Government

IRS Launches Tool for Stimulus Payment Info

Are you wondering when you are getting your stimulus check from the U.S. government? The Internal Revenue Service has unveiled the new Get My Payment application on its website with features to let taxpayers check on their Economic Impact Payment date and update direct deposit information. Traffic to the IRS website is heavy with over 6.2 […]

Government

Don’t Call the Labor Dept! They’ll Call You!

After hundreds of thousands of unemployed New Yorkers overwhelmed the NYS Department of Labor’s Unemployment phone lines the past two weeks, the agency now says you no longer have to call. As of Thursday, the Dept. of Labor says a representative will now call you within 72 hours of filing your claim. This is good […]

Government Hospital

Feds Sending 1,000 Healthcare Workers to NY

The federal government is sending 1,000 personnel to New York State, including doctors, nurses, respiratory technicians and therapists, to help the state’s overwhelmed hospital systems. The first 325 personnel were deployed to the New York City hospital system over the weekend. The USNS Comfort medical ship is docked on the West Side of Manhattan and […]

Government

369,025 New Yorkers Filed for Unemployment Last Week

ALBANY – The NYS Department of Labor announced that 369,025 initial Unemployment Insurance (UI) claims were filed for the week ending March 28, 2020, representing an increase of 288,516 claims from the 80,509 UI claims that were filed the previous week. Compared to last year, initial claims for Unemployment Insurance in New York State for […]

Government

NYC Schools Now Offering Free Meals to All

NYC Schools are now offering free meals to all New Yorkers, not just children. The city schools have been offering free kids meals while school has been out for the past two weeks but Mayor de Blasio is now opening the service to all New Yorkers who need a meal.  Any New Yorker who wants […]

Government

NYS Overwhelmed by Unemployment Claims

If you are filing for unemployment in New York, you’ve probably found it difficult if not impossible to reach someone in the NYS Dept. of Labor Unemployment Insurance Claim Centers. That’s because call volumes have hit unprecedented levels with so many people forced out of work. The Dept. of Labor says it typically gets 50,000 […]

Government Hospital

Hospital Ship Brings Comfort to NYC

(Photo: The USNS Comfort is escorted by U.S. Coast Guard, New York Police Department and New York Fire Department as it sails below the Verrrazano Bridge as the ship arrives in in New York City. NEW YORK — The U.S. Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) arrived in New York City Monday in support […]

Government Hospital

Temporary Hospital Completed at Javits Center

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo (photo above) announced that the first 1,000-bed temporary hospital is now complete at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center on the West Side of Manhattan. This temporary hospital site is part of the Governor’s goal of having a 1,000-plus patient overflow facility in each NYC borough as well as Westchester, Rockland, […]

Government Transportation

MTA Enacts Essential Service Plan

NY’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic by focusing on moving healthcare workers, first responders and essential personnel on the frontlines of this public health crisis. With a dramatic drop in ridership over the past few weeks, the Authority announced the implementation of the “NY Essential Service Plan.” The reduced schedule […]

Government Hospital

Javits Center Converted to Emergency Hospital

The Jacob Javits Center on the West Side of Manhattan is NY’s largest convention center but is being converted into an emergency hospital to deal with an expected overflow of coronavirus patients. The Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) has started to build a 1,000-bed temporary hospital at Javits that will help increase New York’s hospital […]

Government Restaurant

NY, NJ, CT Governors to Close Restaurants, Bars, Gyms and Casinos

The Governors of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut have banded together to order closings of gyms, bars and casinos in their states. Restaurants will no longer provide dine-in service but can open for takeout and delivery. Citing a lack of federal direction and nationwide standards, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, New Jersey Governor […]

Government

Cuomo Orders State Employees to Work From Home

Governor Andrew Cuomo has ordered nonessential State employees to work from home started Tuesday. The Governor also directed local governments to reduce their overall workforce by 50 percent and allow nonessential employees to work from home. Cuomo has also directed DMV to move to appointment only to limit person to person contact and revert to […]

Government

Mayor Delivers State of NYC Address

NEW YORK—Mayor Bill de Blasio delivered his sixth State of the City Address on Thursday. Taking the stage at the Symphony Space on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, the Mayor highlighted a series of sweeping proposals aimed at fighting income inequality across New York City. Policy promises focused on health care, workers’ rights, and tenant protection […]

Government

Mayor Proposes Boarding Area for Central Park Horses

NEW YORK— The de Blasio administration wants to establish new passenger boarding areas for horse-drawn cabs at several major Central Park entrances. The new rule will designate specific locations within Central Park as passenger boarding areas for horse-drawn cabs, moving them from heavily-congested nearby locations along Central Park South. Relocating boarding areas within Central Park […]

Government Legal

Trump Charity Sued by NY Attorney General

NEW YORK – NY Attorney General Barbara Underwood has filed a lawsuit against the Donald J. Trump Foundation, and its directors, Donald J. Trump (now the President of the United States), his sons and daughters Donald J. Trump, Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump. The petition filed alleges a pattern of persistent illegal conduct, occurring over […]