Jawonio Highlights: Winter 2022
News
Happy Holidays: If You Are Drinking Alcohol, Do Not Drive
December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month
NEW CITY, NY, – Rockland County Executive Ed Day and County Health Commissioner Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert announce that December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month. This joyous month of the year, when we get together with friends and family to celebrate holidays, is also a deadly month due to impaired driving.
According to The National Highway Safety Traffic Administration (NHTSA), in 2019, 210 lives were lost during the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day due to alcohol-impaired driving crashes. Approximately one-third of all traffic crash fatalities in the United States involve drunk drivers (with blood alcohol concentrations [BACs] of .08 or higher). In New York State (NYS), it’s illegal to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher. However, even a small amount of alcohol can affect driving ability. In 2020, there were 4,503 people killed or injured in alcohol-impaired driving crashes in NYS.
Stay safe and save lives by following these safety steps from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):
- It is never okay to drink and drive. Even if you’ve had only one alcoholic beverage, designate a sober driver or plan to use public transportation or a ride service to get home safely.
- If someone you know has been drinking, do not let that person get behind the wheel. Take their keys and help them arrange a sober ride home. If you’re hosting a party where alcohol will be served, make sure all guests leave with a sober driver.
- If you see an impaired driver on the road, contact local law enforcement. Your actions could help save someone’s life.
“Do not drink and drive and put the lives of those around you at risk,” said County Executive Ed Day. “Law enforcement will be out, as always, in force during the holidays to remove irresponsible drivers choosing to drive drunk and endanger innocent lives.”
“As we come together this holiday season, educate yourself and others on the risks of driving while impaired and take steps to stay safe. Just a single drink can cause a decline in visual function, mental judgment, and motor skills, resulting in driver impairment. Driving while impaired not only can result in driver’s license revocation, fines, and jail time, but you can also be involved in a traffic crash that causes serious injury or death. Before you go out, always have a plan that includes a safe ride! Remember to always wear your seat belt; it’s your best defense against impaired drivers,” said Dr. Ruppert.
During the holiday season, the STOP-DWI “Impaired Driving Enforcement Operations” Program is in full force until January 1, 2022. Law enforcement agencies from across Rockland County, along with the New York State Police, will be on patrol enforcing DWI-related offenses. Impaired driving is completely preventable. You can help to make a difference by Having a Sober Plan! Download the STOP-DWI “Have A Plan” mobile app to find a safe ride home at www.stopdwi.org/mobileapp.
“December is when we look forward to getting together with friends and family to celebrate the holidays. To get in that festive holiday spirit, many people pop the champagne or enjoy cocktails. Because of this, December is also one of the deadliest times of the year to be on the road. December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month, which reminds everyone to drive safely this holiday season and understand how drunk and drugged driving plagues our nation’s roads. The good news is that prevention works. Discuss the dangers of impaired driving with your loved ones and take steps to stay safe this holiday season,” said Dr. Albert Del Principio, Rockland County STOP-DWI & Traffic Safety Coordinator.
For more information on National Impaired Driving Prevention Month, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website at www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/impaired_driving/index.html and the NHTSA website at www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/drunk-driving.
For more information about walking safely in Rockland County, visit https://rocklandsafestreets.org/.
Senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick Breaks with Party and Votes Against Legislative Pay Raise
Senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick explained his vote against the pay raise for state legislators, “Today I voted against raising the salaries of state legislators to $142,000 a year. Inflation has hit everyone, and legislators increasing their pay at a time when people are feeling the pain of economic pressure doesn’t feel right. If this were the right thing to do, we could have handled it during the regular session.”
Skoufis, Burdick Bill Expanding Definition of Sexual Conduct Against a Child signed into law
Senator James Skoufis (D-Hudson Valley) and Assemblymember Chris Burdick (D-Westchester) announced that their bill (S.9447/A.7079) to expand the definition of sexual conduct against a child has been signed into law. This legislation clarifies that the insertion of a finger into a victim’s private parts—when this individual is incapable of consent due to physical helplessness or being statutorily underage—should be prosecuted in the same manner as when a ‘foreign object’ is inserted.
The Senator’s office was first contacted in 2020 by a Hudson Valley resident whose daughter was attempting to bring her abuser to justice. Her case was faltering due to a loophole in the state’s penal code that did not consider insertion of a finger to be equivalent to insertion of a foreign object. Senator Skoufis and Assemblymember Burdick worked with this family to introduce legislation that would expand the crime of aggravated sexual abuse in the third degree, and offer justice for countless victims.
“These disgraceful acts are a heartbreaking reality for some in our communities, and this necessary change to our penal code will give victims their day in court,” said Senator Skoufis. “As lawmakers, we must do everything within our power to protect the most vulnerable among us from harm. I am grateful to the family for coming forward and to Assemblyman Burdick for his partnership on this important issue.”
“Last year, a constituent bravely came to me to recount the horrible sexual assault on his daughter years ago, who was eight years old at the time,” said Assemblymember Burdick. “The crime was undiscovered for many years, and the statute of limitations had run out. Furthermore, the crime in question was not explicitly defined in the crime of sexual conduct against a child in the third degree. While this bill will not change what occurred, it hopefully will provide some closure and peace for the victim of that assault and her parents, as well as justice for future victims. My thanks to Senator Skoufis for his leadership in getting this bill passed in the Senate and to Governor Hochul for signing it into law.”
Skoufis was also a co-sponsor of the landmark 2019 legislation known as the Child Victims Act, expanding statutes of limitations and creating a lookback window to allow justice for past and future survivors of child sexual abuse.
Rockland Community Power Energy Program: Energy at Competitive, Fixed Rates
Online and in-Person Information Sessions: Answers to Your Questions!
Click here for the schedule for in-person and Zoom meetings for January 2023
Six Rockland County municipalities are participating in the second round of the Rockland Community Power Program: Orangetown, Clarkstown and the Villages of Grandview-on-Hudson, Haverstraw, Nyack and Upper Nyack.
The Rockland Community Power Program provides eligible residents and small businesses with the option of either renewable of standard electricity supply at competitive, fixed rates, with no individual contracts for consumers and no exit fees.
Over two years, program participants in six communities saved over $10 million. The program also gives each of us a way to reduce our carbon footprint, while capping electricity supply rates.
The program will renew with new rates in April 2023,