Archive: Business & Technology

This Saturday, April 1, 2017, Ithaca photographer Monroe Payne will be introduced as the 2017-18 President of the Professional Photographer's Society of New York State (PPSNYS).

"It is a great honor and responsibility. Working with people whose ultimate goal is improving the craft of photography. It is an absolute joy!" Payne says.

Payne is an Ithaca native and life long resident. Raised in the home of a Cornell University Photographer, he has been involved in the craft for essentially his whole life. For example, the Ithaca High School Annual for his graduation year of 1970 featured 73 of his images.

New York's Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) provided $695 million in net tax exemptions in 2015, an increase of 10 percent from the prior year, according to a reportissued today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

"New York's IDAs are tasked with generating economic development and job creation, but it can be difficult for taxpayers to follow the costs and benefits of these activities," DiNapoli said. "Our annual report tracks IDA performance and shows the costs associated with their decisions. Now, because of recent reforms requiring more disclosure, taxpayers will have even more information to evaluate the cost and impact of economic development activities taking place in their own backyards."

A group of local entrepreneurs are partnering with New Roots Charter School to offer a series of free training sessions for students to bring a simple product or business idea to life. The program will offer coaching and funding to students, culminating in an open-air market held at Press Bay Alley on May 20th. Local youth in 4th through 12th grades are invited to the kickoff event on April 8th at Rev: Ithaca Startup Works.

The new program is called YEM (Youth Entrepreneurship Market), and its organizers, Michael Mazza and Ethan Ash have been working together over the past few months to pull the educational training and market details together in partnership with New Roots Charter School. YEM offers basic entrepreneurship education in the form of two free trainings with local business owners and coaches including founders of Emmy's Organics, Lively Run Goat Dairy and Firelight Camps. Students will learn the basics of creating a business plan, buying supplies, managing finances, and marketing their product at the market.

Securities industry profitability rose sharply in 2016, increasing by 21 percent, while the average bonus paid to employees in New York City's securities industry increased by 1 percent to $138,210, according to an estimate released today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

"Wall Street profits bounced back strongly in 2016. Lower costs more than made up for the continued decline in revenues," DiNapoli said. "Bonuses were up only slightly in New York City as the industry held the line on compensation. The jump in profitability is good news since the industry generates a significant amount of tax revenue for both the state and city budgets."

Finger Lakes Technologies Group, Inc. (FLTG) announced Monday that it is being acquired by FirstLight Fiber.

"Together, the companies will have approximately 4,400 on-net locations with 25,000+ additional locations serviceable from our combined 555,000 fiber mile network that spans across 6 states (MA, ME, NH, NY, PA and VT)," says FLTG Presiden & CEO Paul H. Griswold. "We will operate 74 data center, colocation and dry paper record facilities, many of which are SOC 2 certified and HIPPA compliant. FLTG and FirstLight will become the 1st telecommunications company to combine a fiber offering with Cisco's extensive product portfolio in the Northeast region."

Over the past few weeks workers have been disassembling a large, custom made instrument to prepare it for shipping from its Lansing, NY birthplace to its permanent home at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) facility near Washington, DC.  It will take three semi-trailer trucks to transport the 88 foot long, 60,000 pound VSANS (Very Small Angle Neutron Scattering) diffractometer that was fabricated at Advanced Design Consulting USA, Inc..  The unique design will allow NIST scientists to obtain very precise readings when bombarding a variety of materials with a neutron stream.

"It's really just a powerful tool," explains ADC President Alex Deyhim.  "You can call it a microscope in a way -- it allows experimenters to look at things you can't see with your naked eye.  Detectors and other instrumentation allow researchers at NIST to look inside materials and do the fundamental research they want to do.  It's more precise."

The state Department of Health (DOH) could have saved the Medicaid program as much as $146 million over a six-year period if it had helped Medicaid patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) who meet certain eligibility requirements get the Medicare benefits to which they are entitled, according to an auditreleased today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Auditors estimate those efforts, if implemented, could save another $69 million from 2016 to 2018, which includes $17 million in savings for counties and New York City.

"New Yorkers dealing with kidney failure and struggling with day-to-day life should be informed of their Medicare eligibility, which could reduce their out-of-pocket expenses and may provide them with more options for care." DiNapoli said. "The state has an obligation not just to patients, but to taxpayers. With the looming uncertainty over Medicaid under the new administration in Washington, states need to take every initiative to defray Medicaid program costs."

'All Things Equal', the award-winning radio show, continues in 2017 with two additional sponsors: Community Foundation and Ithaca College.

All Things Equal is a weekly radio show that is co-produced by Cornell University and the Cayuga Radio Group. The show features in-depth conversations on race, class, diversity, sustainability, and other important issues.

A coalition of institutional investors, led by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, as trustee of the New York State Common Retirement Fund (CRF), and the Church of England investment fund, have again asked ExxonMobil to report how its business will be impacted by global efforts to mitigate climate change.

The CRF and the Church of England filed a similar proposal for consideration at Exxon's 2016 annual meeting. Despite Exxon's unsuccessful attempt to exclude the proposal from a vote at the meeting, it received supportfrom 38.2% of voting shareholders, a record for a climate change resolution at the company.

Three weeks ago I finally did something I had been thinking about doing for at least two years - I 'cut the cable'.  That's what people are calling switching from cable to streaming TV.  The challenge was to save money while still getting the entertainment I wanted on my television set.  Part of the challenge was making both my wife and me happy with whatever we did.  She doesn't like learning curves, but every time I scrolled through a hundred or two channels and couldn't find anything I want to watch, it reminded me how much I don't like cable bills.

So I marched into the cable office and turned in my set top box and remote control, and 'downgraded' my account to 'internet only'.  I figured I could save between $50 and over $100 per month depending on how you calculate it (more on that later) plus get most of the shows we care about as well as some things not offered on cable.

The $162.2 billion New York State Executive Budget includes proposals to address infrastructure needs while reducing out-year gaps, but shifts some spending off-budget and would expand Executive authority to reshape spending and programs without legislative input, according to a reportreleased today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

“The 2017-18 Executive Budget seeks to balance spending and revenue and proposes much needed capital investments in clean water projects while increasing funding for education, health care and other programs,” DiNapoli said. “Still, several proposals raise issues regarding checks and balances over use of the public’s dollars and would diminish independent oversight.”

Rosie Applications is a young startup making a big impact in downtown Ithaca. Founded in 2012, Rosie has become an industry-leading grocery shopping platform for mobile and web by allowing independent grocery stores to sell online.

At its annual awards dinner Jan. 26, the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce recognized Rosie Applications as the Distinguished Business of the Year Award for its investment in Ithaca, cultivating a modern workforce and being pioneers of the tech service industry in Tompkins County.

"The decision by Rosie co-founders to locate in the heart of downtown Ithaca has not only stimulated the local economy and created new jobs, but also further enhances the already vibrant, entrepreneurial spirit found in Ithaca," said Jennifer Tavares, president of the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce.