Regional

Jim McGaughan, who previously chaired the Bethlehem Republican Committee, was elected last month as chairman of the Albany County GOP, replacing Randy Bashwinger, of Berne.

Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy told The Enterprise this week that creative budgeting allows for the consistent decreases in property taxes, but cautioned that unfunded state mandates could reverse that trend.

Increasing frequency of extreme disasters like Hurricane Helene are driving high demand, says a release from the American Red Cross Eastern New York Region.

The chapter is issuing an “urgent appeal” for volunteers who are willing to travel this fall to support emergency shelters for major national disaster relief efforts.

To soften the blow of rising emergency medical service costs, New Scotland and a number of other municipalities that rely on the Albany County Sheriff’s EMS service lobbied for a special district that would move the expense from local budgets to the county one, but hit resistance from county officials. 

The local program will develop a new “jail re-entry” case-management model for people released from Albany County’s jail, particularly those with severe and pervasive mental illness.