Queens Gazette

On the brief side…

Cohen Issues Info On Absentee Ballots






On the brief side…


On the brief side…


Cohen Issues Info On Absentee Ballots


Absentee ballots cast in the presidential primary elections on March 2, must be received no later than March 9 in order to be counted, Assemblymember Michael Cohen said.


Cohen (D–Forest Hills) says voting by absentee ballot is a two-step process. Anyone planning to vote by absentee ballot must first apply to the Board of Elections for one. Once the board approves the application, a ballot will be mailed. It must be completed and sent back to the board, Cohen said.


Cohen said the application must be postmarked by February 24. The actual ballot must be postmarked by March 1 and has to be received at the Board of Elections by March 9, he added.


Applications can be obtained by contacting the Board of Elections at (866) 863-3692.


"I encourage anyone planing to apply for an absentee ballot to do so as soon as possible to ensure that their vote is counted," Cohen said.


Monserrate Offers Help To Get Tax Credit


City Councilmember Hiram Monserrate announced on Monday that his office is offering free tax preparation to help eligible residents apply for the little known Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) that the federal government offers to low-income people.


Monserrate said he was making the offer to provide an alternative to high-fee commercial tax preparers. These preparers, he said, "pocket most of low income families’ refunds by aggressively marketing instant refund loans with interest rates from 97 percent to 2,000 percent."


The EITC is available to low-income working families and legal immigrants, Monserrate said. He added that millions of dollars go unclaimed each year because people don’t know they’re eligible for the EITC and don’t apply.


Monserrate’s office is located at the corner of 99th Street and 41st Avenue in Corona; telephone 718-205-3881.


Avella, Plumbers Assist IS 67


When City Councilmember Tony Avella learned that IS 67 in his district needed financial assistance for a computer service contract, he turned to the Plumbing Foundation for assistance, which came through with a $1,900 donation.


Avella (D–Bayside) said the funds enabled the school to secure a service contract with Computer Logic for the remainder of the school year to service the computers in the school’s computer lab.


Avella explained, "some of the computers were not functioning, delaying the progress of computer classes and obviously impeding the students’ ability to conduct research via the Internet."


Richard Farrell, chair of the Plumbing Foundation, said when Avella brought IS 67’s need to their attention, "We responded as quickly and as generously as we were able." He said when he met the students, teachers, school officials and parents to present the $1,900 check, "it confirmed our belief in the worthiness of the donation."


Vallone Announces Transit Lines Changes


With the completion of major renovations in subway lines on the Manhattan Bridge, service schedules for the N and W subway lines which serve Astoria have been set, City Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr. announced. The new enhanced service is as follows,:


The N runs at all times between Gravesend–86th Street in Brooklyn to Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard. Weekdays, N trains run express between 59th Street in Brooklyn and 34th Street/Herald Square in Manhattan, stop at 49th Street to serve Rockefeller Center. Weekends N trains make local stops between Canal Street and Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard.


Late nights N trains do not travel over the Manhattan Bridge. The trains make all local stops in lower Manhattan via Whitehall Street.


The W train runs weekdays between Whitehall Street and Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard. There is no service on weekends and late at night.


The W makes all stops between Astoria and Whitehall Street.


Padavan Attempts To End ‘Late Budgets’


The state Senate has enacted the Budget Reform Act of 2004, sponsored by Senator Frank Padavan (R–C, Bellerose) to try to end the longstanding practice of budgets passed after the deadline in New York state.


"We all recognize the dysfunction in the current budgeting process and the shortcomings of our fiscal calendar," Padavan stated. He said he hoped the Assembly would pass the bill.


The Padavan bill sets up an October 15–May 1 schedule for adopting a budget. The present start of the fiscal year is April 1.


The schedule is as follows:


•October 15—agencies submit individual preliminary budget requests to governor and legislature.


•November 15—senate, assembly and governor start three-way discussions to project expenditures for Medicaid, school aid and other costs.


•January 15—governor must make early submission of executive budget.


•March 1—three-way agreement on revenue forecasts required "clearing a major stumbling block for an on–time budget." If all sides fail to agree, the state comptroller is authorized to provide a binding forecast of tax, lottery and fee revenues within five days.


•March 16—Both houses must pass budget resolutions by March 15; General Budget Conference Committee would meet March 16 to establish spending parameters for individual service areas.


May 1—new start of fiscal year to provide adequate time for analysis and discussion of budget proposals.






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