Politics

While the risk of violence is always present in correctional facilities, it seems that in recent times that violence has escalated. Last year, inside New York State prisons, there were 798 reported assaults on corrections staff and 1,220 assaults on inmates by other inmates statewide. In addition, officials confiscated more than 3,000 weapons and contraband items.

Every day, farmers are in barns, fields and yes, even offices, working to see that people here in New York State and beyond have fresh, nutritious food and drink. Not only do our hardworking farmers put food on our tables, their efforts also help to support the strength of our state’s leading industry, agriculture. June is “National Dairy Month,” a time to honor the contributions of the dairy industry to our country.

Brian Hartman of Alexandria Bay will remember this season’s walleye fishing for years to come, thanks to the record-sized fish he recently caught in the St. Lawrence River. The 32-inch fish was weighed three times to verify its official weight of 18 pounds, two ounces. His massive catch proves that when it comes to fishing, New York State, and especially Lake Ontario, the Thousand Islands and the St. Lawrence River Valley, is the place to be.

Across our state, there are rural communities that struggle to provide access to quality health care, due to the challenge of not attracting doctors, nurses and others in the medical field. Upon graduation, many medical professionals are reluctant to establish themselves in rural areas for several reasons, including large student loan debts and a lower salary than those in urban and suburban settings. In fact, according to the New York State Department of Health, 46 percent of the state’s health professional shortage areas fall in rural counties.