Happy Tuesday, CivMix crew!
We’re going to have another wet start to the day, with light rain in the morning, according to The Weather Channel. It will then be cloudy for the remainder of the day, with temperatures only in the low-to-mid-70s – another reprieve from the heat.
But don’t worry, there’s more sunshine on the way in the coming days, and the thermometer will be heading back up into ranges more appropriate for the end of July.
In the news…
President Donald Trump and congressional leaders announced a critical debt and budget agreement that’s an against-the-odds victory for Washington pragmatists seeking to avoid political and economic tumult over the possibility of a government shutdown or first-ever federal default.
The deal would raise spending by $320 billion over existing caps and allow the government to keep borrowing, most likely averting a fiscal crisis but splashing still more red ink on an already surging deficit.
The Trump administration today will propose a rule to tighten food stamp restrictions that would cut about 3.1 million people from the program, U.S. Department of Agriculture officials said.
Sudden downpours caused flash floods across NYC last night, turning streets in Brooklyn and Staten Island into rivers and blocking traffic entirely on the Long Island Expressway.
Of the more than three million customers that Con Edison serves in New York City and suburban Westchester County, more than 12,000 were without power as strong thunderstorms rolled into the area last night, bringing high winds and heavy rain that flooded many city streets.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo told the NY Times his critiques of progressivism are part of an effort to get fellow Democrats to concentrate on, and refine, their platform leading into 2020. “I am not challenging anyone,” he said. “I am challenging the Democratic Party to come up with a definition and an agenda” incorporating progressive ideas.
The Conservative and Working Families parties filed separate lawsuits accusing Cuomo and other top Democratic officials of effectively conspiring to try to get rid of them through the creation of a special commission that will, among other things, consider doing away with fusion voting.
Anna Sorokin, the fake heiress who bamboozled New York’s elite and is serving time in state prison, may not see any of the proceeds from a deal she signed with Netflix to transform her life story into a television series, thanks to an effort by state AG Tish James’ office.
A new bill proposed in the NYC Council would make it illegal for cellphone companies and mobile app developers to share location data gathered while a customer’s mobile device is within the five boroughs. If passed, it appears the city would become the first to ban the sale of geolocation data to third parties.
The Schenectady Common Council is taking steps to settle a wrongful death lawsuit filed against the city’s police department by Angelique Negroni-Kearse, the widow of Andrew Kearse, who died of cardiac arrhythmia while in custody in May 2017, though he repeatedly asked for medical attention.
A state Supreme Court justice wiped out half the sentence of Jah-Lah Vanderhorst, an Albany man who was 16 when he stabbed another teen to death. Vanderhorst’s application for youthful defender status was denied, but his sentenced was cut from 25 years to 12 and a half.
Taking “the Regents,” one of the oldest academic exam systems in the country, has been a right of passage for high school students in New York for generations. That may soon change as the state Board of Regents considers scrapping the high school test requirement.
County fair season will kick off with the opening of the 178th Saratoga County Fair today, setting the stage for a string of summertime agricultural celebrations.
The Saratoga County Democratic Committee will not have a presence at the fair because, said Becca Oppenneer, first vice chair of the committee and chair of its fundraising, the fair administration switched its booth location to a less visible spot.
A representative of a Saratoga County turbine parts exporter expressed concern to two German businessmen that they might purchase equipment and illegally transport it to Iran, according to recordings made by federal investigators.
The Polish Community Center of Albany is in jeopardy of being banned from hosting bell jar games for a year, stemming from repeated failures to operate games of chance with the proper license and filing paperwork late.
Advantage Transit Group will begin offering taxi service from Albany International Airport on Aug. 1, after the Albany County Airport Authority approved a contract at its monthly meeting. This comes one month after Capitaland Taxi terminated service at the airport.
Included in the all-women sports festival the Aurora Games, scheduled for Aug. 20-25 in downtown Albany, is a series of a dozen seminars in which prominent speakers talk about issues pertaining to women in sports and society.
There’s now one more option available for people grappling with substance abuse in Schenectady: Addicts can walk into the city police station and be met with a path to recovery. No judgment, just solutions.
As the opioid crisis devastated communities across the country in the late 2000s, there were enough prescription pain pills dispensed in Montgomery County for every resident to get 38 of them each year between 2006 and 2012, according to a new Washington Post database.
Immigration was the focus at a town hall hosted by NY-19 Democratic Rep. Antonio Delgado in Catskill last night. He, along with several congressional colleagues, visited the Southern Border on Friday amid U.S. inspector general concerns about overcrowding and living conditions for detainees.
A black doctor from New York claims she was racially profiled at the Angry Orchard brewery in Walden, along with her boyfriend — as he was attempting to pop the question.
Funeral services will be held today for the 3-year-old boy who died after falling into a grease trap at Tim Hortons on University Avenue in Rochester.
The San Francisco company Uber says NYC and state regulations reining in ride-hailing services are only making life difficult for lower-income neighborhoods — while having zero impact on more affluent New York City riders.
Some Elevation Foods products sold at Target and Fresh Market are being recalled, including select containers of Archer Farms brand egg salad and deviled egg sandwiches, due to a possible listeria contamination. Also impacted: Fresket brand egg salad, tuna salad and Thai lobster salad.
WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair is coming to the Capital Region later this year. The 70-year-old Flair will appear at Heroes Hideout in Colonie Center on Sunday, Sept. 15 from 1-3 p.m.
Regal Cinemas is investing millions of dollars in transforming some of their upstate New York theaters. Crossgates Mall’s 18 auditorium location is among the theaters part of the $20 million plan.
That perfectly wrapped In-N-Out double double found on a Queens street? Still a mystery as to how it got there.
