecard and is based on legislative voting history in Albany and the candidate's position on gun safety issues.

"The only failing grade I have ever been proud of is my 'F' rating from the NRA," Senator Jim Gaughran said. "While Trump Republicans refuse to protect our children from senseless gun violence, I am proud to have stood up against the corporate gun lobby and helped pass groundbreaking anti-gun violence legislation in New York in my first term including expanded background checks and banning the bump stock."

"In 2018, New York overwhelmingly elected a Democratic State Senate to...| read more ››

Glen Cove Center Hosts Free Care Package Giveaway For Community’s Seniors

Sep
3
2020

Glen Cove Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation, 6 Medical Plaza in Glen Cove, hosted a Care Package Drive Thru event on Wednesday, August 26 for the community’s senior citizens. Care packages included personal protection items, such as masks and hand sanitizer, as well as fresh baked goods, beach balls and frozen treats. More than 100 bags were given out. New York State Senator James Gaughran (5th District) also attended the giveaway| read more ››

Lawmaker raises concerns about MTA's dispersal of protective equipment

Sep
1
2020

A state lawmaker from Long Island has raised new concerns over measures put in place by the MTA during the pandemic to protect its workers, including Long Island Rail Road employees who, according to a key union official, have “experienced frustrations” with getting adequate face masks and other safety equipment.

In a letter to Patrick Foye, chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority — the LIRR’s parent company — Sen. James Gaughran (D-Northport) said the “alarming issues” came to light during a virtual hearing held by the State Legislature last week.

“The testimony of our front-line workers raised some alarming issues about an apparent disconnect in communication between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and its agencies, and inconsistencies in safety guidelines and...| read more ››

PSC postpones New York American Water rate hike at company's request

Sep
1
2020

The state Public Service Commission on Tuesday granted an emergency request by New York American Water to postpone September surcharges and rate increases, citing the "ongoing nature of the pandemic."

The move postpones the hikes until Jan. 1 and provides a measure of relief to the more than 120,000 water customers served by the company in Nassau districts centered around Lynbrook, Merrick and Sea Cliff. Most of the charges and rate increases were scheduled to take effect earlier this year, but were postponed in light of the COVID-19 pandemic until September.

The last in a series of four-year rate hikes scheduled to begin Tuesday is now postponed, as is a system improvement charge, as well as a separate...| read more ››

State senators irked by the way PSEG plans to pay for spoiled food, medicine

Aug
28
2020

Eight state senators are demanding that PSEG change the way it pays for a program to reimburse ratepayers for spoiled food from Tropical Storm Isaias, saying company shareholders, not ratepayers, should pony up.

The demand, in a letter sent to LIPA's top executive that refers to PSEG Long Island's program funding as a "shell game," comes as PSEG revealed that a similar program recently launched for utility customers for its sister New Jersey company will be funded directly through corporate, or shareholder, money.

LIPA, in response, asserted that because the Long Island reimbursement plan is coming from performance incentives that would otherwise be paid to PSEG, the Long Island reimbursements “come from shareholders, as you seek.” Added PSEG spokeswoman...| read more ››

State senators challenge PSEG storm preparedness

Aug
27
2020

A virtual Joint Hearing of the New York State Senate and Assembly on Thursday, August 20 addressed “Power and Communication Failures from Tropical Storm Isaias,” which hit the region on August 4, downing several thousand trees and utility wires. The purpose of the hearing was to hold a Q & A session for officials with leaders of the State Public Service Commission, and receive testimony on the electricity outages and communication failures during and after the storm. Nearly eight years after the company supplanted LIPA in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, Public Service Electric & Gas – Long Island, a subsidiary of PSE&G utility conglomerate headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, came under fire from Long Island elected officials.

New York...| read more ››

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