This is a summary of legislation discussed at the Binghamton City Council Work Session on June 24th, 2024. These Requests for Legislation would be voted on at a later City Council Business Meeting.
RL 24-122: An Ordinance to allow CCE (Commission for the Conversation of the Environment) Chair to appoint city residents to committees within the Commission. Presented by Luke Day.
- Summary: Day is basically asking for permission to establish working groups of non-voting community members (mostly BU students) who can provide information to the Commission on specific environmental issues.
RL 24-128: A Resolution authorizing agreement with Broome-Tioga Board of Cooperative Educational Services for fire protection services. Presented by Al Gardiner, Binghamton Fire Chief.
- Summary: Renewing a four year, $30k/year contract.
RL 24-129: A Resolution authorizing acceptance of grant funds from LETECH. Presented by David Bidwell from BPD and the Southern Tier Crime Analysis Center.
- Summary: This is $468k going to BPD out of the $127 Million in surveillance money coming down from the state as part of Governor Hochul’s 2024 budget. Bidwell said this would mostly pay for updating the city’s “Mobile Command Vehicle,” which he admitted is mostly used as something for kids to play with at community events like Touch a Truck. He said in an average year the vehicle is deployed about 50 times, mostly during SWAT raids. I’ve also seen it deployed at protests. Here’s what the rest of the county is getting:
RL 24-130: A Resolution authorizing the acceptance of grant funds from GIVE Initiative. Presented by David Bidwell from BPD and the Southern Tier Crime Analysis Center.
- Summary: GIVE stands for Gun Involved Violence Elimination. This is $370k coming from the NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services. Councilmembers also discussed the ongoing debate over security cameras being placed in NOMA and on the North Side.
- My Take: The Mayor, District Attorney, and Sheriff launched a media blitz this week to call out City Council Democrats for not immediately approving DA Paul Battisti’s $66k in security camera funding. The legislation was tabled at the last business meeting and Councilwoman Middleton is quoted in the articles as saying the Council is “not necessarily against voting in favor of the funding,” so the vote seems like it could go either way.
- There’s a lot of great work going on locally to inform people about the dangers of government surveillance. Check out Dr. Bill Martin’s latest article in the Bridge and email BinghamtonNAGS@proton.me for more info on mass surveillance in Binghamton.
- The abolition of police and surveillance is still a small (but growing) movement in the US. Most people in this alienated country are willing to give up some of their rights to feel safer. Voting against street pole cameras in “high crime” (high poverty) areas is an unpopular political stance but it’s still the correct one. Every dollar invested in security cameras is a dollar that isn’t being invested in initiatives that actually reduce crime: anti-poverty programs, education, low-income housing, mental health support, etc. An investment in police is an error that compounds itself over time because the prison-industrial complex perpetuates the exact problems it claims to solve. Elites sell us on the idea that we need police to protect us from other working people, but they actually exist to protect the ownership class and their property from us. In that sense, an increase in crime isolated to high-poverty areas is actually a benefit to the upper classes and a camera streaming 24/7 from a poor neighborhood is only going to increase “crime” in that area without actually making people safer.
RL 24-131: A Resolution authorizing an agreement with Fairview Recovery Service. Presented by Stephen Carson, HUD Administration & Housing Manager. Expedited 3-2 (Hotchkiss, Kosty Dissenting)
- Summary: Fairview made a mistake and overspent on homeless services, so this legislation is making up the difference of $78k. Councilmembers were understandably confused as to why the city would foot the bill for an accounting error made by a private entity.
RL 24-120: An Ordinance to amend the BJCSB 2024 Budget position count by reducing one Shift Lead Operator and fund one Operator. Presented by Billie Goodson from the Binghamton-Johnson City Joint Sewage Treatment Plant..
- Summary: Replacing a retiring employee.
RL 24-121: An Ordinance to amend the BJCSB 2024 Budget to accept Comp Alliance Award and increase Travel & Training. Presented by Billie Goodson from the Binghamton-Johnson City Joint Sewage Treatment Plant..
- Summary: Accepting award money to provide safety training to employees.
RL 24-132: An Ordinance to amend the 2024 Parks budget to cover employee payout and retroactive pay for Acting Parks Director. Presented by Chuck Robinson, City Comptroller.
- Summary: Moves some money around to payout the departing Commissioner of Parks and pay the acting parks director the Commissioner salary.
RL 24-133: An Ordinance to amend the 2024 Finance budget to increase the salary of Assistant Comptroller from $69,256.00 to $85,000.00. Presented by Chuck Robinson, City Comptroller. Expedited 5-0.
- Summary: Chuck Robinson is taking over as City Comptroller from Chuck Shager. Robinson’s new assistant made this pay raise a condition of her taking the job.
RL 24-134: An Ordinance to amend 2024 Police budget to reduce Program Assistant salary and increase Senior Clerk salary by $19,557.13. Presented by Chuck Robinson, City Comptroller.
- Summary: According to Deputy Mayor Megan Heiman, this is just a title change, with no increase in salary.
RL 24-124: A Resolution authorizing supplemental agreement No. 4 with DECO for additional street improvements. Presented by City Engineer Ron Lake.
- Summary: These next four RL’s are all (I think) already in the budget. RL 24-124 is for work around the Water Street Garage.
RL 24-125: A Resolution authorizing an agreement with Barton and Loguidice for a preliminary engineering report for the Ball Avenue Outfall. Presented by City Engineer Ron Lake.
- Summary: Addressing flooding around the North Side.
RL 24-126: A Resolution authorizing an agreement with Hunt EAS for a preliminary engineering report for the Tompkins Street Pumping Station. Presented by City Engineer Ron Lake.
- Summary: Addressing flooding around the baseball stadium.
RL 24-127: A Resolution authorizing an agreement with EDR to evaluate conditions for the Terminal Pumping System. Presented by City Engineer Ron Lake.
- Summary: Installing new grinders to deal with increase in “flushable” wipes in the system.
RL 24-123: An Ordinance to amend Charter Section 307 to update food cart dimensions. Presented by Councilman Nate Hotchkiss. Expedited 5-0
- Summary: So apparently as retribution for overriding his veto, the Mayor and BPD took a tape measurer and started enforcing old regulations about the size of food carts in Binghamton. According to Councilman Hotchkiss, this legislation would update the standards to reflect more modern food carts: 6’ x 10’ with no height restriction.
- My Take: More petty bullshit from Kraham and his friends in the downtown business cabal. If only he would allow code enforcement to be this strict!
See you all tonight at the City Council Business Meeting for voting and public comment. Also go check out this movie playing in the Bundy Annex on Friday:
