State Police arrested 43-year-old Laurie Smith of Johnson City, for operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs and other traffic violations, following a property damage crash on South Main Street in the Village of Sherburne. Smith was allegedly driving while impaired by drugs when she failed to keep right and struck another vehicle causing damage. She had her blood tested, at Chenango Memorial Hospital, lab results are pending. Smith was issued tickets returnable to the Village of Sherburne Court on August 15th.
——————————-
Tax collections totaling $19.8 billion fell short of projections for New York state in the first quarter of the state’s fiscal year, a decline of $797.6 million, or 3.9 percent, from the same period last year and $454.1 million below projections, according to the June state cash report issued today by State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli. The General Fund ended June with a balance of $7.2 billion, which was $975.8 million lower than the latest projection and $3.9 billion lower than a year earlier. The report can be accessed at osc.state.ny.us.
——————————
State Senator Fred Akshar will be hosting the First Annual “Spiedies with the Senator” today at Chenango Valley State Park from 5:30pm – 7:30pm. The event will take place in the Pine Plains Pavilion of park. There will be plenty of free parking and after 5:00 PM there is no admission charge for park entry. Tickets for the general public are $25 and kids under 12 get in free.
————————————–
The Greater Chenango Cares IRT Event runs through Sunday at the Norwich High School from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Chenango united way spokesperson & co-organizer Elizabeth Monaco reminds area residents that they can still walk in for medical services:

(Elizabeth Monaco 7-21-16)

Appointments are still necessary for the remaining slots for Dental vision & Veterinary care at 337-4320.
—————————————-
The Bainbridge Chamber of Commerce will host the next 4-chamber mixer on Tuesday July 26th. The event will begin at 6:30 at the Highway 7 Bar & Grille on Route 7 in Bainbridge. Members from the Bainbridge, Sidney, Unadilla & Afton Chambers are encouraged to attend.
——————————-
Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced a new grant initiative to address the growing statewide problem of so-called “zombie homes” – vacant and abandoned homes that are not maintained during a prolonged foreclosure proceeding. The Zombie Remediation and Prevention Initiative will provide $13 million in grants to local governments throughout the state through a competitive application process. The 100 communities with the greatest problem of zombies and vacancy have been invited to apply for the funds. The money will address housing vacancy and blight by bolstering municipalities’ capacity for housing code enforcement, for tracking and monitoring vacant properties, and for legal enforcement capacity to ensure banks and mortgage companies comply with local and state law.
———————————–
In June, New York State’s private sector job count increased by 23,900, or 0.3%, to over 7.9 million, according to preliminary figures released today by the State Department of Labor. Since the beginning of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s administration, New York State’s economy has added 824,100 private sector jobs and experienced employment growth in 57 of the past 66 months. The statewide unemployment rate was unchanged from May, the U.S. rate was 4.9% in June. New York’s statewide unemployment rate continues at its lowest level since August 2007.