Plugged In @ Hinman Straub
Coverage of Albany and New York State government – December 31, 2015
What’s Inside
- Governor Announces Launch of State Student Loan Forgiveness Program
- Governor Announces Progress on New York Responds
- State’s Minimum Wage Increases
- JCOPE Finds former Assemblyman Violated Public Officers Law
- Coming Up
Governor Announces Launch of State Student Loan Forgiveness Program
Gov. Cuomo announced this week that the state will begin accepting applications tomorrow for the new ‘Get On Your Feet’ Loan Forgiveness Program, which offers up to 24 months of federal student loan debt relief to recent college graduates living in the state.
Qualified applicants must have earned an undergraduate degree from a college or university located in the state in or after December 2014, have an adjusted gross income of less than $50,000, and be enrolled in the federal Income Based Repayment plan or Pay as You Earn plan. Recipients will have a maximum of 24 payments, equal to their monthly student loan repayment amount, paid on their behalf. Applications are accepted year round. Once fully implemented in 2020, more than 24,000 recent graduates are expected to participate.
Gov. Cuomo said:
“Ensuring students are able pay for college and not saddled with debt is critical for both their individual success and the continued economic growth of New York State. With this program, we are telling recent graduates: if you invest in New York’s future, we will invest in yours.”
More information on the program is available here.
Governor Announces Progress on New York Responds
On Monday, Gov. Cuomo announced that the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services’ (DHSES) Office of Emergency Management (OEM) has completed the Phase One rollout of NY Responds, the state’s updated approach to disaster response and recovery. The improvements include an enhanced incident management system as well as training in and access to Mutualink, a new technology solution that integrates telephone, radio, video and file sharing into one, interoperable application.
In Phase Two, which is expected to begin in 2016, DHSES will make further upgrades to the incident management system adding improved geographic information systems, weather forecasting and modeling, additional Mutualink features, asset and inventory management, and notifications and alerting.
Gov. Cuomo said:
“NY Responds is transforming and strengthening the way this state responds to disasters and other emergency situations. This new approach is key in executing a coordinated response which helps communities stay better informed when an emergency situation occurs and recover more quickly.”
State’s Minimum Wage Increases
Effective today, New York State’s base minimum wage rises from $8.75 per hour to $9. For fast-food workers, the minimum wage increases to $10.50 per hour in New York City and $9.75 per hour elsewhere in the rest of the state. And the base hourly rate for restaurant servers and other tipped workers will increase to $7.50.
The increase in the state’s base minimum wage was approved by lawmakers in 2013. The increases for fast-food and tipped workers were approved by Wage Boards that were appointed at the direction of Gov. Cuomo.
The Governor has said that in 2016 he will push for a phased-in statewide minimum wage increase which would reach $15 per hour in New York City in 2019 and the rest of the state in 2022.
JCOPE Finds former Assemblyman Violated Public Officers Law
The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE), the state’s ethics and lobbying regulator, has issued a report which alleges that former Assemblyman Dennis Gabryszak (D-Cheektowaga) violated the Public Officers Law on numerous occasions. According to the report, Gabryszak routinely made sexual comments to members of his staff, hired staff members based on their looks, and used state resources to aid in his re-election campaign.
Read JCOPE’s full report here.
Gabryszak resigned his Assembly seat in January 2014, shortly after the allegations against him were made public by his former staff members.
The JCOPE report now goes to the Legislative Ethics Commission, which can decide to impose penalties of up to $40,000 against the former Assemblyman or refer the case for criminal prosecution.
Coming Up
The 2016 Legislative session will commence on Wednesday, January 6, 2016.
On January 7, the Senate Labor Committee is holding a public hearing “to examine the overall impact increasing the statewide minimum wage to $15/hour would have on workers, employers, and the state as a whole.”
The Board of Regents holds its next meeting on January 11 and 12.
Gov. Cuomo will hold his State of the State/Budget Address at 12:30 pm on Wednesday, January 13 at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center in Albany.
On Wednesday, January 20, the Assembly committees on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions and Economic Development, Job Creation, Commerce and Industry will hold a public hearing “to examine the telecommunications marketplace and the ability of consumers to obtain affordable and high quality cable, broadband, and telephone service.
The Public Service Commission (PSC) holds its next meeting on January 21.
The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) holds its next meeting on January 26.