All Over Albany

Debate for 20th Congressional District, new indictment for McGinn and Smith, suit alleges car dealership forged signature, possible case of hantavirus, Open Door Bookstore for sale

Topics discussed during Thursday night's debate between incumbent Paul Tonko (D) and challenger Bob Dieterich (R) for the 20th Congressional District: taxes, energy, health care, as well as the national budget and debt. [TU] [Fox23]

The Cuomo admin hit back against the Tax Foudnation's designation of New York as having the worst business climate because of taxes (even if the admin has cited the think tank's rankings before). [TU]

The state Racing and Wagering Board has adopted new rules aimed at increasing safety for horses and jockeys. The rules were prompted by a report released last month about horse deaths at Aqueduct. [NYS RW] [Saratogian] [Daily Gazette]

A federal grand jury has handed up a new indictment against Timothy McGinn and David Smith, the two local brokers accused of stealing millions from clients. Federal prosecutors say the superseding indictment includes new charges related to diverting money from clients and fraudulent accounting. in They both pleaded not guilty at the arraignment on the new charges. [US DOJ] [TU]

State Police have concluded that the huge fire at TCI in Columbia County was accidental. [TU]

A quick profile of the two candidates looking to replace Bob Reilly in the state Assembly, Phil Steck (D) and Jennifer Whalen (R). [TU]

A look at the company hoping to take over the operation of the Albany County Nursing Home. [TU]

Glenville's proposed budget includes a 3.4 percent tax increase. [TU]

Says a Rotterdam restaurant owner of Schenectady County's proposed 7.49 percent property tax levy increase, to the Daily Gazette: "That tax increase has such a snowball effect on the spending habits of the community at large ... In the end, it could actually decrease the amount of revenue [for the county]." [Daily Gazette]

Albany County will be auctioning off almost 100 tax-foreclosed properties this Saturday. [TU]

A daughter and father have filed suit against Saratoga Nissan alleging the dealership forged the father's signature as a co-signer on a loan, among other alleged shady practices. [Daily Gazette]

Three of the five students involved in an attack on two other students in a Troy cemetery last year have had their youthful offender status revoked because they didn't stay out of trouble. [TU]

Troy's mayor and police chief will be at a community meeting next week in the North Central neighborhood to discuss concerns about police-community relations there. [Troy Record]

The Rotterdam Police Department's investigation of the man accused of orchestrating a series of attacks using explosives against the man dating his ex-girlfriend cost the department $72k in overtime -- a about a third of its OT budget. [Daily Gazette]

The Shen school district -- the Capital Region's largest, by enrollment -- has approved a new contract with its teachers' union that includes a jump in the amount employees will have to pay toward healthcare. The Burnt Hill-Ballston Lake school district has approved a contract with its teachers that freezes the salary schedule for teachers of almost every level of experience. [TU] [Daily Gazette]

A developer has proposed building a seven-story hotel on a currently wooded-lot near Colonie Center (behind the Trader Joe's strip). [TU]

The state Department of Health is looking into a reported case of hantavirus that was apparently picked up in the Adirondacks. (CDC background on hantavirus.) [TU]

Former state commissioner of social services Barbara Blum -- who was instrumental in implementing reforms for the care of people with disabilities following the Willowbrook case -- has passed away. [TU]

The owners of the Open Door Bookstore in Schenectady have put the business up for sale. "I'm going to miss the customers and never knowing what will happen next. It's been a career of surprises," says owner Janet Hutchison to the TU. [Daily Gazette] [TU]