Israel will not run for re-election

From New York Magazine:

Long Island Democrat Steve Israel announced that he will not run for reelection this year, bringing his 15 years in Congress to an end. He said in a statement that he was excited to pursue "new passions and develop new interests, mainly spend more time writing my second novel" and about "spending more time home and frequenting my beloved New York diners." He chaired the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee during the last two election cycles, which means he is well acquainted with the factors that make a seat hard to win. His district is currently rated a toss-up.

Artificial turf may cause childhood cancer

From CBS 2:

CBS2 first reported last January on concerns over artificial turf playing fields being a potential danger to kids.

Now in a CBS2 investigation, Carolyn Gusoff has found these fields may be linked to a growing number of cancer cases in young athletes.

Experts said the bad things in question include a number of chemicals.

“We know some of these chemicals do cause cancer,” said Dr. Robert Cohen of Northwestern Medicine.

Now, the issue is building steam — from New Jersey to Long Island and even New York City, where there are hundreds of similar fields.

“These are many years that children are playing on this surface, and they’re growing up on this surface, and now, we’re seeing throughout the country these cancer clusters,” said New York City Parks Advocates President Geoffrey Croft.

Croft said he has been petitioning the city to remove the 200-plus crumb rubber fields currently in local parks.

But the Synthetic Turf Council, which represents the companies that make the fields, insists the substance is safe. They cited 60 studies.

One of the studies cited was conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency, which examined four crumb rubber fields in 2009 and found that harmful chemicals were “below levels of concern.”

But Long Island U.S. Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) said the EPA study is in adequate.

“Common sense tells us that four fields is not an adequate sample in an entire country,” he said.

Israel insisted that the agency should do more testing.

“The only way we’re going to know whether these fields are truly safe or unsafe is for the EPA to get its act together, and update the study, and let the American people know so that they can make their own judgments,” Israel said.

In a statement, the EPA acknowledged its original study was limited, and that more testing needs to be done. But the agency did not commit to doing it.

Candidates Forum for U.S. Congress, 3rd District of NY

Video of Candidates Forum held August 26, 2014 by Bay Terrace Community Alliance, moderated by Warren Schreiber and Phil Konigsberg. Copyright 2014 LoScalzo Media Design LLC. All rights reserved.

Steve Israel endorses Avella

From the Observer:

Congressman Steve Israel, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, has endorsed State Senator Tony Avella’s re-election bid, Mr. Avella’s campaign announced today.

Mr. Israel, a Long Island-based congressman who represents a chunk of eastern Queens that overlaps with Mr. Avella’s district, said the Queens Democrat worked closely with him since Mr. Israel recently began representing Queens.

“When Congressional redistricting brought me to Queens, Senator Avella was one of the first elected officials to reach out,” Mr. Israel said in a statement. “He partnered with me on combating airplane noise, fighting for our veterans and standing up for New York’s middle-class families. I’ve seen firsthand his relentless work ethic and dedication to his district. For these reasons, I endorse Tony Avella’s candidacy.”

Douglaston wants better transportation

From Bayside Patch:

A bevy of elected officials representing northeast Queens are calling on the city to increase bus service to Douglaston and add more bus stops in the community.

Currently, the last express morning bus leaves the community at 7:45 a.m. As a result, many Douglaston residents living south of the Long Island Expressway have limited commuting options.

"There aren't enough bus lines serving the neighborhood," U.S. Rep. Steve Israel, D-Great Neck said. "We want additional bus stops and our fair share of federal funding"

Israel and state Assemblywoman Nily Rozic, D-Fresh Meadows, want to see an increase in funding for the Federal Transit Authority Bus and Bus Facilities Grant, which pays to replace, rehabilitate and purchase buses and construct bus stops.

Weekend voting proposed

From Bayside Patch:

Three elected officials representing northeast Queens at the state and federal level are calling for Election Day to be moved from a Tuesday to a weekend.

U.S. Rep. Steve Israel, D-Great Neck, has joined state Sen. Tony Avella, D-Bayside, and state Assemblyman Edward Braunstein, D-Bayside, in calling for Election Day from the first Tuesday to the weekend after the first Friday in November.

Israel said moving the day would make it more convenient for voters and increase voter turnout.

“Many eligible voters won’t exercise their right to vote due to the inconvenience of Election Day falling on a Tuesday,” Israel said. “Our democracy will be best served when our leaders are elected by as many Americans as possible.”

Congress initially decided in 1845 that voting on a Tuesday made sense because it made it easier for farmers to get to the polls.

The Weekend Voting Act would allow for national polls to be open from 10 a.m. (Eastern time) on a Saturday to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

FAA rule change will make things more noisy

From CBS New York:

Local officials warn noise from airplanes over Queens could get worse if the federal government goes forward with a rule change.

As WCBS 880′s Alex Silverman reported, complaints about airplane noise are nothing new in Queens.

“You can’t hear yourself think because every time it stops, it starts again,” one resident said.

The Federal Aviation Administration is planning to change its rules so it can change flight plans without any environmental review.

The rule change will lead to more noise pollution for Queens and Nassau County, Rep. Steve Israel said.

“This is a bad rule for our quality of life, it’s a bad rule for our environment, it’s a bad rule for people who live in the vicinity of New York’s airports,” Israel said.

The congressman also relabeled the FAA “The Federal Arrogant Administration.”

The lawmakers have written a letter to the FAA asking the John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia airports are excluded from the new rules.

The public has two weeks left to comment on the impending rule change.

Queens residents can send comments through Sept. 30 by logging onto http://www.regulations.gov. They can also fax comments to the FAA at 202-493-2251 or mail them to: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue S.E., Washington, D.C. 20590-0001.

Looking to reduce airport noise

From the Daily News:

Queens elected officials are urging the FAA to redesign flight patterns to curb aircraft noise around its two airports.

The Federal Aviation Administration changed flight patterns at LaGuardia and JFK Airports about a year ago, prompting a new round of complaints among neighbors.

Reps. Grace Meng (D-Queens) and Steve Israel (D-Queens, Long Island) sent a letter to the FAA this week requesting a meeting with the head of the agency to discuss the concerns.

“The noise is a very serious problem. It is disruptive,” Israel told the Daily News on Wednesday. “The FAA must take into consideration vital community feedback and consider redesigning new flight patterns.”

State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) said the FAA is in for the fight of its life.

“Giving the FAA almost carte blanche is simply wrong,” said Avella, who would also like to see an environmental impact statement done on the flight pattern changes. “We’re not going to let this go.”
His office is in the process of setting up a community meeting with FAA officials for March 14.

Were co-ops left out in the cold by FEMA?

From the Times Ledger:

Co-op owners in northeast Queens said they felt discriminated against when it came to seeking federal aid in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.

In Glen Oaks Village, more than half of the 134 buildings suffered roof damage to rack up a bill of about $25,000, according to co-op President Bob Friedrich. But after approaching the Federal Emergency Management Agency for grant money, Friedrich said a misinterpretation of fine print left his neighborhood ineligible for aid.

He said FEMA classified Glen Oaks Village as a business association, which qualifies for loans but not federal grant money, and in turn discriminates against the 3,000 families who inhabit the neighborhood.

“This is really an issue of fairness and equity,” Friedrich said. “Our residents are paying for FEMA like everybody else. Yet we are not eligible for the aid.”

Elected officials who represent the region stood beside northeast Queens co-op and condo owners at a Tuesday press conference at Glen Oaks Village to demand revisions on how FEMA classifies homeowners.

According to FEMA spokesman Ed Conley, the agency doles out grant money to individual residents living in co-ops depending mostly on agreements between homeowners and the community associations that oversee them.

“In any county with a major disaster declaration, individual homeowners or renters with damages to their individual units from Superstorm Sandy are eligible to apply for FEMA assistance, and we urge them to do so,” he said. “This includes residents living in co-ops. However, FEMA’s Individual Assistance program is authorized to grant assistance funds only to individuals or households, not business associations such as co-op boards.”

In addition, Conley said grant money only goes toward emergency repairs to make homes livable, which does not include roof shingle damage similar to that reported in Glen Oaks.

“We are looking at what we need to do to get you in a livable housing situation,” Conley said. “Getting people into a livable space would mean repairs to the kitchen, a bathroom or a bedroom — not to replace everything that was lost or destroyed.”

Meanwhile, any property owned by the co-op association, such as a roof classified as common property, must go through to the United States Small Business Association to receive repair loans, according to SBA Public Affairs Specialist Michael Peacock.

Election update

All the Democrats in Queens won.

The end.

Crowley actually in a competitive race for once!

From the NY Post:

The race is on between Democrat Reps. Joe Crowley and Steve Israel to be the next chairman of the House Democrats' campaign arm -- testing the longtime friendship of the two ambitious New York politicians.

"They are both looking to move up," a Democratic insider on Capitol Hill said. "They are both very well connected over there" at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC).

Crowley (D-Queens/Bronx) and Israel (D-LI) are angling for the job in the usual way: showing off their fund-raising prowess.

As vice chairman for finance, Crowley has raked in $7.3 million for the committee so far in the 2010 election cycle, according to a recent DCCC report.

The only members to collect more campaign cash for the committee are House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) with $27 million, and the current DCCC chairman, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), with $9.4 million. Israel, who heads up the committee's recruitment drive, raised $1.6 million.

Israel -- outranked and out-fund-raised by Crowley -- has built a reputation for aggressive fund-raising inside members' districts. And he has showered about $85,000 from his personal campaign account on a host of Democratic candidates.

He also has an ace in the hole: The top staff position at the DCCC, executive director, is held by John Vogel, who early in his political career served as Israel's campaign finance director.

Of course, Crowley didn't get to be one of four DCCC vice chairmen without getting close to Pelosi and Van Hollen. As one Crowley ally put it: "He talks to the speaker often."

Unlike other leadership posts, which are filled by caucus votes, the next DCCC chairman will be handpicked by the speaker.