The top contribution to Rangel’s Victory Fund starts at $2,500.

But the figures vaunted by Ball don’t take into account the time it took him to raise the money compared with U.S. Rep. John Hall, D-Dover Plains, who raised $160,549 between April 1 and June 30, according to Federal Elections Commission finance reports.

With the election still more than 15 months away, Hall has $291,842 in cash on hand compared with Ball’s $100,402.

Neither candidate is doing all that well by national standards.

Nationwide, Democratic congressional candidates, have raised $93.8 million, or $382,750 on average, while Republicans have brought in $52 million, or $206,250 on average, according to the non-profit Center for Responsive Politics.

Ball hopes to narrow the gap with a “Rockin’ Rib Fest & Battle of the Bands” on July 25 at the 300-acre North Ridge Farm in Patterson. Entry is $10 a head or $75 for passes to the “VIP Congressional Tent.”

The event is sponsored by the National Rifle Association, according to Ball’s publicity. State Sen. Vincent Leibell, R-Patterson, Putnam County Sheriff Donald Smith and Westchester County Legislator George Oros, R-Cortlandt, are listed as “event chairs and honorary BBQ judges.”

Tomorrow U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, D-NY, will release a report detailing those job losses by region and explaining how she plans to create new well paid jobs.

Stay tuned …

While 36 counties and the City of New York await the extension of their current sales tax rates, Putnam is one of the few that must put together its 2010 budget by September.

Most others have November deadlines for their budgets, Tully said.

Other measures affecting counties that are caught in the state Senate leadership impasse, according to the New York State County Executives Association, include:

Pension reform
Industrial Development Agency reform to foster job creation and construction
Stimulus-related legislation to help the state leverage additional federal support
Legislation providing procurement flexibility for local governments

Those expected to participate include:

Andrew Spano, Westchester County Executive

Scott Vanderhoef, Rockland County Executive

and

Putnam’s Deputy County Executive John Tully

The average Hudson Valley family spends about $13,341 a year for an infant in child care, $11,261 for a toddler and $11,254 for a school-age child, she reported.

Gillibrand’s plan would:

• increase the Dependent and Child Care Tax Credit maximum deduction to $6,000
• make the child care credit fully refundable for some low-income families
• provide larger tax breaks to employers who provide child care at the workplace
• allow employers to deduct 20 percent of the costs for child care resources and referral services
• create a new tax credit of $2,000 a year for up to three years for any college graduate who specializes in child care and works at least 1,200 hours a year in a child care facility
• encourage employers to institute telecommuting
• provide part time students with access to the Child Care Tax Credit

Rigger was one of six young (under 40) political and policy leaders from across the U. S. selected “to study Korea’s political system, engage in dialogue on international issues, and forge professional relationships and friendships,” according to a press release from The American Council of Young Political Leaders, a not-for-profit based in Washington, D.C.

“We’re running really behind their great technology,” Rigger said of the 100 percent “wired cities” he visited during his trip.

“We’ve got to learn not to assume that the only way to do things is the way we do them,” said Rigger, a member of the Westchester County Democratic Committee and a political consultant for Democratic Congressmen Charles Rangel, D-Harlem, and John Hall, D-Dover Plains.

“The biggest thing that sets us back in the U.S. is that we ask ‘how much’ instead of ‘how do we fix it,’” he said.

While preferable to touch screens, optical scan voting have malfunctioned in many counties throughout the U.S. including in Florida, West Virginia, Michigan and Washington, D.C., says the letter signed by 16 of the 17 Westchester legislators.

“Replacing lever voting machines is very costly,” the letter continues. “It has proved to create voter confusion and may result in the use of machines that could compromise the integrity of future elections.”

In 2002, the federal government enacted the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), which required states to replace older and unreliable voting systems and to insure that voting is accessible to all voters, including those with disabilities.

While Westchester uses lever voting machines, it makes paper ballots available to those with disabilities. The ballots are counted with optical-scanning voting machines.

The State Board of Elections has approved a pilot program to introduce a paper ballot-optical-scan system for all voters in most of the state’s 62 counties. However, there are several holdouts: the five boroughs of New York City, and Nassau, Suffolk and Rockland counties.

Westchester County Legislators Chairman Bill Ryan, D-White Plains, said the board doesn’t oppose implementing a system that incorporates optical scanners if they are used in conjunction with lever voting machines.

It takes up to 82 days for troops stationed overseas to go through the process of voting absentee in New York State – the ballot spends three days with the voter, 72 days in transit, and 7 days being processed by the state Board of Elections, Schumer said.

New York is one of only three states to require the entire absentee voting process to take place by mail. New York is also one of 16 states labeled by the Pew Center on the States as a “No Time to Vote” state, meaning New York does not mail absentee ballots in time for military personnel to vote before the deadline.

The data below, obtained from the state Board of Elections, shows the number of local military absentee voters and their lost votes in 2008.

Hudson Valley military voters requested 3,539 absentee ballots in 2008, but only 2,125 were returned and counted. The other 1,414 ballots or 40 percent were “lost.”

In Westchester County 1,083 military ballots were sent out but only 534 were received and counted in 2008.

In Putnam County 191 military ballots went out but only 96 were received and counted in 2008.

Rockland did better with 295 military ballots sent out and 226 counted in 2008.

The new site is a first step in clearing up the fundraising muddle Ball had when using the same site to raise money for his Assembly campaign and his proposed challenge to U.S. Rep. John Hall, D-Dover Plains.

However, a quick tour of the site shows Ball has yet to follow the letter of the law.

At the bottom of the section called “Calendar of Events” Ball solicits funds but never lists which entity is paying for it. The “paid for by” is required by law so that the money raised can be tracked to know where it’s going

Another filing deadline looms for Ball. Candidates for federal office must now file a personal financial disclosure by May 15.

Until this year, the requirement affected only elected officials. Now candidates for Congress must also comply under the new open government reforms.

He is soliciting contributions for his challenge to U.S. Rep. John Hall, D-Dover Plains, on the same website he has used to raise money for his state Assembly campaign.

A click on contributions at Ball’s ball4ny website, which bears the slogan “Your Voice in Albany,” turns up

Reference: Greg Ball for Congress (Ball4NY)

Campaign finance laws for federal and New York State candidates differ significantly and accounts must remain separate.

Ball did not return a call for comment.

As of this afternoon, there is still no mention of Ball’s candidacy on the Federal Election Commission website nor any filing concerning fundraising for the exploratory committee he formed.

Ball treasurer Maria DiSalvo, a Patterson horsefarm owner, reportedly got confirmation of delivery of Ball’s “statement of organization” today.

That may explain why Ball is nowhere to be found as a candidate on the FEC website. It doesn’t explain why Ball failed to meet an April 15 deadline for filing financial information about his “exploratory” committee.

Ball, R-Patterson, is expected to make the big announcement tomorrow but has been saying for weeks that his exploratory committee didn’t fall under the federal requirement to file once a $5,000 fundraising or spending threshold is reached.

No one wants to say how much Ball has raised or spent. DiSalvo has not returned calls.

But what is known is that Ball has hired some high price consultants to help with his as of yet non-existent campaign.

But the paperwork for the presumed Republican opponent to U.S. Rep. John Hall, D-Dover Plains, is nowhere to be seen, according to Julia Queen, an FEC spokeswoman.

“We do not have a report,” Queen said from Washington, D.C. today. “I checked with public records and we have not received anything from the Clerk of the House.”

It would take no longer than 24 to 48 hours to post the information on the FEC website once it did surface, Queen said.

Candidates who are “exploring” a run for Congress are obliged to file with the FEC once they raise or spend $5,000. No one on Ball’s exploratory committee has been willing to say how fundraising efforts have gone.

But Roll Call is reporting that the Republican state Assemblyman from Patterson has a full consulting team in place. For polling and general consulting, Ball is using Mike DuHaime who ran former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s 2008 presidential campaign and served as political director at the Republican National Committee.

Ball has also hired TV and direct mail fundraising consultants.

The Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act ensures that tenants and families nationwide have at least 90 days to find their next home if they are renting in a building that is foreclosed upon.

“More than 30,000 renters across New York, who dutifully pay their rent on time each month, may face eviction because they live in a building that is about to be foreclosed,” Gillibrand said. “These tenants have almost no rights when a bank seizes their home. Families without the means to find temporary housing or move into another unit can be kicked onto the streets because their landlord failed to meet his or her obligation to pay. This is wrong and I am proud to partner with my colleagues to pass new protections for these families.”

The legislature wants to spend an additional $2 million in watershed funds designated for protecting the drinking water of 9 million people. Bondi vetoed the measure saying it constituted a gift to individual homeowners. To date, 130 such repairs have been made in Putnam at the direction of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection.

The Putnam board also sent a letter to the parties involved in the watershed agreement asking for permission to spend the money.

But the gridlock continues because under Putnam’s Charter the money can’t be spent without Bondi’s agreement.

Members of the task force include local taxpayer watchdog groups, statewide property tax reform groups, and a newly forming Ossining/Briarcliff shared services study group. Other members are school board trustees, municipal trustees, a representative from the office of state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and people from private industry.

At the first meeting, participants said police forces, highway superintendents, purchasing, negotiations, tax assessments and collection and capital expenditures require further study.

Those interested in joining the task force should contact Galef’s Chief of Staff Dana Levenberg at (914) 941-1111 or levenbergd@assembly.state.ny.us.

So Gillibrand has introduced legislation to eliminate the penalty which is a remnant of the Deficit Reduction Act, passed by the Republican Congress and signed into law by President Bush in 2005. That legislation contained a provision requiring states to enact a $25 fee on child support enforcement payments that it collects for single parents.

“While $25 may not sound like a lot of money, for hardworking parents trying to bear the economic recession it can make a big difference,” she said. “For a single parent on a budget, $25 is more than a week’s worth of lunches, diapers or baby formula.”

In the Hudson Valley there are 23,856 single parents who could be forced to pay the penalty this year, Gillibrand said. Of that number 7,541 live in Westchester County, 3,147 live in Rockland and 981 live in Putnam.

Voters under 30 who voted in 2008 increased by about 11 percent, while the number of older voters increased by 3 percent, according to newly released U.S. Census Bureau turnout data.

Between 2004 and 2008, turnout rates among young voters also rose, while those of older age groups remained steady or decreased.

Factors from increased attention paid to young voters by candidates, to the proliferation of technology in the lives of young voters, to a rise in civic engagement among young people, contributed to this surge, said Sujatha Jahagirdar, program director for the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project.

What Ball won’t say is how his fundraising is going.

Ball didn’t file a report with the Federal Election Committee in time to meet its April 15 deadline. But he said it wasn’t necessary because he is still in the exploratory stage.

Federal Election Commission spokeswoman Julia Queen said under the “testing the waters” stipulation filing is required if $5,000 is raised or spent.

But Ball said since he isn’t a candidate yet, it doesn’t apply.

He won’t reveal how much he has raised or spent on his extended “listening tours” across the district that stretches over five counties.

The blitz, which began this week, charges Hall with “endorsing a reckless spending spree in Washington.”

Here’s part of the script urging calls to Hall’s office although Congress is on recess.

Hello I’m calling from the National Republican Congressional Committee with an urgent message. Congressman John Hall and Nancy Pelosi are working together to create a massive budget deficit that could raise taxes…Congressman John Hall let Nancy Pelosi get away with passing a budget with a trillion dollar deficit…it’s been called the most fiscally irresponsible budget in the history of the federal government…..and that is saying a lot..Call Congressman John Hall at 202-225-3121 and tell them to put the brakes on spending. Paid for by The National Republican Congressional Committee. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. W-W-W-dot-N-R-C-C-dot-O-R-G. 320 First Street, southeast Washington, DC 20003. 202-479-7000.

Ball, a two-term assemblyman in the overwhelmingly Democratic body, has yet to announce whether he will take on U.S. Rep. John Hall, D-Dover Plains, who is expected to run for a third term in 2010.

Putnam County Clerk Dennis Sant, Putnam County Legislator Vincent Tamagna, R-Philipstown, Philipstown Highway Superintendent Roger Chirico, and Town Clerk Tina Merando are expected to be on hand at the 9 a.m. event.

That terse statement comes from Shripal Shah, the DCCC’s recently named Northeast Regional Press Secretary, in response to a volley lobbed several hours earlier by Ball’s press people.

“This unusual and early move (the FOIA inquiry) shows that National Democrats consider the potential candidacy of Greg Ball a serious threat,” a Ball staffer wrote.

Last month Ball launched an exploratory committee to pursue a possible challenge against incumbent Congressman John Hall, D-Dover Plains.

Ball bases this conclusion on a Freedom of Information Act request made by the DCCC for his voting, attendance and expenditure records.

“This unusual and early move shows that National Democrats consider the potential candidacy of Greg Ball a serious threat,” a press release from Ball’s office states.

A State Assembly Public Information official confirmed that the request was made.

DCCC officials did not return calls for comment.

The 2008 State of the County address bore the title “Hard Times, Hard Decisions” and announced some layoffs.

No official word on what Bondi will say tomorrow but it’s not expected to be good given the economic melt down.

Bondi is scheduled to address the county legislature and the public at 7 p.m. at the Historic County Courthouse on Gleneida Avenue in Carmel.

While helping families weatherize their homes, the money will also create well-paying jobs throughout the state and nation, Hall said.

Hall was to be joined at 1 p.m. today by Dirk Fields of the Westchester Community Opportunity Program (WESTCOP) and Patrice Courtney of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.

The meeting took place at the Putnam Headquarters of the Westchester Community Opportunity Program (WESTCOP) at 571 North Main St. in Brewster.

An earlier post indicated the meeting would take place Saturday.

Hall says the jobs reports highlight the urgent need for legislation to get the economy back on track. So, he’s organizing a “Telephone Town Hall” to talk about that.

“I want to give every single one of my constituents the opportunity to ask me questions or share their concerns with me,” he said.

The district-wide conference call begins at 6:50 p.m.
To join call 1-877-229-8493 and enter pin number 14618.

Bondi said the lease, which runs in five-year increments, will result in “funding for the longterm development of Tilly Foster.”

The Putnam County Legislature voted 6-3 last week to approve the lease with Whipple’s nonprofit Preserve Putnam.

The group calls on the new administration to close the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay and “end tortue and rendition by the U.S. within the first 100 days.”

They cite this Nov. 16, quote from President-elect Obama,” I have said repeatedly that I intend to close Guantanamo, and I will follow through on that. I have said repeatedly that America doesn’t torture, and I’m going to make sure that we don’t torture.”

No word as to whether Sasha and Malia can see it from their rooms.

On hand to record Barack Obama’s first full day in office was press from around the world.

Here a French reporter interviews an American family.