With increasing concern about crude oil transportation, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation sent a letter to North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple, urging the State of North Dakota to support increasing regulations for oil transport. Specifically, DEC is looking at North Dakota to remove volatile gases from the tanker cars before they leave their state en route to destinations such as here in the Capital Region.

This follows the lead Capital Region legislators have taken to address these concerns – including the bill I sponsored that would increase financial requirements for oil storage container operators. I will continue to watch this issue closely as we head into the next legislative session.

Albany passes red light camera legislation. By an 11 to 4 votes, The City of Albany’s Common Council passed an ordinance to allow red light cameras at up to twenty intersections in the city in response to legislation I sponsored with Senator Breslin and Assemblymember John McDonald earlier this year. Ahead of the vote, I spoke to the Council about the need to use technology to free up police resources for more serious crimes, in addition to changing driver behavior to improve safety.

NY Campus Crunch at the University at Albany. It was great to see UAlbany participate in the NY Campus Crunch The New York Campus Crunch is a state-wide sustainability celebration of local food on college campuses. UAlbany is joining the Big Apple Crunch effort, hosted by GrowNYC, Food Day, the Mayor’s Food Policy Office and American Farmland Trust in an attempt to set the world record for the “Most Participants in an Apple-Crunching Event” at one million crunches.

Capital South Campus Center opens. I was delighted to attend the grand opening of the Capital South Campus Center. The CSCC is a terrific example of how the public and private sectors can work together to have a major impact on the lives of Albany residents by providing easy access to critical educational opportunities while providing much needed support services.

New playground opens in Glenmont. Glenmont Elementary School and the Glenmont PTA unveiled their newly installed playground (328 Route 9W, Glenmont) on Friday, October 17. A big congratulations to the work for the Glenmont PTA for their persistent work over the last two years to raise the funds for such an inviting new playground!

Job Opportunities: New York State has setup a new job portal entitled Jobs Express, where thousands of private and public sector jobs are listed. Visit jobs.ny.gov for more information on how to apply for these opportunities.

As always, for the latest about my office’s happenings or for upcoming events, please visit my office online, on Facebook, on Twitter, or my Times Union blog. If you would like to reach my office, please feel free to send us a note.

Sincerely ---

Pat