Five to Two: How 29 minutes in January 2025 narrowed Broome County's public notices
BROOME COUNTY — The Broome County Legislature opened its organizational meeting at 5 p.m. on Jan. 2, 2025. By 5:29 p.m. it had:
That last change came in Resolution 5 of 2025. It was sponsored "By All Members" and seconded by Legislator Timothy Ames, and it passed 13–0, with Legislators Matthew Pasquale and Susan Ryan absent. The official minutes record no discussion of it.
This article is part of Broome's Watching?, a series on how Broome County decides which newspapers carry the notices residents rely on to learn about public hearings, new local laws and other County business. Last week, "148 Years" told the story of The Windsor Standard. This week: what changed, in the County's own words.
What the law requires
State law gives the Legislature this job every year. County Law § 214(2) says the county legislative body "shall annually designate at least two newspapers published within the county as official newspapers for the publication of all local laws, notices and other matters required by law to be published."
The law also tells legislators what to weigh: "consideration shall be given" to each newspaper's "general circulation throughout the county." And it leaves room for more than two: "Nothing herein shall be deemed to prevent the designation of additional newspapers."
Before: five newspapers
Two years earlier, on Jan. 5, 2023, the Legislature adopted the designation it had used for years. It named the Press & Sun-Bulletin as the official newspaper, then went on:
"…and to further designate a consortium of Broome County weekly newspapers consisting of The Deposit Courier, The Windsor Standard, The Country Courier, and The Vestal Town Crier as official newspapers for the placement of all Broome County Legal Notices requiring publication in a second paper."
One daily and four weeklies: five newspapers.
The weekly consortium was not new. The Legislature's records show it was added on Feb. 15, 1996, when Legislator Miller of Windsor moved to amend that year's designation to include "a consortium of Broome County weekly papers." The amendment passed 18–0. Records from 1997, 2001, 2006, 2007, 2017, and 2023 show the weeklies still in place.
The connection is older than the Legislature itself. On June 27, 1935, when the County was governed by a Board of Supervisors, The Standard printed page after page of the Board's committee reports on audited claims, each one marked "Report adopted."
After: two newspapers
Here is the same passage in Resolution 5 of 2025:
"…and to further designate The Deposit Courier as an official newspaper for the placement of all Broome County Legal Notices requiring publication in a second paper."
One daily and one weekly: two newspapers.
Everything else stayed the same:
The only change was in the list of weeklies: four names became one. The next Part of this series will set the 2017 and 2025 resolutions side by side, word for word.
What the resolution doesn't say
Resolution 5 gives no reason for the change. It does not mention circulation, which the law says must be considered. It does not mention cost, and it does not say why The Deposit Courier was kept and the other three weeklies, designated with it as a group since at least 1996, were not.
The minutes are equally silent. They show the resolution read, seconded and carried, then the meeting moving on to appoint a comptroller.
Chairman Daniel Reynolds presides over the Legislature and sets its agendas. Asked in a June 2025 deposition in a separate federal lawsuit how hearing notices reach the public, he testified that they are "published in the designated papers from the county," which the Legislature chooses "in, I believe, the first or second meeting of the year."
Every year, or every other year?
The law says "annually." The County's recent practice is every two years.
Under that practice, the January 2025 decision covers both 2025 and 2026. The Legislature's next scheduled chance to revisit it is its January 2027 organizational meeting. Reynolds writes later in this article that County Law § 214 “requires counties to annually designate” official newspapers. The Clerk of the Legislature was asked Oct. 9 to explain the County’s practice; this story will be updated with any response.
Five to two, again
The same narrowing has since reached a second list. Under a separate state law, every new limited liability company must publish notice of its formation in two newspapers chosen by the County Clerk, one daily and one weekly.
An Internet Archive copy of the County Clerk's web page from March 12, 2026, lists five newspapers for those notices: the Press & Sun-Bulletin, The Deposit Courier, The Windsor Standard, The Country Courier and The Vestal Town Crier. The page today lists two. It explains that the Clerk's Office, "to be consistent with the County's official designation of newspapers for the publication of laws and public notices (Resolution 2025-005)," "is designating" the Press & Sun-Bulletin and The Deposit Courier.
County Clerk Aaron M. Martin was Clerk of the Broome County Legislature under Chairman Reynolds when Resolution 5 was adopted; he was reappointed to that post, 13–0, at the same meeting. A future part of this series will look at the Clerk's decision.
Asking why
Newspaper Publishers LLC emailed all 15 members of the Legislature on Oct. 6 with two questions: why the three papers were left out of the 2025 designation, and whether the Legislature will support restoring them in January 2027.
Three responded by the Oct. 9 deadline: Chairman Daniel Reynolds (District 5), Legislator Timothy Ames (District 15) and Legislator Mary Kaminsky (District 14). An earlier letter from the company had raised First Amendment concerns; Reynolds and Kaminsky addressed that point, and Kaminsky's reply focused on it. The other 12, Legislators Flagg, Baker, Wildoner, Myers, Baldwin, Pasquale, Shaw, Hilderbrant, Micha, Ryan, Augostini and Weslar, did not respond. The responses are printed in full below.
The request sent to each legislator (this copy to Legislator Ames):
Dear Legislator Ames:
I'm writing to you as the representative for District 15 (City of Binghamton). The minutes of the Legislature's Jan. 2, 2025 organizational meeting list Resolution 5 as sponsored by all members, show you as the member who seconded it, and record your vote in favor.
That resolution (2025-005) designated the Press & Sun-Bulletin and The Deposit Courier as Broome County's official newspapers. The Windsor Standard, The Country Courier and The Vestal Town Crier had been designated alongside them since at least 2007 [Editor's note: County records show the designation dates to Feb. 15, 1996.]. The resolution states no reason for leaving them out, and the minutes record no discussion. This year, the County Clerk also removed the three papers from the newspapers designated for LLC publication, citing that resolution.
We are preparing coverage for our readers and will publish every legislator's answers in full. Two questions:
Please reply by Friday, Oct. 9, 2026. We will print your answers verbatim. If we don't hear from you by then, we will report that you were asked and did not respond by the deadline.
Thank you for your time.
Gretchen Van Walterop
Publisher, The Windsor Standard, The Country Courier and The Vestal Town Crier
Newspaper Publishers LLC · PO Box 208, Conklin, NY 13748
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Legislator Timothy Ames (District 15), by email, Oct. 9, 2026
Dear Ms. Van Walterop,
Thank you for reaching out, and for giving me the chance to answer directly.
On why the three papers were left out: I don't have a good answer, and I won't guess. Resolution 2025-005 came to us already drafted, along with the other routine organizational resolutions that all members co-sponsor at our January meeting. It passed 13-0 with no discussion at a meeting that lasted under half an hour. Comparing it to past years, the only real change was replacing the consortium of four weekly papers with The Deposit Courier alone. I seconded and voted for it without catching that change, and I should have. This was also my very first meeting other than being sworn in and I did not preview the agenda prior to the meeting.
On the January 2027 resolution: Yes. If re-elected and given the opportunity, I will support designating every Broome County newspaper that meets the legal requirements, including The Windsor Standard, The Country Courier and The Vestal Town Crier. I'll raise this issue with my colleagues before the organizational meeting. Local weeklies are often the only place residents read about what their town and county governments are doing, and public notices should reach as many people as possible.
Chairman Daniel Reynolds (District 5), by letter dated Oct. 8, 2026, answering the same questions:
Dear Ms. Van Walterop,
Thank you for reaching out and providing an opportunity to respond to your questions regarding Broome County's designation of official newspapers.
First, I want to acknowledge the important role that local newspapers, including The Vestal Town Crier, The Windsor Standard and The Country Courier, have played in keeping residents informed about local government and community affairs. Local journalism remains an important part of an informed and engaged community.
However, I believe it is also important to recognize that the way people access information has changed dramatically over the past several decades, and government has a responsibility to adapt to those changes.
When many of New York State's legal publication requirements were established, printed newspapers were the primary means of communicating government notices to the public. Residents relied heavily on print publications to learn about public hearings, government actions, legal notices and bidding opportunities. At that time, designating multiple newspapers served an important purpose in ensuring that information reached as many people as possible.
Today, the landscape is significantly different.
The internet has fundamentally changed how information is distributed, accessed and preserved. Residents can now obtain government information electronically, search public records almost instantly, and access notices and documents without having to locate and review individual print editions, or waiting for a weekly newspaper to arrive.
Broome County, like many governments, has embraced these changes by making information available through a variety of electronic resources. For example, the County utilizes services such as BidNet to electronically distribute requests for proposals, requests for qualifications and other procurement opportunities. These represent an important category of government notices, and electronic distribution provides an additional means of reaching interested businesses and members of the public that simply did not exist when many of these statutory publication requirements were established.
These developments do not eliminate the County's obligation to comply with New York State's statutory publication requirements. They do, however, provide additional considerations when evaluating how government can most effectively ensure that legally required information is accessible to the public.
With respect to your first question, the decision to designate the Press & Sun-Bulletin and The Deposit Courier was based on reasonable considerations available to the Legislature.
New York State County Law §214 requires counties to annually designate at least two newspapers published within the county as official newspapers for local laws, notices and other matters required by law to be published. The statute also directs the Legislature to consider the newspapers' general circulation throughout the county and permits the designation of additional newspapers. It does not require that every qualifying newspaper within a county receives that designation.
The Press & Sun-Bulletin also provides an extensive online resource for accessing and searching legal notices. That ability to search and retrieve legal advertisements electronically provides a level of accessibility that traditional print publication alone cannot provide.
The Deposit Courier has a particularly long history of serving Broome County and is one of the county's longest-established publications.
There are also practical considerations that are appropriate for the County to evaluate when selecting publications for official legal notices. The County needs to have confidence that required notices can be reliably published and that the resulting publication can be readily obtained when necessary to document or verify publication.
In the past, County staff have experienced difficulties obtaining copies of certain publications in a timely and consistent manner, including difficulties involving delivery and subscription issues. I believe that experience is a legitimate practical consideration when evaluating the reliability and accessibility of a publication for purposes of official government notices.
I do not raise that point as a criticism of any particular publication or as a determination that any newspaper does or does not meet the statutory definition of a newspaper. Rather, it is one of the practical considerations a government should reasonably evaluate when determining how best to provide legally required public notice.
When a publication has a robust, searchable online archive, the public has an additional means of immediately locating a legal notice even if they do not receive the printed edition. When that resource is not available, dependable print distribution and the ability to readily obtain and verify published notices become even more important. Legal advertising is not simply an advertising purchase. It is a mechanism through which government provides legally required public notice.
There is also a financial responsibility that accompanies these decisions. Legal advertising represents an expenditure of taxpayer dollars, and I believe the County Legislature has an obligation to consider cost and other factors when multiple legally qualified publications are available.
When public access to government information is supported through multiple channels—including newspapers, searchable digital publications, government websites and electronic procurement platforms—it is reasonable to consider factors such as cost, circulation, accessibility, reliability and publication history when selecting among publications that meet the statutory requirements.
I would also point out that not all publications offer the same digital resources. The availability of a comprehensive, searchable online legal-notice database provides a meaningful additional avenue through which residents can find government notices. When comparing publications that do not provide comparable digital access, the differences in public accessibility can appropriately be considered as part of the overall evaluation.
Regarding your second question, I am certainly willing to consider any qualified newspaper for future designation, including the publications you represent.
However, I do not believe that every qualifying newspaper must automatically be designated simply because it operates in the community. New York law requires the County to designate at least two newspapers; it does not require the County to designate every newspaper that may qualify. It also expressly permits the County to consider circulation and permits, but does not require, the designation of additional newspapers.
The County Legislature therefore has a responsibility to consider the interests of Broome County residents, compliance with State law, accessibility of information, reliability of distribution and a responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars.
I would be open to reviewing the available options again as part of the 2027 organizational process, including publication costs, circulation, geographic coverage, digital accessibility, reliability and any additional services individual newspapers provide.
I also want to address the reference to the First Amendment raised in your earlier correspondence.
I strongly support freedom of the press and the important role that independent journalism plays in holding government accountable. However, the First Amendment does not require government to purchase advertising from every newspaper that may qualify for consideration. The designation of official newspapers is an administrative decision governed by State law and should not be confused with restricting a publication's freedom to report on government activities.
Your publications remain free to cover Broome County government, report on legislative decisions and provide information to your readers regardless of whether they receive an official newspaper designation.
Ultimately, I believe the goal should be to ensure that residents have meaningful and reliable access to government information, rather than measuring transparency solely by the number of newspapers receiving paid legal advertisements.
As technology continues to evolve, I believe local governments should continue looking for ways to make information more accessible, searchable and readily available to residents while remaining mindful of the costs borne by taxpayers.
Thank you again for the opportunity to respond. Sincerely,
Daniel J. Reynolds
Chairman, Broome County Legislature
Editor's note: Chairman Reynolds cites cost, online searchability, reliability and “difficulties obtaining copies.” None of these appears in Resolution 5 or the meeting minutes, and Legislator Ames says the resolution “came to us already drafted.” On delivery, the company has asked the County, under the Freedom of Information Law, for records of any complaints about notices in its papers; the company says it is aware of only limited postal delivery problems. The three newspapers that were delisted are the only weekly newspapers in Broome County that are also published online at TiersNews.com.
Legislator Mary Kaminsky (District 14), by email, Oct. 6, 2026
Thank you for your email and for raising the question.
The First Amendment is fundamental to our democracy, and I take the freedom of the press very seriously. My vote on Resolution No. 5 in January 2025 was not a vote to restrict, favor, or otherwise interfere with the First Amendment rights of any newspaper or publisher.
The resolution was adopted pursuant to New York County Law § 214, which requires the County Legislature to designate newspapers for the publication of local laws, notices, and other matters that the law requires the County to publish. In other words, the County is required by law to designate newspapers for these official publications.
The resolution designated the Press & Sun-Bulletin and The Deposit Courier for that statutory purpose. It does not prevent any other newspaper from reporting on County government, publishing opinions or criticism, or exercising its rights under the First Amendment.
Because the County is legally required to publish certain notices, we are required to designate qualifying local newspapers for those publications. My vote was based on that legal requirement and the purpose of the resolution, not on an attempt to limit freedom of the press.
I appreciate you reaching out and giving me the opportunity to clarify the reason for my vote.
Thank you,
Ms. Kaminsky
The resolutions, minutes and web pages quoted in this article are linked below so readers can check every word.
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Editor's note: The author, Gretchen Van Walterop, is the publisher of Newspaper Publishers LLC, which publishes The Windsor Standard, The Country Courier and The Vestal Town Crier, the three newspapers removed from the list. The company has asked the Legislature and the County Clerk in writing to restore them. This article relies on public records, linked so readers can judge them independently, and on the legislators' own written responses. The author has supported Republican, Democrat, and Independent candidates for Broome County elected office. The Windsor Standard has carried Broome County news for over 148 years.
Sidebar: Read the records
