Ryan Whalen reports on YNN in Jamestown - “With the public comment period closing Wednesday, opponents of hydrofracking in Western New York gathered outside the DEC office in Buffalo. They are urging state leaders to listen to what they say is the will of the people.

Rita Yelda, of consumer group Food and Water Watch asked, “Who is going to win? Is it going to be a large industry that maybe has billions to spend on campaign contributions and advertisements, or is it going to be the true voice of the people?”

…Many business leaders say they support fracking.

“Hydraulic fracturing represents high paying job in a part of the state where it has suffered severely during this economic recession,” said Heather Briccetti, president of the Business Council of NY.

Bans on fracking in the Syracuse and New York City watersheds are recommended by the DEC , but not in Western New York. Opponents say that could mean the area gets hit the hardest, noting past mishaps like Love Canal and toxic hotspots in the Great Lakes.”

To read more click here.

Matt Glynn of the Buffalo News reports - “Moog Inc., which made a change at the top last month, let shareholders know Wednesday that it has every expectation of maintaining its growth of the last couple of years.

The motion-control equipment maker’s annual meeting was the first since John R. Scannell took over the CEO’s duties from Robert T. Brady on Dec. 1.

Scannell, 48, has moved into the CEO’s role at an upbeat time for Moog. The Elma-based company has shaken off the 2009 drop-off in results that disrupted its growth curve, posting record sales of $2.3 billion and record profits of $136 million in its 2011 fiscal year, which ended Oct. 1.

For fiscal 2012, the company forecasts an 8 percent increase in sales, to about $2.52 billion, and a 12 percent increase in net earnings, to $152 million.”

To read more click here.

Mireya Navarro of The New York Times posted a number of comments provided by both pro and anti Marcellus shale development.

As if the recent series of hearings and the invitation for written comments from the public were not enough, contingents from both sides of the fracking issue in New York State organized rallies and press conferences this week in anticipation of the close of the comment period on the state’s proposed gas drilling regulations on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, gas industry representatives and supporters of the extraction process known as horizontal hydraulic fracturing hand-delivered thousands of letters to state officials in Albany arguing for the economic benefits of horizontal hydraulic fracturing. The drilling method involves injecting chemically treated water into shale formations underground under high pressure to release natural gas.

“Capitalizing on the tremendous opportunity offered by Marcellus Shale development will help reduce our dependence on foreign oil, produce private-sector jobs and attract investment”, said Heather Briccetti, the president of the Business Council of New York State, which is part of a pro-fracking coalition that calls itself Clean Growth Now.

To read more click here.

Developing the natural gas resources in the Marcellus Shale has become an incredibly contentious issue in New York over the past 3 ½ years.  Initially gas companies were caught unaware.  They assumed that development in New York would be embraced as it has been in other parts of the country.  The economic benefits to rural upstate communities would surely make up for the temporary disruption and inconvenience.  Thousands of jobs would be createdand landowners would receive royalties for years to come.   Instead, energy companies have been opposed by a well funded, national opposition determined to stop gas development in New York.  Natural gas companies needed to be out in front of the message years ago but that opportunity has  since passed.  They have made many concessions but it is clear now that the opposition does not want to agree to anything.  Three and a half years of study and delay has yielded a set of regulations that are the strictest in the nation but the opposition is still not satisfied.   It is obvious that their goal is to ban development in the state entirely.

So, who really suffers if development is banned in New York’s Marcellus Shale or the regulations are so cumbersome that they make it economically unfeasible for companies to proceed?  The energy companies will move on to shale plays in other parts of the country and the environmentalists will beat their drum for the next great environmental “threat”.

It is the landowners in Central New York and the Southern Tier who will suffer.  They are the silent majority of hard working citizens desperate for the opportunity to develop their natural resources.  They are the most vulnerable stakeholders in this debate.

Landowners in the Southern Tier are facing a critical time.  Even before Hurricane Irene devastated communities the recession had taken a heavy toll.  Central New York and the Southern Tier had been steadily losing jobs over the past years.  During the last decade the Southern Tier has seen IBM, Maple Vale Books and many other businesses big and small shut down or leave the area.  Drive through the small towns and witness the boarded-up businesses and empty strip malls.  Their children, faced with this blight and lack of opportunity, are deciding to leave New York for brighter opportunities.  Now landowners must deal with Hurricane Irene’s devastation on top of an already bad economy and they are close to the breaking point.

The excruciatingly long SGEIS review process has taken an emotional toll on landowners as well.  The contentious debate over the past 3 ½ years has left landowners feeling demonized for supporting the right to develop their land and it has divided communities.  It is time to move forward with safe, regulated drilling and allow the resulting job creation, cheap gas and economic progress to uplift and heal these communities.

This is a turning point for the region.  The landowners in Central New York and the Southern Tier have been patient but this process must come to an end now.  The livelihoods of over 70,000 New York landowners depend on Marcellus development.  And the economic uplift to the region will benefit all Southern Tier residents in the form of new jobs, tax revenues and abundant natural gas.  If New York passes on the Marcellus Shale opportunity, it will inconvenience the gas companies but they will survive and move elsewhere.  The opposition will chalk up another “victory” for the environment and move on to save the salamanders somewhere.  But the landowners will remain and try to scrape together an existence.  They will see their sons and daughters leave the area and they will likely follow; maybe over the border to Pennsylvania where they can find work and dream about what could have been in New York.

Adam Shanks writes in the Legislative Gazette - “Gov. Andrew Cuomo has once again put pension reform at the forefront of New York state politics. In his State of the State address last Wednesday, Cuomo insisted that the current benefits system is not sustainable, and he’ll seek to establish a new tier this year.

Cuomo originally announced his vision for a new pension for state workers, a tier VI, in June of last year…

The Business Council of New York State also supports the proposed tier VI pension system. Spokesman Rob Lillpopp said reducing pension costs will benefit businesses.

“Reducing the cost of pensions will reduce the cost of government,” Lillpopp said, “which means less taxation on business.” He went on to assert that reduced costs will lead to the ability for business to hire more workers.”

To read more click here.

The New York Times (1/6, Norris, Subscription Publication) reported, “For the first time in many years, manufacturing stands out as an area of strength in the American economy. When the Labor Department reports December employment numbers on Friday, it is expected that manufacturing companies will have added jobs in two consecutive years.” And this week, the Institute for Supply Management reported its employment index for December was 55.1. That is the highest reading since June. The US “is particularly strong in machinery, chemicals and transportation equipment, which together make up nearly half of the exports.”

The following appeared in the Dunkirk Observer - “Groups representing a number of different sectors have banded together in New York state with a common agenda: making our state more competitive through fewer mandates.

Some of the organizations represented in the newly formed Let NY Work coalition include the New York State School Boards Association, the Business Council of New York State, the state Conference of Mayors and Municipal Officials, Unshackle Upstate and the Farm Bureau. “It’s a rainbow coalition that has gotten the attention of a lot of people,” said Timothy G. Kremer, New York State School Boards Association president.

Let NY Work has an agenda that includes:

Making the pension system predictable and affordable.

Redefining compulsory arbitration, which includes defining the ability to pay.

Reducing the cost of construction on public and private projects.

Freezing step increases when contracts expire, which currently does not happen courtesy of the Triborough Amendment.

Establishing minimum health insurance contribution levels for employees and retirees.

To read more click here.

Joseph Spector of Gannett News writes:

“Investors may be willing to back infrastructure projects because they could be guaranteed a rate of return from the state on their money, said Steven Spinola, president of the Real Estate Board of New York, a trade association for New York City.

“Some people will be looking for a long-term return at a number that isn’t astronomical, but is a good number,” he said.

The state’s infrastructure needs are immense, a series last fall by Gannett’s Albany Bureau detailed. About 36 percent of the state’s 17,300 bridges are in need of repair.

The state Comptroller’s Office estimates New York needs $250 billion for its transportation, sewer and water systems over the next 20 years. About $80 billion is unfunded.

“We’ve had an intersection of two things,” said Mike Elmendorf, president of the Associated General Contractors of New York State, based in Albany. “We’ve been under-investing in all this infrastructure for a long time. And now that bill has come due in a big way at the same time the economy has been struggling.”

Cuomo predicted that private companies would finance $2 billion in energy upgrades, through new transmission lines and power facilities. He proposed an “energy highway” to bring excess fossil fuel from western New York to downstate, and to bolster wind and solar power.”

To read more click here.

Maggie Moree of The Business Council joined Fran k Mauro of the Fiscal Policy Institute in a special edition of WAMC’s Vox Pop to talk about Governor Andrew Cuomo’s second State of the State address.

To hear the program click here.

Richard Ferro, President, CIREB and Heather Briccetti, President and CEO, The Business Council of New York State, Inc.

Heather Briccetti attended a meeting of the Commercial and Industrial Real Estate Brokers (CIREB), marking her first appearance as a guest speaker in her role as President and CEO of The Business Council.

CIREB is a professional trade association made of real estate brokers and salespeople (all of whom hold membership in a local REALTOR association), property managers, real estate appraisers, attorneys, developers, economic development agencies and financial institutions. Its membership covers the Capital Region and its extended Tech Valley.

During her presentation, Briccetti discussed the Governor’s State of the State address and The Business Council’s legislative priorities for 2012. She covered a variety of issues, including the importance of public-private partnerships to spur economic development and the recent property tax cap. Briccetti also applauded Cuomo’s call for improving the effectiveness of the education system.