Month: September 2016

Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore suspended for defiance over same-sex marriage – The Washington Post

By Mark Berman 

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Alabama’s top judge was suspended from the bench without pay for the remainder of his term, the state’s Court of the Judiciary said Friday.

This is the second time Roy S. Moore, chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, has been effectively pulled from office, following his ouster in 2003 over his refusal to obey judicial rulings ordering him to remove a Ten Commandments statue from the Alabama Judicial Building.

A complaint was filed by the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission charging Moore with violating judicial ethics in issuing an order in January stating that probate judges in the state “have a ministerial duty not to issue” marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

In a 50-page judgment Friday, two days after Moore appeared for a hearing in the case, Alabama’s Court of the Judiciary found him guilty of failing to comply with the law, uphold the integrity of the court and “perform the duties of his office impartially.”

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U.S. Just Made It a Lot Less Difficult to Sue Nursing Homes – The New York Times

By JESSICA SILVER-GREENBERG and MICHAEL CORKERY

The federal agency that controls more than $1 trillion in Medicare and Medicaid funding has moved to prevent nursing homes from forcing claims of elder abuse, sexual harassment and even wrongful death into the private system of justice known as arbitration.

An agency within the Health and Human Services Department on Wednesday issued a rule that bars any nursing home that receives federal funding from requiring that its residents resolve any disputes in arbitration, instead of court.

The rule, which would affect nursing homes with 1.5 million residents, promises to deliver major new protections.

Read entire NYTIMES Report…

 Follow this link to view the full text of the new rule.

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Register for the STAR credit

STAR Program 2016 Legislative Changes

The New York State Tax Department recently contacted the NYSBA to highlight changes to the longstanding School Tax Relief (STAR) program. As a result of 2016 legislative changes, new homeowners will now receive a STAR Credit check instead of receiving a property tax exemption. The amount of the benefit will remain the same. Click here for a link to the new legislation.

New homeowners no longer apply to their assessor for the benefit. Instead, they register directly on the Tax Department’s website (tax.ny.gov/star). New homeowners who do not have access to the Internet can instead call the New York State Tax Department at: 518-457-2036.

Many of you who are involved with home closings have traditionally provided new homeowners with STAR applications, which they in turn provided to their assessors. Now that the process to establish eligibility for STAR has changed, the New York State Tax Department is making a printable fact sheet for new homeowners available online. Since most new homeowners will no longer use a paper form, you may wish to provide them with a copy of the fact sheet.

The New York State Tax Department extends their thanks to our members for assistance in helping to ensure that new homeowners receive the school tax relief they are entitled to.

Questions concerning these changes may be directed to the New York State Tax Department by calling: 518-457-2036. 

On Phone Numbers and Identity – Stories From Coinbase – Medium

Would you recognize someone trying to take over your phone and your identity? Would you know what to do?  How can you protect against it?

Read this account from Coinbase to learn more…

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Star Property Tax Checks & Enhanced Star Fact Sheet-NYS Dept of Taxation & Finance

Legislative changes to the Basic Star and Enhanced Star property tax programs are summarized in a “Fact Sheet” from the NYS Dept of Taxation and Finance.  The sheet can be downloaded, printed, and is suitable for handing to clients at residential closings.

Fed. Dist. Court in NY Finds Village Sign Law Unconstitutional

LAW OF THE LAND

Plaintiff, a resident of the defendant Village of Perry, placed six signs along her property at 76 North Main Street protesting the construction of a parking lot for the Village’s library, one of which read: “LIBRARY PARKING LOT = QUARTER MILLION DOLLARS + SQUANDERED.” As a result, plaintiff was issued a Notice of Apparent Violation on February 24, 2015 from defendant Donald Roberts, the Village’s Zoning Enforcement Officer, which order the signage to be removed to avoid further legal action. Although plaintiff covered the signs with opaque bags and moved them away from the property line, she received a Notice of Violation. Plaintiff commenced an action alleging that the Village’s Sign Law, discriminated on the basis of sign content and granted enforcement of the law to the unfettered discretion of authorities, and was therefore facially unconstitutional. She also alleged that the Village’s selective enforcement of its Sign Law violated her…

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Amended Notice of Adoption Updating the Energy Code–Division of Code Enforcement and Administration

On August 25, 2016, the Code Council adopted a rule amending the March 9, 2016  rule. The Amended Notice of Adoption of the amended rule updating the Energy Code was published in the September 21, 2016 edition of the State Register. The amended rule updating the Energy Code update incorporates the following documents by reference:

 

•2015 International Energy Conservation Code

•2013 ASHRAE 90.1

•2016 Supplement to the New York State Energy Conservation Construction Code (Revised August 2016)  

 

 

The “Revised August 2016” version of the supplement was posted on the website on September 2, 2016, your copy of the supplement is not current if you downloaded it before that date. For more information and to download the current version of the Supplement “Revised August 2016” CLICK HERE 

(http://www.dos.ny.gov/dcea/CodeUpdate.html)

 

 

Effective Date

The amended rule updating the Energy Code becomes effective on October 3, 2016. There is no “transition period” for the Energy Code.

 

Public access to the ICC Codes;

The ICC 2015 codes adopted by New York State can be viewed at no cost at; http://codes.iccsafe.org/New%20York%20State.html#2015

IRS and Security Summit Partners Warn of Fake Tax Bills

Protect Your Clients: Watch Out for Bogus Tax Bill 

The Internal Revenue Service and its Security Summit partners this week issued an alert to taxpayers and tax professionals to be on the lookout for fake IRS tax bills that may arrive by email, as an attachment, or by mail purportedly related to the Affordable Care Act.

For more information on scams as well as steps you can take to boost your security, visit Protect Your Clients, Protect Yourself on IRS.gov.

University at Albany – SUNY – Professional Development & Parent Seminars

The Center for Autism and Related Disabilities (CARD Albany) is pleased to announce 2016-17 professional development and parent seminars – The seminars are offered at no cost to participants living in NYS.

 

Addressing the Core Deficits of Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Classroom: Evidence-Based Strategies for Teaching Social- Emotional Skills to Students with ASD

Students with ASD have persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across contexts; these deficits often include social-emotional reciprocity and non-verbal communication. This seminar will focus on foundational social skills, an overview of assessment/curriculum tools and it will highlight several instructional strategies to help support students with ASD.

 

Addressing the Core Deficits of Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Classroom: Supporting the Understanding and Development of Peer Relationships

As a core deficit in ASD, students have deficits in developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships, ranging, for example, from difficulties adjusting behavior to suit various social contexts; to difficulties in sharing imaginative play or in making friends; to absence of interest in peers. This session will discuss the importance of friendships, along with interventions that target the development of peer relationships.

 

Seminar flyer: http://www.albany.edu/autism/files/Fall_2016_PDPS_Flyer.pdf

 

Register online: http://www.albany.edu/pdps/form.php

Google Allo review – CNET

By: Lynn La

 

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THE GOOD Google Allo is available on both Android and iOS, and features a digital Assistant that fetches information for you in a conversational way. Its Incognito Mode erases conversations and has end-to-end encryption.

THE BAD Allo doesn’t integrate video calling, and it doesn’t have as many features as its competitors, like baked-in GIF support or control over read receipts.

THE BOTTOM LINE It’s not a perfect communications app on Day 1, but the integrated, all-knowing Google Assistant bot sets Allo apart from the messaging competition.

Visit manufacturer site for details.

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Read entire review, with graphics, here…

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