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The OBSERVER’s View: Hochul needs to quit delaying on Kyra’s Law

The OBSERVER’s View

We've reached the time of year when Gov. Kathy Hochul begins signing legislation passed by the state Legislature before the end of its session in June. It's ludicrous to us that this process takes half a year in some cases, particularly when it comes to legislation that was approved with overwhelming legislative support like Kyra's Law (A.6194-C/S.5998). Kyra’s Law is named in memory of 2-year-old Kyra Franchettie, who was shot and killed by her father during a court-ordered unsupervised visit in 2016, and was passed with bipartisan support in the state Legislature this year. It ...

Everyday communications are maddening

Commentary

For me, communications in 2026 boil down to telephone, texting, or email. I don’t do smoke signals anymore. Alas, my arthritic hands have consigned hand-written notes to the back burner. When I hand write, maybe the first line or two have some resemblance to my once clear penmanship. Then ...

Senator’s remarks send scary message

Commentary

In the incredible amount of midterm elections news, there were totalitarian sounding words of Ellissa Slotkin, Democratic senator from Michigan. Her comments were a clear threat to make the lives of young people who aspired to and took jobs in the President Donald Trump administration ...

The OBSERVER’s View: Balancing act with winter heating

The OBSERVER’s View

There is good and bad news when it comes to potential costs for heating during the coming winter months. In October, National Fuel Gas Distribution Corp. said it expects the typical residential customer to spend approximately $742 to heat their home this winter, nearly 5% less than last winter’s average cost of $780. The projected decrease reflects lower natural gas supply costs, the impact of strong storage inventories, and National Fuel’s long-term gas purchasing strategy, which helps reduce exposure to market volatility and seasonal price spikes. The lower supply costs are ...

North county currently lacks a vision

Commentary

Earlier this year, the OBSERVER published an article on the Chautauqua-Mayville Plan. The plan really resonated with me as north county communities navigate through conflict and change. The Plan states that "the state of New York encourages municipalities to update their comprehensive plans every 10 years, intentionally setting plans in place for areas such as land use, community facilities and services, infrastructure, demographic trends, and other topics relevant to the future of the community." Furthermore, this Plan was developed using " the implementable Comprehensive Plan ...

Being creatures of convenience

Commentary

We are inclined to complain about the situation in which we find ourselves. “If only everything weren’t so commercialized.” “If only we could go back to the good old days when things were smaller and not dominated by big box stores and big business.” “If only we could go back to the times when we only used a phone that was hanging on a wall or sitting on a desk, not one constantly going off in our hands, pocket or purse.” We say these things, but, in fact, we are where we are today because we are creatures of convenience. It always irks me a bit when the Amazon, FedEx ...