UNION SLAMS PLANS FOR DOWNSTATE MEDICAL: United University Professions is criticizing SUNY plans for “a transformation” at Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn that the union says would include the relocation of services and layoffs, coupled with significant investments from the state. The plan is expected to include investments that could total up to $300 million in capital projects. But it would also involve the relocation of services and a potential workforce reduction of 10 to 20 percent among the hospital's staffers represented by UUP. “Let’s call this what it is: SUNY is calling its vision for Downstate a transformation, but it is anything but that,” union president Fred Kowal said in a statement. “This is a radical plan for the hospital that will undoubtedly harm the health of the Central Brooklyn community.” New York State United Teachers president Melinda Person also weighed in on the issue Friday, calling for public input on the path forward for the institution. “Here is an opportunity to provide greater healthcare access and more targeted services in neighborhoods that desperately need them,” Person said in a statement. “The governor, Legislature and all stakeholders must work in tandem to forge a bright path forward that prioritizes public input and these critical community needs.” — Katelyn Cordero GOO-GOOS KEEP PRESSING: Calls to overhaul New York’s ethics laws and boost transparency in state government have not been top-of-mind issues so far this year in Albany. Good-government advocates are trying to change that. The group Reinvent Albany urged lawmakers and Hochul to agree to a package of measures. They are embracing a push from lawmakers to tighten requirements for Senate approval of some gubernatorial nominees after Hochul’s office was able to sidestep the legislative confirmation process for the head of the New York Power Authority using a little-known codicil. The group also wants changes to the little-noticed but influential Public Authorities Control Board that the governor has rejected in the past. The group has its regular list of asks, too: calling for a ban on corporate contributions and loans to political campaigns and to expand contract approval powers for the state comptroller during a declared emergency. — Nick Reisman HUDSON RIVER UPDATE: The 5-year draft review for the Hudson River cleanup might, maybe, possibly, come out in March, EPA’s Gary Klawinski told a community advisory group Thursday. Members of the group raised ongoing concerns about people who are eating fish out of the upper Hudson River and frequently from the southern parts of the river. Environmental groups and community advocates are pushing EPA to determine that the dredging by GE was not effective enough in cleaning up the river and protecting humans eating fish from the river. “The agency will follow the science and the law in our determinations, that's what we do. We have no choice,” Klawinski told the group. Klawinski urged members of the advisory group to inform the EPA if they’re aware of people eating fish from the river. “It's very hard to tell somebody that has been out there all day fishing on the river, that — especially if he speaks or she speaks a different language — that you can't take that fish home,” said Gil Hawkins, an advisory group member with the Hudson River Fishermen's Association. “It's our job to clean up the river so they don't have to be told.” — Marie J. French LITERACY REQUEST: State Inspector General Lucy Lang is urging state education officials to work to boost literacy rates among incarcerated students. Lang sent a letter to state Education Commissioner Betty Rosa this week requesting that she take into account the needs of incarcerated pupils as she works to revamp literacy instruction statewide. Hochul recently announced a “back to basics” plan to revamp the state’s reading curriculum. She also signed legislation last month to establish a task force to come up with guidelines on screening, interventions and classroom support for students with dyslexia. “I hope that in the composition of the task force and your work to implement its findings, the State Education Department will keep the needs of these students and their teachers top of mind, and ultimately facilitate their access to evidence-based literacy education,” wrote Lang, who also cited her experiences as a teacher in prisons and the parent of a child with dyslexia. The state Education Department is also in the midst of putting together an action plan to overhaul how educators are trained to teach literacy in the state’s higher education institutions. — Madina Touré BUSING: New York City parents will now be able to track their students’ school bus trips in real time. Adams and schools Chancellor David Banks today launched the NYC School Bus App, a new citywide app the city developed in partnership with the rideshare service Via. New York City buses roughly 150,000 pupils daily. “Every eligible student has a right to transportation service that truly serves them,” Banks said in a statement. “I’m thrilled to be launching this system for families across the city and to provide peace of mind to parents as they send their babies off to school each day.” Families can use the app if the assigned route driver is subscribed to the platform. Parents can contact their school bus company to request that their driver sign up if a specific route isn’t available to be tracked during a student’s designated busing hours. Subscription rates citywide surpassed 75 percent, officials said. The Department of Education plans to update the app and add new features like the bus’ expected arrival time and notifications about delays as families provide feedback. — Madina Touré
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