Schodack Democratic Committee

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Rensselaer County Democrats pick Jennifer Sober to run for county judge

Report from Town Board member
Tracey Rex

TRACEY REX, MEMBER OF THE SCHODACK TOWN BOARD REPORTS TO THE PEOPLE
During the fall 2015 campaign, I spoke to residents about the need to bring much-needed accountability, transparency and openness to the Schodack Town Board.
I am proud to lead by example as the first member of the Schodack Town Board to post their voting record online (see below) so that residents can see how I voted on each resolution and my reasoning behind every vote.
Of course, the work of a Town Board member goes beyond attending monthly Town Board meetings, and when there is important news to share with the residents of Schodack, rest assured I will continue to do so on this Facebook page.
As always, if you have questions about our Town government or would like need to bring a particular issue to my attention, please call (518) 481-0739 or email TRexForSchodack@gmail.com.
Town Board Meeting – March 9, 2017
2017-107: Ratify and affirm authorizing Kerrie D. Joiner, Human Resource Manager to post internally the full-time positions of Assessor for the Town of Schodack and Senior Mechanic (Heavy) at the Highway Department and authorizing advertising in the official Town newspaper as necessary.
VOTE: Yea – This resolution authorizes the internal and external posting of two current job vacancies in town government. I notified our Human Resources Manager to post the Senior Mechanic (Heavy) vacancy on our town’s website. For a complete listing of current town job vacancies, visit http://www.schodack.org/human-re…/…/employment-opportunities.
2017-108: Appoint Michael Canestro and Mark Secor as Summer Grounds persons, under the direction of Kenneth Holmes, Highway Superintendent, at an hourly rate set forth in the 2017 annual budget.
VOTE: Yea – This resolution appoints two Summer Grounds staff persons for 2017.
2017-109: Appoint Lynne Torello as Acting Dog Control Officer for the year 2017. The Acting Dog Control Officer will serve when needed to cover for sick time or vacation time. The rate of payment shall be $50 per call.
VOTE: Yea – This resolution appoints an Acting Dog Control Officer to fill in when the town’s Dog Control Officer is out on sick or vacation leave.
2017-110: Authorize Supervisor Dowds to contract with musicians to perform at the 2017 Music in the Park as follows:
• Peaceful Country Band June 6 $500
• Winchester & Young June 13 $450
• Triskele June 20 $600
• Tri-County Banjo Band June 27 $400
• Yankee Doodle Band July 11 $600
VOTE: Yea – Each year the Town holds a Music in the Park Concert Series beginning at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday evenings at Schodack Town Park and these five acts have been approved to perform in 2017. I encourage local residents to attend these family-friendly concerts and to enjoy the free outdoor live musical entertainment.
2017-111: Authorize Supervisor Dowds to execute ASCAP License Agreement, subject to review and approval as to form by Attorney to the Town, and authorize payment not to exceed $350.00 for the licensing fee to ASCAP.
VOTE: Yea – The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) is an not-for-profit performing rights organization that protects its members' musical copyrights by monitoring public performances of their music, whether via a broadcast or live performance. The town enters into the licensing agreement in order to protect itself from possible litigation regarding copyright infringement at town concerts.
2017-112: Approve the following applications under Town Code § 147-5 and authorize the Town Clerk to issue the trailer renewals: NOTE: I omitted the names and addresses of mobile home owners contained in the resolution in order to protect their identity and privacy.
VOTE: Yea – Permit applications and fees for the renewal of any mobile home camp must be submitted to the Town Clerk and approved by the Town Board.
2017-113: WHEREAS, the Town Board of the Town of Schodack on January 12, 2017 authorized the Town Clerk to publish a legal notice to solicit sealed bids for Schodack Fueling Facility pursuant to specifications prepared by the Laberge Engineering & Consulting Group, Ltd.; and WHEREAS, after due publication of the notice, the Town, on February 15, 2017 received (5) bids for the Schodack Fueling Facility as follows: a bid from Northeast Petroleum Technologies, Inc. for $239,919; a bid from Environmental & Fueling Systems LLC for $251,965; a bid from American Petroleum Equipment & Construction, for $258,865; a bid from LaValley Bros. Construction, Inc. for $292,813 and a bid from Island Pump & Tank Corp. for $378,500; and WHEREAS, the bids were reviewed for conformance to specifications and submittal of required bid bond and non-collusive certificates; and NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved that pursuant to the recommendation of the Laberge Engineering & Consulting Group, Ltd., that the Town Board does hereby award the bid to Northeast Petroleum Technologies, Inc. for its bid for the entire package in the sum of $239,919.
VOTE: Yea – Northeast Petroleum Technologies was selected as the low bidder for the Schodack Fueling Station Project at the Highway Garage.
2017-114: Authorize Supervisor Dowds to execute renewal application with St. Paul Travelers for crime, employee faithful performance and computer fraud bond at the annual cost of $1,200.
VOTE: Yea – This is a standard renewal of an application with an insurance company that protects the town against the loss of money, securities or property with intrinsic value as a result of dishonest acts committed by its employees.
2017-115: Authorize payment of $3,250.25 to Rensselaer County Bureau of Finance based on the 2016 Time Warner Cable/Charter Utility report on said franchise properties assessed within the Town of Schodack. NOTE: I did not include the full wording of this lengthy resolution to save space. If you would like a complete copy of this resolution, please contact me.
VOTE: Yea – Per the franchise agreement between Time Warner Cable (TWC) (now known as Charter Communications) and the Town of Schodack, TWC/Charter paid the town $85,055 in franchise fees to operate its cable television business in the public right-of-way. TWC/Charter was levied a total of $3,250.25 in town taxes on five special franchise properties in 2016, and the Town Board authorized the payment of $3,250.25 to the Rensselaer County Bureau of Finance.
2017-116: Authorize the purchase of a 2017 Ford Utility Police Interceptor AWD from VanBortel Ford based on Onondaga County purchasing contract bid number 7418 2017 at a cost not to exceed $42,585.06 plus delivery charge of $265 for a total cost not to exceed $42,850.06. [This is an approved 2017 Budget Item]
VOTE: Yea – This resolution approves the purchase of a 2017 Ford Utility Police Interceptor AWD vehicle for the Schodack Police Department. According to Police Chief Joseph Belardo, the department preferred the utility sized vehicle (rather than the sedan size) which allows officers to get in and out of more quickly and for its increased versatility during extreme weather conditions and while traveling the rural areas in town.
2017-117: Adopt the fee schedule for Spring Clean Up Days (May 11, 12 & 13) at the Transfer Station as follows:
• Refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners and dehumidifiers: $ 6.00
• Tires, rimless (maximum size 16"): $ 2.00
• Larger and rimmed tires: price by size
• TVs, computer monitors: FREE
• Propane Tanks: FREE
• Furniture: FREE
• Metal goods: FREE
• Push mowers: FREE
• Gas grills: FREE
• Bicycles: FREE
Please note: all other pricing remains the same.
VOTE: Yea – This resolution adopts the fee schedule for the annual Spring Clean Up Days to be held on May 11, 12 and 13 between 7:00 AM and 3:00 PM. During these three days, items that normally have a fee can be brought to the Transfer Station at 446 Poyneer Road for free or for a reduced charge. I encourage residents to take advantage of these cost saving opportunities available during the Spring Clean Up Days. To view a copy of the Transfer Station Rules and Regulations, please visit:
http://www.schodack.org/…/up…/2017_rules_and_regulations.pdf.
2017-118: WHEREAS, the Town of Schodack and the Village of Castleton entered into an Intermunicipal agreement dated November 21, 2013 for the Village’s water system to interconnect with the Town’s water system, allowing the Village to purchase water from the Town, and WHEREAS, section VI(i) of said agreement allows for an annual increase in the rate charged to the Village in correlation to the consumer price index average published in January each year, and WHEREAS, the consumer price index average published in January 2017 was 1.3% and the current rate charged to the Village is $4.06 per 1,000 gallons of water, NOW THEREFORE IT BE RESOLVED, that effective January 1, 2017 the rate charged to the Village of Castleton for the purchase of water shall be $4.11 per 1,000 gallons.
VOTE: Yea – This resolution increases the rate charged to the Village of Castleton for the purchase of water from the town for calendar year 2017 from $4.06 per 1K gallons of water to $4.11 based on the consumer price index average for 2017.
2017-119: Amend Resolution 2016-165 as adopted on June 9, 2016 authorizing Supervisor Dowds to execute and administer a letter of Engagement for Legal and Planning Services with Shulman, Howard & McPherson, LLP dated March 11, 2015 relative to Updating the Town’s Zoning Laws thereby increasing the amount from $15,000 to an amount not to exceed $20,000.
VOTE: Yea – This resolution authorizes the town to increase by $5K the amount paid to the above named law firm for providing legal guidance to the town’s zoning committee relative to updating the town’s zoning laws. According to Supervisor Dennis Dowds, the increase was necessary due to the fact that attorney Lawrence Howard is required to attend more meetings than originally planned due to his expertise and knowledge on zoning issues.
2017-120: BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town of Schodack hereby establishes the following as standard work days for elected and appointed officials and will report the following days worked to the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement System based on the record of activities maintained and submitted by these officials to the clerk of this body.
NOTE: This resolution was withdrawn due to the fact that it lacked the three votes required for adoption by the Town Board. Town Board Members Jim Bult and Scott Swartz were absent from the meeting and since Town Board Member Michael Kenney would have had to abstain on the resolution since his name was included in resolution, it left only two Town Board Members present (Tracey Rex and Dennis Dowds) available to vote on the resolution.
2017-121: Authorize the Comptroller’s recommendation to direct the Town Supervisor to pay the claims #17-0321 to 17-0467 on Abstract No. 2017-03, in the amount of $434,135.05, including the claims paid ($307,909.18) since the previous town board meeting.
VOTE: Yea – This resolution authorizes the Town Supervisor, at the recommendation of the Town Comptroller, to facilitate payment of select invoices since the previous Town Board meeting. Town Board members are provided a detailed itemization of all expenses to be paid.
2017-122: Authorize budget modifications, interfund loans and interfund transfers as recommended by the Comptroller.
VOTE: Yea – These are routine movements of budgeted funds between accounts that occur over the course of the year as recommended by the Town Comptroller.
Town Board Meeting – March 23, 2017
2017-123: WHEREAS, on February 9, 2017 the Schodack Town Board approved by resolution (2017-086) the Volunteer Ambulance Workers Service Award Program List of all 2016 active Volunteer Ambulance Workers of the Castleton Volunteer Ambulance Services, Inc., and WHEREAS, the list was forwarded to authorized representatives of the Castleton Volunteer Ambulance Services, Inc. and was posted for thirty (30) days as required by law, and WHEREAS, they have certified on March 14, 2017 no changes were made to the listing, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Schodack Town Board authorizes Supervisor Dowds to certify to PENFLEX, Inc., that the listing as submitted and posted should be used to determine the funding, the requirements of the Service Award Programs (SAP), the eligibility of persons to be paid benefits and the amount of benefits to be paid to eligible persons.
VOTE: Yea – NYS General Municipal Law requires the Castleton Volunteer Ambulance Services to certify all 2016 active members of the company and indicate the points earned by each volunteer in accordance with the Service Award Program Point System. On February 9, 2017 the Town Board approved the list of workers and forwarded it to the Castleton Volunteer Ambulance Services who then posted it for thirty days as required by law. The Castleton Volunteer Ambulance Services certified the list on March 14, 2017 with no changes. The Castleton Volunteer Ambulance fulfills an important mission in our community and I wish to thank all of the organization’s members for their dedicated service in providing emergency medical services to the residents and visitors of Schodack.
2017-124: BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town of Schodack hereby establishes the following as standard work days for elected and appointed officials and will report the following days worked to the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement System based on the record of activities maintained and submitted by these officials to the clerk of this body. NOTE: The names and job titles of the employees contained in this resolution were omitted due to the length of this resolution. If you would like a complete copy of this resolution, please contact me.
VOTE: Yea – Each year the town must submit to the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement System a list of its elected and appointed officials and their standard work day (hours per day) in order ensure the benefits the employees receive are accurate. For more information about the Office of the State Comptroller’s employer reporting requirements for Elected and Appointed Officials, visit http://www.osc.state.ny.us/…/e…/elected_appointed_officials/
-Tracey
NYSLRS — Elected and Appointed Officials
An overview for reporting the number of days worked for elected and appointed officials.
WWW.OSC.STATE.NY.US

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Town board member tracey rex helps schodack dems to clean up miller road

Schodack Dems were joined by Town Board Member Tracey Rex for their final Miller Road cleanup for 2016. Helping were Ray Ludwig, Jillian Ludwig, Linda Underwood, Tracey Rex, Olivia Karis-Nix, and Dev Tobin (not pictured).

RensCo Legislative Chair Martin Reid illegally collected unemployment benefits, Abelove refuses to charge him with felony

"The chairman of the Rensselaer County Legislature "wilfully and intentionally misrepresented the facts" when he collected more than $15,000 in state unemployment benefits while being paid $30,000 a year for his government work.

That assessment of legislative Chairman Martin T. Reid's improper receipt of unemployment benefits was made last year by a state administrative law judge in a decision that was never made public. The state Labor Department recently turned over copies of the judge's ruling, and other records in the case — including Reid's county time slips and his certifications to the state that he qualified for the benefits — to the Rensselaer County district attorney's office for review as a potential criminal case.

Despite the referral, it's unclear if newly elected Rensselaer County District Attorney Joel Abelove will pursue the case."

More at the Times Union

UPDATE

The Times Union once again took Rensselaer County DA Joel Abelove to task for failing to do his job.

The way Mr. Abelove took charge of the probe after Mr. Thevenin’s April 17 death is exactly what the governor’s order was intended to prevent. Just a day after the shooting, Mr. Abelove stood next to the Troy police chief and declared that police Sgt. Randy French, who fired eight bullets at Mr. Thevenin’s windshield, acted “in line with the law.” Sgt. French fired after being pinned by Mr. Thevenin’s car, police said. Mr. Abelove also denied that police weren’t cooperating with the attorney general’s office – an assertion the police chief contradicted.Before the week was out, Mr. Abelove presented the case to a grand jury, which declined to indict Sgt. French. Case closed, he implied.
Now we learn that there were eyewitnesses to the shooting who weren’t called before the grand jury. And a civilian has stepped forward saying he captured the scene on video, contradicting police claims that there was no such video.
Whatever Mr. Abelove’s intent, it appeared that he was trying to shepherd the case through to a quick disposition. His sloppiness speaks volumes about the need for a thorough investigation by Mr. Schneiderman."

Read more: http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion/mr-abeloves-rush-job/35146/

"THE ISSUE:
The new Rensselaer County district attorney faces potential conflicts of interest.

THE STAKES:
He should take every step possible to ensure such cases are handled scrupulously.

Not two months into his administration, we're seeing troubling signs that Rensselaer County District Attorney Joel Abelove doesn't understand the importance of avoiding even the appearance of a conflict of interest.

Since taking office on Jan. 1, Mr. Abelove has already faced a couple of tests of how to handle cases that pose questions of propriety. Regrettably, he has failed both."

More at the Times Union

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