Forbes ranks Community Bank 3rd among Top 100 U.S. banks in financial performance

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DeWITT — Forbes magazine recently ranked Community Bank System, Inc. (NYSE: CBU) third in the nation among the 100 largest publicly traded banks and thrifts in the U.S. based on their growth, credit quality, and profitability. The magazine ranked 10 key metrics related to growth, asset quality, capital adequacy, and profitability. This is the eighth […]

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Light Spec buys 6,100-square-foot Court Street office building

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SALINA — Light Spec, LLC — an upstate New York company that sells lighting products and systems — recently purchased the 6,160-square-foot Lyncourt Professional Building at 2804-2806 Court St. in the town of Salina CNY Chiropractic Health Center sold the building in mid-December for $260,000. Lee Salvetti of Cushman & Wakefield/Pyramid Brokerage Company represented the

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CNY Tweets – March 11, 2019

Business Mentors, Subscriber Only

Some recent tweets that came across the @cnybj Twitter feed, offering various small business, HR, career, financial, and personal tips. SBA @SBAgov#Small business owners, how do your workplace safety policies measure up? Review your safety policies — http://ow.ly/Y1Oy30nR68U NFIB @NFIBLabor laws are complicated, and the more that apply, the harder it is for #smallbiz owners

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Some recent tweets that came across the @cnybj Twitter feed, offering various small business, HR, career, financial, and personal tips.

SBA @SBAgov
#Small business owners, how do your workplace safety policies measure up? Review your safety policies — http://ow.ly/Y1Oy30nR68U

NFIB @NFIB
Labor laws are complicated, and the more that apply, the harder it is for #smallbiz owners to make sure they are compliant. We have a resource that can help: https://www.nfib.com/content/resources/healthcare/3-labor-laws-you-might-not-know-youre-breaking/ …

Small Biz Connection @sbizconnection
The three MOST important steps to getting a small business loan: https://buff.ly/2EwjtUG

Jolee Coulter @joleecoulter
“Culture is not about how many staff parties you have. Culture is about how the company DOES things.” This is great — it’s the day-to-day stuff that makes a difference. Decision-making, communication, people strategy = culture!

Dave Ulrich @dave_ulrich
“The greatest leaders build organizations that, in the end, don’t need them.” — Jim Collins

Ben Erickson ADP @AdpBen
Most full-time employees would like schedules that are similar to contractors. Check this out to see how this approach can increase engagement. #EmployeeEngagement #HR http://bit.ly/2Ej7B6W

PeopleSenseErp @PeopleSenseErp
#HR recruiting is tough. Here’s how to ease the strain with 6 critical benefits of effective talent development and detailed, easy-to-follow steps that help you plan, execute, and adjust your strategy for maximum success http://bit.ly/2KRcqXk

Hannah Morgan @careersherpa
72% of surveyed US workers anticipate video will play a role in their future job search. Learn more in @Monster 2019 State of the Candidate Survey | https://buff.ly/2N7fpwI

Metro Fitness Club @GetMetroFit
Even a busy business owner like Chedy Hampson of TCG Players takes time to invest in his health and well-being. Chedy is an excellent example of discipline, dedication, and as his personal trainer Frank would say, commitment. Make time for yourself…

Bonadio Group @bonadiogroup
Our experts recommend reviewing your #estate plan regularly to determine if you can adjust your #exemptions. #bonadio http://bit.ly/2tFAvJH

Clay Sanford @Sanford_IRS
Use the #IRS online locator to find a free tax preparation site near you. http://irs.gov/vita #VITA #TCE

Sven @SvenRoyalChef
Kitchen #Tips for #HealthyEating – Freeze Your Blueberries – Their antioxidant properties are heavily concentrated in their skins and the ice crystals that form on the skin during the freezing process actually helps make the antioxidants more available to your body

Integrative Medicine for Alzheimer’s @integrative_s
#Tips If you have memory problems you may forget where things are kept. Put pictures or signs on cupboards and drawers so you know what’s inside them; put a picture on the door of the restroom; it’s also helpful to have towels & tissue with colors that contrast to the walls.

Lori Pedigo @lpedigo14
25 healthy eating #tips: http://hlty.us/5NNx

Number of N.Y. farm cidery manufacturers rises five-fold since 2014 Farm Cidery Law

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The number of farm cidery manufacturers across New York state has jumped from eight to 41 since the Farm Cidery Law was passed five years ago, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office says. The law created a new craft beverage license for hard cider produced with apples grown exclusively in New York. The license is similar to those

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The number of farm cidery manufacturers across New York state has jumped from eight to 41 since the Farm Cidery Law was passed five years ago, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office says.

The law created a new craft beverage license for hard cider produced with apples grown exclusively in New York. The license is similar to those available to farm wineries, breweries, and distilleries. As a result of this legislation, the Empire State now ranks first in the U.S. for the number of hard-cider producers, according to a news release from the governor’s office.

Prior to the Farm Cidery Law, hard cider could only be produced by farm wineries or through a cider-producer license, which doesn’t require the use of New York apples. Cider producers also couldn’t provide tastings and sales of other farm-based products by the bottle or glass, nor have the opportunity to open restaurants, gift shops, and branch stores. These have helped New York’s farm cideries become tourist destinations, the state contends.

The increased demand for hard cider in the state gives apple producers another avenue for maximizing the value of their harvest, per the release, as fruit that is too small or blemished to be sold at stores or farmer’s markets can be sold to cider makers. Continuation of this trend should boost demand for apples and provide a significant revenue source for producers through the production of high value-added products such as hard cider and apple spirits, the state contends.

The number of farm cideries in New York went up from eight in 2014, to 24 in 2016, to 41 today. Nearly every region of the state now has a farm cidery.

Farm cideries in the Central New York area include Gravity Ciders in Sidney, which makes Awestruck Hard Ciders. New York Cider Company in Ithaca is another area farm cidery.

A list of farm cideries currently operating in New York state is available at: https://www.governor.ny.gov/sites/governor.ny.gov/files/atoms/files/New_York_State_Farm_Cideries.pdf

Since New York’s first craft beverage summit in October 2012, the state has added 490 new licenses for farm breweries, wineries, distilleries, and cideries, bringing the total to 772 farm-based manufactures today, per the release.

2018 Farm Bill Widens Tax Breaks for Industrial Cannabis

Business Mentors, Subscriber Only

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When you consider the recent U.S. Farm Bill signed Dec. 20, 2018, tax law is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. A farm bill is passed about every five years that lays out the government’s policies for food and nutrition, agriculture, forestry, and conservation. The farm bill has wide-reaching effects, including school lunches, food-assistance programs, farm subsidies and loans, milk prices, and agriculture trade. One part of the bill that received much attention is the legalization of industrial hemp, which has spurred on the already booming cannabis industry. Although the farm bill did not change the tax code, the change to the legal status of industrial hemp opened up tax opportunities to those in the hemp industry. Let’s hash out the changes.

A little background on cannabis before we dive into the tax changes. Hemp and marijuana are different varieties of the cannabis plant. Hemp is non-psychoactive and legally must contain 0.3 percent or less THC (the chemical that produces the “high” associated with marijuana). Hemp fibers are a sustainable resource that can be used in a wide variety of applications including fabrics, paper, food, energy, and building materials. Hemp also contains an extractable compound called cannabidiol (CBD), which has risen in popularity for its purported health benefits. Proponents of CBD claim that it offers the anti-anxiety and anti-inflammatory benefits of cannabis, without the associated “high” of marijuana. The pharmaceutical, wellness and alternative medicine, and food and beverage industries are experimenting with CBD and CBD-infused products.

Until passage of the U.S. Farm Bill, hemp was considered a controlled substance under federal law, which meant that for tax purposes, those in the hemp industry, where legal under state law, were treated the same as any illegal drug trafficker and subject to Internal Revenue Code Section 280E. That section disallows deductions and tax credits for businesses that traffic in controlled substances prohibited under federal or state law. Controlled substances are defined as those under Schedules I and II of the Controlled Substances Act. Producers and distributors of illegal controlled substances are limited to only subtracting cost of goods sold when calculating taxable income; no other deductions or credits are permitted.

The farm bill removed hemp and hemp products, including hemp-derived CBD from the federal list of controlled substances monitored by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Hemp is now under the purview of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) while CBD and its associated food and supplement products are subject to regulation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This is an important distinction because CBD products are still considered illegal by the FDA for use in food and supplements while the FDA conducts further studies to develop regulatory guidelines. States were also given authority to regulate the hemp industry within their borders, leading to a patchwork of local laws and regulating bodies. The industry is rapidly evolving as are the related laws and regulations.

Because hemp cultivation and its related products are no longer considered controlled substances under federal law, producers and sellers are no longer subject to Section 280E as long as hemp is not considered a controlled substance under their state’s laws. In New York state, hemp and hemp-related products are not controlled substances. These businesses are now free to take advantage of the same tax breaks as more traditional businesses, including:

• Tax deductions for all overhead and general and administrative costs.

• Eligibility for federal tax credits, including the research and development credit.

In this expanding industry, hemp cultivators and producers are conducting research on numerous fronts, for example: maximizing crop yield, breeding new varieties, streamlining growing practices tailored to the soil conditions and climate, developing new uses for industrial hemp fibers, devising new methods of harvesting and processing the plant, and developing new hemp-related products. Each of these activities may qualify for the federal research and development (R&D) credit, allowing the business to recoup a portion of its research-related wages, supplies, and contract research costs. For startups, the R&D credit may be used as a reduction of payroll taxes if the business doesn’t yet have taxable income.

The cannabis industry is rapidly changing and will undoubtedly continue to evolve as more uses for the plant are discovered. Of course, as of now, marijuana is still a controlled substance under federal law and is still subject to Section 280E, regardless of state law. However, the 2018 Farm Bill eased the tax burden on industrial hemp and its products, including hemp-derived CBD.

Kristin Kowalski, CPA, is a manager in the tax practice of The Bonadio Group. She serves a variety of tax clients, with a focus on corporations — including S corporations — as well as partnerships. She has expertise in a number of areas, such as the manufacturing industry, multinational companies, state and local taxes, research and development credits, transaction planning, and tax accounting. Contact her at: kkowalski@bonadio.com

Budget Must Keep Middle Class Tax Cut, Fund Local Roads & Libraries

Opinion, Subscriber Only

The 2019-20 New York State budget is due at the end of March. I recently joined some of my Assembly colleagues in Albany to push for priorities we would like to see in the budget. These priorities include keeping the middle class income tax cut, restoring funding for libraries, and helping families, localities, and small businesses.

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Preserve the middle class tax cut. In 2016, the state passed a budget that included a state income-tax cut for middle-income earners. It’s critical that these income-tax cuts remain as intended and work to provide the cumulative $4.2 billion in tax relief through 2025 as promised. The state has a history of adding to the tax burden when budget shortfalls are predicted instead of finding ways to cut spending. I am pushing for this to be preserved through budget negotiations.

Restore AIM funding. For decades, the state has provided assistance to towns and villages with Aid and Incentives to Municipalities (AIM). This year, Gov. Cuomo proposed to slash $59 million from AIM. After public outcry, the governor amended the budget proposal to mandate counties provide this funding to towns and villages with revenue expected from sales tax. A new county mandate is not a solution to a state aid cut. The final budget needs to restore the state aid and end this gimmickry.

Relief for unfunded mandates. Counties in New York are required to pay for more than 40 state-mandated programs — nine of which consume 90 percent of local property taxes. Our localities need mandate relief in this budget and the state could start by agreeing to take over the local share of Medicaid which is the most-costly mandate for local property taxpayers. Additionally, any new mandate imposed on local governments — such as the one associated with early voting — should be paid for by the state.

Restore library funding. Our libraries provide critical services to their communities and this year the proposed budget is going in the wrong direction — cutting $5 million from the 2018-19 levels. Funding should be increased to assure that libraries can continue to provide a wide range of materials, technology, and services.

Increase funding for local roads. The weather this winter has been extremely cold and snowy in Upstate yet the budget eliminates funding for extreme winter-weather recovery for local roads. I am pushing for the restoration of these funds. In addition, the state needs to provide more resources to localities that maintain 87 percent of the state’s roads and bridges. By increasing funding over five years with the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement (CHIPs) program, we reduce the local tax investment and enable cities, towns, and villages to better plan for necessary road repairs. In many cases, CHIPs is the only way localities can afford to fix and maintain local roads.

William (Will) A. Barclay is the Republican representative of the 120th New York Assembly District, which encompasses most of Oswego County, including the cities of Oswego and Fulton, as well as the town of Lysander in Onondaga County and town of Ellisburg in Jefferson County. Contact him at barclaw@assembly.state.ny.us or (315) 598-5185.

In Politics, You Need Priorities

Opinion, Subscriber Only

I still remember a piece of advice I got not long after entering Congress. It came from a prominent journalist as we were talking about the bewildering array of issues Congress faced. Every day, he told me, I should ask myself a simple question: “What’s the most important thing to be doing today?” This may be

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This may be the toughest problem in politics: what do you focus on at any given moment? For the number of challenges facing policymakers is simply staggering.

Let’s start with the economic ones. At any given time, legislators are wrestling with such issues as the economic-growth rate, the need to provide broad-based economic opportunity, the perception that too many Americans are being left behind, the need for infrastructure investment, and a federal debt that has grown out of control.

Domestic and foreign-policy challenges are no less daunting. At home, these include immigration and civil-rights protections, the quality and availability of health care, the cost of higher education. Internationally, the challenges include everything from dealing with powerful adversaries like Russia and China to global issues like climate change and terrorism.

Finally, we face serious political challenges, such as the disintegration of the political center, and great uncertainty about whether our political system can meet the tests confronting it.

In a very real way, the depth and breadth of the challenges we face show the depth and breadth of America’s abilities and ambitions. They are a symbol of all we have done and all we are trying to achieve. Our policymakers sit down with an impossible agenda every day and try to make progress on it.

So how do they establish priorities? The plain fact is that you can’t solve problems like these alone. You need to find a lot of people who agree with you about them — and can agree on approaches to resolving them. It’s not simply a matter of asking yourself: “What do I think our biggest problem is?” It also involves asking: “What do I think is the biggest problem I can make progress on?”

In short, my journalist friend was right on the mark. Maybe the best you can do each day is ask yourself: Am I putting my energy where it ought to be right now? It’s what makes governing such a bewildering, challenging job. It’s also what lies at its heart.

Lee Hamilton is a senior advisor for the Indiana University (IU) Center on Representative Government, distinguished scholar at the IU School of Global and International Studies, and professor of practice at the IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Hamilton, a Democrat, was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years, representing a district in south central Indiana.

U.S. economy grows 2.9% in 2018, strongest growth since 2005

Opinion, Subscriber Only

America in 2018 enjoyed the strongest economy since 2005, with 2.9 percent growth, validating President Donald Trump’s three-pronged economic policy. Cutting taxes, reducing regulations, and cutting out bad trade deals have proven to be the magic wand that is creating unprecedented job growth at what is typically the end of a positive business cycle. President Obama’s

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Herkimer County woman arrested for stealing more than $50K from former employer

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, New York News, Regional News

GERMAN FLATTS, N.Y. — A Herkimer County woman has been arrested by the New York State Police for stealing more than $50,000 from the trucking

CHRIS BOND

People on the Move, Subscriber Only

HUNT Engineers and Architects has named VP CHRIS BOND as its new president. He takes over the leadership of the Horseheads–based firm from Dan Bower, who will remain as CEO and chief strategic officer. Bond is only the third president of the 150-employee company which was founded by Robert Hunt in the wake of the

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