Monthly Archives: March, 2014

With interstate compact, presidents could win election by popular vote

Published - March 28, 2014

March 28, 2014 — The presidential candidate who wins the national popular vote may soon be guaranteed the election victory. Several states have signed onto the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, in which states agree to award their electoral votes to the winner of the popular election. New York passed the measure in the Senate and the Assembly this week. If enough states join the compact to secure 270 electoral votes, the national election scene will change dramatically. Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause, joined Susan Arbetter on WCNY’s The Capitol Pressroom to discuss the compact. “The entire landscape for presidential

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Transmitter maintenance set to begin March 26

Published - March 25, 2014

The WCNY transmitter will be shut down four about four hours tonight beginning at 12:30 a.m. WCNY is shutting down the transmitter for the safety of the WSTM staff, so they can perform emergency maintenance on their equipment. The work effects only over the air viewers.    

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Education tax credit in New York Senate one-house budget

Published - March 20, 2014

March 20, 2014 — A new educational investment tax credit in the New York Senate’s one-house budget resolution would give private sector donors a tax credit when they provide money to either public or private schools for things like athletics, after school activities and scholarships. Over three years, the credit would cost the state more than $600 million. Advocates for traditional public schools are concerned that the credit is a back door way to fund non-public schools. “It’s a diversion of funds to non-public schools,” the Statewide School Finance Consortium’s Executive Director Rick Timbs told WCNY’s The Capitol Pressroom. “The

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Governor Cuomo’s bank tax reform

Published - March 19, 2014

While most people deal with banks either for mortgage loans or checking and saving accounts, banks also provide other services like buying and selling stocks, bonds and investment products. Governor Cuomo’s bank tax reform applies only to these other services. The executive budget calls for banks to only pay taxes on 8% of the revenue they make from these transactions. While critics of the plan call the reform “a giveaway to the banking industry,” the Business Council disagrees, arguing that the break will create good paying jobs in New York State. But why should one of the wealthiest business sectors

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