This Cycle:
Opposition to Last Year’s NYS Gun Law Reforms
NYSEG and RGE Announce Smart Meters at BOS Meeting
Vaping in Schools
Small Companies Struggle to Provide Services
Covid Spending Over; Communicable Diseases of Concern
Humane Society Expansion Project Dashed by Cost Increases
“Forfeiture Reserve” Used to Pay for Bloodhound, Equipment
Office of the Sheriff Receives Red Team Money from Homeland Security
Public/Conflict Defenders Move to Move to Cloud Storage
Autopsy Doctor to Retire
More Raises (yes, plural) for the County Psychiatrist
New Director of Office for the Aging Announced
Grants for Youth Programs
Straw Ban and Other SSWM Updates
Roadkill Clearing Services
Jail Update
Opposition to NYS Gun Legislation: Last July, New York State enacted a number of gun reform provisions. In the wake of the changes, a number of counties across New York State independently passed resolutions opposing the changes (read more about them here). According to Supervisor Daryl Marshall (Town of Richmond), a resident reached out to both himself and Supervisor Jack Marren (Town of Victor, who was also the Board of Supervisors Chairman at the time) in opposition of the changes. While the County debated the issue, it ultimately decided not to move forward with a resolution opposing the gun law reforms.
But Supervisor Daryl Marshall isn’t satisfied with that. In Public Safety Committee on March 1st, Marshall laid out his major grievances with the reforms, including:
-By establishing a very long list of “safe zones,” it essentially limits concealed carry (which takes a lengthy process including the vetting of references, fingerprinting and a complete background check) to one’s own private property
-Requires a background check for the purchase of ammunition
-Requires guns to be locked in a gun locker, even inside a locked car (this is quite troublesome for hunters; ask a hunter you know about it)
-Requires a license to own a semi-automatic rifle
-Severely infringes upon residents’ Second Amendment rights
In addition, Marshall criticized the reforms for failing to address the role of violent mentalities and mental health problems in gun violence. Marshall is especially concerned by recent news of a Downstate Senator’s push to ban hunting contest because he opposes “killing animals.”
“What’s next, an outright ban on hunting?” Asked Marshall. But no one could answer his question.
Marshall worked with his town, Richmond, to draft and pass a resolution opposing these gun reforms and will renew his efforts at the County to get something similar passed. He is hoping to submit his resolution opposing New York State’s recent gun reform in time for consideration next cycle.
NYSEG, RGE announce smart meter rollout: Tim Winderl from Avangrid spoke during privilege of the floor at the March 9th Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting to announce the “deployment” of smart meters for all residential and commercial customers of NYSEG and RGE in Ontario County. The deployment will occur in three phases, beginning this summer. I will be reporting more on this in a separate article. In the meantime, RGE and NYSEG have identical information that you can access here.
Vaping in schools: According to Mary Beer, vaping remains a big issue in schools. In response, health educators, including an “expert” from the UR and a student who successfully quit vaping, will be holding a session on March 28th at Canandaigua City high school. The educational session will be taped and later made available to all other county schools. A public session will be held at 6:30pm on the same day, also at the Canandaigua City high school. All interested persons are welcome to attend.
The problem of vaping among youth does not appear to be subsiding. “It’s huge in seventh grade, and it’s pushing down into sixth grade,” said Supervisor Jared Simpson (Town of Canandaigua). “We’ve got 11 year-olds who are starting up with it.”
There is significant worry amongst County and School leadership about the ramifications of this trend, especially if and when marijuana vaping fluid is legalized. Vaping is common among high schoolers and even middle schoolers these days.
Marsha Foote, Director of the Youth Bureau, agreed that, in addition to vaping, marijuana and also fentanyl are problems that she sees afflicting Ontario youth.
Small companies struggle to provide services: Director of Public Health, Mary Beer, asked the Public Health Committee to approve a budget transfer in the amount of $20,000 so that her department can pay for its contract with Finger Lakes Therapy Works, PLLC (FLTW) for “EI (early intervention) service coordination.” Ontario County’s Early Intervention Program “addresses the needs of children from birth to age three who have developmental disabilities.” The County’s previous coordinator had to stop providing these services, stating a lack of profitability.
Beer explained: “For the EI (early intervention) program, our provider stopped doing the service coordination. And this has happened across the State. And the reason that they’re not wanting to do that anymore is because they lose money on it. The State just will not up those rates — we’ve been having discussions with them probably for a decade — so it’s not worth them doing, because they lose money… Other counties around us ended up having to hire people to actually do it. It’s a mandated service. Every child needs to have a service coordinator to make sure things are [copacetic], etc., etc.”
“This [contract with FLTW] was a very good thing for us, and they do a good job,” continued Beer, “However, our numbers are up and it’s been too difficult for them — they’ve been losing money, too… The dollars that we’re giving [FLTW] are not enough to cover [their] expenses.”
FLTW is asking for a raise, from $40,000 annually to $100,000. If they cannot obtain the raise, they will not be able to perform the work, which Beer said would require three full-time county employees (at about $100,000 each, including benefits) to cover. “This is a small company,” said Beer. “It’s not like they have these huge overheads that they can cover it.”
The Public Health Department has the extra money in its pre-kindergarten budget, so this money will not have to be taken from the overall County contingency fund.
In response to hearing this, Supervisor Norman Teed (Town of Phelps) commented, “We’re running into this everywhere. People can’t afford to be in business. What choice do we have?”
Beer’s request for this budget transfer was approved by Health and Human Services Committee. The department’s contract with Finger Lakes Therapy Works was approved unanimously by the Board of Supervisors on March 9th.
A curious lack of financial information is present in the resolutions addressing this, here, here and here.
Covid and communicable diseases: Director of Public Health Mary Beer said in Health and Human Services Committee that Ontario County will not spending any more money on Covid. The aid the County received from the State and Federal governments really helped the County provide services to residents, but Ontario didn’t need to use all of the money.
The communicable diseases that are currently the most prevalent in Ontario are Lyme disease and STDs, she said. Please be careful to check yourself and your loved ones for ticks!
Humane Society expansion project dashed: Do you ever wonder why you have to license your dog? Dog licensing fees are supposed to support the Humane Society, which replaced town dog wardens in the 1980’s after they were deemed insufficient.
The Ontario County Humane Society (OCHS) was planning an expansion to their base of operations, Happy Tails, back in April of 2020. They had secured $360,000 in funding (with a 25% match from OCHS) and were looking at a total project budget of about $480,000. In October 2020, after OCHS had already accepted this funding, they reached out to Ontario County for help administering the project — the Humane Society doesn’t have any experience managing capital projects — and the County agreed to run the project.
Of course, the government’s response to Covid-19 was decimating the economy generally, and the supply chain specifically, during exactly the span of this project’s planning phase. By November 2021, what had been a $480,000 project had ballooned in cost, reaching a crushing $900,000, according to an updated cost estimate for the same work. In light of this new reality, there was no way that the project could move forward as planned: neither OCHS nor the County had that kind of extra cash laying around. The granting authority, which was referred to as “Ag and Markets” (New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets) by Planning Director Tom Harvey, is not receptive to any re-scoping of the original project: they insist it must either be completed exactly as planned, or the money returned to the State.
OCHS has little choice but to reimburse the State for its original grant, reduce the scope of its project, and re-apply for a different grant. One such grant is currently open, with submissions due on April 4th. Rather than expanding and upgrading the architecture of Happy Tails, it may only be feasible to fix the items that badly need addressing, such as rusty partitions and drains (which cannot be cleaned to standard), concrete repairs and improvements to ventilation.
Since OCHS is a County entity, some Supervisors showed irritation that it had not involved the County from the beginning of their expansion effort. In order to improve communication in the future, it was determined that the County should have a representative either on the OCHS Board or in its administration.
There was also a fun little rumor flying around that OCHS has a 91-acre lot that it is hoping to develop into a “lollypop farm-style” adoption center in the future… (Something to look forward to!)
“Forfeiture Reserve” used to purchase bloodhound, equipment: The Office of the Sheriff will be using $20,000 from its “Forfeiture Reserve” to purchase a new bloodhound ($12,790) and narcotics surveillance equipment, including at least one camera. According to Sheriff Cirencione, this money is from “seizures” during narcotics busts and other arrests. This would be a reference to “civil forfeiture.”
What is civil forfeiture? From Wikipedia:
Civil forfeiture in the United States, also called civil asset forfeiture or civil judicial forfeiture, is a process in which law enforcement officers take assets from people who are suspected of involvement with crime or illegal activity without necessarily charging the owners with wrongdoing. While civil procedure, as opposed to criminal procedure, generally involves a dispute between two private citizens, civil forfeiture involves a dispute between law enforcement and property such as a pile of cash or a house or a boat, such that the thing is suspected of being involved in a crime. To get back the seized property, owners must prove it was not involved in criminal activity.
Civil asset forfeiture happens before anyone has been convicted of a crime and has historically been wildly unpopular among Americans (Forbes, 2020; CATO Institute, 2016).
Office of the Sheriff receives Red Team grant from Homeland Security: New York State’s Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services has awarded the Sheriff’s office $1,159 to support “the Red Team Exercise” by paying for the overtime that the exercise will incur. In a red team exercise, a group, called a red team, tests the defensive and security capabilities of [whatever entity] by assuming an adversarial role and attempting to penetrate the entity’s defenses. The purpose of such an exercise is to obtain valuable feedback and, ultimately, improve defensive capabilities. We are not allowed to know anything else about the exercise.
Public/Conflict Defenders move to cloud storage: The conflict and public defenders’ offices have accepted a few grants from the NY State Office of Indigent Legal Services. These grants will pay for a full-time attorney to assist with indigent defense, a part-time office specialist, a part-time social worker, and a mass migration of data off of County servers and onto cloud storage operated by NYSDA. It was noted that body cam footage in particular takes up a lot of space on County servers and has, therefore, been earmarked for migration. The migration to cloud storage is not mentioned in any of the resolutions, which can be accessed here, here, here and here.
Autopsy Doctor: The doctor who performs autopsies, Dr. William Dean, will be retiring after this year. According to Mary Beer, Director of Public Health for Ontario County, this will be a huge loss — not just for Ontario, but for the many other counties that Dr. Dean provides services for, including Wayne, Yates, and Seneca counties. Dr. Dean has been providing autopsies for about $750 each, while the going rate is generally between $1200-1800, said Beer. In addition to the generosity which is obviated by his low rates, Beer praised Dean’s work ethic and manner, making it clear that he will be sorely missed for many reasons. The BOS passed an authorization to contract with Dean for the last time at their March 9th meeting.
More raises for County Psychiatrist: In August of last year, the County added a new managerial band, “MA,” to its pay schedule specifically for the psychiatrist (the only employee in band MA). The schedule dictated that the position’s starting salary would be $225,000 (the highest starting salary of anyone, including the County Administrator, in the County), but did not include steps (pre-determined raise schedule). Shortly after passing this pay schedule, it was amended in October to both add steps and bump the starting salary to $250,000. According to statements made by Public Health officials in committee at the time, neighboring counties are paying similar or higher salaries for the same position.
Then, in December, in Resolution number 799-2022, Ontario County entered into a two-year contract with Dr. Shabnamzehra Bhojani, having agreeing to an hourly rate of $228, not to exceed $570,000 (averaged out, up to $285,000 per year).
But the saga continues! At last Thursday’s Board of Supervisor’s meeting, an “authorization for amendment” resolution was passed without discussion by a unanimous vote of the Supervisors. According to the resolution, Dr. Bhojani is “willing to provide the needed services at an additional cost of $102,750 for 2023 not to exceed $387,750 and an additional cost of $173,250 for 2024 not to exceed $458,250.” This negotiation has been approved by the Director of Community Mental Health Services, the Ontario County Community Services Board, Health and Human Services (standing committee of Supervisors), Ways and Means (another standing committee of Supervisors) and now the Board of Supervisors as well.
I will take this opportunity to remind you that the highest-ranking public servant in Ontario is County Administrator Chris DeBolt, who makes between $159,600 and $178,519 (depending on his “step”).
This, at a time when, according to the Mental Health home page, the Geneva office is closed because it is “not adequate for social distancing” and “the majority of services will be offered either virtually using telehealth options, or by telephone.” Don’t worry — on-site telehealth appointments are available, too, so those without internet or cell phone access can drive in and sit in front of a screen to speak with a mental health professional, similarly situated, in a different room down the hall or maybe at home. “In-person services available as needed,” reads the page, but there is a LOT of emphasis on telehealth, and, per the page, social distancing and face coverings are required “at all times when you are in the building and in our offices.”
I feel crazier already!
I called the clinic to ask about their Covid protocols. The Geneva office is still closed, because there is not enough space to practice social distancing. Masks are not currently required due to low levels of Covid, but according to the receptionist, the masking requirement is re-evaluated on a weekly basis. Two of the three psychiatrists working at the mental health clinic only offer visits via phone or video calls. Only one accepts in-person visits — I’m not sure which one.
New Director of Office for the Aging Announced: The current director of the Office for the Aging, Irene Coveny, will be retiring in April of this year. Her replacement, TriciaJean Jones, was announced at the Board of Supervisors meeting on March 9th. Supervisor Dan Marshall (South Bristol), who was on the search committee for this position, is very impressed with Jones, who stood out among the applicants, and is excited to have her working for the county. Jones has a bachelor’s degree in sociology and recreation with a concentration on the aging from SUNY Brockport, a master’s degree in healthcare administration from Roberts Wesleyan, and brings experience from the Presbyterian Home and St. Anne’s, both in Rochester.
Jones is “a superb expert in terms of the aging,” said Marshall. “She really understands the senior population, not only individually, in terms of the growth and development and care of those people, but how it is in the context of institutionalization.”
Jones will be making $86,789 to start.
Grants for youth programs: Youth Bureau Director Marsha Foote reported that her department had received grant applications from 12 youth development programs (which cost nearly $2 million in total to run) requesting a total of $200,000 in support, and five youth sports programs (which cost just over $1 million in total to run) asking for a total of $46,000 in support. Her department has $68,000 to provide to youth development, and $25,000 for youth sports.
Straw ban and SSWM updates: The Department of Sustainability and Solid Waste Management’s (SSWM) straw ban campaign officially kicked off on Friday, February 24th — national “skip the straw” day. However, many local restauranteurs were too busy with their work to attend the kick-off event. Moving forward, SSWM Director Carla Jordan said her department would be coordinating its efforts with Ontario County Tourism, in addition to continuing to work with the local Chamber of Commerce.
Later this year, SSWM is planning to launch an educational campaign on paint disposal. (Local paint stores, such as Hadlock’s and Sherwin-Williams, must accept and dispose of cans of unwanted paint. Paint can be dropped off anytime during regular business hours.)
SSWM is also developing a strategy to encourage waste diversion, which would likely be centered on organics and composting. According to SSWM Director Carla Jordan, her department is already working with local partners and businesses to determine how much composting capacity exists in Ontario. It is likely that additional infrastructure and facilities will need to be developed before a full-on campaign can begin.
In response to this information, multiple Supervisors stated that their towns either already have organics facilities or are currently developing them. Geneva, Gorham and Victor are among these towns.
Roadkill clearing services: Back in February, the County revealed that its long-time roadkill picker-upper had started to roll back his services; he would still clear county roads, but would no longer clear towns. This change prompted concern that this contractor might be looking to retire soon. Ontario responded quickly, opening a bid for the “removal of animal carcasses from roadways” on February 24th. Less than a week later, the bids of not one, but two contractors were accepted by the Public Works Committee (and later the BOS): Darling Outdoor Services, which will charge $115/carcass, and Bella Paving, Inc., which will charge $90/carcass. (Who knew?)
Jail Update: As of March 1st, in the Ontario County Jail:
90 total incarcerated
69 males; 21 females
5 housed in other facilities, “due to their needs”
Note: The jail updates under Sheriff Cirencione are not quite as detailed as they were under Sheriff Povero.
Events:
The Department of Public Health will be giving a presentation on vaping among youth at 6:30pm on March 28th at the Canandaigua City High School. This presentation is open to the public and will feature a speaker from the UR and a student who successfully quit vaping.
The Office for the Aging is holding a two-session caregiver series in May. The first session will offer tips for managing someone else’s finances, planning for future costs in long-term care, and more. The second session will feature a team from an elder law firm, who will speak about advanced directives, Medicaid planning, asset protections, and more. The series will be held at Quail Summit on the evenings of May 2nd and May 16th. For more information, please contact the Office for the Aging.
The Department for Workforce Development will be hosting a job fair at Wood Library in the first week of May. (More details to come, hopefully.)
The Department for Workforce Development will also be hosting a resource fair at Wood Library on April 30th. The goal of the resource fair is to make residents aware of the programs that exist in their communities.
Tom Gillette spoke of the NY Citizen's Audit in March. Marly Hornik, Executive Director is coming to Rochester April 15th 2023 10am to Italian American Community Center 150 Frank Dimino Way, Rochester