jueves, 27 de octubre de 2011

DEBATE DE CANDIDATOS A LA OFICINA DE DEJARA STEVE LEVY


IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: LA VILLA CELEBRA EL MES DE LA HERENCIA HISPANA

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: LA VILLA CELEBRA EL MES DE LA HERENCIA HISPANA: Felicidades a los homenajeados

Long Island Sees Upswing in Immigrants

NY REGIONOCTOBER 27, 2011

Long Island Sees Upswing in Immigrants
By JOSEPH DE AVILA

Long Island's immigrant population has more than doubled in the past three decades, with nearly one in five Long Islanders now born abroad, according to a new report released on Thursday.

About a third of all immigrants on Long Island are now Hispanic, making it the biggest group of foreign-born Long Islanders, according to a report by the left-leaning Fiscal Policy Institute based on U.S. Census Bureau data. But an influx of Asians has also helped change the demographics of Nassau and Suffolk counties, two of the nation's wealthiest suburbs.

The report highlights how immigration trends in the New York City suburbs have been shifting for decades. Generations ago, immigrants came to areas such as Manhattan's Lower East Side to begin new lives before leaving for Long Island.

"Nowadays they are moving directly to the suburbs," said Lawrence Levy, executive dean at Hofstra University's National Center for Suburban Studies.

Today, Pakistanis are flocking to the town of Brookhaven; Koreans are coming to Oyster Bay and Glen Cove; and Ecuadorians are settling in Hempstead.

Hispanics from Central America have emerged as the biggest groups of new immigrants on Long Island. El Salvadorans were the largest immigrant group, increasing their ranks by 27% to nearly 56,000 between 2000 and 2009.

El Salvador's civil war in the 1980s and early 1990s, followed by social upheaval there, fueled the wave of emigration, said Patrick Young, an attorney with the Central American Refugee Center.

Now "there is almost no village on Long Island that doesn't have a small population of Salvadorans," Mr. Young said.

The Village of Hempstead remains an epicenter for many Central Americans. In the downtown area, the streetscape is lined with Salvadoran restaurants and bakeries, travel agencies specializing in flights to Central America and check-cashing vendors where immigrants can send remittances to their families back home.

Delmis Avella, who owns a clothing store downtown, came to Hempstead in 1993 from El Salvador. Her mother and sister arrived in Long Island with political asylum during the early 1980s. "I wanted to change my life," said Ms. Avella, 36 years old.

Ms. Avella says she has no intention of ever returning to El Salvador due to its gang problems. "It's too dangerous," said Ms. Avella, a mother of three.

Leslie Esperanza Rivera, 32, moved to Hempstead from Honduras a year ago to join her husband. She works in a clothing store in downtown Hempstead and sends money home to put her three children, who are still in Honduras, through school. Her husband works in a nearby pizzeria.

"It's better to come here and save money," said Ms. Rivera, who plans to stay in the U.S. for about another two years before returning to Honduras. "That's where my family is."

Jobs and family connections are the main reasons why immigrants have chosen Long Island for their home, Mr. Levy said, though the rate of immigration has slowed since the economic downturn began.

The report presents a complicated portrait of where immigrants work and how they contribute to the economy, said David Dyssegaard Kallick of the Fiscal Policy Institute.

Indians, who grew by 26% since 2000 on Long Island, and Filipinos, who surged 45%, primarily work in white-collar jobs such as engineering and teaching. Groups from Latin America—heavily represented by countries in Central America—are more likely to work in low-skilled jobs. Meanwhile, foreign-born Long Islanders own nearly a quarter of all small businesses in Nassau and Suffolk.

"There is no typical immigrant," Mr. Kallick said. "What you see is that the composite of immigration turns out to be a very robust picture of immigrant contribution with a lot of range."

While many immigrants come to Long Island for higher wages, they earn about a quarter less than U.S.-born workers. Immigrant families, however, earn only 11% less than U.S.-born families, mostly because foreign-born households tend to have more than two wage earners, the report said.

"I think the report debunks the popular stereotypes of Long Island immigrants," said Pearl Kamer, chief economist of the Long Island Association. Much of the political discussion around immigration on Long Island focuses on illegal immigration and ignores contributions made by foreign-born residents, she added.

Others criticized the report. "It doesn't...determine the costs of services that immigrants use in the economy," said Seth Forman, of the Long Island Regional Planning Council.

The report also doesn't distinguish between new immigrants and those who arrived in the country decades ago, Mr. Forman said. "I think that most people are concerned about present day immigration," he added.

Write to Joseph De Avila at joseph.deavila@wsj.com

NEWSDAY NOTES- notes immigrants' role in LI economy

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/nassau/study-notes-immigrants-role-in-li-economy-1.3276248Study

notes immigrants' role in LI economy
October 27, 2011 by VÍCTOR MANUEL RAMOS / victor.ramos@newsday.com

Immigrants in Nassau and Suffolk counties generated 17 percent of the total earnings of Long Islanders, roughly equal to their share of the population, a study of 2009 census figures released Thursday found.

The report by the liberal Fiscal Policy Institute in Manhattan also found most immigrant families live in owner-occupied homes and reported paying a median $8,499 in property taxes. Most are U.S. citizens. More than half were white-collar workers; nearly half of the immigrant households earned $80,000 a year or more; and 22 percent of small businesses were owned by people not born in the United States.

The group analyzed 2009 census and other demographic data to reach its conclusions that many immigrants are living the middle-class lifestyle as they bolster the Long Islandeconomy.

"Immigrants are pulling their weight in the economy," said David Dyssegaard Kallick, the institute's immigration research director. "When people think about immigrants they may not think as much about the executives and the doctors and the nurses or small-business owners."

They are a diverse bunch from places such as El Salvador, India and Italy, and numbered 493,000 in 2009, the study found.

The economic data, however, has to be weighed against the costs of a growing population and more demand for social services, said Steven Camarota, research director at the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies, which favors immigration limits.

Camarota points to data showing that 47 percent of immigrant households in New York State access social services, such as food assistance and Medicaid, compared with 27 percent for non-immigrants.

Seth Forman, chief planner for the Long Island Regional Planning Council, said the figures are accurate but paint an incomplete picture. The study doesn't reflect immigrant impacts on "infrastructure, schools, parks, environment, health and emergency services."

Susan and Ivan López of Lopez Brothers Landscaping in Farmingville weren't surprised by the findings. The Colombian immigrants started their business six years ago and employ 15.

"We came to this country seeking progress and wanting to live better than we could in our country," said Susan López, 30, who became a U.S. citizen years ago. "It's gratifying to see that all those weekends, Christmases and holidays we have worked are making a difference."

Maryann Slutsky, of Long Island Wins, an immigrant advocacy group in Old Westbury, said the report helps dispel a "false reality" about immigrants. "They come here from Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America and they come here to work hard."

Study Finds That Immigrants Are Central to Long Island Economy

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/27/study-finds-that-immigrants-are-central-to-long-island-economy/

October 27, 2011, 7:01 AM

Study Finds That Immigrants Are Central to Long Island Economy
By MEREDITH HOFFMAN

Immigrants, those who are here legally and illegally, are important contributors to the economy on Long Island and are a relatively affluent group, according to a report to be released on Thursday.

The median income for a family with at least one immigrant adult was $98,000, compared with $110,000 for families headed by American-born adults, the report by the Fiscal Policy Institute said.

The report said that in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, two of the country’s 50 most affluent counties, immigrants represent about 16 percent of the population and add about 17 percent of value to the economy through their work.

The Fiscal Policy Institute — a union-supported, nonpartisan research and advocacy group — based its findings on Census Bureau data from 2009 and 2010.

Illegal immigration, especially as it contributes to the pool of day laborers, has been a flashpoint on Long Island with some towns aggressively policing gathering spots for immigrants seeking temporary jobs.

In 2008, an unarmed Ecuadorean immigrant, Marcelo Lucero, was stabbed to death by a group of teenagers in a racially motivated attack that shone a spotlight on anti-Hispanic crime on Long Island.

Advocates for immigrants said that the report helps debunk arguments made by some elected officials on Long Island that immigrants are a financial drain and instead shows that they are an integral part of the region’s economy.

“Immigrants are home owners, business owners, entrepreneurs, hard workers,” said Maryann Slutsky, director of Long Island Wins, an immigrant advocacy group.

Indeed, immigrants perform a variety of jobs, and are slightly overrepresented in jobs in the professional and health fields, though they are very overrepresented in low-income service jobs, according to the Fiscal Police Institute’s study.

Immigrants are also small business owners, with 22 percent of all Long Island small businesses owned by immigrants. Most immigrants live in homes they own — 75 percent, compared with 86 percent of United States-born residents in Long Island — and they pay roughly the same amount as native-born Americans in property taxes. The study reports that many illegal immigrants work in service, while a small number work in construction; over half pay taxes on their income, the study said.

Long Island’s immigrant population is also diverse.

Immigrants from El Salvador are the largest concentration, representing 12 percent of immigrants, followed by those from India, Italy and the Dominican Republic. Natives of Mexico make up only 3 percent of Long Island’s immigrant population.

Steve Levy, the Suffolk County executive, who has taken a hard line on illegal immigration, contended that the study was done by a “left-leaning” group that did not adequately distinguish between documented and illegal immigrants.

“No one is denying that legal immigration contributes to our culture and our economy,” Mr. Levy said in an interview. “It looks like selective data was put into this study omitting the drain on services that come about from the illegal population.”

But David Kallick, the director of the Fiscal Policy Insitute’s Immigrant Research Initiative, said that the report included “the best data there is about undocumented on Long Island.”

“I think it’s really important for Long Island to move on from such an overheated immigration discussion,” Mr. Kallick said. “The last thing we want to do is to follow the path of places like Arizona and Alabama where they seem to be going out of their way to create an off-putting climate for immigrants and that’s hurting them economically and socially.”

The Fiscal Policy Institute’s study was analyzed by Pearl Kamer, the chief economist for the Long Island Association, the regions’ largest business group.

“The findings are sufficiently detailed to show the role that immigrants play in the economy,” Ms. Kamer said, “and to guide policy makers in serving the immigrant community.”

martes, 25 de octubre de 2011

Nueva York: Buscan limitar acceso a beneficios sociales; latinos se oponen

Nueva York: Buscan limitar acceso a beneficios sociales; latinos se oponen









Una propuesta que exigiría el requisito de residir en el estado de Nueva York como mínimo 90 días antes de que una persona pueda solicitar servicios sociales del sistema público, ha generado preocupación entre la comunidad latina del Condado de Suffolk, Long Island.


"Ahora es muy fácil para las personas trasladarse a Suffolk y empezar a recibir beneficios de inmediato, compitiendo con los residentes de larga data que realmente los necesitan", dijo la tesorera del condado de Suffolk Angie Carpenter y candidata del partido republicano a la posición de Ejecutivo del Condado.

Carpenter dijo que está a favor de imponer algún tipo de requisito de residencia sobre la elegibilidad de las personas para acceder a los servicios sociales. "Por mi parte, deberíamos estar buscando opciones, como lo hacen otros estados", añadió Carpenter, "algún tipo de requisito de residencia para regular esos servicios sociales, de manera que aquellos que realmente lo necesitan, que han estado aquí y han sido parte de nuestro país, puedan obtener la ayuda que necesitan y merecen".

El proyecto de ley fue presentado ante el Comité de Servicios Sociales del Senado Estatal y aún no sido debatido. Una propuesta similar fue presentada en enero de este año por el senador republicano Michael Ranzenhofer del distrito senatorial 61 del estado de Nueva York.

La medida contribuiría a agravar la situación de muchas familias de latinos en la línea de pobreza que reciben servicios sociales para poder subsistir, sugieren residentes latinos del condado de Suffolk consultados por Aol Latino/HuffPost Latino Voices sobre la propuesta de Angie Carpenter.

El Asambleísta Phil Ramos, demócrata, que representa al distrito 6 de la Asamblea de Nueva York expresó, "estamos conscientes de la crisis económica que atraviesa el estado y todo el país y la necesidad de recortar el gasto gubernamental pero también tenemos claro que no podemos balancear el presupuesto afectando a los grupos más vulnerables de nuestra comunidad".

El distrito 6 de Asamblea de Nueva York incluye los pueblos de Brentwood, Central Islip y Bay Shore del condado de Suffolk. En el área está la mayor concentración de latinos en el estado, fuera del perímetro urbano de la ciudad de Nueva York.

"Imponiendo una moratoria de hasta 90 días a personas que pueden ser víctimas de violencia doméstica sería una tragedia. Una medida de ese tipo no sólo afectaría a la víctima sino también a sus hijos", afirma Phil Ramos.

Por su parte, Martha Maffei directora ejecutiva de la organización.... ver nota completa http://noticias.aollatino.com/2011/10/25/nueva-york-acceso-beneficios-sociales-latinos/
 

jueves, 20 de octubre de 2011

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: ANTE LA ADVERSIDAD SOMOS UNOS, EL SALVADOR NOS NE...

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: ANTE LA ADVERSIDAD SOMOS UNOS, EL SALVADOR NOS NE...

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: GRANADA- AGUSTIN LARA

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: GRANADA- AGUSTIN LARA: En la apertura de la exhibición “Lazos de Hermandad” dentro del marco de la celebración del mes de la Herencia Hispana en Babylon, NY. I...

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: SURE ON THIS SHINING NIGTH- SAMUEL BARBER

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: SURE ON THIS SHINING NIGTH- SAMUEL BARBER: En la apertura de la exhibición “Lazos de Hermandad” dentro del marco de la celebración del mes de la Herencia Hispana en Babylon, NY. I...

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: SOLIDARIDAD EN LO QUE SE NECESITA

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: SOLIDARIDAD EN LO QUE SE NECESITA: Demuestra tu solidaridad con nuestros hermanos damnificados, apoyando esta iniciativa. El Pulgarcito nos necesita.

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: WIDMUNG- ROBERT SHUMANN

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: WIDMUNG- ROBERT SHUMANN: En la apertura de la exhibición “Lazos de Hermandad” dentro del marco de la celebración del mes de la Herencia Hispana en Babylon, NY. ...

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: CARO MIO BEN- DE GIUSEPPE GIRDANI

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: CARO MIO BEN- DE GIUSEPPE GIRDANI: En la apertura de la exhibición “Lazos de Hermandad” dentro del marco de las celebración del mes de la Herencia Hispana en Babylon, NY. ...

martes, 18 de octubre de 2011

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: EL RADIOTON DE LA ESPERANZA

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: EL RADIOTON DE LA ESPERANZA

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: UN LLAMADO A LA SOLIDARIDAD

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: UN LLAMADO A LA SOLIDARIDAD: El Salvador está pasando por una catástrofe. Lluvias permanentes que han dejado sin techo y sin comida a miles de hermanos centroamericanos....

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: ESTABA PACHITO EL RIO LUXY

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: ESTABA PACHITO EL RIO LUXY: Permiteme diferir con tu nota Luxy, apegado a la Primera Enmienda. De nuevo tergiversando los hechos y poniéndote de victima que no te va....

¿Y QUE DICE EL FLAMANTE GIO- PRESIDENTE DEL CONSEJO CONSULTIVO DE LEVY?

¿Y qué dice el flamante presidente del consejo consultivo de Levy? ¿O será que entre tanto bailongo y proclamaciones no ha tenido tiempo de sentarse a ver el impacto del presupuesto de Levy a la comunidad hispana? ¿Cuáles son las obligaciones del consejo?


Levy propone cerrar centros de atención, botar a 710 personas y poner más de 3500 víctimas de abuso infantil en peligro. ¿Y dónde está el "puente" de la comunidad hispana con el ejecutivo? ¿Qué propuesta han dado? ¿Como pretenden aconsejar a Levy para evitar los recortes? Que ideas "nuevas y frescas" traen a la mesa de negociación.

Bien dice el bachi es que ser un líder comunitario no es para hocicones.

Lo cual es cierto que tanto la administración de Levy en Suffolk y su colega Mangano en Nassau, en lo que respecta a los asuntos hispanos, son el sueño de un dentista. Trabajar con un par de muelas.

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/some-fear-levy-s-cuts-will-end-services-1.3252613

Some fear Levy's cuts will end services
October 17, 2011 by RICK BRAND AND PAUL LAROCCO / rick.brand@newsday.com., paul.larocco@newsday.com


Some of County Executive Steve Levy's top commissioners warned Monday of the severe impact of his $2.7 billion budget, saying the spending plan would "cripple" their ability to provide services.

Top health and social services officials said proposed cuts, including 710 layoffs, will shut down social service centers, halt water testing at beaches, end pollution investigations and put 3,500 potential child abuse victims at risk.

Robert Tomarken, the Suffolk health commissioner, warned that the department will be hampered in everything from responding to outbreaks of communicable diseases to performing annual restaurant inspections. Tomarken said he was not consulted on the cuts.

"The department has . . . emerged from a period of turbulence due to state aid funding issues and will be entering an even darker period of chaos and uncertainty," he said. "This will be the end of the county health department as we know it today."

Another Levy appointee, Social Services Commissioner Gregory Blass called the elimination of 295 departmental jobs -- 124 through layoffs -- "impossible to absorb" because public assistance rolls and the number of homeless continue to rise. Levy's budget, he said, "will literally cripple this department."

The hearings followed warnings by legislative budget analysts last week that Levy's budget, even with the layoffs, is out of balance by $135.2 million. Levy maintains his budget is balanced and his revenue estimates are sound.

"There would be no need for departmental layoffs if the unions would agree to contribute toward their health plan coverage, as does most everyone in the private sector," Levy said in a statement Monday. "We hope legislators will now pressure the unions to negotiate this reasonable concession."

But County Attorney Christine Malafi, one of Levy's most loyal appointees, called on lawmakers to reverse the layoffs of two attorneys who work in Family Court, "to make sure children don't get hurt." She said Levy had not consulted her about cuts to the office.

District Attorney Thomas Spota testified that Levy's move to cut 27 positions in his office -- including 15 through layoffs -- would hamper the office's efforts to keep up with a growing load of cases, including those involving gangs and drugs. "The bottom line is I need more, not less, investigators," Spota said.

NEWS NOTES- LABOR UNIONS RALLY AGAINST MANGANO'S PROPOSED BUDGET

http://www.news12.com/articleDetail.jsp?articleId=295350

Labor unions rally against Mangano's proposed budget

(10/17/11) MINEOLA - The union representing county workers rallied against County Executive Ed Mangano's (R-Nassau) proposed budget in Mineola today.

"Mr. Mangano wants Nassau County to become another Wisconsin," says union member Katherine Gallagher. "We have a signed contract - he can't just go around ripping up contracts that were signed."

The workers were protesting the proposed 700 layoffs in Mangano's budget and his plan to declare a fiscal emergency.

The fiscal emergency would give Mangano the power to have union members pay 25 percent of their health care costs.

In a statement, Mangano said, "Rather than waste members' dues on T-shirts and juvenile signs, union leaders would serve their members responsibly by getting their butts to the negotiation table."

DEL ESCRITORIO DEL ASAMBLEISTA PHIL RAMOS- CARMEN ST. GEORGE RECIBE APOYO

Carmen St. George recibe apoyo de Asambleísta Ramos


A menos de cuatro semanas para la elección del próximo 8 de noviembre, la candidata a juez del distrito en el pueblo de Hempstead, Carmen St. George, recibió el apoyo del oficial electo hispano de más alto rango en Long Island, el asambleísta Phil Ramos.

“Durante la última década hemos estado trabajando por lograr mayor representación hispana y de minorías en todos los niveles de gobierno de Long Island y del estado. La candidatura de Carmen St. George es una inspiración para que más mujeres hispanas se involucren en política y gobierno. Contar con candidatas de la categoría de Carmen St. George es un honor y demuestra la diversidad de la comunidad hispana en Long Island.”

Ramos hizo el anuncio en un evento festivo en la ciudad de Garden City donde varias decenas de personas se hicieron presentes para respaldar a Carmen St. George.

Carmen St. George es una abogada graduada con honores de la Universidad jesuita Fordham. De padres puertorriqueños y griegos, St. George fungió por 6 años como Fiscal Adjunto en el condado de Queens. Ella habla griego y español.

St. George se mostró complacida con el apoyo brindado por Ramos: “Como Latinos necesitamos representación en nuestras cortes. En la actualidad sólo hay un juez de origen hispano en todo el sistema de cortes de Nassau. Sabedores que en algún punto de nuestras vidas todos nos vemos involucrados con el sistema legal de una u otra manera, debemos tener la seguridad que cuando esa situación nos toque, tendremos una jueza que sea dura con el crimen de nuestros vecindarios pero al mismo tiempo tenga la compasión y entendimiento para lidiar con los asuntos de nuestra comunidad.”

Ahora es el turno de los votantes. La elección se llevará a cabo el próximo martes 8 de noviembre. Carmen St. George se convertiría en la segunda jueza hispana, luego que el año pasado Helen Voustinas saliera electa.



lunes, 17 de octubre de 2011

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: BOLETIN CONSULAR

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: BOLETIN CONSULAR: PROVISTO POR LA DIASPORA OPINA

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: LLAMADO DE ASISTENCIA HUMANITARIA INTERNACIONAL

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: LLAMADO DE ASISTENCIA HUMANITARIA INTERNACIONAL: LLAMADO DE ASISTENCIA HUMANITARIA INTERNACIONAL GOBIERNO DE LA REPÚBLICA DE EL SALVADOR Domingo 16 de octubre de 2011 Ante las intens...

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: BOLETIN CONSULAR

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: BOLETIN CONSULAR: PROVISTO POR LA DIASPORA OPINA

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: SOLIDARIDAD- El pulgarcito bajo los embates de la ...

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: SOLIDARIDAD- El pulgarcito bajo los embates de la ...: FOTOS TOMADAS DE LA PAGINA http://www.lapagina.com.sv/nacionales/57115/Fotos-de-nuestros-lectores-sobre-las-lluvias-que-abaten-a-El-Salvad...

domingo, 16 de octubre de 2011

SIGUE EL BAILONGO EN LA CASA DE TEDDY AL SON DE NIFA

El presupuesto no esta balanceado, de acuerdo a Grant Thornton, entidad privada contratada por Autoridad Financiera Interina de Nassau... Deficit: $153 millones.

Y QUE DICEN NUESTROS LIDERES, DONDE ESTAN?


http://libn.com/2011/10/07/nifa-rejects-another-nassau-budget-plan/

NIFA rejects another Nassau budget
by John Callegari
Published: October 7, 2011

At its first meeting since County Executive Ed Mangano submitted his latest iteration of the county budget, the Nassau Interim Finance Authority declared the budget proposal out of balance.

Even NIFA Chairman Ronald Stack admitted he got a feeling of déjà vu during the whole ordeal.

Mangano and NIFA have been going back and forth since June over how to accurately balance the budget. And round after round, NIFA has stated the budget proposals are not adequate under the statutes of the NIFA Act, for which the finance authority must abide.

Thursday’s meeting was no different.

Saying Mangano’s budget proposal had “a high degree of uncertainty and lack of strategic direction,” NIFA Chairman Ronald Stack led a proposal to discharge the budget without recommendation. It is now up to the county Legislature to adopt a budget that fixes the problems NIFA continues to have with the budget, such as relying on red light camera revenues or proposals like union concessions and legislative actions that would likely result in litigation.

If the Legislature does not adopt a budget acceptable to NIFA by the Oct. 30 deadline, the finance authority could reject the budget, forcing it to revise its proposal. If that new proposed budget is again rejected by NIFA, Stack said NIFA would be forced to act to correct it, although he would not elaborate on what that would mean for the county.

NIFA officials said they were “very concerned” about the year-end budget status, which they estimated would reach a deficit of $153 million. And if no other cost reduction or revenue-producing measures were put in place, that amount could balloon to a $283 million deficit by the end of 2012.

Included in Mangano’s proposal as a contingency budgetary proposal was the privatization of Nassau’s sewer system, estimated to bring in $750 million in revenue. The measure had originally been included as a major component of the budgetary plan, but was reduced to a contingency measure after NIFA rejected it as having too many uncertainties attached to it. Stack once again dismissed the measure saying it was “in no way acceptable to NIFA.”

“There should be public discussion as to whether the proposed sale of Nassau’s sewer system is good public policy,” NIFA member George Marlin said. “The public should be told how much more it will cost to flush their toilets if there is a sale. There will be a flush fee, also known as a tax, because sewage costs will no longer be based on property tax assessments and because the buyers of the sewer system will require a profit on their investment.”

But, the Mangano administration retorted, saying NIFA was doing nothing to come up with ways to solve the budget deficit problem.

“County Executive Mangano’s budget decreased year-to-year spending and implemented recommendations included in NIFA’s own Grant Thornton report,” said Tim Sullivan, Mangano’s deputy county executive for finance. “It is now confusing that NIFA rejects its own specific recommendations. If they are asking for a tax increase, they ought to just come out and say so. NIFA must offer suggestions, rather than only criticism, and join with the County in solving Nassau’s fiscal crisis.”

Along with rejecting Mangano’s most recent budget proposals, NIFA also rejected a resolution to contract with the Landtek Group to install artificial turf at baseball fields at Cantiague Park and Bay Park. That contract, worth $8.1 million, was subject to NIFA review because it was above the $5 million threshold for which all contracts must be reviewed by the state-imposed finance authority. In rejecting the measure, NIFA officials said they were not necessarily against park improvements, but installing artificial turf on the baseball fields would not generate the kind of revenue the county would need just to break even on the investment.

“This is not the time to put artificial turf on baseball fields,” Stack said. “The county should focus on getting its budget expenditures in line, not on ballfields and parking lots.”

jueves, 13 de octubre de 2011

DIGAMOS NO A LOS DESPIDOS


Muchísimas gracias de parte de todos los empleados del condado. Esperamos gente de todo el estado de NY. Ya es hora de hacernos respetar. El dinero del condado es usado para muchas cosas...festivales......etc. etc.....y no hay dinero para pagarle a la gente que realmente trabaja.


Mil gracias otra vez,
Es el comentario de un ciudadano que tuvo a bien compartir con esta redacción. De aquí la pregunta obligada ¿Donde están nuestros suedo líderes que solo sirven para tomarse la foto? Ser adornos porque solo calientan la silla, se pasan de hocicones hablando barrabasadas y media, o escribiendo tonterías apoyando a los anti-inmigrantes en nombre de la comunidad aun que no sean explícitos. De qué sirve vanagloriarlos que están dentro del sistema político local, si solo sirven para nada ya que se quedan callados cuando realmente tienen que participar a favor de la colectividad que dicen representar.

Ello deja en evidencia el tremendo abismo y dolencia de nuestra comunidad como grupo. Carecemos de gente capaz y estamos plagados de incapaces que solo velan por sus propios intereses. Y son los mismos que embaucan a nuestra gente vendiéndole espejitos de los políticos que a ellos les conviene respaldar porque ya negociaron su huesito. Y nos quejamos como viejas lloronas y demandamos más puestos dentro de la política y/o gobiernos locales, solo para llenarlos con ineptos para fomentar el compadrazgo y colusión a su favor, porque tanta es su mediocridad que son incapaces también de sostener sus propios negocios o dentro de las reglas del sistema Oferta y Demanda, donde la calidad, profesionalismo, capacidad, ética y principios son tomados en cuenta.

Tiempo de elecciones está por venir y saldrán como sompopos de mayo, hablando maravillas de sus candidatos a su conveniencia previa negociación bajo la mesa y por un huesito, a nuestra comunidad.

Estaremos atentos de estos personajes

No debemos apoyar a políticos anti-inmigrantes y a los incapaces.

 







COUNTY EXECUTIVE ED MANGANO IS PLANNING TO

RALLY

Against Layoffs and

THE CONSTANT ATTACK ON LABOR!

Monday, October 17, 2011

11:30am-2:00pm

Theodore Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building

1550 Franklin Ave., Mineola

COUNTY EXECUTIVE ED MANGANO IS PLANNING TO:

LAYOFF MORE THAN 1,000 CSEA MEMBERS

MANDATE EMPLOYEES AND RETIREES TO PAY 25% INTO THEIR HEALTH INSURANCE COSTS

PASS LANDMARK LEGISLATION THAT ALLOWS HIM THE ABILITY TO MODIFY CONTRACTS & BENEFITS AND FREEZE WAGES!

THIS IS AFTER ALREADY LAYING OFF 128 CSEA MEMBERS IN JUNE!

JOIN US TO HELP PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF ALL ORGANIZED LABOR ON LONG ISLAND!

*PARKING WILL BE AVAILABLE BEHIND THE LORD & TAYLOR ON THE CORNER OF FRANKLIN AVE AND 14TH ST.

miércoles, 12 de octubre de 2011

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: EL MENSAJE DE GIO " UNO MAS DE LOS BUENOS SALVADOR...

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: EL MENSAJE DE GIO " UNO MAS DE LOS BUENOS SALVADOR...: Quedamos lo mismo, tanto bla-bla-bla. Y al final no dijo nada. Los hechos hablan más que palabras Sr. Mata. El consejo que preside Sr...

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: SERA OTRA ALABAMA LO QUE DESEA GIO PARA SU GENTE

FORO - SALVADOREÑOS EN LONG ISLAND: SERA OTRA ALABAMA LO QUE DESEA GIO PARA SU GENTE: No entiendo que tienen de especial algunos buenos salvadoreños como se auto denominan, que solo ellos ven, lo que la mayoría no. Una mayor...

BOSTON NOTES- OCCUPY BOSTON LEADS TO MASSIVE ARRESTS

Occupy Boston leads to massive arrests


Published: 12 October, 2011, 02:18

Weeks after the Occupy movement started up, protests are still going strong and spreading. Unfortunately, so are the responses from law enforcement. Last night, over 100 demonstrators were arrested for participating in Occupy Boston.

Hip-hop artist Immortal Technique told RT that the video of New York City protesters being pepper-sprayed by the NYPD at the start of the movement served as a catalyst for public support. Though police may have hoped that their actions could keep the protesters down, crowds continue to gather in Lower Manhattan and elsewhere. The Occupy Wall Street movement spread out of Zuccotti Park in recent weeks and onto the Brooklyn Bridge where around 700 participants were arrested by the New York Police Department. RT reported earlier today that cops in Seattle, Washington are prohibiting protesters from using umbrellas while they occupy parks in the city and masses continue to swarm public spots in other parts of America.

Jason Pramas of Open Media Boston told RT that the political establishment in Boston is starting to get nervous as the movement grows in the same city that helped spawn the United States. It wasn’t the run-of-the-mill hippies that the mainstream pegs as the common protesters that was arrested last night; Pramas said that decorated veterans, legal observers and medics were arrested as well. Pramas says that despite this opposition, he doesn’t see an end in sight.

“In American terms, this is our Chicago ‘68 all over again,” Pramas said to RT. “Young people are up in arms about the situation in society, about the inability to make a living, they are afraid of the future.”

Rob Kall of OpedNews.com added to RT that opposition is coming from law enforcement all across America, with some cities being more understanding than others. “We’ve had experiences in Philadelphia with some police where they arrest our journalist and other times where the police are just great. It’s a lot of personal differences, I think,” Kall told RT. “You are going to have police who are more sensitive. When we were down in Washington over the weekend, we saw one policeman who literally attacked signs and tore them apart and went after people pretty viciously.”

Cops continue to crack down on demonstrations across the country, but Pramas says it is must more than just keeping protesters from being heard — it’s an infringement on everything American. “What we are talking about here is basic rights,” said Pramas. “This is protected speech, this is protected assembly”

“It’s clear that not only is this the voice of a generation, it’s the voice of working Americans,” added Pramas
 
You can  watch the massive arrests, click here
http://rt.com/usa/news/occupy-boston-pramas-immortal-629/

martes, 11 de octubre de 2011

GINNY FIELDS A LITTLE HISTORY



http://www.newsday.com/long-island/islip-board-assemblywoman-must-shutter-one-rental-1.1778508Islip

board: Assemblywoman must shutter one rental
February 24, 2010 by JENNIFER MALONEY / jennifer.maloney@newsday.com

Three years after Assemb. Ginny Fields was cited for illegally renting out two Oakdale cottages, Islip's Zoning Board of Appeals has ruled that she can continue to rent one - but she must demolish or move the other.

Islip in 2007 issued notices to Fields and her husband, Walter Fields, for two one-story cottages on the lot of a larger house at 3 East Shore Rd. The cottages did not have rental permits and were not included in the house's certificate of occupancy, as required by town code.

Newsday reported a year ago that Fields (D-Oakdale) still had not submitted an application to the zoning board of appeals to bring the cottages into compliance.

She began the application process in March and completed it in December, town officials said.

At a zoning board hearing last month, she argued that both cottages qualified for legal nonconforming use, or "grandfathering." She testified that both had been occupied every summer since they were built in 1940.

But a man who in the 1940s and '50s lived next to the property testified that while one cottage had regular seasonal tenants, the other had no plumbing - just a garden hose running from next door - and was largely vacant until 1955.

In a written decision released Wednesday, the zoning board's chairman, Richard Scheyer, called that neighbor's testimony "extremely credible."

The board ruled that the cottage that was steadily occupied qualifies for a certificate of compliance, making it eligible for residential use. The other does not, the board found, because it had been vacant for more than a year and its structure was substantially altered in a renovation.

The cottage's tenant must vacate within 30 days, town attorney Alicia O'Connor said.

In a phone interview from Albany, Fields said she has not decided what to do with the cottage but may offer to donate it for historic preservation. "We've done everything we could to be in compliance. It's a bit unfortunate because . . . the records don't go back that far. I was unable to really show genuine proof" of continuous occupancy.

O'Connor said the town will extend the 30-day deadline if the owners "show good faith effort" to remove the cottage as quickly as possible. The ruling made note of several neighbors who attended last month's hearing to complain about the cottages. But town code does not allow quality-of-life issues to be considered in such a case, Scheyer wrote.

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/islip-board-to-rule-on-fields-oakdale-rentals-1.1769364Islip

board to rule on Fields' Oakdale rentals
February 18, 2010 by JENNIFER MALONEY / jennifer.maloney@newsday.com

Three years after she was first cited for illegally renting out two Oakdale cottages, Assemb. Ginny Fields will soon hear from Islip's zoning board on whether she can continue to rent them - or must shutter them for good.

The zoning board of appeals, which last month heard Fields' case, could issue its decision as early as Tuesday.

Islip issued notices to Fields in May and June 2007 for two one-story cottages on the same lot as a larger house at 3 East Shore Rd. The cottages did not have rental permits and were not included in the house's certificate of occupancy, as required by town code.

Newsday reported last February that Fields still had not brought the rentals into compliance with town code and had not yet submitted an application to the zoning board of appeals.

She began the application process in March and completed it in December, town officials said, noting that the process took several months because the town required Fields to submit a new survey and a chain of title dating to 1940, when the cottages were built.

The zoning board heard the case on Jan. 26. At issue was whether the cottage structures had been substantially altered and whether they had been vacant for more than a year since they were built.

About a dozen neighbors attended the hearing to register complaints about the rentals and protested when the board's chairman, Richard Scheyer, explained that in such an application, quality-of-life issues are not considered.

Fields and her husband inherited the property in 2005 from a neighbor, Myron van Essendelft, for whom they had cared until his death at age 97, Fields' attorney, Eliot Bloom ofMineola, has said.

Ginny Fields spoke briefly at the hearing, testifying that the cottages had been rented out every summer since she moved to the cul-de-sac in 1971. The Essendelfts told her that they had been occupied every season since they were built, she said. "They were always rented out, always," she said.

But a man who in the 1940s and '50s lived adjacent to the property, at a Montauk Highway address, offered a different story.

Andrew Connor of Roslyn Heights, who testified at the request of the Fields' neighbors, said he was 10 when he moved there in 1941. He described in detail the properties and their occupants during that time.

While one of the cottages saw a parade of seasonal tenants, the other had no plumbing - just a garden hose running from another house - and remained vacant from 1940 and 1955, except for a tenant who stayed just two or three months, he said.

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/islip-hikes-landlord-fines-for-illegal-rentals-1.1219107

Islip hikes landlord fines for illegal rentals
Published: April 16, 2009 3:13 PM
By JENNIFER MALONEY jennifer.maloney@newsday.com

The Town of Islip, which has faced criticism recently for slow enforcement of illegal rentals, is taking aim at landlords with onerous new penalties, including jail time of up to a year or a fine as high as $10,000 for third-time offenders.

The penalties, adopted unanimously by the town board this week, are among the highest on Long Island: for the first offense, a fine as high as $2,500; for the second, as high as $5,000.

Islip's matches Babylon's highest penalty.

Huntington's code calls for a fine as high as $15,000 but no jail time.

At a public hearing Tuesday before the board voted, Peter and Carol Schwasnick, who have named Islip Town in a lawsuit against their Oakdale neighbor, Assemb. Ginny Fields, chastised officials for not forcing Fields to put her illegal rental properties in compliance more quickly.

Fields was cited in 2007 for illegally renting two cottages. The town rejected her application to modify them and bring them up to code and she failed to file an appeal before her application expired last year, the town said.

Records obtained by Newsday show that she submitted the final documents for the application earlier this month. Fields' attorney, Eliot Bloom of Mineola, said the application took so long because it required new surveys, historic titles and affidavits.

The zoning board of appeals has not yet ruled on the application.

Islip Town also has come under fire for an illegal multifamily home in Brentwood where residents have gone to the hospital twice with carbon monoxide poisoning.

A full year after the town first cited the property owner for illegal apartments and fire code violations, carbon monoxide levels spiked again.

Town officials said the court process, which can stretch for several months, contributed to the delay in forcing the landlord to eliminate the illegal apartments.

Islip Supervisor Phil Nolan said the town's new penalties will make illegal apartments less profitable.

"You have to look at how much money these guys are able to get by breaking the law," he said. "I have to attack on the money side."

Previously, the town code limited the penalty for a third offense to $1,500 or up to six months in jail.

http://www.newsday.com/news/ginny-fields-neighbors-suing-the-assemblywoman-1.892643Ginny

Fields' neighbors suing the assemblywoman
February 19, 2009 by JENNIFER MALONEY /

Oakdale neighbors of Assemb. Ginny Fields have filed a lawsuit charging that she, her son William and tenants launched an intimidation campaign against them in a dispute over a school bus stop and cottages rented illegally on Fields' property.

The abuse-of-power lawsuit charges that Fields (D-Oakdale) had claimed that a public right-of-way used for a bus stop was instead her private property and that she used political influence to discontinue its use. It also says she began harassing neighbors after they reported to the Town of Islip several code violations on a nearby property where Fields has acknowledged illegally renting out two cottages.

According to the lawsuit, Fields, with her son and tenants, threatened neighbors, blared a sexually explicit radio station in their direction, rode a motorbike along the property line and drove a truck dangerously close as they waited for the school bus.

Fields, who has been in the State Assembly since 2004, declined to comment on the charges in the lawsuit yesterday. Her son, William Fields, could not be reached.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court by Carol and Peter Schwasnick, who live around the corner on Montauk Highway. They charge that the harassment began in April 2007, after they reported code violations involving cottages being rented at 5 and 7 E. Shore Rd., two of six homes on the cul-de-sac owned by Fields and her husband, Walter, property records show.

The lawsuit charges the following:

Bus stop. William Fields, 30, drove at high speeds and dangerously close to Peter Schwasnick's car on several occasions as he waited for his daughter at the bus stop at East Shore Road and Montauk Highway, and Ginny Fields laid railroad ties studded with nails along the shoulder to prevent the Schwasnicks from parking there.

Verbal harassment. Ginny Fields, 63, swore at Peter Schwasnick, 41, an elementary school physical education teacher and said, "We've been through this, you can't be here. I'm not playing games. You don't know who you're dealing with. You're done."

Political influence. Soon afterward, Fields "used her influence" with district Superintendent Alan Groveman to eliminate the bus stop.

"False reports." After the Schwasnicks and another parent complained to the district about the bus stop removal, Fields made "false reports" to Islip Town, alleging code violations on their properties.

Noise. Ginny Fields and her tenants in May and June 2008 rode a motorbike along the Schwasnicks' property line. When the Schwasnicks called Suffolk police to complain about the noise, police asked Fields to stop. But she continued to ride. And William Fields in June 2007 backed up his truck to the property line and played a sexually explicit radio station at high volume.

The suit also charges that Ginny Fields' tenants turned sprinklers on the Schwasnicks, threw eggs at their house and urinated near their fence.

The Connetquot Central School District said yesterday district buses no longer make stops at the location next to Fields' property. Instead, a bus now makes stops at two nearby locations on Montauk Highway.

Kevin O'Brien, assistant superintendent for business, said Groveman, the superintendent, had been advised not to comment on the lawsuit. "There is a process we do have for changing bus stops and that is followed," O'Brien said

lunes, 10 de octubre de 2011

DEL ESCRITORIO DEL ASAMBLEISTA PHIL RAMOS

El asambleísta Phil Ramos (D-Central Islip) dijo:



"Como miembro de la coalición de oficiales electos Afroamericanos e Hispanos de Long Island, me complace anunciar nuestro respaldo colectivo al Supervisor Steve Bellone, el Supervisor Phil Nolan, el concejal Gene Parrington y Renee Ortiz.
El Supervisor Nolan ha demostrado en repetidas ocasiones su compromiso con las comunidades de Brentwood y Central Islip. El ha hecho del desarrollo de los centros de Brentwood y Central Islip una prioridad de su gestión de gobierno. Pero estamos claros que él no puede hacerlo sólo. Necesita nuestra ayuda para lograr la reelección de Parrington y la elección de Renee Ortiz, quien se convertiría en la primera hispana en representarnos en la alcaldía de Islip. Como equipo, ellos se aseguraran que las necesidades y aspiraciones de nuestras comunidades sean satisfechas."


"Por su parte, el Supervisor Bellone no viene a prometernos nada de lo que no ha hecho ya. El lidera el gobierno municipal más diverso de Long Island. El ha sido clave para elegir la primera concejal afroamericana, Jackie Gordon, y al primer salvadoreño en todo el estado de Nueva York, el concejal Tony Martinez, al concejo municipal de Babylon. Además, Steve Bellone ha pasado del discurso a la acción y ha hecho el desarrollo de Wyandanch, la mayor inversión de su administración. Steve Bellone no viene a contarnos lo que quiere hacer, él viene a nosotros con un record de logros y con un compromiso firme de llevar esa agenda de diversidad e inclusión a la administración del condado de Suffolk."

Lista de oficiales electos que asistieron a la conferencia de prensa:


Assemblyman Phil Ramos, Islip
Suffolk Legislator Ricardo Montano, Islip
Suffolk Legislator DuWayne Gregory, Babylon
Councilwoman Jackie Gordon, Babylon
Councilman Tony Martinez, Babylon
Nassau Legislator Robert Troiano, North Hempstead
Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby, Town of Hempstead
Councilman Len Torres, City of Long Beach
Trustee Tony Rosario, Village of Hempstead
Trustee Carmen Pineyro, Village of Freeport

sábado, 8 de octubre de 2011

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: CONOZCAMOS LA OBRA DE MARIALOLI

IKARUS GALLERY CULTURAL PROGRAM: CONOZCAMOS LA OBRA DE MARIALOLI: Acuarelista Mexicana María Dolores Torres es una artista con sensibilidad en la figura humana que comparte su incesante exploración del ...

LOS INDIGNADOS, PROXIMO MOVIMIENTO REVOLUCIONARIO EN LATINOAMERICA

Los Indignados, próximo movimiento revolucionario en Latinoamérica

Por Luis Montes Brito

Algunas de las características más importantes en los sistemas de vida de los países desarrollados han sido hasta hace poco que cualquier persona podía superarse, que la tasa de nivel de pobreza además de ser mínima mantenía una tendencia a disminuirse. Ahora esto ha cambiado y cada vez es mucho más difícil que sea posible. La brecha entre ricos y pobres se ensancha y prácticamente cada vez son más los que están condenados a morir pobres si nacieron de esa manera.

El pasado 17 de septiembre un grupo de varios cientos de personas en su mayoría jóvenes, frustrados por: la crisis económica, la voracidad de las instituciones financieras y la incapacidad o complicidad de los políticos para revertirla, decidieron agruparse y protestar en Nueva York.

El movimiento espontáneo fue denominado como “Ocupa Wall Street”, el corazón del capitalismo a nivel mundial. Este movimiento en la práctica es la antípoda del Tea Party.

Después de captar la atención a nivel mundial con la captura de 700 manifestantes, son varias organizaciones políticas y sindicales quienes intentan montarse en la ola de los indignados y conducir el movimiento hacia sus intereses.

Este movimiento gracias a la indignación general y al uso de las redes sociales ha logrado expandirse rápidamente dentro de Estados Unidos.

El combustible para esta ola de protestas son las diferentes y profundas frustraciones en cada uno de los países donde han surgido. El detonante que ha encendido este tipo de movimientos lo encontramos en las obras intelectuales, independiente entre si, de 2 respetados ancianos: Gene Sharp y Stephane Hessel.

El primero, Gene Sharp, estadounidense, Doctor en Teoría Política de la Universidad de Oxford e investigador de Asuntos Internacionales de la Universidad de Harvard con sus obras: De la dictadura a la democracia y 198 métodos de acción no violenta.

El segundo, Stephane Hessel, francés de origen judío, uno de los redactores de la Declaración Universal de Derechos Humanos adoptada por la ONU en 1948, con su libro Indígnese! escrito por este diplomático.

Ambos autores incitan a romper con la indiferencia y la apatía de protestar, a la vez que proponen insurrecciones pacíficas, no partidaristas y anti dogmáticas.

Estimulan a los jóvenes a indignarse, afirmando que todo buen ciudadano debería hacerlo debido al rumbo actual del mundo, gobernado por poderes financieros que acaparan todo.

La obra de estos autores son señaladas como las motivantes directas de movimientos cívicos de protesta en Birmania, Bosnia, Estonia, Zimbabue, Túnez, Egipto, Israel, Grecia, España y ahora en Estados Unidos.

Ambos autores hablan con propiedad ya que fueron revolucionarios en su juventud, arrojo que pagaron con cárcel.

Sharp, estuvo preso nueve meses en una prisión federal en Danbury, Connecticut, por ser objetor de conciencia durante la guerra de Corea. En 1989, fue testigo de las protestas de la plaza de Tiananmen en China y en los noventa, se introdujo clandestinamente en un campamento rebelde en Birmania.

Por su parte Hessel huyó en 1940 de la Francia ocupada por los Nazis hacia Londres para unirse a la resistencia francesa. Fue miembro de la fuerza aérea, ingresando al servicio secreto conducido por Charles De Gaulle, ejecutó varias misiones siendo capturado y torturado en 1944 para ser enviado posteriormente al campo de concentración de Buchenwald.

Tal como ha sucedido con las diferentes corrientes sociales a través de la historia, la llegada de este tipo de movimientos a Latinoamérica es cuestión de tiempo y se irá dando en el mejor de los casos, de forma gradual y no como en el mundo Árabe que generó una reacción en cadena.

Las condiciones están dadas: gobiernos corruptos, ancha brecha social que en lugar de reducirse se amplía cada vez más, organismos financieros voraces, una clase media castigada severamente, insatisfacción generalizada con los gobernantes, complicidad o negligencia de la clase política.

En fín solo hace falta algún evento coyuntural que servirá de detonante para que este tipo de rebeliones pacíficas surjan de una a una en nuestros países. Hay que mirarse en el espejo estadounidense, donde desde hace muchos años no se tenían protestas como las que actualmente se están llevando a cabo en Nueva York y que ahora se están extendiendo rápidamente en las ciudades más importantes de la gran nación americana.

miércoles, 5 de octubre de 2011

NEWSDAY NOTES - BUDGET WOULD SLASH SOCIAL SERVICES

Las decisiones de Ed Mangano , prefiere seguir pagando por fiestas, bailongos y diplomas que ahorrar fondos para educación especial e intervención temprana.
http://www.newsday.com/long-island/nassau/nassau-budget-would-slash-social-services-1.3225576Nassau

budget would slash social services
October 5, 2011 by ROBERT BRODSKY / robert.brodsky@newsday.com

Health and social service programs would take a hit in Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano's proposed 2012 budget, with major cuts targeted for special education, employment services and early intervention, according to an analysis by the independent Office of Legislative Budget Review.

The review was released in advance of Thursday's legislative hearing examining the budgets of the departments of health, social services and human services. Combined, the departments would see their budgets drop by almost $12 million as Nassau County seeks to close a projected $300-million deficit.

"These are some pretty major cuts," said Steve Antonio, acting director of the budget review office. "And you would expect them to have an impact on services."

Social services would see its $528-million budget drop by nearly $5 million -- or about 1 percent. The savings would be achieved primarily through layoffs and eliminating or reducing nonmandated services, said John Imhof, social services commissioner.

The cuts would require the department to lay off more than 100 employees and to leave 43 vacant positions unfilled. "It's excruciating to consider even one layoff," said Imhof, noting that the department's average worker makes $55,000 per year.

The department, he said, will provide services mandated by law, but some nonessential functions will be eliminated.

For example, the county would no longer provide $130,000 for the health and welfare council, which provides outreach on health and human services. The county would also eliminate $290,000 in contracts for disability determinations, as those decisions would be left to physicians, Imhof said. A $512,500 contract for temporary workers would not be renewed, and several education and training contracts would be rebid.

"These are some very painful choices," Imhof said. "The challenge is to maintain the most important, lifesaving services."

The county would also take a scalpel to the new Department of Human Services, which would see its $45.5-million budget cut by $4.3 million, or 9.4 percent. The department was formed this year by consolidating the offices of behavioral health, aging, physically challenged and youth services.

The cuts would span the four offices, including reductions in funding for long-term medical care, mental health counseling and meals for seniors. Six vacant positions would also be eliminated but no layoffs would occur, said Mangano spokesman Brian Nevin.

The Department of Health's nearly $203-million budget would take a 1 percent cut, bringing it down to $200.7 million. In addition to 32 layoffs, the volunteer medical reserve corps would be utilized to supplement emergency response personnel while other functions would be scaled back to the state mandated minimum, the report said.

Two other hearings are scheduled this month and the budget must be voted on by Oct. 30.