TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalCollege conundrum: Regional private colleges adapt in light of SUNY's free tuition program
Take the free college education if you can, Gianna Ruffle’s parents told her. Or at least try to go to a private college for as little money as possible.
The 17-year-old Gates Chili High School student is still weighing her options, touring campuses and waiting for acceptance letters. Ruffle, who plans to study psychology, applied to St. John Fisher, Roberts Wesleyan College and Nazareth College but if she can get into the College at Brockport, her parents have encouraged her to go there on an Excelsior Scholarship.
Excelsior Scholarships were introduced last year and offer high school graduates from New York the opportunity to attend a SUNY or CUNY college tuition-free if they come from a home that has a gross income of less than $110,000 and they meet other requirements.
College affordability is a top concern for Gianna's family. Linda Ruffle, Gianna’s mom, said that if the cost of private institutions comes down, “then it’s her choice, really.” But before making a decision the Ruffles are waiting to see what kind of financial aid and scholarships Gianna could receive.
Read more: https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2018/02/03/suny-college-free-tuition-excelsior-program-new-york/1074931001/
State workers have yet to collect on $10 million in bias settlement
Here’s my story in Thursday’s Times Union about the $10 million that remains uncollected in a court settlement from 2011 in which African-American and Hispanic state workers had alleged in a federal lawsuit that a civil service promotional test was racially biased.
The state settled for $45 million but all of those listed in the suit have stepped forward to collect their awards which average $7,000:
With little notice and no fanfare, New York State seven years ago agreed to a $45 million settlement with nearly 5,000 current and former African-American and Hispanic state workers who had alleged in a federal lawsuit that the civil service tests they needed for promotions were racially biased.
While most members of the plaintiff class received their share of the payout, there are still about 1,000 people who have yet to collect.
Read more: http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/280157/state-workers-have-yet-to-collect-on-10-million-in-bias-settlment/
Rifle & Pistol group files federal lawsuit challenging conceal-carry laws
The New York State Rifle & Pistol Association has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of state regulations that prohibit many gun owners from carrying their firearms in public areas without judicial authorization.
Buoyed by a recent federal appeals court decision that dismantled strict gun-control laws in the District of Columbia, the lawsuit filed in Albany this week seeks to open up a court challenge on whether constitutional rights under the Second Amendment extend beyond the home.
“We’re going to try to get the courts, particularly in New York, to look at the Second Amendment as a right that extends to everybody no matter where they may be, with some restrictions,” said Tom King, president of the roughly 35,000-member Rifle & Pistol Association.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Albany this week on behalf of Robert Nash, whose application for a conceal-carry permit was rejected two years ago by state Supreme Court Justice Richard C. McNally, Jr.
Read more: http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/280176/rifle-pistol-group-files-federal-lawsuit-challenging-conceal-carry-laws/
Cuomo Proposes $55B Tunnel Linking Westchester's Sound Shore To Long Island
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is forging ahead with a plan to build a tunnel between Westchester County and the north shore of Long Island.
The main question circulating on Tuesday was exactly where would the tunnel connect along Westchester's northern Sound Shore, which includes the communities of Port Chester, Rye and Mamaroneck.
A new Long Sound crossing has been considered on the Island since 1938 with multiple ideas dumped by fierce community opposition.
Cuomo's administration issued a formal request for proposals on Friday to the construction industry and private-equity investors, urging them to express interest in building a tunnel from Long Island.
Read more: http://yonkers.dailyvoice.com/news/cuomo-proposes-55b-tunnel-linking-westchesters-sound-shore-to-long-island/732032/
Protest Faceoff at Puerto Rico Control Board Meeting
The Fiscal Control Board that has been appointed to run Puerto Rico’s finances held a “listening session” yesterday at the Alexander Hamilton Building on Bowling Green, where they were met by protestors organized by the Call to Action On Puerto Rico, an anti-colonialist, pro-independence group. The demonstration soon ended up with federal security officers physically confronting both protestors and a photographer working for the Puerto Rico-based Center for Investigative Journalism.
For Puerto Rico, the future of its public energy utility is at the center of its rebuilding process from Hurricane María, since 40 percent of its people still lack electricity. The island’s governor, Ricardo Rosselló, said last week that he intends to privatize part of the utility, which is in the midst of a bankruptcy process, as is the territory itself.
Inside, the board held a session called “The Future of Puerto Rico’s Energy Sector,” whose agenda included some of the big players interested in the energy sector. Federal Homeland Security officers placed a barricade outside the building to demarcate the protest area, in the process pushing demonstrators, as well as an accredited photographer who was shooting pictures of the protest.
When the photographer tried to enter the building to take photos of the event and showed the New York press ID he had handing on his neck, an officer asked him to accompany him inside. There, he asked the photographer for his ID, then to show another ID proving his New York residence. When the photographer refused, he was told he would not be allowed in after a decision by the “head of security of the Promesa Board.” (Roberto Escobar, a former federal agent and president of ESC Group, a private security firm, is in charge of the board’s security matters, according to a board spokesperson.)
Read more: https://www.villagevoice.com/2018/02/02/protest-faceoff-at-puerto-rico-control-board-meeting/
Attorney: District Judge Rudy Delgado arrested
EDINBURG — State District Judge Rodolfo “Rudy” Delgado was arrested Friday amid an apparent FBI investigation, his attorney Al Alvarez indicated.
Dozens of FBI agents descended on the offices of Delgado’s 93rd state District Court and his home in Edinburg about 4 p.m. Friday.
Assisted by Texas Rangers and Hidalgo County Sheriff’s deputies, the agents could be seen removing plastic bins from his home near the intersection of Schunior Street and Depot Road.
It’s unclear if agents removed anything from his office at the Hidalgo County courthouse. Courthouse officials blocked access to the facility’s second floor, where Delgado’s court office is located.
Read more: http://www.themonitor.com/news/local/article_ec58f6b4-089a-11e8-8700-abbb551ae59f.html
Pregnant mother wasn't dead when abductor stole baby from womb, prosecutors say
FARGO – A courtroom full of Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind’s loved ones heard a grisly tale of how the 22-year-old Fargo woman died after her infant daughter was cut from her womb by Brooke Lynn Crews, a neighbor who lured the pregnant woman to her death by asking for help.
Prosecutor Tanya Johnson Martinez related the horrific story, one Crews told authorities, before Cass County District Judge Frank Racek sentenced Crews Friday, Feb. 2, to life in prison without the chance of parole.
On an afternoon last August, 36-year-old Crews asked her downstairs neighbor, who was eight months pregnant, for help with a sewing project.
LaFontaine-Greywind agreed to help, but when she got to Crews’ apartment Crews provoked an argument by accusing LaFontaine-Greywind of mistreating cats.
Read more: http://www.inforum.com/news/crime-and-courts/4397853-pregnant-mother-wasnt-dead-when-abductor-stole-baby-womb-prosecutors
High turnout for Democratic convention in Fargo
FARGO—Despite harsh winter weather, turnout for the Saturday, Feb. 3, Cass County Democratic-NPL Convention was high.
At least 200 voters attended the convention Saturday, Feb. 3 to nominate candidates for Districts 11, 13, 16, 21, 22, 27, 41, 44, 45 and 46. Democrats in North Dakota endorse legislative candidates for their respective parties at district conventions. They also elect delegates for the state convention.
Despite it not being a presidential election year—which typically attract more voters than off years—the turnout was one of the largest the convention has seen, said Chris McEwen, chair of the Cass County Democratic NPL.
"We had a fantastic turnout," McEwen said. "People are fired up. They want to see things change. They are dissatisfied with how things are occurring in Bismarck and nationally and they want to see change happen."
Read more: http://www.inforum.com/news/4398607-high-turnout-democratic-convention-fargo
Pierre pushing back on Sioux Falls government secrecy
Dust-ups between Sioux Falls City Hall and city councilors are spilling over to the state Legislature.
South Dakota's largest city has long been the big kid on the block when it comes to the state's communities. But leading the state in population, development and often times innovation can come with challenges.
Among them are political rifts that often fall on a rural-urban dividing line. Other times, pushback is not about geography, but fueled by specific policy differences among those who lead Sioux Falls and the state.
"Some of these bills ... revolve around what’s happened in Sioux Falls as far as the mayor trying to rule with a little more authority than what he should have," District 10 Rep. Steve Haugaard (R-Sioux Falls) said during a recent visit with constituents.
Read more: http://www.argusleader.com/story/news/politics/2018/02/04/sneve-sioux-falls-secrecy-spills-over-into-pierre-sioux-falls-often-inspires-laws-south-dakota-legis/1086915001/
South Dakota House panel rejects 18-year-old drinking age for military
A South Dakota House committee on state affairs at the state Capitol on Wednesday voted down legislation that would have lowered the drinking age to 18 for members of the military.
It would have allowed bars and retailers to serve alcohol to 18-year-olds in active duty, reserve and National Guard units who showed valid military identification cards.
Republican Rep. Tim Goodwin, the sponsor, says if people are willing to put their lives on the line to serve their country, they should be deemed adults.
Goodwin, of Rapid City, is a retired member of the military and businessman.
Read more: http://www.capjournal.com/news/sd-house-panel-rejects--year-old-drinking-age-for/article_3bd5957e-06c2-11e8-8565-a7ef9d24886f.html
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Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
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Current location: Bryan, Texas
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