Government: county

Skip the Straw Law passes UCL!

Posted on by Penny

Chalk up a win for sanity!

On Tuesday May 21, the Ulster County Legislature passed LOCAL LAW NO. 20 of 2018 (A Local Law Requiring Restaurants And Fast Food Service Establishments to Provide Plastic Beverage Straws Solely Upon Request), otherwise known as “Skip the Straw,” 14-7, with all Democrats, plus Heidi Haynes, C-Stone Ridge, and Craig Lopez, R-Shawangunk, voting in favor.

Final approval rests with Pat Ryan, who was sworn in as the new County Executive on June 9.

Ulster People advocated strongly for passage, passing a unanimous resolution in support of the proposed law at our general meeting in May, that was read aloud prior to the Legislature’s vote.

Ulster County banned the use of polystyrene by the food service industry in March 2015 and a ban on single-use plastic bags is scheduled to go into effect in July. In fact, we led the way for the statewide bag ban, which takes effect in March 2020.

Fun fact: Malaysia and the Philippines are among those countries fed up with being our plastic waste dumping ground. Adding insult to injury, we then blame them for polluting our oceans. They’ve decided their best option is to send it back. Hundreds of thousands of tons of plastic waste in thousands of containers are heading back home, back to their countries of origin. Ball’s is whose court?

Skip the Straw isn’t THE answer to the crisis in our oceans, but it’s another small step in the right direction! Nothing wrong with celebrating small victories — as long as we don’t lose sight of the big picture.

If you are feeling brave, check out this heartbreaking video of a chef preparing a fish.

Skip the Straw Law

Posted on by Penny

Not the Last Straw, but a step in the right direction.

On Thursday, May 9, the Ulster County Legislature’s Energy and Environment Committee approved passage of the “Skip the Straw Law”  (Proposed Local Law Number 20 of 2018:  A Local Law Requiring Restaurants And Fast Food Service Establishments Provide Plastic Beverage Straws Solely Upon Request).  The proposed law will be voted on by the full Legislature on Tuesday, May 21. As always, you are invited/encouraged to come make your voices heard.

This law does NOT ban plastic straws!  You can still have your plastic straws – all you have to do is ask.  It is no more than a gentle reminder to businesses and consumers that our oceans are facing a crisis we ignore at great risk.  

According to the Daily Freeman, “reaction to the measure has been split among legislators and the public.”  Some feel it is too autocratic and costly for businesses. Some feel it doesn’t go far enough and should include other single-use plastic items, like stirrers and cutlery.  But, as Majority Leader Jon Heppner pointed out, amending the law would trigger more public hearings, more debate – and more delay. “It’s a step in the right direction.

At Ulster People’s May 20 general meeting, I will be introducing a resolution in support of the Ulster County Legislature’s “Skip the Straw Law.”

Fun fact:  

According to the international Earth Day Network, if we don’t change our ways, by 2025, the oceans will contain one ton of plastic for every three tons of fish. By 2050, we’re looking at an ocean that will be home to more plastic (by weight) than fish.  

Corporations, municipalities, and even national governments are implementing bans on plastic straws.  Starbucks has committed to eliminating them by 2020, thereby eliminating more than a billion straws a year.  So have Hyatt, Hilton American and Alaska Airlines, and Royal Caribbean. The E.U. banned them in April. Seattle and Malibu have banned them in 2018.  San Francisco and New York are considering proposals. And on May 13, Ron DiSantis, the Republican Governor of Florida, vetoed a bill that would have prevented local governments from passing plastic straw bans: the Sanibel, Ft. Myers Beach and Miami Beach plastic straw bans stand!

Another Fun Fact:

Common wisdom says paper straws are 6 to 10 times more expensive than plastic. But public pressure has created new markets for reusable straws made of materials like paper, silicone, stainless steel, glass and bamboo.  And for a disposable alternative: I ordered a 200-Pack of 100% Plant-Based Compostable/Biodegradable Flexible Alternatives for $8.99 (about .7 percent more) from Amazon. Report to follow arrival.

Weigh in on Skip the Straw!

Please consider coming  to the May 21 meeting of the Ulster County Legislature when a vote will be taken on the “Skip the Straw Law.”  You needn’t speak – your presence alone reminds our legislators that we are paying attention and that we care. If you do decide to speak (please do!), remember to show up a few minutes early to sign up.

Ulster People’s next general meeting

(at which I will present my resolution to support the “Skip the Straw Law” to our voting members) will focus on Fair Elections and Comprehensive Campaign Finance Reform at both the state and local levels. It is open to the public.   Please come!

2019 County Comptroller Endorsement Process

Posted on by rebecca

Ulster People for Justice and Democracy is now accepting applications from candidates seeking our endorsement in special election for Ulster County Comptroller.

We ask that candidates seeking our endorsement complete our 2019 Candidate Questionnaire and submit a resumé and candidate bio to runforoffice@ulsterpeople.org by Saturday, June 1.

IMPORTANT: Do NOT attempt to fill out the application form in your web browser. It will not save your answers. Review instructions below.

Our endorsement committee will reach out to candidates to schedule an interview after receiving their questionnaires.

Candidates will also have the opportunity to address our voting membership at a general meeting. Our next meeting is on Monday, May 20 from 6-8 PM in Rosendale. Candidates may request a speaking slot upon submitting their questionnaire.

The committee will make a recommendation based on platform support and viability as a candidate. Final endorsement decisions are determined by a vote of our voting membership. That vote is tentatively scheduled for the evening of Monday, June 24.

Application Form Instructions

First, download the form (right click the link and select “Save As” or “Save Link As”). Do not attempt to fill out the form in your web browser.

After saving the form to your computer, open it with software such as Adobe Acrobat (PC or Mac) or Preview (Mac only). Test that you can save your answers before filling out the entire form.

If you run into any technical difficulties, we encourage you to print out the form and complete it by hand. You can snap a picture of the pages with your phone, or scan the document and send to us. You are welcome to type up answers to the longer questions in a separate document using the word processor of your choice (Word, Google Docs, etc)

Legislative Update: Campaign Finance Reform in Ulster County

Posted on by Penny

Campaign Finance Reform, in various iterations, has been before the Legislature for at least 5 years. Why hasn’t it passed yet?

In June of 2018 Democrats took a majority in the county legislature for the first time since Ulster People’s founding. Our organization was hopeful that some legislation we’ve long advocated for would finally be passed. At the top of our list was comprehensive campaign finance reform. But with two Democratic proposals on the table, Democratic infighting has stalled any progress.

Trying (and Failing) to Make Sense of the Stalemate

During Ulster People’s endorsement interview with Kathy Nolan (incumbent candidate for Ulster County Legislature District 22), we asked about the status of the campaign finance reform bill she introduced in the legislature (Proposed Local Law 16 of 2018).

Nolan expressed deep frustration that her bill and another similar one, sponsored by Dave Donaldson (Proposed Local Law No. 21 of 2018) had been held hostage in the Laws and Rules Committee, which Donaldson chairs, with no resolution in sight.  Donaldson promised a sub-committee, but it was never formed. Public hearings on the bills were postponed nine times.

That is truly a sorry state of affairs.

Showing UP

At Kathy’s suggestion, I attended the April 15 meeting of the Laws and Rules Committee.  Donaldson was not there and Kevin Roberts, as deputy, chaired the meeting. Other committee members present were Jon Heppner, Hector Rodriguez and Ken Ronk.  Kathy also came. Roberts gave me permission to speak. (I did so as an individual, not as a representative of UP because we had not yet discussed the issue formally and come to any conclusions about our position.)  So I simply told the gathering that campaign finance reform was a serious concern to me and to many of my friends, that I was not speaking in favor of either of the two bills, but that I felt that the delays had gone on for way too long and it was time to get this sorted and passed.

To my astonishment, everyone took out their calendars, a sub-committee was convened on the spot and a date was set for a preliminary meeting four days later.  Public invited.

Finally, Some Movement

Four UP members attended that first meeting (Ed Kowalewski, Elisa Tucci, Todd Wolgamuth and myself).

It was largely organizational.  A draft of the proposed legislation for circulation to all the legislators is planned for June 13th and a June 26th resolution deadline was set, with a floor vote of the full legislature planned for July (before everyone gets too involved with the budget).  Between now and then, the sub-committee will meet 4 more times (May 2, May 16, May 30 and June 13). Public invited.

This is a tremendous opportunity for Ulster People to take part in a decision-making process that will profoundly affect how our local democracy functions.  

Make Your Voice Heard

The next sub-committee meetings are on May 16, May 30, and June 13th from 6-8 PM at the Ulster County Office Building, 6th Floor. These meetings are open to the public, and we encourage you to attend and make your voice heard!

What’s At Stake

At issue:

  • What cap will be placed on spending limits?
  • How do we define “minimum” and “small”? To qualify for the program, candidates must collect a “minimum” number of “small” donations from the community they seek to represent.  This both encourages engagement between voters and candidates who seek to represent them and ensures that a campaign relies on local support, not special interests or out-of-district influence. Both minimum and small need to be defined.
  • The ratio at which contributions will be matched needs to be established.  Will it be 1:1, 3:1, 6:1? Consider the impact of a $10 donation becoming a $20 donation (1:1).  Now consider a $10 donation becoming a $70 donation (6:1). 6:1 is obviously a far more substantive amplification.  (NYC’s model uses 8:1 and, at our last general meeting, Ulster People discussed a 5 or 6:1 was a good place to start our negotiation.)

When enacted, comprehensive finance reform will:

  • establish the amount of public funding available for qualifying candidates who opt into the program;
  • place limits on contributions from individuals or groups;
  • set strict limits on contributions from appointees;
  • and set the total amount of public money to be set aside to fund the program and how it will be administered and overseen.

For a deeper dive into these issues, check out the Brennan Center for Justice’s whitepaper The Case for Small Donor Public Financing in New York.

Comprehensive Campaign Finance Reform should be passed NOW. To fail would be a tragic missed opportunity. We can help make that happen.

Learn more about campaign finance reform at our general meeting on May 20

Ulster People’s next general meeting will be on the topic of Fair Elections & Campaign Finance reform. Joan Mandle, a former Colgate Professor who has been involved in the issue for 20 years, will update us on the dysfunction in Albany. County Legislator Kathy Nolan will discuss her comprehensive campaign finance bill for Ulster County.

The Ulster People voting membership will also consider a resolution in support of passing small donor public matching funds legislation in Ulster County.

Join Our County Legislature Observers Group

The Ulster County Legislature (UCL) Observers Working Group attends Ulster County Legislative and standing committee meetings and reports back to our larger body. Our attendance at the Legislature’s regular sessions, at committee meetings and at scheduled public hearings is seen by our endorsed candidates as support and is much appreciated. It’s also a great way to find out what is on their agenda and get to know the individuals who represent us. Please consider going!

Upcoming meetings of the Ulster County Legislature

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Ulster People endorses 12 candidates for Ulster County Legislature!

Posted on by rebecca

Our County Legislature makes decisions that affect our daily lives—from infrastructure, policing, and public health, to our environment, economy, and rights. Ulster People is proud to endorse 12 candidates for Ulster County Legislature (UCL) who, if elected, will shift the balance of power and make real change possible:

  • A thriving and inclusive local economy that supports ALL our residents.
  • Protection of the rights and well-being of the most vulnerable among us.
  • A healthy, sustainable environment for now and generations to come.

Ulster People is pleased to announce our endorsement of:

  • John Schoonmaker – District 2 (Saugerties)
  • Abe Uchitelle – District 5 (City of Kingston)
  • Peter Criswell – District 7 (City of Kingston)
  • Laura Petit† – District 8 (Espous)
  • Mici Simonofsky – District 11 (Marlborough)
  • Betty Diorio – District 12 (Plattekill)
  • Adriana Magaña – District 14 (Shawangunk/Wawarsing)
  • Julius Collins† – District 15 (Town of Wawarsing, Village of Ellenville)
  • Carolyn Hansen – District 18 (Town of Hurley, Town of Marbletown)
  • Manna Jo Greene† –District 19 (Town of Marbletown, Town of Rosendale)
  • Eve Walter – District 20 (Town of New Paltz, Village of New Paltz)
  • Kathy Nolan† – District 22 (Towns of Denning, Hardenburgh, Olive, Shandaken)

†Incumbent

Anyone who wished to seek the group’s endorsement, regardless of party, was asked to complete a questionnaire which was reviewed by the Ulster People screening committee. If the responses showed a strong alignment between the candidate’s views and actions and Ulster People’s platform, candidates were invited to interview with the screening committee, after which, the committee voted to recommend endorsement (or not). Candidates were also given an opportunity to address the membership of Ulster People at a general meeting. The voting members of Ulster People made the final endorsement decisions.

About Our Endorsement Process

Any candidate who wished to seek the group’s endorsement, regardless of party, was asked to complete a questionnaire. An endorsement committee comprised of voting members reviewed the questionnaires. If the responses showed a strong alignment between the candidate’s views and actions and Ulster People’s platform, candidates were invited to interview with the endorsement committee, after which, the committee voted to recommend endorsement (or not). The voting members of Ulster People made the final endorsement decisions. A candidate must receive the support of at least two-thirds of all voting members to receive an endorsement.

Ulster People may consider additional endorsements for county legislature at our May meeting.

Getting on the Ballot in NY State Part 2: Caucus or Petition?

Posted on by Penny

This post is an excerpt from our forthcoming The Ulster County Electoral Field Guide, developed by Ulster People Vice Chair Penny Coleman. We have done our best to ensure its accuracy as of March 2019.

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Getting on the Ballot: Caucus or Petition

Party nomination of candidates for elective office is made at either a party caucus or in a primary election.  In Ulster County, petitioning is used for all state and county-wide offices, legislative seats, and some town offices.  If more than one candidate from the same party submits enough valid petition signatures, there will also be a primary election.  The City of Kingston and the Towns of Woodstock and New Paltz have switched to petition, but in other towns the caucus is still used.

Continue reading “Getting on the Ballot in NY State Part 2: Caucus or Petition?” →

Getting on the Ballot in NY State Part 1: Background

Posted on by Penny
Getting on the Ballot in New York State - Part I: Background

This post is an excerpt from our forthcoming The Ulster County Electoral Field Guide, developed by Ulster People Vice Chair Penny Coleman. We have done our best to ensure its accuracy as of March 2019.

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New York’s Election Laws (Background)

Election laws and procedures are different everywhere you go in the U.S. and at every level of federal, state and local government.  The way things are done in Ulster County might be similar to the way things are done in Columbia or Green, but don’t count on it. It’s always best to make sure you understand what the specific local rules are for the office you are seeking. Check with the BOE and never assume that what was true for last year’s election will be true for the next.

Image by Let NY Vote

Some background on New York State Election Politics:

If you think voting restrictions are only a southern shame, think again.  New Yorkers have endured some of the most restrictive voting rights laws, and consequently one of the worst records on voter turnout, in the country.  In 2016, we ranked 41st in voter turnout. That was an improvement over 2014, when we ranked 49th, with only 27% of eligible voters making it to the polls.

Continue reading “Getting on the Ballot in NY State Part 1: Background” →

Nominate Someone to Run for Local Office!

Action Deadline: March 15, 2019


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Do you have a friend, family member, co-worker or neighbor who you think would make a great candidate? Nominate them to run for local office!

We are looking for leaders who genuinely represent their community. We are especially eager to support candidates who are women, people of color, and come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

A lot of the best candidates aren’t seeking the spotlight — they might have not even considered running for office before. Your nomination could plant the seed of something great.

Supporting First Time Candidates

Running for office can be intimidating, especially if you don’t have access to wealthy donors and political insiders. Ulster People is working to change that. Our volunteers have years of collective experience working on local campaigns in Ulster County, and we’ve developed materials designed to quickly bring first-time, grassroots candidates get up to speed.

2019 is the Year to Build Our Bench

This November in Ulster County, all 23 county legislative seats are up for election. Many other local offices are also on the ballot. If we care about building a more diverse and energetic bench of politicians, this is the year we need to do. the. work.

But because of New York State’s recent primary consolidation (overall, a good thing!), the time frame for deciding to run and get on the ballot has been greatly condensed from past years. We have less time to recruit great candidates, which makes your nominations all the more important!

Run For Local Office

Action Deadline: April 4, 2019


People are waking up to national politics — how about local?

Every month, our 23 Ulster County legislators make decisions that matter: about justice, our environment, our economy, and how we treat the most vulnerable among us.

This November, all 23 county legislative seats are up for election. Other local offices are also on the ballot.

This is our moment to make real change at the local level. Now is the time to learn about your legislator, research their voting record, and make sure they represent your values. If you feel your legislator doesn’t represent you, perhaps you would consider running yourself – or maybe you know of a friend or neighbor who would make a great candidate?

A Quick Look at the Job of an
Ulster County Legislator

Every two years, on odd-numbered years, we elect 23 “legislators” to serve as our representatives in the Ulster County Legislature— the legislative, appropriating and policy-determining body of our county. Our legislators make a lot of decisions that impact our daily lives— maybe it’s a job for YOU!

Who can be a county legislator?
Any registered voter can run for the office of county legislator, as long as she or he lives in the district they seek to represent and don’t hold any other elective public office.

What does a county legislator do, in a nutshell?

  • Enacts, amends, or rescinds local laws and resolutions.
  • Sets our county government’s administrative policies.
  • Approves the county budget and authorizes spending of our county tax dollars.
  • Decides the compensation and benefits of county employees.
  • Approves county contracts.
  • Responds to constituent concerns.

What does the job look like, day-to-day?

  • Legislators attend a LOT of meetings. In addition to the monthly legislative session, they typically serve on at least two standing committees, some advisory committees, and they caucus with fellow legislators in advance of regular sessions.
  • Legislators read and study documents. Many documents. Hundreds of documents.
  • Legislators debate and discuss things with allies, opponents, and everyone in between.
  • Legislators spend time out in public, hearing from constituents, talking to the press, joining in community activities.

What’s the pay and what are the hours?
Legislators make $14,000 per year plus the option of health insurance coverage. They also have the opportunity to build up savings through contributing to the NYS retirement system. Legislators work mostly on weekdays and weeknights (and occasionally weekends) and the number of hours worked each week varies widely from legislator to legislator for a variety of reasons.

How do you get the job?
You CAMPAIGN for it, and that’s practically another job in itself—the job of candidate. Successful candidates, in addition to having the skills to be a legislator: (1) have the time and enthusiasm to knock on doors and make phone calls just about every day; (2) have a good personal network and are able to put together a team to help reach out to voters; (3) have a clear message about who they are and why they are running; (4) can secure endorsements of political parties and organizations, and (5) can raise enough money to win (an estimated average of $10,000 for a county legislator race).

If you support the Ulster People platform and think this sounds like it might be a job for you, we’d like to hear from you! Email us at runforoffice@ulsterpeople.org for more information or apply for an endorsement.

Timeline of the Ulster County Legislature
2019 Election

Mid-February
Parties hold Nominating Conventions
February 26, 2019
First day to start circulation designating Petitions for Co. Legislature
April 4, 2019
Last day to file designating Petitions with UC Board of Elections
May 31, 2019
Last day to mail in or register in-person voter registration form to vote in primary
June 25, 2019
Primary • Noon to 9 PM
October 11, 2019
Last day to mail in or register in-person voter registration form to vote in General Election
November 5, 2019
Election Day • 6 AM to 9 PM

How To Find Your County Legislative District

  1. Visit the Ulster Board of Election’s Polling Place Lookup
  2. Enter Your Information & click “Lookup”
  3. Your County Legislative District is listed under the heading “Related Jurisdictions”
  4. Look up your legislator by district at the Ulster County website

About Ulster People for Justice & Democracy

“We need to start engaging at the local and state level in an unprecedented way. Hundreds of thousands of volunteers helped us make political history during the last year. These are people deeply concerned about the future of our country and their own communities. Now we need many of them to start running for school boards, city councils, county commissions, state legislatures and governorships. State and local governments make enormously important decisions and we cannot allow right-wing Republicans to increasingly control them.”

Bernie Sanders, June 16 2016

Ulster People for Justice & Democracy is platform-based political organization, independent of any party, that evolved out of the grassroots group Ulster County Volunteers for Bernie (aka Ulster4Bernie).

As Ulster4Bernie, we coordinated the petitioning effort in CD-19 to get Senator Bernie Sanders on the NYS Primary ballot and secured more signatures than any other Congressional District in New York (February, 2016) and sent two delegates for Bernie to the 2016 Democratic National Convention (July, 2016). We then elected one of those delegates to represent the 103rd Assembly District on the New York State Democratic Committee (September, 2016).

Now as Ulster People for Justice & Democracy, we aspire to bring the energy, enthusiasm and practical experience honed on the Bernie campaign to answer Bernie’s call to “start engaging at the local and state level in an unprecedented way.”

Our Endorsement Process

Local candidates for public office seeking to receive the endorsement of Ulster People should fill out our Local Candidate Endorsement Questionnaire. Our screening committee will contact you following receipt of the questionnaire. The committee will make a recommendation based on platform support and viability as a candidate. Final endorsement decisions are determined by a vote of our voting membership.

2019 County Legislature Endorsement Process

Posted on by Endorsements Committee

We are pleased to announce that Ulster People for Justice and Democracy is now accepting applications from candidates seeking our 2019 endorsement in county legislature races.

We ask that county legislature candidates seeking our endorsement complete our 2019 Candidate Questionnaire and submit a resumé and candidate bio to runforoffice@ulsterpeople.org by Friday, March 31.

IMPORTANT: Do NOT attempt to fill out the application form in your web browser. It will not save your answers. Review instructions below.

Our steering committee will reach out to candidates to schedule an interview after receiving their questionnaires. The first round of interviews are tentatively scheduled for March 6, 9, and 10. Candidates are encouraged to submit their questionnaires as soon as possible as interview slots are first-come, first-serve.

Candidates will also have the opportunity to address our voting membership at general meetings. Our next meeting is on Monday, March 11 from 6-8 PM in Rosendale. We can accommodate up to six candidates. Candidates may request a slot upon submitting their questionnaire. These slots are also first-come, first-serve. At the following general meeting, on April 8, candidate presentations may be limited to candidates who receive the recommendation of our endorsement committee.

The committee will make a recommendation based on platform support and viability as a candidate. Final endorsement decisions are determined by a vote of our voting membership. That vote is tentatively scheduled for the evening of Monday, April 8.

Application Form Instructions

First, download the form (right click the link and select “Save As” or “Save Link As”). Do not attempt to fill out the form in your web browser.

After saving the form to your computer, open it with software such as Adobe Acrobat (PC or Mac) or Preview (Mac only). Test that you can save your answers before filling out the entire form.

If you run into any technical difficulties, we encourage you to print out the form and complete it by hand. You can snap a picture of the pages with your phone, or scan the document and send to us. You are welcome to type up answers to the longer questions in a separate document using the word processor of your choice (Word, Google Docs, etc)