WCDO Radio News

Governor Cuomo today announced that GEICO is the first insurance company in New York State to complete the certification process through the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles to allow customers to begin using electronic identification cards on their smart phones and other electronic devices. At the Governor’s direction, DMV amended its regulations in April 2015 to allow insurance companies to issue e-cards to their customers. This new feature will be available to New York customers on the GEICO app starting tomorrow.

The Cancer Services Program of Delaware, Otsego and Schoharie counties will offer free health screenings to women 40 and older who are uninsured or underinsured, today from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM at Family Planning of Oneonta, 37 Dietz Street. Appointments can be made at 1-888-345-0225.

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman today announced that his office reached an agreement with Don’s Automotive Mall in Binghamton to resolve an investigation that revealed that the company was selling salvaged automobile airbags in violation of New York State law. Don's agreed that they would not sell any salvaged airbags without first complying with the law, New York requires anyone attempting to sell inflatable restraint systems salvaged from another vehicle to have it first certified according to standards established by a nationally recognized testing, engineering and research body approved by the DMV. Currently there are no approved standards from the State of New York, the sale of all salvaged airbags illegal.

State Senator Jim Seward announced that he is sponsoring a pair of free senior scam prevention forums in Oneonta and Cooperstown on Friday. Senator Seward is partnering with the State Department of State to notify senior citizens, caregivers, and others about the alarming trend of senior targeted scams. The forums will take place on Friday from 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon at the Elm Park Church, 401 Chestnut Street in Oneonta & from 2:00 to 4:00 PM at the Cooperstown Village Offices, 22 Main Street in Cooperstown. The forums are free and open to the public.

Oneonta Mayor Gary Herzig has called a special meeting of the Oneonta Common Council today from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at City Hall. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the city's 2016 Budget; the meeting is open to the public.

Governor Cuomo today announced that 8,132 dangerous drivers have been kept off the road during the last three years as result of tough regulations implemented in 2012. Since the measures went into effect three years ago, the DMV has permanently denied licenses to: 1,792 people for accumulating 5 or more alcohol or drug-related driving convictions in their lifetime. 2,515 people for having three or four alcohol or drug-related driving convictions in the last 25 years, plus at least one other serious driving offense during that period. The DMV has denied licenses to 3,825 drivers for an additional five years after revocation due to three or four alcohol or drug-related convictions but no serious driving offense in the last 25 years.

The Oneonta department of public service announced that they will be flushing water mains on the low service in the west end of the city. The affected areas will be along Chestnut streets and all other streets west of Clinton Street, included the city operated system into the Town of Oneonta. Water color & pressure may be affected during the flushing period, which will run for 2 weeks starting today.

Oneonta Police responded to the Town House Motor Inn Monday following the report of a disturbance. Police said that an infant suffered serious injuries, they arrested 29-year-old Heather Wright of Oneonta for 2nd degree assault, & endangering the welfare of a child, as the baby suffered injuries between Wright & 1 other person, Wright was being held pending arraignment in the City of Oneonta Court.

The State Attorney General's office will be doing a presentation on "Senior Scams" On Wednesday, October 14, 2015 at 2:00 PM at St. James Manor, in Oneonta. This event is open to the public, RSVP are requested by emailing shelly@otsegocc.com or by calling 432-4500 extension 207.

Governor Cuomo issued a warning to college students returning for the fall semester that purchasing fake IDs is not only illegal, but also increases the chances of becoming a victim of identify fraud. Investigators from the State DMV have found dozens of examples of underage license holders becoming victims of identity theft after purchasing fraudulent identification online from overseas companies. According to the Federal Trade Commission, 18% of identity theft victims were ages 20 to 29; about 6% were 19 years old or younger, these age groups are less likely to regularly track bank account and credit card activity, pay for identity theft monitoring services, and use discretion when sharing information on social media. Nearly 16,000 identity theft complaints were logged last year in New York State.

The Oneonta Job Corps Academy & Dicks's Sporting Goods will team up for the 2nd annual Community Ballgame tonight in Oneonta. Job Corps spokesperson Lynn Price Explains:

(Lynn Price 8-26-15)

Price said that there would also be music, giveaways and a fireworks display by CHP International, CHP actively recruits local youth to job corp nationwide.

The City Of Oneonta Will be painting the deck of the Pedestrian Bridge Adjoining the 2nd level of the parking garage to the Main Street arcade walkway beginning Monday morning, The bridge will be closed all day Monday & Tuesday, during that time, main street can be accessed from the Muller Park Stairs of by lower Chestnut Street. More information is available at 432-6465.

Governor Cuomo today announced that the new, redesigned NASCAR license plate series will be available to order at the Cheez-It 355 at Watkins Glen International, taking place this weekend. Representatives from the State DMV will be on hand at the race to provide customer service, including to help visitors order the custom plates, renew their registrations, assist with address changes, schedule road and vision tests, and complete web transactions. Details are available at dmv.ny.gov.

The Republican committees in the 52 State Senate District have announced that Broome County Under sheriff Fred Akshar will be their candidate for the special election to fill that seat. A special election was necessary following the conviction on federal charges & subsequent expulsion of long time Republican Senator Tom Libous of Binghamton, Democrats have already announced that former Broome County Executive & Former State DMV Commissioner Barbara Fiala will be their candidate.

The Oneonta Common Council will hold their next meeting this evening. The meeting will get underway at 7:00 PM this evening in the 2nd floor chambers in city hall.

Certified child safety seat technicians will conduct free child safety sat checks in Oneonta this afternoon. The event will beheld from 3:00 to 6:00 PM in the parking lot at Home Depot on State Route 28. More information is available at 547-4230.

Former Broome County Executive & former State DMV Commissioner Barbara Fiala is the first to announce a possible run for the vacated 52nd state senate district seat. Fiala already received the endorsement from Governor Cuomo, for the seat vacated by the conviction on federal charges of Tom Libous this week, the conviction automatically removed Libous from the Senate seat that he occupied since 1988.

Oneonta Acting Mayor Maureen Hennessy has called a special meeting for Saturday morning at City Hall. The meeting will begin at 9:00 AM in the common council chambers on the 2nd floor, & is open to the public.

Governor Cuomo today unveiled the newest license plates in the I LOVE NY Adventure Custom Plates series, which will make available for motorcycles nine designs that include hunting, fishing, and parks insignia. The motorcycle class plates are available to anyone holding a valid Department of Environmental Conservation sporting License or Parks Empire Passport, & can be ordered by mail, MV 414 form, which is available online. More information is available at dmv.ny.gov/cplates.

The Oneonta Stallions will play 3 Football games at the new Sidney High School filed this summer. Team Owner Angela Eardley comments:

(Angela Eardley 6-11-15)

Eardley has owned the team for the last 6 years, in the 15 team Northeastern Football Alliance, The Stallions play 10 regular season games from Late May through August, they fell just short of the league championship by 2 points last season.

The State DMV & the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee announced that May is Motorcycle Safety and Awareness Month, to remind motorists to watch for motorcyclists, as more bikes are on the roads with the onset of warmer weather. In 2013, there were more than 5,100 motorcycle crashes in New York State, resulting in 171 fatalities and more than 5,000 injuries. More information can be found at dmv.ny.gov, or safeny.ny.gov.

The Otsego county health department will host another free rabies clinic in Oneonta today. The clinic will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at Neahwa Park.