More than 1.3 million Long Islanders could receive between $300 and $500 in state rebate checks at the end of the year and see substantial tax savings if two proposals from the governor are approved. Critics, however, argue that the measures merely paper over significant affordability issues throughout Nassau and Suffolk. Victor Ocasio reports in NEWSDAY that among the line items in New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposed budget is an “inflation refund” that would give $3 billion in direct payments to about 8.6 million state residents, including more than a million on Long Island, the state said. Single taxpayers who make up to $150,000 per year would receive $300, and joint filers making up to $300,000 annually would get $500 total.

Separate from the rebate is an expansion of the Empire State Child Credit, which would give parents up to $1,000 in refundable tax credits for each child younger than 4, and up to $500 for families with children ages 4 to 16.

If approved, the credit's expansion would be phased in over two years, meaning Long Island parents with children younger than 4 would qualify for the savings when filing their taxes in 2026. Parents of children ages 4 to 16 would qualify the following year, the state said.

An estimated 215,000 households on Long Island, or roughly 355,000 children, would benefit from the expansion of the child tax credit, the governor’s office said earlier this month.

The State Legislature will review and potentially make changes to Hochul's proposed budget. A budget deal must be reached by April 1.

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Twenty-five years ago, when current Southampton Village Mayor Bill Manger first served on the Village Board, as a trustee, he remembers talk about the need to replace the slate roof at the Southampton Arts Center, the 9,930-square-foot cultural institution on Jobs Lane that is owned by the Village of Southampton. Even a quarter of a century ago, it was evident that it was near the end of its lifespan. Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that now thanks to a recent half-million-dollar investment by the current board, the Southampton Arts Center is finally getting a new roof. Approximately $500,000 was set aside in the capital budget last year to replace the slate roof, and recently, the materials arrived from a company in Vermont, allowing workers to get the project underway. Mayor Manger said yesterday that the project would likely be complete in a few weeks. It will be a welcome relief for those who work at and visit the arts center regularly. In recent months, the roof had been leaking, requiring buckets to be set up inside to catch the water on rainy days.

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Bridgehampton students in grades two through five are lacing up their skates again this winter thanks to the generosity of their community. As reported on 27east.com, through donations of ice time, skates and helmets, students take part in ice skating lessons at the Buckskill Winter Club in East Hampton during the months of January and February. For many years, Douglas and Katheryn DeGroot’s continued support has made this opportunity possible for Bridgehampton students, offering them a unique experience outside the classroom. With the help of physical education teacher Steve Meyers, students learn the fundamentals of ice skating, build confidence, and stay active throughout the winter months.

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The Ladies Village Improvement Society of East Hampton is marking its 130th anniversary this year and, in a presentation to the East Hampton Village Board last Friday, LVIS announced a 2025 community programs budget of slightly more than $785,000. Christopher Walsh reports on 27east.com that this includes beautifying and preserving the village’s landscape through its more than 30 committees devoted to matters such as trees, greens and grounds, landmarks and the Nature Trail. The LVIS also awards scholarships to high school students, sells merchandise in its thrift shops and hosts an annual summer fair. “The LVIS works to care for over 3,500 trees and to plant new ones,” Joyce Tuttle of the LVIS told the East Hampton Village Board. “It’s likely one of the oldest private-public tree programs in the United States.” Members tend to some 700 memorial plaques along the streets and clean the tree enclosures on Main Street and Newtown Lane. Dead or downed trees are replaced with a variety of species. “Keeping East Hampton Beautiful Since 1895” the Society’s Greens program, founded in 1907, oversees mowing, irrigation and organic care of the greens on Main Street, from Town Pond to the Hook Mill memorial and the large open space at the western end of Pantigo Road. The LVIS Nature Trail Committee feeds and monitors the health of diverse waterfowl and birds, and in partnership with the Garden Club of East Hampton removes downed branches, limbs and litter there. “The LVIS is a wonderful organization,” Mayor Jerry Larsen said, “and you all work so hard and it’s so clear how much dedication and how much money is given to this Village. … From my heart, I thank you so much for all the hard work you do.”

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A decision on the application for a use variance to allow a retail cannabis shop to open in a former bank building on Ostrander Avenue was postponed last week by the Riverhead Zoning Board of Appeals until at least the next planning commission meeting on Feb. 13. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the adjournment came pending receipt of the recommendation of the Suffolk County Planning Commission on the proposed use. Applicant Elizabeth McGrath, operating as Tink & E. Co. of Cutchogue, proposes a state-licensed dispensary in the former bank building at 1201 Ostrander Avenue, which has been vacant since the branch was shuttered by People’s United Bank in June 2017. McGrath appealed to the ZBA for relief from Riverhead Town’s cannabis code, which prohibits a retail cannabis dispensary at the site, because it is within 1,000 feet of existing residential uses and is outside a designated commercial corridor.

Amanda Grams of Reeves Park was the only member of the public to speak on the application during last Thursday’s meeting. Grams said the town invested a lot of time and energy in developing the cannabis code. She noted that Riverhead’s code has allowed the largest retail dispensary in the state to open on Route 58, near Tanger Outlets. “I’m standing here because I don’t want Riverhead to be the pothead place. That old bank is near homes, residences, children. It’s not zoned for it,” she said.

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Several local organizations are among 15 nonprofits awarded a total of $378,000 by the Long Island Unitarian Universalist Fund in support of their efforts to advance progressive social change, the New York Community Trust announced last week. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that among the nonprofit organizations awarded grants is the Riverhead-based Butterfly Effect Project, which received a $23,000 grant to support its leadership initiative, which creates opportunities for young people of color to advocate for change in their communities.

Tijuana Fulford, founder and executive director of the Butterfly Effect Project said the grant will support the group’s college access and college retention program. BEP helps its members attend college tours, access resources like scholarships and financial aid, and prepare federal financial aid application documents known as FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

The group also helps high schoolers explore alternative pathways, including careers in public safety and other public service employment, various skilled trades, and entrepreneurship.

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“Families shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not they can afford to put food on the table because of the rising cost of groceries,” Hochul said in a statement last week. “Making New York more affordable has been one of my top priorities."

However, Victor Ocasio reports in NEWSDAY that critics of the governor’s proposed child tax credit expansion and inflation refund said the state is leaving core affordability issues unaddressed.

“The governor is talking about affordability, and she’s going about addressing it in all the wrong ways,” said Ken Girardin, research director at the Empire Center for Public Policy, a conservative think tank in Albany.

“If you’re concerned about the cost of goods or services in New York, then go find ways to make it easier to provide goods and services in New York,” Girardin said. “You can do that by lowering taxes on the people who provide those goods or services or by easing their regulatory burden.”

The Fiscal Policy Institute, a progressive think tank in Albany, also took issue with the state’s proposed refund checks. Emily Eisner, an economist at the institute, wrote in an analysis earlier this month that the checks would not address structural issues, such as the high cost of housing.

She added that “the policy could easily backfire, giving a small boost to prices rather than easing household finances,” implying that a cash injection into the economy could have inflationary effects similar to what was seen with pandemic stimulus payments.

Eisner did suggest, however, that expanding the child tax credit represe...