Archive: Business & Technology

State auditors examining hotels and motels used to house the homeless found poor conditions still exist at many facilities across New York state with significant problems including mold, water damage, exposed wiring, missing smoke detectors and garbage in rooms, according to an auditreleased today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

In 2016, DiNapoli launched a major review of the state's homeless shelter system. This review encompassed 200 emergency shelters and 187 hotels and motels located across 48 different counties. Working with the comptrollers from Albany, Dutchess, Nassau, Onondaga, Suffolk and Ulster counties, auditors found one in five of those facilities were in poor condition. Shelters contained mold, unsanitary restrooms and vermin. The audit released today examined the state's efforts in addressing pervasive issues.

A private institution with deep business and family roots in the area announced a major new initiative that will promote the Finger Lakes region as a great place for business enterprise, and former New York State Senator Mike Nozzolio was chosen to lead the effort.

Citing the Finger Lakes region's outstanding natural beauty and livability, record numbers of tourists and wine and craft beverage enthusiasts, and growing national and international attention, the Stardust Entrepreneurial Center believes this is the ideal time to launch a promotional and collaborative effort to enhance business and career opportunities for present and future generations of the Finger Lakes region.

Local non-profit group, Ithaca is Love, will begin distributing 'Inclusive Space' decals to local businesses this June in honor of Pride Month. Ithaca is Love worked with the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce, The Downtown Ithaca Alliance, and the Ithaca & Tompkins County Convention & Visitor's Bureau, to create, and ultimately distribute, window decals for local businesses that wish to advertise that they are an inclusive space for members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

"Celebrating the diversity that makes Ithaca 'Ithaca' and Tompkins County so unique is something the Chamber takes very seriously," said Jennifer Tavares, president of the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce. "We are so happy to be part of a county-wide visible commitment to inclusivity for local businesses wishing to make the pledge."

It's a typical dilemma.  Should you spend money on an energy system that you may not pay off before selling your property?  Or something cosmetic that will boost the resale value?  Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca have signed on to a program that makes it more economical to go green without being saddled with loan repayment when you sell.  The concept is Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE).  New York's PACE Program is administered by Energize NY.

"In our community where there are so many transient people cycling through, they could do the upgrade on their house and then pay for it while they're there and enjoying the benefits, but the cost of that upgrade would stay with the house for the new owner to get the benefit as well," says Tompkins County Department Of Planning And Sustainability Deputy Commissioner Of Planning Katherine Borgella.  "It's an idea that caught on nationally. Tompkins County was the first to join north of Ulster.  The City of Ithaca joined shortly after that."

A broad coalition of state fiduciaries joined New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer Tuesday in issuing a 'Joint Statement on Defending Fundamental Shareowner Rights' in strong support of the use of shareholder proposals as an essential tool in maintaining corporate transparency and accountability. The Statement is in response to provisions of the Financial CHOICE Act, legislation pending in the U.S. House of Representatives, which would effectively prohibit most investors from filing shareholder proposals.

"This Act attempts to silence investors, large and small, who seek a vote on corporate action that could put our investments at risk and diminish corporate accountability," DiNapoli said. "Publicly-owned companies are responsible to their shareholders, but this Act is trying to overturn that core principle by allowing only a select few of the largest investors to question corporate behavior."

17 Gimme! Coffee baristas voted today, concluding at 9 p.m., by a vote of 16 to 1 in a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election in favor of organizing a union to negotiate a contract in their workplaces. The election was for non-managerial baristas at the W. State/MLK Street location; the N. Cayuga Street location; the Gates Hall location at Cornell U.; and the Trumansburg location. They are now members of Workers United Local 2833.

The next step in the unionizing process is for the Baristas to elect a Bargaining Committee and then establish communications with the Management of Gimme! Coffee to begin contract negotiations. They'll create agreements on how such negotiations will proceed as both sides work through what they would like to accomplish through their new contract.

State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli is encouraging New Yorkers who face college expenses to open a 529 College Savings account to start saving now to help with the costs of getting a degree.

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's latest figures from 2015, the nationwide average student loan balance is $29,700 and New Yorkers owe an average of $32,200. As the cost for a college education increases, more young people are struggling with the realities of paying off their college loans.

Empire State Development (ESD), New York state's chief economic development agency, failed to meet more than half of the reporting requirements for tax credit and job creation programs, diminishing transparency and accountability according to an auditreleased today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

"Too often Empire State Development Corporation is either late or not reporting on the results of economic development programs," DiNapoli said. "We need better reporting to ensure transparency in economic development spending and to promote an informed analysis on the return of the investments state taxpayers make in these programs."

When Sweet Peas Nursery School closed for Spring recess it was located at Jump Around Inflatables.  When it reopened last week after Spring vacation, it was an entirely new space in the old fire house on Ridge Road.  The new, spacious, 1,400 square foot school room has an open feel, but with distinct stations for learning and play.  Director and Lead Teacher Stacy Wilder says it's the perfect location, and a good fit with the business next door, the Cayuga Lake Seido Karate dojo.

"They're complimentary businesses," she says.  "Our hours are complimentary.  We're here during school hours, and they're here after school and on the weekends.  It's also a professional space with great lighting and air conditioning.  We were really excited to make the move."

State tax collections totaled $74.4 billion in State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2016-17, a decline of $300.1 million or 0.4 percent from last fiscal year, according to the state cash reportissued today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Tax collections for the year ended $600 million lower than the latest projections released with the Executive Budget in February, primarily due to lower than anticipated business tax collections in March.

"While personal income tax and consumption tax receipts exceeded the latest projections at the end of the fiscal year, they were more than offset by lower business tax collections," DiNapoli said. "The state remained in a strong cash position starting the new fiscal year, because of factors including General Fund spending that was well below projections and unspent funds from financial settlements."

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo launched Round VII of the Regional Economic Development Council initiative on April 25th, officially kicking off the annual competition for more than $800 million in state economic development resources. The Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) will open to applicants on Monday, May 1, 2017, enabling businesses, municipalities, not-for-profits and members of the public to begin applying, through a single application, for assistance from dozens of state programs for projects that create jobs and help to revitalize communities.

The Regional Economic Development Council process has transformed New York State government's approach to economic development, creating a statewide framework for bottom-up economic growth and streamlining the application process for state funding. Since 2011, the first year of the initiative, over $4.6 billion has been awarded to more than 5,200 projects that are projected to create and retain more than 210,000 jobs statewide. Through six rounds of the REDC competition the Southern Tier has received $480.6 million for 605 projects.

City of Ithaca, Mayor Svante Myrick visited Rev: Ithaca Startup Works to celebrate Quinn Energy and chat about energy.

"We couldn't be prouder of our local business Quinn Energy and its founder Adriane Wolfe. In its first year of business Adriane has built Quinn Energy into a nationally recognized leader in energy analytics. Quinn Energy is growing our economy while furthering the values of energy conservation and data driven decision making that are so important to Ithacans," says Mayor Myrick.