Morning News Briefing

Genesee County has received five new positive cases of COVID-19. The new cases involve people living in Alexander, Batavia, Byron and Oakfield. One of the new positive cases is a resident at the NYS Veterans Home. One of the positive individuals is less than 20 years old, one is in their 30s, two are in their 50s and one is in their 80s. Twenty-two new individuals are on precautionary quarantine due to travel from restricted states. Orleans County received two new positive cases of COVID-19. The COVID stats were released Monday afternoon.

Congressman Chris Jacobs encourages area residents to participate in Small Business Week, which runs through Saturday. Jacobs said…small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and cornerstones of the Western New York communities. National Small Business Week was started in 1963 by President Kennedy to highlight the outstanding contributions of small businesses to America. The week seeks to promote shopping and spending in local economies, and honor American innovation. As of 2019, the 13,227 small businesses in the 27th congressional district accounted for 95.6% of employers.

The Genesee County 4-H Program is now accepting new youth members for the upcoming 4-H year that begins Oct. 1. 4-H is a nationwide youth program that connects youth age 5-18 to a variety of hands-on learning opportunities. There are many different clubs and programs offered by the Genesee County 4-H Program. Project areas include animal sciences, sewing, leadership, community service, gardening, public speaking and more. Enrollment fees for Genesee County residents are $25 per youth or $50 per family of two or more youth. For more information about joining the Genesee County 4-H Program, please contact the 4-H Office.

The deadline for completing the 2020 Census form is September 30, and state officials warn that New York’s population is in danger of being undercounted. The U.S. census is mandated in the Constitution and has been conducted every ten years since 1790. Census data is used to decide how many members of Congress each state can have and to allocate federal funding for education, infrastructure and more.

Governor Andrew Cuomo has issued an Executive Order extending the state’s moratorium on COVID-related commercial evictions and foreclosures an additional month, until October 20th. This measure extends protections already in place for commercial tenants and mortgagors in recognition of the financial toll the pandemic has taken on business owners, including retail establishments and restaurants. The extension of this protection gives commercial tenants and mortgagors additional time to get back on their feet and catch up on rent or their mortgage, or to renegotiate their lease terms to avoid foreclosure moving forward.