WAMC Northeast Report on WAMC

The clock is ticking for Obamacare.  The federal health care law goes into effect in one year – with uninsured Americans allowed to sign up for coverage in about ten months.  Last Friday, implementation of the new law took a big step forward.

Officials with the US fish and Wildlife service, the Massachusetts Dept of Fish and Game, stakeholders, conservationists, and others today came together in Cheshire to celebrate the completion of the Thunder Brook restoration project. Thunder Brook runs down Mount Greylock and feeds into the Hoosic River.

Governor Cuomo appeared with leaders of New York’s congressional delegation to urge Congress to finally act on a federal aid package for victims of Superstorm Sandy, seven weeks after the destructive storm.

Governor Cuomo, and New York’s congressional delegation say it’s taking longer to secure federal money for victims of Superstorm Sandy than it did for Congress to act after Katrina.

Your WAMC regional weather summary with  meteorologist Garett Argianas.

The mayor of Holyoke Massachusetts has changed his mind, again, on the casino issue. Mayor Alex Morse’s surprise decision  cuts the competition for the lone casino license available in western Massachusetts.  WAMC”s Pioneer Valley News Bureau Chief Paul Tuthill reports.

   In another stunning switch, Mayor Alex Morse announced Thursday that he once again opposes any casino development in Holyoke.  The change came less than three weeks after Morse had angered many of his political supporters by announcing he would open the door to casino developers.

State officials from Massachusetts gathered to celebrate the opening of a consolidated Health and Human Services center in North Adams. WAMC’s Berkshire Bureau Chief Lucas Willard reports…

An open house was held in downtown North Adams to mark the completion of the state’s fifth consolidated HHS Center – which combines several agencies under the umbrella of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services under one roof.

One of the four Republican Senators who broke ranks with the party to publicly support same-sex marriage in New York has conceded defeat. Hudson Valley Bureau Chief Dave Lucas reports.

Small businesses in the Berkshires are being encouraged to apply for a grant that would allow them to expand their use of technology and broadband internet. WAMC’s Berkshire Bureau Chief Lucas Willard reports…

Between now and January 31st, some small businesses in the Berkshires are eligible to apply for funding that would serve to expand their use of broadband technology. The initiative is managed by the Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corporation, or PERC.

Congresswoman Nan Hayworth may be approaching the end of her term, but that hasn't changed her daily routine or her concern for her constituents. Hudson Valley Bureau Chief Dave Lucas reports.