A recent Siena College poll shows that 82% of New Yorkers view the wave of migrants flooding our nation and state as a serious problem. Compounding the issue has been Washington and Albany’s lack of action and a clear plan to address the humanitarian crisis their policies helped create.
This failure of leadership can be seen daily in the news — migrants sleeping on the streets, shuttled to hotels throughout the state and haphazard plans complete with no-bid contracts to house these individuals and families in tent cities or on college campuses.
While New York City and Albany lock horns, cast blame and piece together last-minute plans to address a problem that has been a long time coming, we need to ensure that Long Island is shielded, not from migrants, but from the failed leadership and policies that created this man-made disaster.
That shield is local control.
During this year’s legislative session, I joined my colleagues calling for policies to block the use of New York’s ill-suited college campuses for migrant housing and proposed plans to bus them to our small communities without local input and approval.
We also requested that the governor’s office share with us the plan and the amount of New York tax dollars being used to house, transport and care for these individuals.
Additionally, we requested the state comptroller provides a fully transparent accounting of all tax dollars being spent and make that information available via a searchable, public database. This information is critical as the state faces severe financial challenges and we work to stop additional burdens being placed on local governments, schools and, most importantly, taxpayers.
Recent history, from the pandemic to the governor’s failed housing proposals, has shown that the top-down, Albany-centric approach fails because it doesn’t consider the diverse and unique communities that are the foundation of the Empire State.
In light of Gov. Hochul’s [D] previously ill-conceived plan of housing migrants at Stony Brook University’s main and Southampton campuses, and other sites across Long Island, our local communities and officials must all be included in the discussion before any decisions are made.
County and town officials are our partners and need to be treated as such. Strong local control, community input and funding from state and federal partners must be the first step toward crafting a plan to address the migrant crisis.
New Yorkers are a welcoming people, and their change in mood is not one of the heart but in their lack of faith in the leadership of our state and nation. Midnight bus runs to motels and pop-up tent cities in suburban neighborhoods with inadequate services are not the answer.
The only solution comes with funding and proper planning. Plans where input from residents and approval from the town and local officials are required. Building consensus is not always easy, but it is the only way the New York State government will be able to solve this immediate humanitarian crisis and address the long-term impacts of uncontrolled migration until someone in Washington finds the courage to fix the crisis at our southern border.
Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk) is a New York State senator representing the 1st District.
Many readers may have either had the disease, know someone who’s had it or tragically know a man who’s lost his life to it. Having touched all three of those bases, I’d like to address this subject from a personal standpoint.
For me, it began with the insistence of my “old school family doctor” and friend to begin carefully monitoring an incrementally rising, but not especially high, PSA score. “Dr. John” felt it was important to establish a “baseline” number and then watch for increases based on the percentage of any jumps.
After almost a decade of “watching,” John recommended I see a urologist, who urged having a biopsy done. That’s when the idea of having cancer in my early 50s suddenly became a real possibility. How could that be when I had no overt symptoms? I went for the test, and another one a few years later. Both came back showing nothing growing. The third time, however, was not a charm.
Plans needed to be made going forward. My wife and I carefully studied all the treatment options and chose laparoscopic surgery, to be done at Memorial Sloan Kettering hospital in New York City.
When everything was confirmed we sat down with our children to go over the arrangements. It was a tough conversation, but she and I had confidence in my terrific surgeon and our decision. The operation was a complete success followed by a full recovery.
Having read articles on the possibility of this type of cancer running in some families, I brought male cousins into the loop. The emphasis was on following PSA results with a focus on the percentage of increase from previous scores. Shortly thereafter, two were diagnosed and very successfully treated for the disease.
A stunning, heartbreaking, little known statistic regarding this oft-times silent killer is how it has an especially outsized, negative impact on African Americans, who die at about two times the rate of their white peers.
Given advancements in testing, diagnosis and treatment, this disease is beatable. Have frank conversations with your wives, loved ones, doctors and men you’ve known who’ve had prostate cancer. If you’re a Black man, you need to be especially vigilant.
The trick is to not let this illness get too far ahead of you. Be proactive! September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. All men should take it seriously and personally.
Jim Soviero
East Setauket
Electrification survey a likely dud
The online survey being conducted by the Suffolk County Department of Economic Development and Planning to understand the extent of public support for electrification of Long Island Rail Road’s Port Jefferson Branch is nothing new.
It is available on the Village of Port Jefferson website. The idea has been periodically advocated since the 1960s by generations of elected officials with no success. In 1970, electrification was extended from Mineola to Huntington. In the 1980s, discussions took place between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, LIRR, Suffolk County and elected officials over which branch should be electrified first.
The Ronkonkoma Branch was selected over the Port Jefferson Branch. It took 35 years before completion of full double track-electrification between Hicksville and Ronkonkoma. The estimated cost to extend electrification east beyond Huntington today is $3.6 billion. This will increase over time.
Billions are necessary to pay for planning, design and engineering, environmental review, land acquisition for construction of power substations, expansion of commuter parking, relocation and/or consolidation of existing stations, new stations and platforms, new electric multiple-unit car storage yard, double tracking, third rail, signals and construction management.
From start to finish could require 15-20 years. For the project to proceed, it must be included within the MTA’s upcoming 2025-2044 Needs Assessment plan, due to be released in October.
To pay for future construction, the project would require a Federal Transit Administration Full Funding Grant Agreement under the national competitive discretionary Capital Investments Grant Core Capacity New Starts program. It would have to be matched by $2 billion or more of local MTA sources.
Even if the project is given a green light, based upon my past experiences on other FTA-MTA-LIRR projects, Port Jefferson Branch electrification will not be completed until 2040 or later.
Supporters should lobby Gov. Kathy Hochul [D], MTA Chairman Janno Lieber and LIRR President Catherine Rinaldi if you ever want to see this project get underway within your lifetime.
Larry Penner
Great Neck
Beyond nuclear deterrence
Joseph Levine’s letter [“Context for the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” Aug. 24] suggests that mutual assured destruction, or nuclear deterrence, will keep superpowers from launching preemptive nuclear strikes because of the prospect of devastating retaliation. This view reflects current U.S. policy and is held by many thoughtful persons, but there is a risk associated with this policy that deserves discussion.
The technological complexity of the current system of command and control of thousands of nuclear weapons on high alert capable of being launched within minutes leaves us vulnerable to disaster. A history of close calls involving accidents, computer failure, false alarms and human misjudgment shows the system is vulnerable and that its failure could lead to an accidental nuclear war.
In a world without nuclear weapons our nation, possessing overwhelming military superiority, could not be held at risk by an impoverished North Korea led by a dictator. The U.N. Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons has not been signed by the U.S. and other nations that possess nuclear weapons, but it is a step in the right direction toward a safer world.
Lester Paldy
South Setauket
Editor’s note: The writer is a distinguished service professor emeritus at Stony Brook University and a former Marine officer, who served as a member of the U.S. nuclear weapon negotiating delegations with the Soviet Union in Geneva, Switzerland, and at the U.N
WRITE TO US … AND KEEP IT LOCAL
We welcome your letters, especially those responding to our local coverage, replying to other letter writers’ comments and speaking mainly to local themes. Letters should be no longer than 400 words and may be edited for length, libel, style, good taste and uncivil language. They will also be published on our website. We do not publish anonymous letters. Please include an address and phone number for confirmation. Scan the QR code above or email letters to [email protected] or mail them to TBR News Media, P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733
Sundown on the Bluffs, Kings Park Bluffs, Kings Park
New York State is preparing to distribute $4.2 billion to communities statewide, and Long Islanders must begin to make an aggressive push for that money.
Voters statewide approved the 2022 Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act by a more than 2:1 margin. Here in Suffolk County, our residents approved the referendum 64-36%.
During a listening tour event on Thursday, Aug. 24, state officials outlined their plans for dispersing the funds. Qualifying projects include flood mitigation, marshland restoration, stormwater infrastructure, farmland protection, open space preservation and much more.
Here in Suffolk County, we are experiencing all of these issues.
Vulnerable waterfront properties along the North Shore are increasingly at risk from harmful erosion at our bluffs. Low-lying areas are at ever-greater risk of flooding, compounded by more frequent and intense precipitation events and outdated stormwater infrastructure.
Too often, commercial corridors are developed with little or no community giveback. Consequently, communities along major state routes — such as 25 and 347 — are suffocated by overcommercialized lots with limited access to parks or recreation space.
Meanwhile, the few remaining farmlands and open spaces are in constant danger of deforestation, development and displacement.
This $4.2 billion state bond package represents a much-needed pool of cash that can help offset these regional trends. And while the state has committed to directing 35-40% of the pot to disadvantaged communities, competition for the remaining chunk of the pie will be even fiercer.
Residents and officials across Long Island have grown increasingly frustrated and alienated by our state government in Albany. Getting our hands on some of these funds could begin the path toward reconciliation.
Throughout the Aug. 24 meeting, the state officials present emphasized the collection of public input as a necessary component for identifying new projects. That is why we must all take the time to scan the code above and share the climate challenges we face. The survey remains open until Sept. 13.
Whether our particular hamlet or village is experiencing worsening flooding, heightened coastal erosion, limited open space or any other environmental hardship, we must take the time to alert the state and request funding.
The potential to tap into $4.2 billion doesn’t come around often. This money represents a generational opportunity to remediate some longstanding issues and counteract our regional decline. We cannot afford to squander this moment.
Let’s scan this code and share the extent of our challenges here at home. Let’s scan the code and tell our state government how desperately our community cares about and needs this funding.
Let’s all scan this code because our community’s future welfare and prosperity depend on how we act today. From the North Shore to Albany, may the voices of our people ring loudly.
How come we never see superheroes in regular moments? To that end, I wanted to share a host of images that I hope might brighten your day (if you need it).
Superman picking his nose. Okay, let’s just get this one out of the way first. Sure, he leaps tall buildings in a single bound, fights crime everywhere, and stands for truth, justice and the American way, but what about the urge to clean out the dried super boogers in his nose? And, if he did, what would happen to them? Would they decay the way ours presumably do, or would they be like rocks trickling through our plumbing or remaining forever on the floor, impenetrable even to a speeding bullet?
Okay, backing off from the incredibly crude, let’s go to Superman’s fingernails. I’m guessing he can’t clip them with an average clipper. When he does trim then, are they so strong that it’d hurt to step on them?
How about Batman? Is there room in that suit for hiccups? What happens when he’s driving his super fast car or flying bat mobile and he gets the hiccups? I know my hiccups, which are loud enough to cause Superman’s super fingernails to bend, are so distracting that it’d be tough to fight crime, or even navigate at incredible speeds, when my diaphragm is spasming.
And then there’s Wonder Woman. Lynda Carter, if you’re old enough, and Gal Gadot, for the more modern fan, are both incredible fighters who save the day, rescuing mere mortals like Steve Trevor. But do they have the kind of arguments with their mothers that I’ve seen other women (no one in my family, of course) have with their mothers? Are they tempted to take out their truth lasso and demand that their mother say what she really thinks or share what she really did? Can you imagine Wonder Woman in a shouting match with her mother, reaching a point where she wraps the rope around her mom’s wrist and demands to know, “What do you really think of my new boyfriend” or even “you mean to tell me you never acted out against your own parents?”
How about Aquaman? Not to be too obsessed about the nose here, but does he ever get water up his nose, the way the rest of us do when we’re diving or doing awkward flips into the pool? Given the speed at which he swims, I would imagine such water in his nose might cause even more agony for him than it does for the rest of us, who find the dense medium of water difficult to traverse rapidly.
What about the Flash?
I haven’t seen the recent multiverse movie with him, but I would imagine his shoes, which withstand the incredible force of him tearing around town, are a vital piece of equipment that could be enormously problematic if they tear or have holes.And, unlike me, as I sit here with the tongue of my right sneaker hanging off, I would imagine he couldn’t wait any length of time to replace the shoes that glide over the ground at speeds that, if my interpretation of the recent movie trailers suggest, exceed the speed of light and can, to borrow from the singing superhero Cher, “turn back time.”
Sorry if you’ve now got that song ricocheting around your head. Come up with a better song and you’ll be fine or maybe just count backwards from 20 in French or any foreign language, if you know how to do that.
And what about Spider-Man? Does he ever eat something that totally disagrees with his system, making it impossible to leave the house until he’s taken a super dose of an antacid? Sure, super heroes inspire us with their incredible deeds, but I’d like to know how they manage through the kinds of everyday issues, challenges, and regular stuff in our lives.
Abook whose subject caught my eye this week is, “Young and Restless, The Girls Who Sparked America’s Revolutions,” by Mattie Kahn. The story appeared in the New York Times Book Review this past weekend, and I read of these female exploits, marveling at the young ages of the subjects.They were indeed girls, most in their teens or younger, not yet women by today’s standards. Now my mother, who was born in 1906, was only 11 when she began her work life, a graduate of 8th grade with a further degree from a bookkeeping school. While I have long been amazed at that, these stories begin with the Lowell mills girls in 1836 and Harriet Hanson, 11, who led a “turn-out” of 1500 young women refusing to work.
I was not familiar with the Lowell mills history. It seems Francis Cabot Lowell was impressed by the textile factories he saw in England and returned to Massachusetts to build similar workplaces and participate in the Industrial Revolution. For the most part, the workers were girls and young women. The early mills were a kind of “philanthropic manufacturing college,” to which such luminaries as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Edgar Allan Poe came to lecture. These were the first places where girls, who were not the daughters of rich men, and hence not at finishing schools, could gather and learn as they worked. It was here, at a factory in Lowell, Massachusetts, where the first all-female-staffed magazine in American history was started.
When the girls were informed that their pay was to be cut, they went on strike. Hanson organized the walkout with what she later called “childish bravado.”
The book tells stories of many more such young women—girls really—protesting in different circumstances. “There’s Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, who led 17,000 people up New York City’s Fifth Avenue on horseback in the 1912 march for women’s suffrage.” Anna Elizabeth Dickenson was an abolitionist orator in her teens and became the first woman to address the House of Representatives. Heather Tobis (Booth) at 19, “founded the legendary abortion referral service Jane out of her dorm room. Clyde Marie Perry, 17, and Emma Jean Wilson, 14, integrated their Granada, Mississippi schools in 1966 and then successfully sued to stop expulsions of pregnant students like themselves.”
Perhaps the girl who interested me most because she overlapped with my life was Alice de Rivera, dubbed by the New York City media as the “crusader in mini-skirts.” She was 13, had scored on a citywide test in the 99th percentile in math, but was denied the right to take the entrance exam to Stuyvesant High School in 1969 because she was female. She and her parents, Joseph, a psychology professor, and Margaret, an educational therapist, lived in Brooklyn at the time, and the high school she was supposed to attend did not have appropriate classes for her further education. Stuyvesant, one of the best high schools in New York City, did.
Now I am familiar with Stuyvesant. I went to the all-girls Hunter College High School in the 1950s, and we would periodically have “socials” with the Stuyvesant boys. They were more like milk-and-cookie gatherings, but nonetheless at one of them I was asked out on my first date.
Alice de Rivera met with the National Emergency Civil Liberties Committee, where she was introduced to Eleanor Jackson Piel, who took her case pro bono. Fighting educational sexual segregation was a radical idea at the time. Most specialized schools and even the Ivies were all-male. But on the grounds that it violated Alice’s 14th Amendment of equal protection, they filed a lawsuit on January 20, 1969 against the state’s Board of Education. She received a lot of publicity, and by May, the Board voluntarily repealed Stuyvesant’s sex restriction. It was a cultural precedent that broke barriers.
What happened to De Rivera? She and her family moved out of New York City, so she didn’t go to Stuyvesant. Today she is a physician, living on a farm in Maine with her husband, a retired math professor, and working at a clinic she started, helping Lewiston’s large population of Somali refugees. She also works at another facility that serves people who can’t pay for their medical care.
Is the Port Jefferson School District spending unnecessarily, yet again?
The Board of Education on July 11 learned that bids to replace present high school bleachers and press booths came in much higher than the $561,000 allocated in the 2022-23 budget. According to the superintendent of schools [Jessica Schmettan] the bids indicated a cost of “just under a million dollars” for bleachers, with significantly fewer seats than the present ones. The present bleachers seat 1,000 but the replacements will seat less than 600. Doing the math, this works out to spending over $1,600 per person on a bleacher bench.
The superintendent confirmed in an email that the present bleachers are structurally safe, evident also by the fact that they remain in use. They are not, however, compliant with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) code.
Given this huge price tag for a total bleacher replacement, consideration should be given to modifying our present bleachers to make them ADA-compliant. Only the first row would need modification. According to posted information, describing how other school districts faced with this issue addressed it, with the addition of some ramps, guard rails and removal of enough bench area to accommodate 10 wheelchairs in just the first row, we can meet ADA standards, retain the present 1,000-person seating capacity and likely stay well below the initially budgeted amount — and certainly way below the million dollar expense for all new bleachers. Extra handrails could also be installed as an option on upper rows of bleachers for additional safety. The press booth can simply remain as is and need not be enhanced.
The Board of Education will be discussing the bleachers at their Aug. 29 meeting. Surely there are more important priorities in our school buildings than spending a million dollars on all new bleachers if the present ones just need some modifications to meet ADA code. Installing a new HVAC system in the high school could be one of them.
Port Jefferson residents are very generous in supporting their schools. Hopefully the school board will in turn show respect for the taxpayers by avoiding more unnecessary or excessive spending.
Gail Sternberg
Port Jefferson
Context for the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
A firestorm cloud hangs above the Japanese city of Hiroshima following detonation of an atomic bomb on Aug. 6, 1945. Public domain photo
I felt some discomfort after reading Myrna Gordon’s letter [“Remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” Aug. 10] regarding the North Country Peace Group’s vigil around the anniversaries of the dropping of the atomic bombs.
I think it is clear to all that war is a terrible thing, and I certainly understand the mourning of those killed in wars. My discomfort comes from the selectivity and moral attitude taken by most people I have known, or heard from, regarding these attacks. I apologize if these factors may not apply to the members of the Peace Group.
To start, the letter seems to imply that these bombings were the most devastating ever. Reports note anywhere from 129,000 to 226,000 killed from the combined attacks. Yet, prior to these attacks, the firebombing of Tokyo killed between 80,000 and 100,000 people immediately in one night alone and does not get similar attention.
My bigger concern is the general perception of such mourners that these attacks were a moral atrocity. They fail to look at the overall picture. If the war had not ended this way, we were looking at an invasion of Japan. The estimates are/were that an invasion would have resulted in the loss of over 1 million people.
While this number alone is large, it fails to note all the descendants that would never be born because of these deaths. I take this very personally because my father likely would have been killed in that invasion and I would never have been born. Millions of people are alive today for that reason. It should also be remembered that this action was our means of ending a war that we did not start.
Lastly, as I was thinking about this topic during the past week and deciding whether to respond, a new thought came to me. While there has been some reasonable concern about the potential use of nuclearweapons over the last several decades, one could make a case that their existence has saved many lives and prevented major wars. Once Russia, and later China, had nuclear weapons, we have not had a direct conflict between world superpowers.
I think this might be because of the mutually assured destruction theory that the superpowers would not launch nuclear preemptive strikes on each other because of the understanding that it would result in both countries destroying each other. Yet another unappreciated benefit.
Joseph Levine
Stony Brook
WRITE TO US … AND KEEP IT LOCAL
We welcome your letters, especially those responding to our local coverage, replying to other letter writers’ comments and speaking mainly to local themes. Letters should be no longer than 400 words and may be edited for length, libel, style, good taste and uncivil language. They will also be published on our website. We do not publish anonymous letters. Please include an address and phone number for confirmation. Email letters to [email protected] or mail them to TBR News Media, P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733.
When we shop, we often bring our valuables, which total hundreds — if not thousands — of dollars, with us.
Cell phones, wallets, purses and credit cards represent valuable commodities. They can be stolen to score sweet profits. And throughout our community, that is happening right now.
On Aug. 8, Suffolk County Police Department 4th Precinct Inspector David Regina informed the Smithtown Town Board of a pernicious crime happening across Suffolk County retail spaces.
“Criminals and thieves take the opportunity when someone is shopping at Costco or any of these other stores, and they walk by an unsuspecting victim’s shopping cart,” he said. “What they’ll do is they’ll just take out the credit cards or the wallet.”
A criminal can be out the door with our credit cards in the few seconds we may step away from our shopping carts.
At first, victims of this kind of theft do not know they have been victimized. In the time it can take for victims to discover they were robbed and cancel their accounts, the damage has already been done. For law enforcement, Regina noted, this kind of theft is “a very hard crime to target.”
Fortunately, we can all take some simple steps to protect our possessions. We should always keep our valuables in sight and within reach when we shop.
We also encourage our readers to shop lightly, leaving their possessions inside their locked vehicles or — even better — leaving their valuables at home.
If one shops with a handbag or purse, ensure these bags have secure closures. For purse thieves, an open handbag in a public space invites theft.
At TBR News Media, we helped to pioneer the Neighborhood Watch program in Suffolk County. We now advocate for a similar crime watch program for retail centers. As the adage goes, “If you see something, say something.”
Tell a store manager or similar authority about the nefarious activities you witness. Failure to report these incidents of purse theft signals to criminals our tacit approval of these behaviors, incentivizing recidivism. If we wish to see larcenies begin to drop, we must do our part.
Aware of the risks, we can and should shop without fear. Please take care to ensure that shopping can be a safe experience.
A pet peeve isn’t something you race out to the breeder, the pound or anywhere else to get because it’ll be a buddy for the rest of your life.
No, a pet peeve is some annoyance that routinely bothers you, like watching someone shake their leg in class or listening to someone blow away the four leaves that dare to fall on their driveway each day.
To that end, I’d like to share some of my own pet peeves, for no other reason than that it’s easier and, perhaps, more fun to focus on the smaller stuff than to worry about, say, global warming, the 2024 election, or the eventual burning out of the sun. Some of these are truly tiny, while others are considerably larger by comparison. If you find that annoying, add that to your own list.
—A perfect dive into a hotel or community pool: yes, it’s lovely and amazing, but people aren’t fish. We shouldn’t be able to enter the water without making a splash or a ripple. When we were teenagers, my brothers and I watched in amazement as a boy about our age perfectly pierced the water during a vacation at a pool in Quebec. Only later did we learn that he was the son of a national diving champion. He should have had his own pool and not unnerved the foolish Americans at a Holiday Inn.
— Endless, personal and vicious criticism at the end of articles: I can’t help laughing when someone writes about how stupid the idea of the article was. Often, someone else suggests that the person A. didn’t have to read the story and B. didn’t need to take the time to comment.
— The knees digging into my back on an airplane: do other passengers care that my back is on the other side of that thin fabric? Perhaps they want some attention or they are eager to share their physical discomfort with others.
— The overwhelming urge to tell me what my dog needs: one man, in particular, who seems to have moved into the neighborhood recently, tells me how my dog looks each day. Yes, it’s hot, and no, I’m not walking him so far that he’s in danger. By stopping me to share his unsolicited dog instructions, he’s extending the time my dog spends in the heat and he’s annoying me.
— The desire other parents have to tell me how to raise my children: news flash — everyone’s children aren’t the same and, oh, by the way, these aren’t your kids.
— The disconnect between the time our children spend on their phones with their friends and the difficulty in connecting by phone with them when they’re away: why are our children on their phones constantly when they’re with us, but they are unreachable by phone when we text them? They remind us that we tell them to “be where they are” when they’re not with us, but they’re not with us when they are with us.
— The people who listen so poorly that they say “oh, that’s nice” when I tell them my pet peeve died: enough said.
— People who tap me on the shoulder to get my attention while they are talking to me at a baseball game: yes, believe it or not, I can multi task. I’m capable of listening to someone else’s story and responding appropriately while watching every pitch and hoping for either a home run or a foul ball that comes my way.
— People who commit my mistakes to memory: I don’t expect perfection and readily admit that I err. If and when I share a thought about someone else’s mistakes, I sometimes receive something to the effect of, “well, you did that, too” or “what you did bothered me 17.28 years ago, too.” Okay, if it annoyed you, why didn’t you say something at the time, instead of waiting until now? Were you hoping I’d say something at some point so you could unburden yourself?
Citizens have a right to know who they’re dealing with, whether it be in government or private enterprise. But that’s not the case when it comes to limited liability companies, or LLCs, which for example can own property, apply for grants, operate as landlords and donate to political campaigns. Holding government accountable for its actions demands a well-informed public. We need to know who, not what, is benefiting in order to do our jobs as citizens.
Discovering who’s behind the curtain isn’t easy. Cruise through your local property tax rolls or the state’s campaign finance disclosure database. You’ll see plenty of LLCs but you won’t see many names.
Anonymous shell companies have been a popular vehicle for money laundering, tax evasion, organized crime, terrorism and other forms of corruption for decades. Yet, as the proposed New York State bill notes, establishing an LLC requires less personal information than getting a library card.
That’s why it’s imperative for Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) to sign the LLC Transparency Act, passed in both the state Assembly and Senate, which would require these special kinds of business organizations to publicly identify the owners to the state and to the public registry run by the Department of State.
At the federal level, the Corporate Transparency Act, taking effect next year, seeks similar disclosures from businesses, including LLCs, but stops short of making the information publicly available. A wide variety of businesses, from pizza shops to mall developers and property buyers, use the LLCs as an organizing business structure.
The approach, sanctioned by state law, provides the owners some limits on liabilities the company could face. As a practical matter, LLCs also offer the people who actually own the company the ability to remain anonymous.
Under current reporting requirements, LLCs need only supply a company name, county of operation and a basic address where legal documents should be sent. Sometimes, the address is a P.O. Box, sometimes it’s an attorney’s office, sometimes it’s a registered agent.
For anyone interested in knowing more, the information provided is often frustratingly nondescript and consequently useless. We all have a well-established interest in this information, and the state Legislature should be commended for recognizing this by including solid public disclosure requirements.
The lack of transparency with campaign donations is just one of the reasons the LLC Transparency Act has the support of good government groups, such as Common Cause and the League of Women Voters. While a 2019 law change required LLCs making political donations to disclose their owners, many are ignoring the requirement, the groups say.
The Business Council of New York State opposes the law, saying it would violate the privacy of law-abiding businesses — including thousands of small businesses organized as LLCs — and put their security at risk. There are some provisions in the legislation for public disclosure to be waived when “a significant privacy interest exists.” The law’s efficacy will be determined in part in how waiver requests are handled.
Given the benefits state law confers upon LLCs, it’s not too much to ask that they at least let us know who they are. This is a good step toward much-needed transparency
Judy Patrick is vice president for editorial development of the New York Press Association, of which TBR News Media is a member.
Recognizing Kara Hahn’s efforts for the 5th District
I’d like to express my gratitude to outgoing Suffolk County Legislator Kara Hahn [D-Setauket] for her unwavering dedication to the residents of the 5th Legislative District. While we may have differing viewpoints on some issues, I truly appreciate her commitment to serve our district with utmost integrity.
Kara’s background as a social worker gave her unique insights into the harrowing reality of drug addiction — especially into Suffolk’s fentanyl crisis. She was instrumental in championing a law to provide our police with Narcan, a crucial measure that has saved numerous lives from drug overdoses. Moreover, her efforts in stewarding the allocation of funds from the opioid settlement to aid those battling addiction in Suffolk are commendable.
Kara understood the significance of preserving our county’s natural splendors. Her advocacy for funds to enhance parks and conserve open spaces in our district has left an indelible mark.
As a father with three young children, I resonate with the principle of prioritizing families over politics. Kara’s commitment to constituent service is a mantle I will carry close as we move to this next and exciting chapter in our community.
On a personal note, I’d like to wish Kara great success in her new endeavor as the Long Island deputy regional director for the New York State Parks Department. It’s a role that undoubtedly befits her expertise and passion.
Anthony M. Figliola
East Setauket
Constituent and Republican candidate for Suffolk County Legislature, District 5
DMV closure an unnecessary hardship for Northern Brookhaven
The DMV In the Three Roads Plaza will close its doors on Aug. 25. Photo by Heidi Sutton/TBR News Media
I was disappointed to read about the recently announced plans to close the local DMV Office in the Three Roads Plaza in Port Jefferson Station.
This facility not only provides important services to motorists around our region, it has served as an important anchor to the small businesses which surround the office that benefited from the additional “traffic” the DMV office created. Beyond that, the present location offered a reasonable and convenient alternative to the longer drive to Medford or Hauppauge where one would be met with mass confusion and interminable wait times when seeking out the many services one needs from the DMV.
Though a smaller facility, the PJS staff were always pleasant and professional and even when needing to be patient in waiting your turn, you knew when you were done you were close to home and even closer to a great slice of Colosseo’s pizza. These benefits have been important to many in the Northern Brookhaven area, and this announced change presents an unnecessary hardship to those of our hamlet and beyond.
There were attempts in the past to make this move which thankfully were quashed by our previous state Assemblyman [Steve Englebright (D-Setauket)]. I call upon our current state officials in the Assembly and Senate to show the same grit and intercede on our behalf and halt this diversion which will “drive” this hub of local activity from our midst.
Ira Paul Costell
Port Jefferson Station
Editor’s note: The writer is president of the Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Civic Association.
Discrepancies in Aug. 7 meeting coverage
I hope this message finds you well. I am writing as a concerned citizen to express my disappointment in the coverage of the recent village meeting held on Aug. 7.
It has come to my attention that there were significant omissions in your report on this event. Most notably, the tabling of warrants due to the mayor’s failure to review them, which resulted in checks being held and the accruement of late fees.
This is a significant matter that directly affects the fiscal health of our community and the fair disbursement of taxpayer funds. While it may be an uncomfortable subject to report, it is vital for maintaining transparency and public trust in our local government.
Additionally, I was surprised to learn that the settlement with Martin Burden was not included in your report. This settlement was a key reason for the meeting transitioning into an executive setting, a fact that was also omitted.
As a respected news source in our community, we depend on TBR News Media to provide accurate, comprehensive and timely information about key events and decisions that shape our village’s future. As the editorial staff stated in the March 23 issue, “we view one of our roles as the watchdog of local government for the people.” Selectively reporting on certain aspects while neglecting others can create a skewed perception of events and undermine the transparency necessary for a healthy, functioning democracy – the opposite of being a “watchdog for the people.”
I kindly ask you to address these omissions and provide your readers with the complete picture of the Aug. 7 meeting. It would be greatly appreciated if you could also elucidate your editorial policy when it comes to reporting on such matters. This will help your readers, including myself, understand the process and considerations that guide your reporting.
Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to your response and continued commitment to fair, comprehensive and transparent journalism.
Keith Ottendorfer
Port Jefferso
Battery storage proposal a bad idea
Photo from Wikimedia Commons
Due to the intermittent nature of renewable energy, no generation when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine, battery backup/storage is presented as the solution.
Renewables have an output of about 20% of nameplate capacity. Disregarding the huge cost and the fact that lithium ion batteries are rated at only 4 hours discharge, many battery backup storage sites are being proposed.
One, Key Capture Energy of Albany, is on Pulaski Road west of Town Line Road, in Huntington, near residences. It is near a LIPA substation, so interconnection is not a problem. But the issues are concerning:
1. Lithium ion battery storage units unexpectedly and spontaneously explode and catch fire. This fire is self-fueling and inextinguishable. Fatal, toxic clouds of poisons are emitted and fire companies need sealed oxygen breathing apparatus to fight the fires. Residential areas near the fire must be evacuated.
2. The site is over a Suffolk County Sanitary Code Article 7 Deep Recharge Area — an aquifer protection zone. That means this is a designated area where our drinking water is recharged, and there must not be hazardous materials present to contaminate our water supply. Lithium poisonous runoff from a destructive battery storage fire goes into the ground to endanger our drinking water.
3. Gov. Kathy Hochul [D], recognizing this problem, has convened a panel to address the battery storage fire problem. There have been three battery storage fires in New York state and elsewhere, too.
4. The site is near the Huntington Landfill, laced with methane, also the Iroquois natural gas pipeline and the Huntington animal shelter.
5. With China, Russia, India and others opening many reliable, cost-effective and clean fossil-fueled and nuclear generators, all our efforts of renewable generation, with their negatives of high cost, unreliability, rare-earth needs from child labor and hostile countries, intermittency, huge land and seabed needs, destruction of sea life and flying birds like eagles, terns, bats and more, all our efforts of destroying our current, reliable generation are wasted and weaken us.
This is a revenue-generating plan that wants to cash in on taxpayer subsidies, ignores the life-or-death safety concerns of the nearby residents, potentially poisoning our sole source of drinking water and endangers firefighters. It is a Band-Aid for faulty, unreliable renewable electricity generation and endangers our health and safety. This proposal should be denied.
Mark Sertoff
East Northport
WRITE TO US … AND KEEP IT LOCAL
We welcome your letters, especially those responding to our local coverage, replying to other letter writers’ comments and speaking mainly to local themes. Letters should be no longer than 400 words and may be edited for length, libel, style, good taste and uncivil language. They will also be published on our website. We do not publish anonymous letters. Please include an address and phone number for confirmation. Scan the QR code above or email letters to [email protected] or mail them to TBR News Media, P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733
During a listening tour event on Thursday, Aug. 24, state officials outlined their plans for dispersing the funds. Qualifying projects include flood mitigation, marshland restoration, stormwater infrastructure, farmland protection, open space preservation and much more.
The book tells stories of many more such young women—girls really—protesting in different circumstances. “There’s Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, who led 17,000 people up New York City’s Fifth Avenue on horseback in the 1912 march for women’s suffrage.” Anna Elizabeth Dickenson was an abolitionist orator in her teens and became the first woman to address the House of Representatives. Heather Tobis (Booth) at 19, “founded the legendary abortion referral service Jane out of her dorm room. Clyde Marie Perry, 17, and Emma Jean Wilson, 14, integrated their Granada, Mississippi schools in 1966 and then successfully sued to stop expulsions of pregnant students like themselves.”
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