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The OBSERVER’s View

NEW YORK STATE: HALT changes deserve attention

A state prisons panel is recommending changes to the state’s HALT Act that governs the way state prisons use solitary confinement. The panel is requesting state legislators make 10 changes, most notably clarification that sexual harassment, lewd conduct, extortion, and attempted escape are behaviors that make someone eligible for solitary confinement greater flexibility in allowing solitary confinement for acts that are heinous and destructive modifications to existing positive incentive programs. It remains to be seen what the state Legislature does when it has the opportunity to ...

NEW YORK STATE: Lack of reporting sours stress ranking

State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli’s office released its latest fiscal stress rankings last week. Don’t look to see Jamestown, Fredonia or Dunkirk on the lists though. They didn’t file the required reports in time to be included in the rankings. Those who pay attention to local budgets know the news isn’t good for Dunkirk, which is getting by on loans from the state while staving off a financial control board by the skin of its teeth. Fredonia’s village budget approved in April came with a 54% tax increase. Jamestown, meanwhile, is in the best shape of the three but ...

HEALING: Event tonight is time for prayers

Sunday afternoon, another “evil act of violence” was carried out in Michigan when a gunman attacked a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel and set the building ablaze, killing four people. Only hours earlier — on Saturday — a man in a boat opened fire on a crowd in Southport, N.C., killing three and injuring five. These incidents spotlight why an event tonight is so important for so many in our communities. In the wake of recent violence — both domestic and global — the Northern Chautauqua residents are being called together to unite in prayer, and be an ...

County: Fly-car finances making progress

For the first time in its history, Chautauqua County’s Fly Car program is running in the black. The change in the program’s financial health is due in part to increased revenues as county officials and its billing partner have done a better job of capturing money owed for services as well as a realistic 2025 budget that increased up-front county spending rather than simply planning on a late-year budget adjustment to pay the fly car program’s costs. It’s good to see, because for much of the county the fly car program is a literal lifesaver. The fly car program supplements ...

FREDONIA: Boil order based all on reputation

In life and business, reputation is everything. For the village of Fredonia, when it comes to the water supply, there is only one real perception: unreliability. That, ultimately, is what caused the boil-water order after flawed testing last week. Even though village leaders have every right to be upset over the events, there’s a knee-jerk reason to issue the alert as boil-water orders have become far too common for the community. Last week’s saga started Sept. 19, when Chautauqua County initially reported that the village “received (test) results of two failing bacteria ...

Brocton: New playground an important piece

Bans on cell phones within schools across the state has been one of the bigger discussions in recent months from area districts. By many accounts, the effort is showing plenty of signs of success. Getting youth outside is one more important aspect. With technology surrounding young minds, there is definitely a need to get moving. This week, Brocton Elementary School celebrated that effort in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new playground. During an event Monday, students, staff, families, Board of Education members, and community supporters gathered to celebrate this ...