Items tagged with 'newyorkstate'
Consumer "non-confidence"
The higher the number, the more confident.
Check out this table from the Siena Research Institute's monthly New York State consumer confidence index.
Look at the split between Democrats and Republicans for confidence about the future of the economy. There's also a relatively wide split between upstate and NYC.
From SRI director Doug Lonnstrom:
Statewide our numbers are weak and depict worried consumers very reluctant to spend. Under the hood, we see Democrats saying the economic glass is nearly half full, but Republicans, 25 future index points lower, are now more pessimistic about their own prospects as well as the five-year state outlook than they have been since we began measuring consumer confidence in 1999. Over six of every ten Republicans expect poor business conditions in New York this year and widespread unemployment through 2015. Democrats forecast a somewhat rosier picture for the state and are much more likely than Republicans to insist that somehow, someway, they personally will be better off in a year.
As NYT reported earlier this week, New York City has fared relatively well during the recession (relative being the key word) -- and things are looking up there. That might explain some of the split -- both political and geographic.
Earlier on AOA: Optimism for the Capital Region housing market
table: Siena Research Institute
The state always gets its cut
From the "Oy, New York!" file: WSJ's Jacob Gershman reports today that the state Department of Taxation and Finance has cracked down on a group of Bruegger's stores for, among other things, not collecting tax on sliced bagels.
In the taxation department's interpretation of the state tax code, sliced bagels are subject to sales tax -- but whole (unsliced) bagels are exempt. But get this: a sliced loaf of bread -- not taxed.
The DTF tells CBS6 that it will be stepping up enforcement of such food-related tax quirks.
The Bruegger's group tagged by the state has more than 30 stores across upstate -- including here in the Albany area. The stores have been posting signs telling people about the change. [Biz Journals] [WNYT]
Another thing about Kenneth Greene, the guy who owns the Bruegger's group -- his company baked the world's largest bagel (more than 800 pounds) at the New York State Fair in 2005. [Bigger Impact] [SuperSized Meals]
New York has the highest closing costs
The ten most expensive states (counting LA and SF separately). Arkansas had the lowest average costs at a little more than $3,000.
The closing costs for a $200,000 loan in New York State average $5,623, according to a survey by Bankrate. That's highest in the nation. (Yes, shock. This is New York.)
New York's average is way ahead of #2 Texas (yeah, not everything is bigger in Texas). The Lone Star State's average was $4,708 -- 16 percent less than the Empire State. In fact, New York's total was 50 percent higher than the national average. (Arkansas had the lowest at $3,007.)
Here's how Bankrate figures the costs break down in New York.
Of course, closing costs make it more expensive to buy a house -- but they also add to the price of refinancing your mortgage. And right now mortgage interest rates are at record lows. (Here are some tips for saving on refinance closing costs.)
[via Business Buzz]
graph based on figures from Bankrate
Miss New York on her pro-gay rights platform
Claire Buffie, this year's Miss New York, was on MSNBC this weekend talking about being the first Miss America contestant to ever run on a platform supporting GLBT rights.
She should probably earn bonus points for being able to do the interview while balancing that crown on her head.
From a recent interview Buffie did with The Advocate:
What did you think of the controversy surrounding Carrie Prejean at the Miss USA pageant in 2009? The question is a difficult part of the competition. I initially applauded Carrie for having an opinion and voicing it rather than just feeding the public what they wanted to hear. I feel she was forced into a media frenzy over which she did not have complete control. The difference between Carrie Prejean and myself is that this is a platform on which I have personal stories to share and I can support statistically, and I don't think she had that education on the issue to be a spokesperson. I think if anyone's going to speak publicly about a serious issue like this, they need to be completely [knowledgeable]. I feel sorry for someone in that situation.
[video via Buzzfeed]
Earlier on AOA: Miss New York supports same-sex marriage and can fix iPods
New York's least-smoky counties
The Capital Region's four core counties have some of the lowest adult smoking rates in the state, according to data distributed by the state health department today.
The full rankings are after the jump. Among Capital Region counties, Albany County had the lowest smoking rate at 16.5 percent.
We were also curious about how smoking rates might associate with income -- so we whipped the two sets together. The result is also in there.
Eww: The DOH released this data as part of push to get people to stop smoking. Part of the campaign: two new TV spots of which a DOH officials says: "Some viewers may complain the ads are too graphic or emotional..." The one embedded above is pretty gross. Here's the other.
New Yorkers are cranky tweeters
A study that used data from Twitter to track mood across the nation has been getting a lot of attention online today. New Scientist has a good overview of the study, which was headed up by researchers at Northeastern University.
Of course, we were curious about our area of the country. And we gotta say, from what we can tell, the results are not warm and fuzzy.
Capital Region June unemployment rate better than last year
The dots mark the unemployment rate for the last five Junes.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 6.6 percent in June, according to the state Department of Labor. It was 6.5 percent in May and 7.1 percent in June 2009. (June to June is the best comparison because the local unemployment rate is not seasonally adjusted.)
There are more than 30,000 people unemployed in the Capital Region.
New York State's overall unemployment rate in June was 8.2. The state's rate was 8.3 in May and 8.6 in June 2009 (seasonally adjusted, so if you'd like to compare different months against each other, compare away).
The national unemployment rate in June was 9.5 percent.
Breakouts for individual Capital Region counties after the jump. Every county showed a decrease in the unemployment rate compared to June 2009.
Poll: Upstaters favor medical marijuana
Cornell's Empire State Poll reports that more than 60 percent of New Yorkers support medical marijuana. One possibly surprising finding: the poll found more support for medical pot upstate than downstate -- 67 percent vs 62 percent (margin of error 4.9).
A Quinnipiac Poll released earlier this year reported similar results -- 71 percent of New York voters favored the legalization of medical marijuana and the idea had strong support across pretty much every demographic group.
There's already a bill in the legislature that would legalize medical marijuana. Sixteen states (including DC) currently allow medical marijuana in some form, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
[via @NickReisman and LoHud]
photo: Flickr user Caveman 92223
Miss New York supports same-sex marriage and can fix iPods
The platform for Claire Buffie, who was crowned Miss New York this past weekend at UAlbany, caught our eye. From the pageant's site:
... [she is] an outspoken advocate of human rights, opening the dialogue about equality amoungst youth, teens and adults alike with her platform "Straight for Equality: Let's Talk." The issues of gay rights make up the civil rights movement of our generation and reach far beyond marriage equality. As Miss New York 2010, Claire aims to break the stigma of marginalized youth, eliminating discriminatory vocabulary and changing the climate in New York schools. She celebrates diversity and the things that make us all unique and aims to instill pride, dignity and respect in developing minds and compassionate hearts.
If you remember (or if you've blocked it out), same-sex marriage was the issue that set off the furor around Carrie Prejean, Miss California at last year's Miss USA pageant (Prejean said during the pageant that she thinks marriage "should be between a man and a woman").
Back to Miss New York: According to her bio, she's an executive board member of the NYC chapter of Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. She was one of the runners up in last year's pageant.
Buffie lives in NYC where she has a photography and design business. According to her bio, she also works at the "genius bar" at the Apple on Fifth Ave in Manhattan. She loves Glee. And here she is wearing a fake duck bill on an Aquaducks tour.
She now gets to compete in the Miss America pageant.
photo: Miss New York Organization
Up in smoke
A bill passed by the state legislature last night will increase the state tax on cigarettes from $2.75 to $4.35 per pack. That's the highest in the nation.
We were kind of curious about how much higher New York's tax will be compared to other states -- especially states that are right next door. And yep, you guessed it -- the inevitable chart is after the jump.
With the tax increase, a pack of cigarettes will now go for a little more than $9 -- and almost $11 in NYC (which has its own excise tax). [NYT]
The American Lung Association figures the tax increases will "encourage" about 120,000 adults to quit smoking. About 18 percent of adult New Yorkers were smokers in 2009 (around the median for all states), according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Act One. Mister Fix It.
Ira Glass interviewing David Paterson at the Capitol in May.
This week's This American Life featured a long segment about the New York State budget. During the setup for the piece, host Ira Glass says: "For those of you who live far from New York, you need to understand a few things about just how terribly run New York State is." And then he runs through all the scandals and drama (that part runs longer than many regular radio segments).
That all leads to the appointment of Richard Ravitch, whom Glass describes as the "hero of our story." Says Ravitch at one point, when asked if he felt like he was going to into a "madhouse" after being appointed to Lt. Governor (at Peter Luger):
Yes. But I'm also... this sounds terribly pompous, forgive me... but I have a kind of romance with the whole idea of government and public service. So, at the same time I knew I was going into a madhouse, I also, it was a matter of pride that perhaps I could be helpful and there was nothing more useful I could do with my life.
Ravitch later says: "I didn't know how serious the problem was. I didn't realize the state had been faking balanced budgets for so many years."
The piece includes a bunch of people from around the Capitol, including David Paterson, state budget director Bob Megna (and his non-state-funded stress balls), Ruben Diaz, public radio correspondent Karen Dewitt, YNN's Erin Billups, the singing of Jay Gallagher and NYSNYS's Kyle Hughes.
The piece is a good overview of how the state got into so much budget trouble. It's not a hopeful picture.
The show is available as a free download this week. It's also available for streaming.
photo: Paterson admin media images
New York is not the volunteer state
The top four volunteer activities in this metro area.
From a report called Volunteering in America, based on averages from 2006-2009:
The Albany metro area has 200,000 volunteers
27.1% of residents volunteer - ranking them 44th among the 75 Mid-size cities
34.7 hours per resident - ranking them 44th within the 75 Mid-size cities
$532.2 million of service contributed here
Here's the full rundown for this metro area.
The report includes a list of "community factors that may influence Albany's volunteer rate" -- but in Albany's case they would seem to indicate that more people in this area would be volunteering.
New York State did terribly in the rankings -- 51st among all states (and DC) for percentage of people who volunteer. NYC probably accounts for a lot of that -- it's volunteer rate was 50th among 51 large cities.
Here are the national rankings.
The federal government produced the report based on data collected by the Census Bureau.
[via the TU's Chris Churchill]
Earlier on AOA:
+ From 2008: Know of a great place to volunteer?
graph: Volunteering in America
The Capital Region's unemployment rate is a little better. Sort of. Maybe.
The dots mark the Capital Region unemployment rate for each May since 2000. It's easier to read big.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 6.5 percent in May, according to the state Department of Labor. It was 6.5 percent in April and 6.7 percent in May 2009. (May to May is the best comparison because the local unemployment rate is not seasonally adjusted.)
The labor department reports the number of non-farm jobs in the Capital Region last month was down 2,500 compared to May 2009. There are still almost 30,000 people unemployed in the Capital Region.
New York State's overall unemployment rate in May was 8.3 -- the lowest rate since April 2009. The state's rate was 8.4 this past April and 8.4 in May 2009 (seasonally adjusted). But the labor department says the number of non-farm jobs in the state last month was down 22,700 compared to May 2009.
So, what's up here? There are fewer jobs compared to this time year -- but the unemployment rate is down (slightly)?
UAlbany president's pension is head of the class
UAlbany president George Philip has the largest annual pension benefit among retired state and local government employees, according to figures published today by the Empire Center. The annual total: $261,037.
Philip racked up the pension working for the New York State Teachers' Retirement System between 1971 and 2007. He eventually served as chief investment officer and executive director of the fund that was then worth $105 billion, according to his UAlbany bio.
The Empire Center's SeeThroughNY database reports that Philip made $282,906 last year as president of UAlbany. That made him the fourth highest paid employee at the university (Alain Kaloyeros topped the chart at $734,353).
The think tank added pension data to the database this week. The average annual pension benefit for people in the system that includes Philip is $25,947, according to the Empire Center.
[via the ASP]
Earlier on AOA: RPI's Jackson tops compensation chart
Report: New Yorkers are the least knowledgeable drivers
That's quite some company for New York in the slow lane.
A nationwide test/survey concluded that drivers in New York State are the least knowledgeable in the nation.
The test, which was sponsored by GMAC Insurance, asked drivers a series of 20 questions that were taken from state DMV exams. The New Yorkers' average score was a 70 -- the worst of any state (including DC) and just good enough to be considered passing (under 70 was considered failing).
Here's an explanation of the methodology.
This is the second year in a row that New York was ranked last in the nation. Other states near the bottom: New Jersey (shock), DC, California and Rhode Island. The Empire and Garden states have ranked near the bottom for the past five years.
Kansas had the top average score (82.3). The national average score was 76.2.
[via CapNews9]
Earlier on AOA: Listomania: a list of lists which list the Capital Region and New York
map: GMAC Insurance
Most popular baby names in New York 2009
As it does every year, the Social Security Administration recently released a list of the most popular baby names in 2009. You can break the list out by state, which is exactly what we did.
The list of the most 100 popular names for boys and girls born in New York last year is after the jump.
Speed reading the coverage of Andrew Cuomo's campaign announcement
Gubernatorial candidate.
Andrew Cuomo has publicly declared that he's running for governor (finally).
Here are a bunch of the quick scan highlights from the coverage, including bits about Cuomo's plan, his apparent cold shoulder toward Sheldon Silver, being an insider-outsider-upsidedownsider and Sandra Lee.
Andrew Cuomo announces for governor
Andrew Cuomo officially announced that he's running for governor Saturday with a video posted on his website:
From the video message:
Our state government in Albany is disreputable and discredited.
New York State is upside down and backwards; high taxes and low performance. The New York State government was at one time a national model. Now, unfortunately, it's a national disgrace. Sometimes, the corruption in Albany could even make Boss Tweed blush.
In my opinion, politicians of both parties, Democrats and Republicans, share the blame. Both are guilty of playing partisan politics and bringing New York State to the brink.
Because I believe so deeply in the mission of government, I am so troubled by its failure. The Declaration of Independence says when government fails, the people have the right to replace it. Well, New York State government has failed and the people have the right, indeed the people have the the people have the obligation, to act.
Later on in the message, he says: "We want to know how the candidates for the State legislature are going to vote on key issues and we want to know now. Let's make this a litmus test for change."
Here's a transcript of the video. The text is also embedded after the jump.
Cuomo's campaign has posted an issues agenda. Among the main points:
New York continues to add jobs
The dots mark the unemployment rate for each April since 2000. It's easier to read large.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 6.5 percent in April, according to the state Department of Labor. It was 7.2 percent in March and 6.5 percent in April 2009. (April to April is the best comparison because the local unemployment rate is not seasonally adjusted.)
The labor department reports the Capital Region added more than 4,000 jobs last month. There were almost 30,000 people unemployed in the Capital Region.
New York State's overall unemployment rate was 8.4 -- that's lowest rate since May 2009. The state's rate was 8.6 in March and 8.1 in April 2009 (seasonally adjusted). The labor department says the state added jobs for the fourth straight month.
That unemployment rate for the entire United States was 9.9 percent in April.
Breakouts for individual Capital Region counties are after the jump.
The end of phone books?
Verizon has asked the state Public Services Commission to drop the requirement that it deliver phone books to all its customers. From the company's waiver request:
Technological advances, such as Internet directories and the directories in wireless and wireline devices, have made customers much less reliant on, and interested in, printed residential white page directories. Verizon thus proposes to adopt a more customer-focused and environmentally conscious approach to the distribution of white page directories: if granted this waiver, Verizon will distribute such directories "on-demand" to customers that request one.
Verizon cites a private Gallup survey that reported only 11 percent of household used the white pages in 2008. The company says it could probably save 5,000 tons of paper each year by not printing the books.
A Verizon spokesman told NYT that it hopes to have the requirement waived by the end of the year. A spokesman for the PSC tells the TU that Verizon is the first company in the state to make such a request.
We have to admit that the seemingly never ending stream of phone books has irked us for some time. Apparently we're not the only ones.
Can cars and bikes coexist in the Capital Region?
Tom Benware
Tom Benware might have passed you in traffic. On his bike. Which was on the side of a bus.
Tom appears on a CDTA bus as a part of a new initiative launched in April encouraging Capital Region motorists and cyclists to share the road.
In real life, the Delmar resident is a transportation guru, public transit advocate and 1,000-mile-a-year cyclist. He worked at the state Department of Transportation for 14 years and now he's the senior legislative analyst for the New York State Senate Transportation Committee. Just last week he helped advance new legislation that would require New York roads be designed with all users in mind - not just drivers.
I took a moment to talk with Tom about biking in the Capital Region, his favorite places to ride and what it's like to see yourself on the side of a bus.
Sweeter than the soda tax?
Despite the impassioned and persistent efforts of the state health commissioner, the soda tax has reportedly gone flat.
But New York apparently still needs the money. And it probably doesn't need the calories.
So here's a potentially sweeter idea: instead of specifically taxing sodas that contain sugar, New York should tax high-fructose corn syrup.
Our humans are relatively well developed
New York's in the top 7.
The American Human Development Project released its annual "Measure of America" report today. The survey ranks states and congressional districts according to a "human development index," which is based on factors such as life-expectancy, education and income.
As it happens, New York scores pretty well in the index -- it ranks #7 overall (Connecticut was #1) and the New York 14th Congressional District (Manhattan and Queens) ranked #1 among all congressional districts.
Here in the Capital Region, the NY 21st (Paul Tonko) ranked #148 nationally, and the NY 20th (Scott Murphy) #162. That's better than a little more than 60 percent of all the congressional districts.
The stat-by-stat breakdown for the two districts is after the jump.
By the way: According to the report, Asian-Americans in New Jersey live better than any other group in the nation.
Pay gap smaller in New York, but still wide
New York State ranks #6 in the nation for having the smallest pay gap between male and female workers. But women here still only make 78 percent of what men do, according to AAUW.*
Wyoming has the smallest gap (women make 89 percent as much as men there). Alaska has the biggest (women at 64 percent). Nationally, women make 71 percent as much as men.
A 2007 analysis by two researchers at AAUW reports that even when controlling for factors such as experience (including work hours), training, education, and personal characteristics, men still make five percent more than women.
The Harvard Business Review has a whole section dedicated to pay gap issues this month. This article about "delusions of progress" for women in management was particularly interesting.
*That's for "median earnings for ... male and female full-time, year-round college-educated workers, ages 25 and older." The gap is smaller -- and New York ranks one spot better -- for "median earnings for ... male and female full-time, year-round workers, ages 16 and older, all educational levels." The data are from the Census Bureau's 2008 American Community Survey.
[via @SenGillibrand and @NMessier]
Earlier on AOA: RPI's Shirley Ann Jackson tops compensation chart
photo: Flickr user sylvar
Andrew Cuomo accuses Pedro Espada of "looting"
The state attorney general's office announced today that it's filed suit against state Senator Pedro Espada for "looting the Bronx based not-for-profit where Espada serves as President and CEO."
Said Andrew Cuomo in a statement: "Taxpayer money was given to this not-for-profit to provide healthcare services to underprivileged patients, but our investigation has found the funds flowed into the pockets of Senator Espada and his supporters."
Among the many allegations: Soundview, Espada's health care not-for-profit, paid for "more than 200 meals totaling more than $20,000 from two sushi restaurants that regularly received orders from Espada's wife and delivered to the Espada home in Mamaroneck."
image: NY Senate
... said Kaitlin about Viva Kaitlin!