Comcast-Time Warner Merger Effort Expands

Comcast has proposed a $45 million attempt to take over Time Warner Cable, as efforts to merge both company increases to provide better internet and TV deals. Comcast executives are confident of an approval and success of the deal between both companies, despite huge criticism from analysts. Comcast CEO Brian Robert believes the deal will go through despite investigation and reviews by the FCC, and justice department about the benefits and disadvantages of a merger. The prospect of a merger deal going down is being debated as both supporters and opposers of the deal battle it out.

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Moffett Nathanson wrote in a research note that "We still believe the deal is more likely than not to be approved, but we are cutting our probability of approval"; this statement comes after the chances of a merger dropped from 70 percent to 6 percent.

Comcast is based in Philadelphia and is recorded to have spent up to $17 million last year to provide good services for the public. A pricey advertisement produced by Comcast prior to the Oscar award ceremony, was aimed at persuading feds and analysts that the company can handle, and should go on with the merger. The New York State regulators have also brought up the merger issue, and the benefits or disadvantages to low income people.
Certain factors that have been put into consideration are; the ease of finding and applying for jobs, communication, online education, gaining information, and some of the benefits of using the internet. As long as the merger serves the Interest of the public, Comcast CEO is positive that it will convince feds to merge with Time Warner Cable.

Transient car Dealersips in Massena

The Vision Automotive Group, which is a Rochester-based car dealership, sets up a used car lot at the St. Lawrence Centre. By doing this, Vision Automotive Croup becomes a “transient car dealerships”, which are out of area dealer setting up a car lot in Massena. The controversy about this is that people are thinking that the taxes are not staying in the county.

According to the St. Lawrence County Treasurer Kevin Felt, “when someone buys a car at a dealership in NYS, the dealer collects the sales tax and passes it on to the state. On a quarterly basis, the dealer reports what county the customers were registering the vehicles in (where they live)”. Also, “The state uses this information to know how much tax money needs to go to the respective counties. So, the sales tax ends up in the county where the customer lives, it doesn’t stay in Rochester.”

Yet even though that the taxes do make their back to the county, transient car dealership were still discussed amongst the Massena Town Council member on Wednesday night. The members are looking in how to make restrictions on how the transient car dealership “can do business in the town” (from News article Massena Town Council looks at restrictions for “transient car dealerships”

). But worried about how to go about it without violating constitutional rights. The news article doesn’t go into which rights and how and why these local restrictions might violate constitutional rights.

Sources:

Link to news article County treasurer says Massena officials’ worries about auto sales tax leaving county are moot, http://northcountrynow.com/business/treasurer-says-massena-officials-worries-about-auto-sales-tax-leaving-county-are-moot-01375

Link to news article news article Massena looking to regulate transient vendors, rather than ban them, http://www.mpcourier.com/dco/massena-looking-to-regulate-transient-vendors-rather-than-ban-them-20150226

Link to news article Massena Town Council looks at restrictions for “transient car dealerships”, http://northcountrynow.com/news/massena-town-council-looks-restrictions-transient-car-dealerships-0137557

Link to news article Vision Automotive Group selling cars at St. Lawrence Centre, http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20131206/DCO/712069929

Cuomo wants $50M to go to Syracuse Fairgrounds

In the 2015 state budget, Governor Cuomo told legislation to set aside $50 million for improvements to the New York States fairgrounds in Syracuse. Cuomo’s goal for the state fairgrounds is to make it more appealing to the public and also increase the areas infrastructure to bring more tourists to our state. For such a large area of almost 375 acres, there is always plenty of room for improvements to the fairgrounds. In his state of the state address Cuomo briefly talked about some ideas on where the money would go. There is a booming rise in the equestrian sport in New York and the idea of increasing the sport in the fairgrounds was talked about. Possibilities of spending some of the $50 million on improving stables or building a brand new horse arena on the fairgrounds was also talked about, instead of putting it all to shows. One of Cuomo’s major pushes for the fairground plan was to turn it into a year round facility. Bringing in more tourists willing to spend money at the fair but also in the city of Syracuse. Also, another one of Cuomo’s pushes is to help supply more jobs to help work in Syracuse. Improving the fairgrounds would be a huge increase for infrastructure in Onondaga County. The state fairground sits right on the exits of two major highways and is just right off the New York State Thruway making it a fairly accessible to the public. Although Cuomo has put $50 million aside, there are no details yet released on where this money will actually go. Many government officials and officials on the fairgrounds advisory board all agree that the fairground needs improvement, but still wait to hear from Cuomo on where and when they can spend their money. Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney stated, “The improvements are necessary not just to the fairgoer themselves, but also the Onondaga County itself”.

http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2015/01/cuomos_50_million_plan_will_transform_the_state_fair_into_what.html

http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2015/02/cuomos_50_million_proposal_for_nys_fairgrounds_includes_improvements_to_horse_ar.html

http://www.twcnews.com/nys/watertown/news/2015/01/22/-50m-for-new-york-state-fairgrounds-.html

New York State Schools Failing Statewide

According to reports from the office of the Governor of New York state, High numbers of students in New York State schools are failing. This news comes as a result of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's plan to fund more schools statewide. Out of a total of 178 schools, one of the schools is said to have more than 109,000 students that are failing according to these reports. Large percent of Minority students and student from low income families are said to be attending majority of these failing schools, which is about 9 out of 10 schools. As many as 50,000 students coming from the New York City schools labeled as failing are from low income families and most minorities, according to the governor's office report. Mayor Bill de Blasio was in Albany on Wednesday to discuss the handling and permanent control of schools, and Education. Out of the 178 schools labeled as "Priority", 91 of those schools are in New York City; as Mayor Bill de Blasio targets government takeover to turn the failing schools around.

 Graduation rates, English, Math, and arts/science scores are criteria for judging weather a school is failing. Majority of students in these schools are either failing or getting scores below passing, and graduation rates fall below the percent of the last three years. State legislature is receiving the blame from the Governor's office for failing to rectify the growing problems before it gets out of hand.


 “When cities like New York City refuse to take bold action to fix the city’s failing schools, we need the state to act urgently,” said Families for Excellent Schools CEO Jeremiah Kittredge. “Statewide, 800,000 children fail every year—we cannot accept that any longer."
Governor Cuomo plans on putting public schools into the hands of nonprofit organization or any organization that can fix failing schools; this plan is taking from Massachusetts model of turning around failing school. Teachers union of New York have yet argued against putting schools into hands of state organization or any other non-profit organization, saying that it might still go downwards.

Demographic of New York City public schools link:
http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/school-of-education/ncate-accreditation/electronic-exhibit-room/standard-4/repository/files/demographics-of-nyc-public-schools/Summary%20of%20NYC%20Demographics.pdf/view

Enough is Enough

With only five percent of rapes among college women or nearly 5,000 reported cases to law enforcement, which leaves roughly 100,000 rape cases undocumented. In Governor Cuomo’s State of the State Address he mentioned sexual assault among New York State Universities and in specifically SUNY Campuses. “Enough is Enough” is a program that was implemented in all 64 SUNY Campuses, which Cuomo wants to expand to all colleges. In today’s world where information can be shared so easily and discretely, it’s a surprise to many lawmakers that this is such a large issue.

A proposal from the Governor would create legislative power to protect the safety and rights of New Yorks higher education both SUNY and private university students. This is not just a problem that occurs within SUNY campuses. According to the New York Times “there is no doubt that on many occasions colleges have not treated sexual-assault accusations as seriously as they should have”. With New York State representing nearly fourteen percent of reported national sexual assaults, its clear Governor Cuomo has a lot of work to do.

The legislation will include defining a clear, unambiguous agreement between participants to engage in sexual activity. It will also include an amnesty police which means you will get protection for certain campus violations like alcohol or drugs. Many students believe they cannot report and incident because they were partaking in illegal activities. A sexual assault Bill of Rights will be distributed to all incoming and previous students to help them better understand their rights as students of that university. An finally, increased training among administrators, staff and students will spread the word and make the campus community as a whole informed citizens of sexual assaults.

This legislation will affect more than one million students and will be used as a base for many other states to follow in our footsteps. Governor Cuomo states that New York is a state that should be leading a fight like this since it protects many of our youngest and vulnerable citizens. This legislation once in effect could sprawl out into many other fields’ besides just universities.

Information retrieved from: https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/2015-opportunity-agenda-ensuring-justice-perception-and-reality

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/08/opinion/sunday/the-best-way-to-address-campus-rape.html?_r=0

Picture retrieved from: http://www.onenewspage.us/video/20141202/2315979/Cuomo-announces-new-SUNY-sexual-assault-prevention-policy.htm

Video on sexual assault- Opportunity Agenda Plan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEbtGfERdVE

Today, the Assembly Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee hold a joint hearing on the Governor's budget for fiscal year 2015. There have been hearings since the end of January on various topics such as education, environmental issues, and economic development. Today is the day for local government officials to get involved. New York City Mayor Bill deBlasio took almost 2 and a half hours this morning with his concerns on the state budget. A large portion of this was dedicated to affordable housing. The hearing is being streamed online here

Former Speaker Sheldon Silver has entered a plea of not guilty after being formally indicted earlier this week of corruption charges. Silver is accused of hiding 3.8 million dollars of outside income that were "referral fees" that came due to his position of speaker. This event has really raised concern over ethics in the New York State Legislature as a new Siena University poll now shows that 92% ( 3.7% of error) of those surveyed see the problem of corruption as a serious problem in state government.

New York State Attorney General Cracks Down on Herbal Supplements

Authorities claim that some of the top selling brands of herbal supplements sold by four major retail chains (Walmart, Target, GNC, and Walgreens are bottled lies. Tests have shown that four out of five products contained none of the herbs that were listed on the label. Instead these products contained cheep fillers like powdered rice, asparagus and powdered house plants. Some of the products could be dangerous to individuals with food allergies for instance a

This has been a pleasant surprise to the medical community which has long complied about the lack of regulation on dietary supplements.

The Attorney Generals investigation was triggered by a 2013 article in the New York times, which called the validity of the supplement industries claims into doubt. That article itself refers to a study in Canada which found a third of the products they tested did not contain all the ingredients on their labels.

The Attorney Generals office has issued cease and desist letters to the four previously mentioned retailers, which can be found here.

Ethics Reform to include who?

With the most recent scandal enveloping the New York State Assembly, many people are pushing for a reform in New York State Government.  A new ethics package is likely within the early part of the 2015 year, after the unravel and indictment of Sheldon Silver, New York State Assembly Speaker.  It’s unsure how much substance will be in the political reform and if it will be transparent for New Yorkers. Many people are suggesting that Governor Andrew Cuomo subject himself to more public disclosure as well, as a way to be more transparent.

The New York Daily News reports that while Cuomo has been attacking lawmakers on making their outside income transparent to citizens, the governor made nearly $900,000 from his most recent memoir. A potential reform would be to ban governors from being paid directly or indirectly, in addition to outside speeches. Governor Cuomo has not made any comments on the new ethics proposal and has not shown whether he will support or reject the new transparent policies.

Within the past ten years, thirty New York State Legislatures have left office in disgrace. Cuomo has been pushing for an ethics reform package but many New Yorkers are hesitant in how they would enforce the new laws. A high-ranking legislative official stated, “A final negotiated package shouldn’t be just all about the legislature, if you want to do something comprehensive on ethics, it should include the governor as well”(New York Daily News). The same high-ranking legislature official also stated that people related to the high-ranking officials should have to disclose all investments, financial information, and income to help reduce the already high fiscal corruption in New York State politics.

Information retrieved from:  http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/lovett-state-pols-ethics-package-cover-cuomo-article-1.2125601

Picture retrieved from:  http://observer.com/2014/10/few-die-hard-fans-turn-out-for-andrew-cuomos-book-signing/

Colleges work with employers for better class material

Governor Cuomo has been pushing his new Opportunity Agenda to help make New York State a brighter, but more affordable place to live. Cuomo promises to push for property tax cuts, raise minimum wage statewide and also help college students financially. The Governor wants to raise wages up to $10.50, as he believes that if you work fulltime, and are making minimum wage, you should still be able to live a well rounded life and not in poverty. Also in Cuomo’s Opportunity agenda and state budget, the governor pushes for higher spending in education. Cuomo wants to help college students with their post degree debt, which may limit some people to a financially stable life. The plan is for New York State to help pay for the first two years of college debt so students can start off on the right foot after graduating. Another big push for Governor Cuomo would come from community colleges working with employers to help teach the specific skills to obtain certain jobs. Many employers higher workers that are required to have certain school experience in the classroom that community colleges do not offer. Cuomo’s push for higher education wants to change this. Instead of students taking pointless classes that they have to pay for which can be a waste, he wants schools to create programs that employers agree on that would be beneficial to the student and the company or field of work they may be interested. Not only just for community colleges but the Governor wants to push for the “Unnecessary classes” to be a thing in the past.

http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/higher-education/cuomo-budget-pushes-community-colleges-to-work-with-employers-20150203

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81ABlXBe9xY