Dutchess County, NY sent this bulletin at 10/16/2020 03:45 PM EDT
Poughkeepsie, NY … Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro today hosted his 40th online Town Hall Forum since mid-March, providing residents with updates about his 2021 Executive Budget, the COVID-19 pandemic and other topics, while answering their questions.
County Executive Molinaro will present his 2021 Executive Budget virtually on Wednesday, October 28th, with a series of online budget town hall forums — both afternoon and evening — to follow, providing residents information and the opportunity to ask questions about the spending proposal.
Dutchess County’s positivity rate was 1% on Friday, Oct. 16th
The County’s Department of Behavioral and Community Health (DBCH) continues to work with Marist College, which has been on “pause” for a week since positive COVID-19 cases resulted following an Oct. 3rd off-campus gathering earlier this month, to identify contacts and perform contact tracing of individuals who may have been exposed. A total of 30 positive cases have been related to the gathering.
The Hedgewood Home for Adults in Beacon currently has eight active cases of COVID-19, part of a cluster that has resulted in a total of 75 confirmed cases. DBCH staff continues to monitor the cluster, and an order from the DBCH Commissioner for facility quarantine has now ended, as the cluster is waning.
As Halloween approaches, DBCH has released safety guidance for trick-or-treaters, parents and homeowners for a safe and enjoyable holiday. Among the guidelines, children and parents who feel sick are asked to stay home; homeowners who feel sick should not hand out candy; trick-or-treaters asked to only congregate with people they know and remain 6 feet away from those they don’t; and drive-by events, such as a Halloween parade, should be considered in lieu of handing out candy or hosting a party.
County Executive Molinaro will hold his next virtual Town Hall Forum on Wednesday, Oct. 21st at 3 p.m.; the event will be broadcast live on the Dutchess County Government Facebook page. As with all his previous online forums, County Executive Molinaro will be joined by American Sign Language interpreters, who will translate the conversation.
The Dutchess County Department of Behavioral & Community Health is encouraging everyone to be safe while celebrating Halloween this year. Residents are reminded to wear face coverings, practice social distancing, and wash/disinfect hands often. Below are specific safety guidelines for how to safely celebrate Halloween this year. Click here to download printable PDF of this flyer
Dutchess County, NY sent this bulletin at 10/09/2020 04:15 PM EDT
County Executive Provides COVID-19, Sales Tax and Other Updates
Poughkeepsie … Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro today hosted the latest of his more than three dozen virtual Town Hall Forums since mid-March, providing County residents the latest updates on his 2021 Executive Budget proposal, the COVID-19 pandemic and other topics. As he has in each of his previous 38 online forums, the County Executive also answered residents’ questions on a variety of topics.
In anticipation of the October 28th presentation of his 2021 Executive Budget — which will feature no property tax increases, cuts in spending and a smaller County workforce with no layoffs — County Executive Molinaro discussed with residents the impact of decreased sales tax revenue on the proposed County budget.
Dutchess County received its most recent sales tax payment from the New York Department of Taxation and Finance earlier this week, a payment of $21.9 million, which is 18.5 percent more than the payment the County received ($18.5 million) for the same period in 2019. Still, the 2020 cumulative payments received ($131 million) remain 6.4 percent less than the County received at this time last year ($140 million), leaving an estimated $15 million loss in sales tax revenue, compared to 2019.
Among the other highlight of today’s conversation:
2% regional positivity rate (Dutchess County’s positivity rate was 0.3% on Friday, Oct. 9th)
The Dutchess County Department of Behavioral & Community Health (DBCH) continues to work with the NYS Department of Health to address the cluster of positive COVID-19 cases related to Hedgewood Home for Adults in Beacon. There has been a total of 74 cases related to the Hedgewood facility since the cluster began last month and a total of 7 deaths. Of the 127 active cases currently listed on Dutchess County’s COVID-19 data dashboard, 9 are current, active cases related to Hedgewood. As it has since these cases were first reported, the Dutchess County Department of Behavioral and Community Health (DBCH) continues to monitor the cluster at Hedgewood and the Health Commissioner’s Order for the facility quarantine remains in effective.
DBCH is also working with Marist College to perform contact tracing following the confirmation of 12 positive cases of COVID-19 following an off-campus gathering last weekend. The school notified students, faculty and staff Thursday evening following the confirmation of the positive cases. DBCH is working in conjunction with Marist to identify and test individuals who could have been exposed to COVID-19 at the gathering. In response, the school has moved to all remote learning today and tomorrow; suspending all on- and off-campus activities; prohibiting all on- and off-campus gatherings, including parties; cancelling all athletic team training sessions; closing its James J. McCann Recreation Center; closing campus to all visitors; and prohibiting students from visiting non-assigned residence halls.
Given the current COVID-19 pandemic, County Executive Molinaro encouraged residents, particularly those over the age of 60, to obtain an influenza vaccination as soon as possible, as inoculation to the flu is more important than ever. The Centers for Disease Control estimated the flu accounted for more than 16.5 million medical visits and more than 490,000 hospitalizations nationwide during the 2018-19 flu season; such hospitalizations could overwhelm a healthcare system already stressed by the pandemic. Flu vaccinations are available at local doctor’s offices and pharmacies, major retailers such as Target and Walmart, and Mondays by appointment (845-486-3535 or clinics@dutchessny.gov) at the DBCH clinic.
Reapportionment, the process of allocating seats in the County Legislature based on population and redistricting, will commence in January 2021, and County residents are sought to serve on the Dutchess County Independent Reapportionment Commission. In 2019, the Dutchess County Legislature adopted a local law that determined the redrawing of legislative districts would be done by an Independent Reapportionment Commission, detached from Legislative authority or influence to ensure equal and fair representation to the people of Dutchess County. This law will become effective after being approved by Dutchess County voters on Election Day, Nov. 3rd; voters should look for the Proposition #1 on the back of their ballot when they vote. Interested residents can apply to serve on the independent reapportionment committee at DutchessNY.gov/DrawTheLines or by mailing a written letter of application expressing interest, including address, and affirming eligibility to serve, to:
Dutchess County Executive’s Office 22 Market Street Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
County Executive Molinaro congratulated James Fedorchak, who has led Dutchess County’s Law Department for the past decade and will retire at the end of October. The County Executive will appoint Caroline Blackburn as Dutchess County’s next County Attorney. Ms. Blackburn currently serves as Chief Assistant County Attorney and will be the first woman to serve as County Attorney. The County Attorney serves as the sole legal advisor for the County; preparing all necessary legal papers and instruments pertaining to County Government; prepares memoranda and opinions in regard to local laws, resolutions and legalizing acts; and prosecutes and defend civil matters or proceedings involving the County and its units, including its officers.
County Executive Molinaro reiterated the importance of resident completing the 2020 national census, as an accurate count assures Dutchess County and local communities will receive their proper share of federal and state funding for vital services, including schools, Medicaid, student loans, infrastructure and more. As such, the County Executive again implored residents to complete their census form online as soon as possible, as the federally imposed deadline for completion is Oct. 31st.
Ahead of Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3rd, early voting for the general election begins throughout New York State in two weeks, beginning on Saturday, Oct. 24th and concluding on Sunday, Nov. 1st. Residents looking to cast the ballots during early voting can do so, regardless of where they live, at the following locations:
Rhinebeck Town Hall – 80 East Market Street, Rhinebeck Millbrook Fire House – 20 Front Street, Millbrook Dutchess County Board of Elections – 47 Cannon Street, Poughkeepsie Boardman Road Library – 141 Boardman Road, Poughkeepsie Fishkill Town Hall – 807 Route 52, Fishkill
Tuesday, Oct. 27th is the final day for residents to apply for an absentee ballot, and Monday, Nov. 2nd, is the last day to apply in person at the Dutchess County Board of Elections (BOE) for an absentee ballot. Tuesday, Nov. 3rd, is the final day residents can mail in ballot or hand it in in person at the BOE.
County Executive Molinaro will host his next online Town Hall Forum on Wednesday, October 14th at 3 p.m.; the event will be broadcast live on the Dutchess County Government Facebook page. As with his previous virtual forums, County Executive Molinaro will joined by American Sign Language interpreters who will translate the conversation.
Dutchess County, NY sent this bulletin at 10/10/2020 07:00 AM EDT
Dutchess County 2021 Executive Budget Spending Cuts, No Property Tax Increase, No Layoffs
Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro will present his 2021 Executive Budget virtually on Wednesday, October 28th. Click on the video below to watch a brief preview of his budget proposal.
This year has been the most challenging in recent memory, with the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in an estimated $15 million loss to Dutchess County in sales tax revenue. Nine years of County Executive Molinaro’s prudent fiscal planning, however, have positioned Dutchess County to weather these unprecedented times with minimal impact to the high-quality services and programs residents have come to expect.
County Executive Molinaro will highlight specific initiatives included in his 2021 Executive Budget in the coming weeks, leading up to the presentation of his full budget, which will be available online on Dutchess County’s webpage on October. 28th.
As you may know, older adults have the most hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 of any group in the United States. So far, not many persons older than age 70 have signed up in this registry.
Can You Help Us?
If you know of someone in your life who is older than age 70 and interested in participating in coronavirus prevention research, would you consider passing along our website to them (https://www.PreventCOVID.org/ )? For persons without internet access, or who do not feel comfortable with online forms, they can also call our toll-free registry at 866-CVT-1919 (866-288-1919).
Again, thank you for joining the CoVPN Volunteer Screening Registry. You are making a difference! You may still be contacted by researchers who can tell you more about upcoming studies. If we do not contact you, that means there is no study that we can match you with right now. New studies continue to be planned over the next few months.
Update your subscriptions, modify your password or email address, or delete your account (including all subscriptions) at any time using your Subscriber Preferences Page. You will need to use your address to log in. If you have any questions or problems with the subscription service, please contact support@dutchessny.gov.
This service is provided to you at no charge by Dutchess County, NY.
October 6, 2020 – Governor Cuomo announced a new cluster action initiative to address COVID-19 hot spots that have cropped up in Brooklyn, Queens, and Broome, Orange and Rockland Counties.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo holds a news conference about the coronavirus on Monday. Nine ZIP codes in Brooklyn and Queens will most likely shut down on Wednesday, if the state of New York approves, due to a recent spike in coronavirus cases, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Sunday. In a series of tweets, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said “local governments had not done an effective job of enforcement in these hotspot ZIP codes,” but said, historically, compliance had increased when the state stepped in. » Subscribe to CNBC TV: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCtelevision » Subscribe to CNBC: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBC » Subscribe to CNBC Classic: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCclassic Turn to CNBC TV for the latest stock market news and analysis. From market futures to live price updates CNBC is the leader in business news worldwide. Connect with CNBC News Online Get the latest news: http://www.cnbc.com/ Follow CNBC on LinkedIn: https://cnb.cx/LinkedInCNBC Follow CNBC News on Facebook: https://cnb.cx/LikeCNBC Follow CNBC News on Twitter: https://cnb.cx/FollowCNBC Follow CNBC News on Instagram: https://cnb.cx/InstagramCNBC#CNBC#CNBCTV New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo holds a news conference on coronavirus — 10/5/2020
The BHA office does close due to inclement weather and dangerous driving conditions. We recommend that you call ahead if you have an appointment and the weather is questionable.
The Dutchess County Department of Behavioral & Community Health is encouraging everyone to be safe while celebrating Halloween this year. Residents are reminded to wear face coverings, practice social distancing, and wash/disinfect hands often. Below are specific safety guidelines for how to safely celebrate Halloween this year. 
