Editor:

In a letter to the Orleans Hub (3/25/22) Congressman Chris Jacobs offers his criticism of the Biden administration’s agricultural policies.

Mr. Jacobs cited the high cost of fuel and government policies that are hurting farmers. Perhaps some context is in order. It needs to be pointed out that New York State’s only bioethanol fuel plant is in Mr. Jacobs district, in Medina.

The ethanol produced comes mostly from corn grown locally. Mr. Jacobs could help lower fuel cost and help local farmers by promoting higher ethanol blends, E15 and E85. This would also help reduce greenhouse gases.

Beyond this it also needs to be pointed out that the Biden administration has issued 3,557 permits for oil and gas drilling on federal lands, which is more than the previous administration issued in its first year, (Center for Biological Diversity, press release 1/21/22). With the high demand and high fuel prices the question that Mr. Jacobs should ask is why aren’t oil companies drilling or increasing production which would lower prices.

It also needs to be pointed out that because of the previous administrations disastrous trade policies farmers were dependent upon government handouts. Walter Scheitzer, the Montana Farmers Union President, told NBC, (1/29/22) that the majority of net farm income in 2019 came from subsidies whereas the majority of net farm income in 2021 came from farm production.

Today prices of soybean, corn and other commodities allow farmers to succeed without government bailouts. Mr. Jacobs is failing his constituents. The citizens of this district deserve a representative.

William Fine

Brockport

Editor:

America’s farmers have been integral to our survival throughout our nation’s history – a fact the Covid-19 pandemic reiterated as American producers worked tirelessly to keep our shelves stocked. Now, in the face of the invasion of Ukraine – America’s farmers and their importance will once again be evident on the world’s stage.

Ukraine is a major exporter of agricultural products – especially wheat and other grains. In fact, under normal conditions, they supply 11.5% of the world’s wheat. Over the last four years, America imported hundreds of millions worth of agricultural products from Ukraine. The disruption of the global food supply caused by Russia’s invasion could lead to civil unrest and food insecurity – or worse.

Our nation has an incredible capacity to grow and produce food that could help offset the food shortages Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens. Now more than ever, the focus of America’s policymakers must be on bolstering American agricultural production to feed Americans and the rest of the world. This would seem like a clear and distinct bipartisan priority. Unfortunately, the urgency with which I believe this situation must be addressed is not shared by my Democrat counterparts on the Agriculture Committee.

Last week we held a hearing – not on Ukraine, not on aiding farmers suffering from fuel prices and input supply chain challenges, not on the impacts of poor state policies on farmers. Instead, we held a hearing on the Democratic Party’s misguided and unrealistic climate priorities.

It was the President and his administration’s radical and unrealistic climate policies that led us to the energy crisis we face now. Now, it is the administration and Democrats in Congress’ radical and unrealistic policies that are wasting precious committee time, despite clear and convincing evidence we should be focused on policies to remove regulatory burdens and bolster our food supply.

America’s farmers are under increasing pressure and narrowing margins. High fuel prices from the bad policies of this administration threaten operations as we head into the planting season in New York. Inflationary pressure on inputs threatens the already slim margins our farmers operate within. These challenges are compounded by a recent decision by the New York State Farm Laborers Wage Board to lower the overtime threshold which threatens the long-term viability of farming in New York.

These are very real threats that could bankrupt and handcuff one of our oldest industries at a time when we need them most. I’ve taken action to push for better trade deals, more domestic energy production, rules and regulations on trucking and shipping that benefit agriculture, easier access to fertilizers from other countries, and ending vaccine mandates to ease these burdens.

Farming and a steady supply of American-produced food are critical to our national security – now more than ever. The shortsighted, and quite frankly, out-of-touch priorities of the administration and Democrats in Congress need an immediate course correction. Our focus in the Agriculture Committee must be squarely placed on supporting American agricultural producers and processors.

Congressman Chris Jacobs

Orchard Park

Jacobs represents the eight-county 27^th Congressional District that includes Orleans County.

Editor:

What’s happening in the Town of Barre? Our town has appointed a new lawyer and the cost will shock you! This new lawyer is from Rochester, has limited municipal law experience and specializes in Environmental and land use law. Also, she doesn’t do contract negotiations but can recommend another lawyer for an additional fee.  The firm she works for – Zoghlin  Law – has represented Clear Skies Above Barre and is still listed on the DMM website as of January 4, 2022.

The town’s previous attorney had a retainer for $7,500 and his average cost was about $15,000 per year. The new attorney will charge $225 per hour and assuming she spends five hours a week on town business, for a total of 260 hours, the cost will be $58,500.

There was another applicant for the job. He is from a small law firm, experienced in town law, would negotiate contracts and has no conflict of interest . His fee was $80 less per hour. Other small towns in our county have budgeted between $12,000 and $16,000 for their attorneys.  (Check Town websites.)

This was voted on by the new members of the board and one current one. Two of these members have had an affiliation with Clear Skies Above Barre and it definitely appears like a conflict of interest. This lawyer is clearly not aligned with our town and its goals.

As a taxpayer this should make you wonder what is happening and why.  Are all residents being fairly represented, do we have a voice or are we being represented by a monopoly?

We have one of the highest tax rates, declining population, agriculture as our only business and the average income in the county is $36,000.

I am a very concerned resident! Contact your local board members and let you voice be heard!

Alice Mathes

Barre

Editor:

You just received a letter saying all the government response with masks, closure, distancing etc. was heavy-handed government that did not help.

To the contrary the initial Imperial College London estimates were 2.2 million in the U.S. if we did nothing and 1.1 to 1.2 million if we did what we did. Since we are about a million dead the heavy hand of government saved a million lives.

The writer was additionally wrong about the expected distribution of Covid deaths being limited to the elderly population if nothing had been done. Also it’s inferring it’s alright to kill off the elderly.

I assume the writer was either trying to justify himself or draw political blood. He did neither. Saving a million lives is huge!

Conrad F. Cropsey

Albion

Editor:

Roughly two years ago today on March 16, 2020 we went from “14 days to slow the spread” and to flatten the healthcare curve to two years of government-imposed lockdowns, and mandates restricting/taking away personal liberties and freedoms guaranteed to us by the US Constitution in an inept attempt to try and control a virus through control of human behavior.

Some may wonder why I am writing about this now; the mandates have been lifted and we are free once again. Well, “they” did lift them, but there is still this undercurrent if you listen close enough that we are free as long as numbers don’t spike again.

For example, just the other day President Biden extended the Federal Transportation mask mandate. At the state level I am still unsure if there was a ruling on the constitutionality of Hochul mask mandate which was in front of the State Supreme Court for the last two months.

Why no ruling? What about the healthcare worker vaccine mandate and all of those professionals who lost their jobs? These are just a few examples…there are many more.

This signals to me that our government is still holding on to the mask and vaccination mandate string ready to pull it at a moment’s notice. This is not acceptable to me.

Politicians claim that they are following the science and the data, but what specifically are they looking at to make these monumental decisions about what freedoms we can and cannot have? From the first onset I agree there was much to be worried about with regard to Covid, because there was much, we didn’t know. However, from that first summer of Covid, we knew critical facts about this disease that haven’t changed since then.

Most importantly, we knew who was at serious risk for hospitalization and death and who wasn’t. The elderly and those with certain health issues were most at risk and generally healthy individuals and especially children were not.

While the different variants spread at different rates and pretty much everyone got Omicron whether you were vaxxed or not, the previous facts did not change. Yet for two years, New York continued on with governor-imposed, non-sensical ineffective restrictions disregarding science and data at the expense of our freedom.

Let’s even say we give the Government the benefit of the doubt, and they were waiting for the vaccine before they would change their approach. I strongly feel the “public policy” and government intervention part of this pandemic was over once the vaccine was released.

Regardless of your position on the vaccine and its effectiveness, it was available by January/February of 2021 for all who wanted it and with the post-Covid treatments available which reduce hospitalization by 95+%…at this point the Government has no business dictating anything to us citizens in this regard.

The decisions that remain should have been left to individual choice made with consultation of one’s own doctor. There should have been no forced or coerced vaccinations and no masking mandates!

There are tons of data out there comparing states and countries that have strict mandates vs those that did not and generally speaking the difference in the numbers is negligible. So basically, all of the loss of freedom, damage to our children’s mindset and future, the spreading of fear, the economic hardship was completely avoidable, ineffective and what was done needs to be answered for. As we head into this election cycle, I urge everyone to not let these politicians take credit for beating Covid.

For me, what I want to hear from current and potential candidates at all levels is their stance on how this pandemic approach went, what they would have done differently and certainly where are they on the stance of a one-size-fits-all-mandate approach to a public health concern such as Covid.

I will only vote for candidates that believe in limited government intervention and more specifically those that believe in our citizens to make the right choices if they are just given the facts without using “political” science and fear-mongering.

Brian Sorochty

Batavia

Editor:

I’m really sick and tired of hearing about how cash bail is “unfair” to those who can’t afford to post it.

Well I have a solution! And it’s so simple, I can’t understand why someone smarter than I hasn’t come up with it long before now.

If you can’t afford to post bail – don’t engage in criminal activity!

Steve Smith

Churchville

Editor:

“It ain’t over till it’s over.”

New York Yankees Hall of Famer Yogi Berra’s famous quote sums up perfectly where we are with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Case numbers among adults are decreasing. Mask mandates have been lifted. As much as it may seem like the pandemic is over, we aren’t quite there yet. Our work isn’t done. We still do not have enough people vaccinated, which is the best protection against serious illness and potential future variants.

In Orleans County, the vaccination rate among those eligible to be fully vaccinated is just 57.8% (as of March 3, 2022). “Fully vaccinated” means having at least two Pfizer or Moderna shots, or one J&J shot, plus the booster for adults – or two Pfizer shots for children and youth ages 5 to 17.

The vaccines continue to be our best defense against passing along the virus to loved ones, becoming seriously ill or being hospitalized with Covid. Getting more people vaccinated, while using other tools like testing and isolation after potential exposure, will get us back to normal. But we are not there yet, and we need to keep Yogi Berra’s quote in mind. “It ain’t over till it’s over.”

If you have questions about getting the shot, you deserve answers. For more information, please visit www.GetYourAnswers.org.

Sincerely,

Paul A. Pettit, MSL, CPH, Public Health Director, Genesee & Orleans County Health Departments

Jennifer Rodriguez, DCS, MS, MSW, Livingston County Public Health Director

Mary L. Beer, RN, MPH, Ontario County Public Health Director

Nancy King, MD, Schuyler County Interim Public Health Director

Scott King, Seneca County Public Health Director

Darlene Smith, MS, CPH, Steuben County Public Health Director

Diane Devlin RN, MS, BSN, Wayne County Public Health Director

Sara Christensen, RN, BSN, Yates County Director of Public Health

Editor:

Congressman Chris Jacobs, where is the honor in spreading misinformation? In a press release about our southern border on March 7, Mr. Jacobs wrote: “When I was here in April, it was estimated that cartels were making $11 million a week from smuggling activities – that number has essentially doubled now to $24 million a week.”

However, news station KENS in San Antonio Texas on May 19, 2021 (nearly one year ago), reported from the Del Rio region: “Border Patrol officials said the cartels are bringing in $24 million in weekly revenue from human smuggling.”

President Biden had been in office for only four months at this point and still trying to get his administration established. Mr. Jacobs’ report shows that border security has stabilized after four years of chaos and that should be cause of celebration. This administration is doing a great job. Not only securing the border but doing so in an ethical and humane manner.

Congressman Chris Jacobs is also spreading misinformation about Keystone XL pipeline. In a March 9th speech on the floor of the House of Representatives Mr. Jacobs criticized the President for cancelling the Keystone XL pipeline. Mr. Jacobs also proposed legislation calling on the President to re-establish the Keystone XL pipeline as if that would help lower gas prices.

A study by the State Department of the Keystone XL pipeline in 2017 found that the pipeline, even if operating at full capacity, would have minimal effect on the price of gasoline. Furthermore, there is no indication that the oil from the pipeline would not be exported to other countries.

Two final points. First, the Biden administration has approved more permits for oil and gas drilling on federal lands in its first year than the previous administration did in its last year. Second, Exxon, BP, Shell, and Chevron posted record profits last year. However, they have so far refused to increase production which increases the price you pay at the pump.

In a district as solidly Republican as the 27th and the new 24th district, why do you feel the need to spread misinformation? Is spreading misinformation your political strategy to manipulate voters because you have no rational policies?

Do you realize that spreading misinformation does not solve problems affecting the citizens in your district? Please explain to us why you’re are spreading misinformation. Thank you.

William Fine

Brockport

Editor:

The Town of Barre has a very large park with no electricity. We have ARPA (Covid dollars) that need to be used for the town.

The Town Supervisor was looking at using the dollars to expand public water, but because of price increases, it would mean pennies on the dollar. Town Supervisor Sean Pogue also looked at culverts, bridges and road repairs. If we used it for that, we may lose money from NYS funding programs.

Next two items: Internet and/or electric at the park. Both are great options. I do not know where we are at with Spectrum, but electricity at the park would be useful for family and neighbor events.

Go to Barre website to see the park coordinator’s email and book a date.

Barre is where our heart is.

Cyndy Van Lieshout

Barre

Editor:

For most towns in Orleans County property assessments are being reviewed and soon new assessments will be hitting your mailbox. This may be an eye opener to many as the housing market has been in an upswing.

Currently it’s a sellers’ market, which has caused a frenzy on sale prices in the area. This is important as your assessment is based on current sales, regardless of what improvements or lack of improvements you have made to your property. Therefore, your assessment will most likely adjust.

What does all of this mean?  Typically houses that had been assessed at less than $50,000 are now selling for $75,000 or more. This does not mean your taxes will double, it means your property is now worth more.

Keep in mind assessors must follow state guidelines when valuing your property. There are three acceptable methods to value a property in NYS: sales comparison approach, cost approach, and income approach.

Most assessors use the sales comparison approach. Assessors do not make up the market; people buying and selling homes dictate the market. The assessor’s job is to track the sales and make the necessary adjustments to the assessment roll.

If a town performs a reassessment every three years, then an assessment is not adjusted until the year of the reassessment (unless a property owner requests a review of their assessment or a physical change to the property has been made.) If a town follows an annual reassessment plan, then assessments can change each year.

Helpful Tips:

1. Verify the information on file, with the assessor, regarding your property. Make sure it is accurate.
2. Escrow Account: If you have a mortgage, you probably have an escrow account set up by the bank. (This pays your taxes and insurance.) However, it is only reviewed annually on the anniversary of your mortgage. You can increase the amount that is set aside so that you are not left with a large balance owed.
3. If you are going to dispute the value, have the proper proof that is required. Making less money or being on a fixed income will not prove the market value of your property nor will the amount of taxes you pay.The assessor’s job is to determine the market value of your property.
4. Current sales prices, from the last 3 years, are used to arrive at the market value. Property is compared to other like properties that have sold.

Please keep in mind these are some of the points of comparison:

• Type of Property (multi unit, ranch, row building, cottage, etc.)
• Lot Size
• Bedrooms/Bathrooms and Square Footage

This is the perfect time to educate yourself on the assessment process in NYS. If you disagree with the process and taxes you pay, reach out to your state representatives. If you disagree with the market value of your property, then contact your assessor.

Tim Elliott

Medina

(Elliott is a member of the Medina Village Board.)