As temperatures dip, Long Islanders who rely on assistance programs to help them meet rising costs to heat their homes are finding one critical federal source frozen out: the Home Energy Assistance Program.

The federal shutdown has put on hold the annual funding for HEAP, delaying indefinitely the ability of those most in need to apply for and receive bill assistance to heat their homes. Sign- ups for the program normally takes place Nov. 3. Last year, about 70,000 Long Islanders received $19 million from the program

Mark Harrington reports in NEWSDAY that New York State received $287 million last year to fund HEAP, and the average benefit was just under $1,000 per home per season, the state said. The funding is aimed at the young, the elderly and those with low or moderate incomes.

Last week, the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, notified social services agencies across the state that applications for the program were being delayed "until further notice," the agency said. The state isn't able to provide heating assistance "until mid-November at the earliest," a spokeswoman noted.

PSEG in a statement said delays in opening of HEAP "will impact many Long Islanders during a time when they may need assistance the most." The utility will hold community information sessions at three locations across the service territory starting next week to offer help.

PSEG’s information session in Suffolk County next week can be attended on Monday; November 3 from 1:00 p.m. — 5:30 p.m., Stop and Shop Parking Lot, 999 Montauk Highway, Shirley.

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Project Most no longer plans to demolish the historic Neighborhood House to make way for a new community learning center. Project Most runs after-school and summer programs for children in East Hampton, including the Montauk Child Care Center. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that originally submitted in 2023, Project Most’s previous pitch was to tear down Neighborhood House on Meadow Way in East Hampton, which had been a community center of its own in the past, to build a new 7,623-square-foot two-story structure. It would have classrooms and a commercial kitchen on the first floor, and a caretaker’s apartment and additional classrooms on the second floor. The 4,418-square-foot basement was to be used for storage and as a multi-purpose space for athletics. But neighbors panned the idea, citing the building’s historic nature — it dates back to the 1800s — and its place within the historic Freetown neighborhood in East Hampton, which was settled in the 19th century by free people of African and Native American descent. Now, a year after the plans for Neighborhood House were last discussed, Project Most has returned with a revised plan. The most significant change is that it no longer plans to demolish Neighborhood House. Project Most is looking to undertake substantial renovations, while constructing an addition in the rear of the building. Neighborhood House first went up in the 1880s as a community center and hospital. This newest proposal calls for a 2,284-square-foot addition to the existing 4,232-square-foot first floor. The 1,096-square-foot second floor would balloon to 2,663 square feet total. The basement would measure 6,591 square feet. Project Most is capped at 75 students on the premises at a time, and it plans to staff the building with 15 employees. Once the new facility is constructed, Project Most plans to keep its existing programs at Springs School and John Marshall Elementary. The East Hampton Town Planning Board deemed the revised site plan appropriate and plans to send the project over to the Town Architectural Review Board, which will look at the historic sensitivity in its analysis.

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The Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons (ARF) is calling on the creativity of local young artists with the launch of its 2025 Holiday Card Contest. Open to all students in grades six through 12, the contest invites participants to design ARF’s official holiday card.

This year’s challenge: Create a festive design featuring one ARF dog and one ARF cat currently available for adoption. The winning design will be mailed to supporters across the community.

Students may submit one entry only, by Friday, November 7, at noon.

Email submission to [email protected] with subject line “ARF Holiday Card Contest.” Please include your name, grade, school, and contact info.

“ARF Holiday Card Contest” winners will be announced December 1, with prizes awarded.

For further info visit arfhamptons.org

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Air traffic controllers missed their first full paycheck yesterday and gathered at LaGuardia Airport, calling for Congress to end the government shutdown. John Asbury reports in NEWSDAY that union officials with the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, or NATCA, stood with U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, urging congressional representatives to find a way to pay controllers. Duffy and union officials said some air traffic controllers have had to take second jobs or decide whether they should abandon their careers while airports nationwide are facing a shortage of up to 3,000 air traffic controllers. Duffy said there is no contingency funding available in the FAA budget to pay controllers.

Air traffic controllers are slated to receive back pay without interest for the hours missed, while the pay for furloughed workers is unclear, Duffy said.

The shutdown has also led to stopped pay for nearly 300 air traffic controllers on Long Island who work in Westbury and Ronkonkoma.

Joe Segretto, a controller and NATCA'S Long Island union president who works at Terminal Radar Approach Control…the TRACON air traffic facility in Westbury, said the staff of about 119 controllers and 90 trainees are struggling to cover costs.

"We're not getting paid. It's a tough conversation to have with your children. Hopefully we could still put food on the table and get a paycheck eventually," Segretto said. "Those men and women show up every day and the morale is diminishing. You're working the most complex, congested airspace in the National Airspace System, and it's starting to diminish."

On average, about 5% of flight delays this year were attributed to staffing shortages, Duffy said. The delays have fluctuated daily, with 44% of delays Sunday due to staffing shortages nationwide. Staffing shortages caused 24% of delays Monday, he said.

Air traffic controllers with the union have said they have not taken a political stance in the shutdown. They handed out pamphlets to passengers arriving at the LaGuardia terminal parking garage Tuesday, urging them to contact their congressional representatives and end the shutdown.

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New York could have a Republican governor next year, a new poll claims. Vaughn Golden reports in THE NY POST that the Manhattan Institute poll released yesterday shows Congresswoman Elise Stefanik…a Republican from upstate New York…narrowly beating Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul in a hypothetical 2026 matchup. The incumbent governor trails her GOP potential opponent by 1%, according to the statewide survey conducted by the right-leaning think tank. The Manhattan Institute survey found Stefanik getting 43% support, compared with 42% for Hochul – a statistical tie with the poll’s 3% margin of error. Nine percent of those surveyed said they would vote for “someone else” and 7% responded that they were “not sure.” The poll showed Stefanik — who has said she will officially declare her bid after the Nov. 4 election — leading Hochul with those aged 50 and up and among critical independent voters, especially in the suburbs. Stefanik leads Hochul 46% to 33% among independents and 54% to 37% on Long Island, the poll found. The Hochul campaign dismissed the findings because the poll was conducted by a conservative think tank. “You’ve got to hand it to Sellout Stefanik: when her own polls don’t reflect reality, she can count on Trump and his megadonors – like Betsy DeVos and Paul Singer – to repeat her lies,” Hochul spokesperson Sarafina Chitka said in a statement. “Unfortunately for her, New Yorkers aren’t interested in letting an unhinged Trump enabler anywhere near the Governor’s mansion.” But Stefanik’s team cheered the results, saying in a statement that “New Yorkers of all political parties are hungry for new commonsense leadership after decades of Hochul’s failed single party Democrat rule.” Public polling has shown a wide range of polling gaps between Stefanik and Hochul. Siena College had Hochul 25 points ahead of Stefanik in its September poll and the governor 14 points ahead in August. An internal poll released by Stefanik’s campaign earlier this month showed Hochul only five points ahead of the upstate Trump ally.

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Early voting continues today at any of 28 locations throughout Suffolk County, New York from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Hours of early voting vary each day through Nov. 2.

No voting next Monday, November 3.

On Election Day, Nov. 4, you can only vote at your assigned polling place, which you can find online at the NYS BOE website: voterlookup.elections.ny.gov

Early voting for today is 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Thursday and Friday is 12 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Then this coming Saturday and Sunday early voting in Suffolk County is 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

You can vote at any early voting center in Suffolk County for the General Election. Visit the Suffolk County Board of Elections website for a list of locations when available.

Voting during the early period means you cannot vote again on Election Day, November 4, 2025.

If you have an Early Mail ballot, you cannot vote in person on a machine; you must use an affidavit ballot.

The deadline to register to vote for the 2025 General Election is October 25, 2025.

Check your voter registration status and find your polling site on the New York State voter lookup website.

For questions, contact the Suffolk County Board of Elections at (631) 852-4500.

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Westhampton Beach School District residents who took to the polls yesterday overwhelmingly approved two capital improvement bonds.

Desirée Keegan reports on 27east.com that community members voted 216-66 in favor of the first proposition, approving $13 million in districtwide work. The bond will replace debt expiring from a 2005 bond, so the projects come at no additional cost to taxpayers. The funding will pay for the replacement of the high school tennis courts, a high school chiller upgrade, security enhancements — including parking lot lighting and the installation of a double-locked security vestibule in each school building — and asphalt, sidewalk and curb improvements.

The second proposition, which garnered 181 “yes” votes and 98 “no” votes, gave the go-ahead for a $17 million capital improvement bond that will provide for cooling of all instructional spaces in the middle and high schools and cooling of the high school gymnasium, along with the installation of a multipurpose turf field and reconstruction of the elementary school playground. Proposition 2 is expected to cost the average homeowner in the Westhampton Beach School District — with a property assessed at $750,000 — about $165 annually, according to the district. Proposition 1 does not come with an additional cost to taxpayers, officials said.

“We are thankful to our Westhampton Beach community for supporting the bond vote,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Carolyn Probst said. “We are looking forward to completing this work over the next several years and providing our community with ongoing updates.”

If funds are left over after all work is completed, the superintendent said it could cover the cost of additional restroom upgrades and floor tile abatement and replacements throughout the district.