No one wants to hear that his
taxes are going up. No more welcome
is news of local jobs being
lost because of budgetary
constraints. Yet we cannot find
much fault with Otsego County’s
2010 budget, which was the result
of much wrangling and numbercrunching
by the county board and
the county treasurer’s office.
Facing rising costs and decreased
revenues, County Treasurer
Myrna Thayne presented a tentative
budget in November calling
for an increase to the property-tax
levy of more than 11 percent. The
budget would also have cut nine
jobs from the sheriff’s workforce.
By the time the county board approved
the budget, it had evolved
significantly from Thayne’s proposal.
While the sheriff’s department
kept its employees, as well as its
boat patrol, other jobs were lost.
STOP-DWI Coordinator Karen
Liddle spoke out against the board’s
decision to eliminate her position,
calling it unethical and possibly
illegal. Her duties have been transferred
to the sheriff’s department
_ a move Liddle argued could set
up a conflict of interest, since the
department is among the beneficiaries
of STOP-DWI funding.
While we have sympathy for
Liddle’s desire to keep the job she
loves, we feel the county has taken
appropriate steps to guard against
any conflict. Since proposed STOP DWI
budgets go through the county
board before being submitted to
the state, there would be no way for
the sheriff to “take all the money
and put it into his program and
no one else is going to see it,” as
Liddle suggested.
At least one more county employee
_ geographic information
systems coordinator Marybeth
Vargha _ will also be out of a job.
Vargha has overseen the county’s
mapping system for the last eight
years. The fruits of her labors can
be seen on the county’s website,
where intricate, interactive maps
show school districts, wetlands, tax
parcels, historic districts, Empire
Zones and more.
County officials have bemoaned
the loss of Vargha, and we agree.
The online maps _ which represent
only a fraction of her work for
the county _ are an amazing tool
for the public to access. We hope
the county is able to continue providing
this valuable service without
her expertise.
The budget includes other sacrifices
that aren’t pleasant to face.
Efforts to restore funds for senior
meals sites were stymied. Funds
for arts organizations were cut, and
money for additional 911 dispatchers
wasn’t approved.
While we bemoan these losses,
we know the county’s task was
monumental, and the outcome
could have been
Editorials
Budget not pretty, but could be worse
- Editorials
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Women must win fight for opportunity
The Pentagon announced Thursday that it will recommend that Congress officially allow women to serve in more jobs closer to the front lines.
Continued ... -
Center helps victims of child abuse and neglect
We learned some good news about some terrible news in a story by reporter Joe Mahoney in Tuesday's Daily Star.
Continued ... -
Chamber made excellent choices on service awards
A special committee selected by the Otsego County Chamber has made two excellent decisions regarding the organization's annual awards for service to our communities.
Continued ... -
Cheers
To Michael Shea, Terry Bliss, and the passage of the bill to allow Otsego's exit from MOSA.
Continued ... -
A sad tale may come to an end with arrests
People are almost always sad, and sometimes outraged, whenever something awful happens to a fellow human being.
Continued ... - Saturday, February 4, 2012
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Pill abuse should be a priority for police, pols
Sens. Charles Schumer of New York and Mark Pryor of Arkansas proposed a bill this week to help police combat a disturbing trend of increasing prescription drug abuse.
Continued ... - Friday, February 3, 2012
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More needs to be done to aid vets with PTSD
The recent story of Stamford grandmother Melody DiGregorio grieving the loss of her grandson, Air Force veteran Edward "Drew" Snyder, brings home the debilitating and often-unreported effects of post-traumatic stress disorder on our service men and women.
Continued ... - Thursday, February 2, 2012
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Area 'shocked' at underage drinking? That's shocking
It has been referenced so often that it has become a cliché.
Continued ... - Wednesday, February 1, 2012
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School's new lease on life a welcome development
It is a big place designed to echo with the sounds of young people in a healthy learning environment.
Continued ... - Tuesday, January 31, 2012
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Cheers
To the Central American Youth Ambassadors Program, to Ray Preston and to the NCOC building trades class and the Prattsville Fire Department.
Continued ... - Monday, January 30, 2012
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Mitt's not at fault for loopholes in tax code
As the longtime frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, Mitt Romney has faced withering attacks from rivals seeking to upset him.
Continued ... - Saturday, January 28, 2012
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Rest in peace, Naples and Stalter
Our area recently lost two important and influential members of our community: Oneonta surgeon Dr. Kenneth D. Stalter and newly elected Sixth Ward Council Member Mike Naples.
Continued ... - Friday, January 27, 2012
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Case closed on 2 years of turmoil
"Case closed."
Continued ...
Oneonta Mayor Dick Miller was referring to possible criminal charges against fired police officer Michael Breen on Wednesday, but Miller just as easily could have been talking about the more than two years of turmoil the city has endured with its police department. - Thursday, January 26, 2012
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Obama played his cards right Tuesday
Despite a daunting economy and a challenging re-election campaign, on Tuesday night President Barack Obama displayed what Mark Twain called "the calm confidence of a Christian holding four aces" in his State of the Union address.
Continued ... - Wednesday, January 25, 2012
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Searching for votes instead of honor
Say what you will about John McCain, the Republican nominee for president in 2008 who inflicted an ignorant Sarah Palin upon an unsuspecting nation.
Continued ... - Tuesday, January 24, 2012
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Cheers
To MLK Jr. Day events, Diana Nicols, and Jordan Beers and Mariah Ruff.
Continued ... - Monday, January 23, 2012
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Dignity not enough to show in speech
After weeks of watching the often unseemly, if not downright humorous, antics of the Republican candidates for his job, President Barack Obama should have little trouble providing at least one thing Tuesday night in his State of the Union address. Dignity.
Continued ... - Saturday, January 21, 2012
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Tension with Iran is better than war
The dispute between Iran and the U.S. appeared close to boiling over into outright war last week, when a bomb in Tehran killed an Iranian nuclear scientist and Iran sentenced an accused Iranian-American spy to death.
Continued ... - Friday, January 20, 2012
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Let's hope no funding means no drilling
When it comes to state approval or disapproval of hydrofracturing in New York state, we certainly hope that no news is good news.
Continued ... - Thursday, January 19, 2012
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Testing is no way to judge teachers
Like him or not _ and according to the latest polls, more then 70 percent of New Yorkers do _ you've got to give Andrew Cuomo credit for guts.
Continued ...
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Women must win fight for opportunity
