Pilot program focuses on Orleans, Genesee and Wyoming counties

Press Release, Independent Living of the Genesee Region

BATAVIA – Independent Living of the Genesee Region (ILGR), serving Genesee, Orleans and Wyoming counties, is excited to announce the recent awarding of a $371,176 grant by the Greater Rochester Health Foundation and the Rochester Area Community Foundation.

This funding will establish The Independent Living Youth Project (ILYP), a two-year pilot program aimed at providing enhanced services for disabled youth and their caregivers.

The grant will fund two Independent Living Youth Specialists who will offer direct services and support to children and youth under 25 years old with disabilities, as well as their families and caregivers, helping them navigate this complex system.

“We’re thrilled to launch this pilot project, which will enable us to provide focused assistance to youth under 25 years old and their families,” said Rae Frank, director of Independent Living of the Genesee Region. “Navigating a complex system can be challenging for this population, and additional support will assist them to succeed.”

Connecting to Our Existing Aims

As a peer-directed, regional advocacy service and program provider for people of all ages with mental, physical, intellectual, sensory or developmental disabilities, ILGR is dedicated to ensuring that these individuals can live their lives as they choose, free from institutional care and restrictive environments.

While our Independent Living Specialists serve all ages, we recognize that disabled children and youth, along with their caregivers, often require specialized services and support. Their families report higher out-of-pocket medical expenses, spend more time coordinating their child’s healthcare, and sometimes reduce or stop working due to their child’s health.

Many families seek assistance with applying for public benefits and need direct support to navigate the process. Additionally, parents face challenges in developing the Individualized Education Program (IEP) for a child’s school support. Adolescents with disabilities often struggle to transition to adult services, self-advocate, find employment and live independently.

Youths with disabilities and their families deserve a comprehensive, community-based, family-centered and coordinated system of care.

“The Greater Rochester Health Foundation is thrilled to be able to support the Independent Youth Living Project, a program that empowers youth with disabilities and their families,” stated Rachel Betts, Responsive Grant Program Officer at the Greater Rochester Health Foundation. “The challenges these families face are significant, but with specialized advocacy, direct support, and a focus on independence, Western NY Independent Living can make a meaningful impact.

“By providing resources like educational advocacy, assistance with benefits, and youth leadership opportunities, this initiative will equip these young individuals with the skills and services they need to thrive in their communities. The Independent Living Center’s commitment to improving the quality of life for these youth is both inspiring and necessary, and we are excited to fund this program that will bring about real, lasting change for so many families in our community.”

For more information or support contact (585) 815-8501.

Independent Living of the Genesee Region is a member of the Western New York Independent Living, Inc. family of agencies which offers an expanding array of services to aid people with disabilities to take control of their own lives.

Press Release, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

Kirsten Gillibrand

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announced legislation to raise the minimum age to purchase assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines from 18 to 21, the same age requirement that already applies to purchasing handguns from federally licensed dealers.

Individuals under 21 have used assault weapons in some of the most devastating shootings in U.S. history, including the 2022 mass shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo in which 10 people were killed.

Gun violence is a national crisis, claiming over 46,000 lives in 2023 — the third-largest number of gun-related deaths in American history. Assault weapons, originally engineered for military combat to maximize damage, are frequently used in mass shootings because of their ability to inflict catastrophic harm in mere seconds.

More than 85 percent of deaths in public mass shootings involving four or more fatalities were caused by assault rifles. Furthermore, shootings involving assault weapons or large-capacity magazines result in more than 2.5 times as many people being shot compared to incidents involving other firearms.

“Guns are the leading cause of death for children and teenagers in America today,” Gillibrand said. “Year after year, deadly assault weapons inflict devastating and avoidable harm on our families, schools, and communities, causing children, parents, and teachers to live with the fear that the next school shooting may happen in their community.”

The Age 21 Act’s restrictions on the sale of assault weapons, handguns, large-capacity ammunition feeding devices, and related ammunition to individuals under the age of 21 would apply to both federally licensed and private sellers. Additionally, the legislation would bar most individuals under 21 from possessing these items, with limited exceptions for specific circumstances such as service in law enforcement or the armed forces.

 “The Age 21 Act offers a critical safeguard to prevent such tragedies, decreasing the threat of gun violence against our kids,” Gillibrand said. “I am proud to support this legislation, and I will fight hard for its passage this Congress.”

 The Age 21 Act was originally introduced by Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). In addition to Senator Gillibrand, it is cosponsored by 17 senators: Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).

Governor appoints mediator to resolve ‘illegal work stoppage’

Press Release, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Office

ALBANY – Governor Kathy Hochul today announced she has signed an Executive Order activating members of the New York National Guard to help ensure the safety and security of New York State’s correctional facilities while the illegal and unlawful work stoppage by correction officers continues.

This Order also provides authority for additional overtime compensation for correction officers and other staff who are reporting for duty and actively working to secure our facilities.

Governor Hochul also directed the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision and the Office of Employee Relations to retain independent mediator Martin Scheinman to help bring a quick and immediate end to this illegal work stoppage. Earlier today, New York State filed an injunction under the Taylor Law and a judge granted a temporary restraining order mandating striking correction officers to cease the illegal activity.

“These disruptive and unsanctioned work stoppages by some correction officers must end as they are jeopardizing the safety of their colleagues, the prison population, and causing undue fear for the residents in the surrounding communities,” Governor Hochul said. “In an effort to resolve this illegal work stoppage I have directed the appointment of highly respected independent mediator Martin Scheinman who will begin work immediately to return striking correction officers back to work. While I am confident we will resolve this illegal strike, I am grateful for the thousands of correction officers and staff that are continuing to report for duty – I thank them for their continued service and for doing the right thing.”

Earlier today, more than 3,500 members of the New York National Guard started reporting for duty as advance crews are at correctional facilities ahead of the larger deployment to determine logistical needs and roles and responsibilities.

National Guard members will support and supplement current correctional staff on site to ensure safety and security with tasks including distributing meals and medication to incarcerated individuals and help maintain general order and wellness in the facilities. Additional members are expected to report for duty in the coming hours and days.

State Assemblyman Steve Hawley has joined 16 other Republicans in the State Legislature in sending a letter to Go. Kathy Hochul, blaming her administration for failing to make prisons safer for staff.

Hawley and the other legislators addressed the letter to Hochul and Daniel F. Martuscello III, commissioner of NYS Department of Corrections and Supervision.

“We write to you today to make an appeal on behalf of our Correctional Officers statewide for meaningful dialogue aimed at resolving growing concerns over the safety and stability of our correctional facilities,” the letter states. “Measures taken to improve these areas have continued to fail, rendering all individuals within them at significant risk for danger.”

Correction officers are on strike at 30 of the state’s 42 prisons. The strike started on Monday at Elmira and Collins, and spread to more than 20 by Tuesday including Albion and Orleans.

DOCCS reported a record 1,760 assaults on prison staff last year despite recent declines in the population of incarcerated people, Hawley noted.

“New York has seen historic increases of violence for both inmate-on-inmate and inmate-on-officer populations,” states the letter from the legislators.

The letter is signed by Assemblyman Matthew Simpson (114th District), Senator Jake Ashby (43rd District), Sen. James Tedisco (44th), Sen. Mark Walczyk (49th), Assemblyman Joseph DeStefano (3rd), Assemblyman Michael Durso (9th), Assemblyman John Mikulin (17th), Assemblyman Matthew Slater (94th), Assemblyman Chris Tague (102nd), Assemblyman Scott Gray (116th), Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (117th), Assemblyman Robert Smullen (118th), Assemblyman Joseph Angelino (121st), Assemblyman Brian Miller (122nd), Assemblyman John Lemondes (126th), Assemblyman Brian Manktelow (130th) and Assemblyman Steve Hawley (139th).

“1,760 violent incidents against prison staff in a single year is not just an outlier, it’s a trend brought about by Gov. Hochul and her friends in the Majority who rewarded criminal behavior through radical policies such as the HALT Act,” Hawley said in a news release. “Since day one I’ve been firmly against these initiatives. I’ve seen the pain correctional officers and their families go through every day and it’s past time we say enough is enough. The governor needs to get her priorities straight. Our state’s safety depends on it.”

A strike among corrections officers that started on Monday at Collins and Elmira prisons has now spread to 30 prisons, said the union representing the corrections officers.

The strike isn’t sanctioned by the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association. The Taylor Law doesn’t allow corrections officers or public employees to legally go on strike.

There are 42 prisons run by the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

“Currently there are approximately 30 correctional facilities in which officers/sergeants are participating in either protesting current working conditions inside the prisons or refusing to enter for their scheduled shift,” said James Miller, spokesman for NYSCOPBA, the union for corrections officers. “There are several facilities that are not participating and are operating normally.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday said she was preparing to mobilize the National Guard to help staff the prisons if the strike doesn’t end today. Miller said the National Guard is on standby but he is unaware if any Guard members have been deployed to a prison.

“The leadership of NYSCOPBA met with DOCCS officials and representatives of the Governor’s Office yesterday morning to discuss the well documented concerns of the members that has led to the current situation,” Miller said in a news release. “Negotiations with the State have continued throughout today between NYSCOPBA and the Governor’s Office towards a resolution.”

Corrections officers determined to not return to work until HALT Act rescinded

Photos by Tom Rivers: Corrections officers say mandatory overtime keeps them from seeing their families. This group is outside on Gaines Basin Road today. There was another group directly across from the main entrance to Orleans Correctional Facility. More than 100 people were gathered despite temperatures in the teens.

ALBION – More than 100 corrections officers are gathered across from the Orleans Correctional Facility on day 2 of a strike at the facilities. It’s part of strikes at about 25 prisons in New York, as COs pressure Gov. Kathy Hochul and the State Legislature to rescind the HALT Act which officers say has made the prisons far more dangerous with little repercussion if inmates attack staff or other incarcerated people.

The strikes started at prisons on Monday at Collins in Erie County and Elmira in the Southern Tier. By Tuesday the strike spread to more than 20 prisons including the two in Albion: the women’s prison, Albion Correctional, and the men’s medium-security prison, Orleans Correctional.

Officers on strike today told the Orleans Hub they aren’t seeking more money. The strike is mostly about rescinding the HALT Act and improving staffing. COs say more officers are needed to cut down on mandatory overtime. Some officers say they regularly are working 80 hours a week and are not able to spend much time with their families.

Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday said she was preparing to mobilize the National Guard if officers don’t end the strike today.

Correction officers say their top priority is rescinding the HALT Act which they say drastically limits solitary confinement for inmates. That has put other inmates and staff at risk of attacks with little repercussions to inmates who hurt others and break prison rules.

The gathering of COs outside Orleans Correctional on Gaines Basin Road was bigger today than on Tuesday. They were joined by many recent retirees.

“This has been a long time coming,” a CO at Orleans Correctional said.

He and his co-workers are determined to stay on strike until the HALT Act is ended.

“It’s up to the Governor’s Office,” said the CO who declined to give his name, fearing retaliation from the state.

Donna Vanderlaan is retired from Albion Correctional the past 5 ½ years. She worked there as a CO for 21 years, and started with two years at Bedford Hills. She said recent state policies have made the prisons less safe, and the shortage of staff are burning out the COs and other workers.

Vanderlaan said the state is overworking the COs and putting them in jeopardy. She has been out in the bitter cold the past two days.

She is amazed by the residents dropping off pizza, water, hand warmers, and wood to burn in barrels.

There has been so much pizza, the retired COs have brought some to the staff working inside the prisons.

“The community is definitely showing lots of support,” one of the COs said. “They’ve been phenomenal.”

COs who were inside the prisons working when the strikes started have now been in there for over 30 hours.

Vanderlaan said the striking staff are staying outside, trying to pressure the governor to change policies, especially the HALT Act.

“This isn’t about money,” Vanderlaan said. “They’re fighting for their lives and for the people who can’t be out here. With the 24-hour shifts, you have no life. We have people falling asleep on their ride home.”

There is a line of about 100 vehicles along Gaines Basin Road stretching from near the prison’s main entrance to past the American Legion Post.

ROCHESTER – The Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce honored Karen Kinter of Oak Orchard Health with an Athena Award last Thursday. Kinter and 26 other women who lead businesses and organizations were recognized with the awards.

Kinter, an Albion resident, has served as CEO of Oak Orchard Health since September 2022. She became CEO of Oak Orchard after more than 20 years in the industry and vast experience establishing, stabilizing and growing Federally Qualified Health Centers.

Before joining Oak Orchard, Kinter served as CEO of Regional Health Services FQHC and Vice President of Specialty Revenue Programs at Rochester Regional located in Rochester, where she had financial, operational and strategic responsibility for programs across a large health system.

The Athena Award for Kinter recognizes her leadership of an organization with sites in Albion, Alexander, Batavia, Brockport, Corfu, Hornell, Lyndonville, Medina and Warsaw.

Originally founded in 1973, Oak Orchard Health has grown from a migrant health project into an integrated health center with multiple locations providing health care services including primary care, pediatric care, vision care, dental care, behavioral health, as well as nutrition and outreach services for everyone located in the communities they serve.

Kinter was chosen as one of 27 finalists for an Athena Award. She and Oak Orchard were one of four finalists for the Athena International Organizational Award. The other finalists include Lifespan of Greater Rochester, USC Builds and Zea Proukou PLLC.

 The award was established in 1982 to honor a woman-owned or woman-led business or organization that fosters a culture encouraging women employees to achieve their full leadership potential. Greater Rochester Chamber, in partnership with its Women’s Council affiliate, has been presenting this award annually since 2018.

Karen Kinter attends the Athena Awards banquet at the Floreano Riverside Convention Center on Feb. 13.

Artists urged to be part of the show that opens July 18

File photo by Tom Rivers: Kim Martillotta Muscarella, owner of the Marti’s on Main art gallery in Albion, poses in April 2022 with two of her paintings, of an acorn woodpecker and red-headed woodpecker, both acrylics on Masonite.

ALBION – Kim Martillotta Muscarella is working on the schedule of art shows for 2025 at the Marti’s on Main art gallery.

She wants one of the shows to highlight Orleans County and the Erie Canal, which are both celebrating their 200^th anniversaries this year.

Muscarella welcomes artists to display paintings, photographs, sculptures, quilts and other art forms for the bicentennial show. The opening reception will be from 6 to 9 p.m. on July 18.

Artists can submit photos of complete art or their ideas for new art for the show by April 4. For more information, contact Muscarella at (585) 590-9211.

Muscarella will display up to two works from artists in the juried show which is not limited to people who live in Orleans County. She is excited to see the art and the different ways artists express themselves in highlighting Orleans County and the Erie Canal.

Muscarella also is planning an environmental show after the bicentennial display. The environmental show will open on Aug. 15. Artists can submit photos of their work or ideas for the show by May 1 by texting Muscarella.

Marti’s is located at 20 South Main St., a prominent historic building that used to be the offices for the Cornell Cooperative Extension.

ALBION – Applications are now being accepted for a new class offering 10 weeks of instruction for small business owners or people looking to start a new business in Orleans County.

The Orleans Microenterprise Assistance Program can accommodate 15 students each class. A new class will run on Thursday evenings from April 3 to June 5 at the Cornell Cooperative Extension on Route 31 in Knowlesville.

The most recent class from the fall 2024 included 14 graduates, which brings the total to 558 people who have completed MAP since it started in 2002. More than 200 have started a variety of businesses in the county.

The 10-week program covers topics such as legal requirements for starting a business, forms of ownership, business plan development, taxation for sole proprietors, marketing and advertising strategies, bookkeeping and record keeping, banking essentials, pricing goods and services, and cost analysis.

To see the application to be in the program, click here. The deadline to apply is 4 p.m. on March 14.

Prospective entrepreneurs aged 18 and older, who maintain a permanent residence or business physically located in Orleans County, are encouraged to apply.

The course fee is $300. However, financial aid is available for qualifying applicants based on financial need. Interested individuals can complete the application online in under 10 minutes or contact OEDA with further program questions at (585) 589-7060 ext. 1 or MHolland@orleansdevelopment.org.

Photo by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Snow blows cross Gaines Basin Road in a field near the Orleans Correctional Facility today at about noon.

The driving conditions have been difficult today. A travel advisory remains in effect until 1 p.m. on Wednesday. A lake-effect snow warning also remains in effect until that time.

Justin Niederhofer, the county’s emergency management director, urged people to avoid unnecessary travel.

“If you must travel, use extreme caution,” he said in a post on social media. “Things may be perfectly fine in one spot and a complete white out in another.  Snowfall is forecasted to increase this evening, making the blowing snow conditions and visibility even worse. There have been multiple accidents and cars off the roads as a result of the current conditions.”

Hawley says COs strike in response to dangerous working conditions

File photo by Tom Rivers: Albion Correctional Facility looms large at the end of Washington Street in Albion. The site is the largest women’s prison in the state.

State Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt said he supports corrections officers in their demands for an end to HALT Act and increased staffing in prisons.

Corrections officers are on strike at many prisons today in the state, saying they are on the verge of leaving the profession due to mandatory overtime and dangerous conditions from the HALT Act, which puts limits on solitary confinement. Without solitary confinement, COs say incarcerated people can be violent and break prison rules without fear of punishment.

Gov. Kathy Hochul said she is preparing to send in the National Guard to help staff prisons if the strike doesn’t end by Wednesday.

“Sending the National Guard into our subways to do the job of the NYPD, and prisons to do the job of our correction officers is not the best use of these brave New Yorkers and is the result of the failed leadership of Governor Hochul and Senate and Assembly Democrats,” Ortt said in a statement this afternoon.

“The Governor should be focused on getting our correction officers back in prisons by ending HALT, and a commitment to increasing staffing,” he said. “Deploying our National Guard makes this situation even more dangerous. As a former member of the New York National Guard, I have the highest regard for these soldiers. However this is not what they are trained for.”

Ortt said the Senate Republican Conference has been vocal about the dangerous working conditions in the state’s prisons.

“The HALT Act and other reckless Democrat policies have empowered violent inmates, stripped officers of necessary tools to maintain order, and created an untenable crisis in our correctional facilities,” Ortt said.

He called on Hochul and the Legislature to reverse HALT which he said has resulted in “skyrocketing assaults” on staff.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley of Batavia faulted the Hochul administration for a failure to provide a safe working environment for correctional officers across the state.

In recent years, Hawley said correctional officers have faced unprecedented violence from inmates. The New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision reported a record 1,760 assaults on prison staff last year, Hawley said.

“It should be completely clear now to this administration that our correctional officers have had enough,” Hawley said. “Gov. Hochul seems to be hellbent on stripping prison staff of vital protections while putting the concerns of criminals first. Policies like the HALT Act have taken control away from our correctional officers and given the power to inmates.

“Demonstrations like this should not come as a surprise to Gov. Hochul and her friends in the Majority,” Hawley said. “These are the kinds of drastic measures that happen when you push these law enforcement officers to their limits. I will continue to fight in Albany to make sure our correctional officers’ voices are heard and these radical reforms are reversed.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul said she is preparing to deploy the National Guard to staff prisons if a strike by corrections officers does not end by Wednesday.

Hochul blasted the corrections officers for going on strike at many prisons in the state today, including the Orleans Correctional (men’s medium security prison in Albion) and Albion Correctional (a women’s prison). About 100 corrections officers have been out in the freezing cold in a demonstration along Gaines Basin Road by Orleans Correctional.

The first strikes were on Monday at Collins Correctional in Erie County and Elmira Correctional in Chemung County.

“The illegal and unlawful actions being taken by a number of correction officers must end immediately,” Governor Hochul said in a news release this afternoon. “We will not allow these individuals to jeopardize the safety of their colleagues, incarcerated people, and the residents of communities surrounding our correctional facilities.

“I have directed my Administration to meet with union leadership to resolve this situation and have also ordered the National Guard be mobilized to secure our correctional facilities in the event it is not resolved by tomorrow. Correction officers do difficult work under challenging circumstances, and I have consistently fought for them to have better pay and working conditions and will continue to do so.”

Corrections officers went on strike to protest staffing shortages and unsafe conditions in the prisons – an influx of drugs and ramifications from the HALT Act which limits how incarcerated people can be put into solitary confinement.

Hochul said she directed Daniel Martuscello, commissioner of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, and senior Administration officials to meet with leaders from the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association. Hochul wants an end to the work stoppage that she said is causing significant public safety concerns across New York.

Hochul said she has worked with NYSCOPBA to improve salaries, benefits and working conditions for corrections officers. In March 2024, the union agreed to a collective bargaining agreement to improve working conditions for corrections officers:

• Increased salaries and starting pay for new employees by $6,500.
• Increased Correction Officer location-based pay by $500 to $1,000 per Officer for downstate assignments.
• Increased Correction Officer hazardous duty pay from $200 to $1,075.
• Provides 12 weeks of fully-paid parental leave.

Hochul said she also succeeded in passing new laws and implemented administrative changes to protect corrections officers. That includes use of body scanners in correctional facilities. She also backed DOCCS implementation of a vendor package program that resulted in large reductions in contraband entering the correctional facilities.

Martuscello, commissioners of DOCCS, met with Chris Summers, president of the union for the correction officers, New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association.

The news release from Hochul included this quote from Martuscello: “Earlier today we met with NYSCOPBA President Summers and his Executive Board to discuss a path forward to returning all facilities to normal operations and ending this illegal strike.

“The safety and security of the staff and incarcerated population is paramount to me. I value the hard work and commitment of the men and women at DOCCS who have had to sacrifice time with their families due to the current staffing shortage.

“However, this illegal job action involving NYSCOPBA members is causing irreparable harm to the operations of the department and jeopardizing the safety and security of their co-workers within these facilities. We will continue to develop strategies to reduce assaults and to bring more staff on board with NYSCOPBA, the recognized bargaining agency for correction officers and sergeants.

“There is always room for progress and for disagreements and we welcome continued dialogue with the union at the table. At this time, I am urging all those on strike to end this job action.”

ALBION – The Albion Village Board say it will look at how some communities are using Tax Increment Financing (TIF) as incentives to bring investment in a downtown business district and other targeted areas.

Village trustee Joyce Riley learned about TIFs at a recent municipal conference. She spoke about them during last week’s Village Board meeting.

“We have to find a way to make dormant buildings be vibrant,” Riley said.

A TIF would give a property owner a discount on taxes for their investment in a project. Mayor Angel Javier Jr. said a drawback could be a loss of tax revenue. He wants to see the potential impact on the village tax revenue as part of a TIF district.

The TIF would be similar to a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) where there is a gradual sliding scale for a property owner, where a small amount is paid in the beginning and a percentage is added each following year until it is at full value. A PILOT typically is 10, 15, 20 or 25 years. Locally, the PILOTs are done through the Orleans Economic Development Agency on behalf of the taxing jurisdictions.

Riley said there could be a loss of revenue in the beginning of a TIF, but ultimately there would be more revenue for the village later in the PILOT and the village and community would have the benefit of more buildings being put to use.

“We have to look at it at the long haul, not the short haul,” she said. “In the long haul we’ll make more money.”

Village officials said they would do more research on Tax Increment Financing. Riley said it would be another way to facilitate business and housing investment in Albion in a way that is less reliant on state grants.

COs want more staffing in prisons, end to HALT Act

Photos by Tom Rivers: This group is out in the bitter cold across from the Orleans Correctional Facility on Gaines Basin Road for a strike. About 100 correction officers gathered outside the prison to demand more staffing and an end to the Halt Act which limits solitary confinement among incarcerated people. The HALT Act has made the prisons less safe for both inmates and staff, officers said.

ALBION – Corrections officers are on an historic strike at prisons around the state today, including the two in Orleans County: Orleans and Albion correctional facilities.

The staff were supposed to show up to work at 6:45 a.m. for a shift change. But instead about 100 corrections officers gathered outside the facilities for a strike.

 Officers are demanding the HALT Act be rescinded. That state law has limited how inmates can be put in solitary confinement. It has taken punishment and deterrents away from officers in trying to keep the facility safe for both staff and other incarcerated people, COs said at the strike today.

“It is absolutely horribly unsafe,” one striking corrections officer said outside Orleans Correctional, a medium security men’s prison.

Corrections officers say the HALT Act keeps many violent inmates in the general population, putting the facility at risk for both staff and incarcerated people.

About 100 staff were outside Orleans Correctional on Gaines Basin Road, standing in bitter cold temperatures. It was about 10 degrees out with blowing snow, and a wind chill below zero.

Another group was outside on strike at Albion Correctional, a women’s prison at the end of Washington Street.

Orleans Correctional is down about 60 COs. It should have 281 but currently only has 220, one corrections officer said. That was required lots of mandatory overtime. One CO said many new hires quit because of the long hours and safety inside the prison walls. COs also said drugs regularly enter the prison, adding to the unsafe conditions. Drugs are often sent in packages and the understaffed facility can’t fully check all of the packages and mail, COs said.

“This is as serious as it’s got in my 40 years,” said retired Sgt. Arnold Jonathan of Orleans Correctional. “I thank God every day I’m retired.”

He drove from Niagara County to be at the strike in a show of solidarity. He said the last strike was in 1979.

The officers are on strike knowing they could lose their jobs as part of the Taylor Law which prevents a strike from public employees. The strike at Albion and Orleans follows a strike on Monday at Elmira and Collins correctional facilities. COs interviewed at Orleans said those strikes prompted a much larger response across the state today. More than 20 prisons out of the 44 total are expected to have striking COs today.

COs also oppose mandatory overtime. One officer drives an hour to work at Orleans, He said he has regularly been working 80 hours a week and seldom gets to spend time with his family.

The union representing the corrections officers, the New York State Correction Officers Police Benevolent Association, is not sanctioning the strikes.

This sign blames Gov. Kathy Hochul and Daniel F. Martuscello III, the commissioner of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, for unsafe conditions in the prisons that prompted the strike.