There are 1176 public authorities in New York State according to the State Comptroller, but only one is now 'The Authority.'

I saw an advertisement in the Utica Observer-Dispatch from the Oneida Herkimer Solid Waste Authority that included a new logo and name I'd not seen before, 'The Authority.' The OHSWA is responsible for landfills, recycling and the like in Oneida and Herkimer Counties.

There are large and well known authorities like the New York State Thruway Authority and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority that runs mass transit in and around New York City. There are also more obscure authorities like the Upper Mohawk Valley Memorial Auditorium Authority that runs the Utica AUD or the defunct Industrial Exhibit Authority which owned a few of the buildings that sit on the grounds of the State Fairgrounds. But today I learned there is only one true Authority. And it runs the landfill where my trash goes.

Of course I'm tempting fate just publishing this article. Any fan of 80s music could tell you what John Mellencamp taught us. When you fight authority, authority always wins!

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