The New York State Senate has passed legislation to enact felony charges for wrong-way and other reckless drivers, according to Sen. Charles Fuschillo Jr., a Republican from Merrick who sponsored the bill. The legislation is in response to a significant number of arrests and car crashes involving individuals who drove the wrong way while under the influence of alcohol. more

This is about the good, the bad and the ugly. It isn’t fiction, as we get enough fiction from politicians these days. It deals with the New York State Legislature, the ethical crises it currently faces and the need to deal with them. more

Two Oceanside Youth Wrestling Team members, Ed Mannone and Vinny Candela, placed first and sixth respectively, in their divisions at the New York State Youth Wrestling Tournament on March 5 and 6 in … more

Shaped like a footprint, Mullener Pond abuts the Meadowbrook Parkway amid a stand of oaks and maples just south of Jerusalem Avenue in North Merrick. It is a quiet place, hemmed in by a six-foot … more

I have to admit, I’m having a problem understanding how, in just 33 working days, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Medicaid Redesign Team was able to recommend 79 cost cutting measures to save $2.3 billion in the upcoming budget. I’ll address this concern from three viewpoints. 
 more

My last column, “Stop playing games with the budget deficit” (Feb. 3) was written one week before New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli issued his analysis of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s executive budget draft. The irrationality I outlined fell short of anticipating the following mea-culpa expressed in the comptroller’s analysis. “The SFY 2010-2011 enacted budget relied on $16.7 billion in non-recurring or temporary budget resources; and overly optimistic tax revenue projections, causing a dramatically worsened state structural deficit.” How dramatic? These tenuous entries constituted 30 percent of all the monies in the state’s operating fund. more

Last Monday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed a two percent tax cap and said state aid for school districts would be curtailed significantly for the 2011-12 school year, which were two items Oceanside … more

In one of its first orders of business in the new legislative session, the State Senate passed the Job Creation and Taxpayer Protection Act of 2011 on Jan. 19. Supporters of the three-part plan say it will encourage the creation of new private-sector jobs with a tax credit, ensure fiscal responsibility with the enactment of a 2 percent state spending cap and require a two-thirds “super-majority” vote to increase taxes if the Assembly, and then voters, approve a constitutional amendment. more

County officials have confirmed that the long-awaited renovation of the Nassau County Aquatic Center in East Meadow is expected to begin in July.  According to county officials and … more

The Nassau County Legislature approved more than $3 million in contracts on Jan. 10 for new equipment and upgrades at the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant, in an effort to end months of illegal sewage discharge into Reynolds Channel, which many residents and local officials have called a serious environmental health hazard. more