Economic and Business

The school year starts this week for many children across New York. And, as Karen DeWitt reports, it comes at a time of great fiscal uncertainty, change and even upheaval for the state's public schools. More...

The prospect of Lake Placid hosting the 2016 Winter Youth Olympics appears to be fading, as the deadline to submit a bid is two months away, and local and U.S. Olympic Committee officials apparently don't have any plans to vie for the games. While 2016 may not be possible, however, local officials remain interested in hosting a Winter Youth Olympics and instead may try for 2020. Chris Knight reports. More...

Labor unions in the United States have suffered in recent decades, as their membership and influence declined. Here in New York, though, state employee labor unions are going strong. And, as Karen DeWitt reports, they've won several key battles in the most recent budget cycle.

The Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh won a three-and-a-half-million-dollar state grant yesterday. Across New York, 17 medical centers were awarded funds as part of a 50-million-dollar push to help the facilities operate more efficiently and lower health care costs. Jonathan Brown reports. More...

Senator John Sampson, the leader of the Senate Democrats, admits it's been a rocky first two years in power for his party. But the usually reticent Sampson, in a rare sit down interview with Karen DeWitt, says he hopes voters and the public will judge Senate Democrats on the results of the recently concluded session, not on the sometimes messy process.

After visits to Saratoga Springs and Plattsburgh yesterday, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer rode the back roads of St. Lawrence County to visit a small organic farm in Heuvelton. Schumer has taken on the nickname “the Brooklyn farmer” to tout his interest in New York agriculture. At Bittersweet Farm, he discussed efforts to stop fake organic products from China from entering the U.S. But his hosts wanted to convey a closer-to-home message, more support for local farms. David Sommerstein reports. More...

The temporary border checkpoint in Cornwall will remain in place another year. Canada had said it wanted a permanent solution by now. The port of entry was moved last year when Akwesasne Mohawks protested border officers being armed. As David Sommerstein reports, a return to the original checkpoint on Cornwall Island seems unlikely.

A state appellate court decision has put the brakes on New York’s plan to collect taxes from native-owned tobacco stores. Judge Samuel Green issued a stay yesterday in Buffalo. A spokeswoman for Governor Paterson told the Buffalo News the order means the state is standing down indefinitely on collecting the tobacco taxes. She called the ruling "disappointing”. The taxes would raise an estimated 200 million dollars for cash-strapped Albany. David Staddon, a spokesman for the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe near Massena, says New York’s plan is a violation of tribal sovereignty. Martha Foley has more.

The federal government is pumping a lot of money into New York schools, but if one local school is any indication, financial worries persist.

Last week, the Empire State won a $696 million “Race To The Top” education grant. This is “big picture” money. It will go to improving teaching and testing, not day-to-day operations or salaries.

Two weeks ago, the state got $608 million from Washington. These funds can only be used by public schools to hire or re-hire teachers. But as Martha Foley reports, Canton Central School will hire only one full time teacher with its extra half a million dollars. The rest is a hedge against troubles next year. More...

The post-bailout arm of General Motors that’s in charge of liquidating failed assets of the car-maker wants to tear down the Powertrain plant in Massena. The plant closed for good last year. But the buildings, the equipment, and the soil underneath is contaminated with toxic PCB oil. Federal environment officials now say Motors Liquidation Company has to clean it all up before demolition can begin. As David Sommerstein reports, the extent of the contamination has some former workers and the Massena community worried.