January 19, 2007
Conference preview – NYSAC 2007 Legislative Conference
Governor Eliot Spitzer, Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and other state leaders will address over 600 county officials at NYSAC’s upcoming Legislative Conference. Workshop topics include personnel and labor, energy, health and human services, public safety, governance, legal issues, economic development, and professional development.
Don’t miss:
- The Opening Plenary Session featuring Governor Spitzer and legislative leaders,
- Ethics in Government on Monday January 29th from 2 to 5 p.m.
- Two prominent state political media consultants discuss the impact of the 2006 campaign and look ahead to ’07 and beyond on Tuesday, January 30 at 10:30 a.m.
- Understanding Community Colleges on Tuesday, January 30th from 3:30 to 5 p.m.
- Next steps in the Health Care Facility Rightsizing plan on Tuesday, January 30th from 2 to 3:15 p.m.
- What happens when the Sheriff of Wall Street becomes Governor on Wednesday, January 31st from 9 to 10:30 a.m.
- And many other great programs.
For more details, visit www.nysac.org.
State Leaders Agree to Multi-Year Local Government Impact Statement
Governor Spitzer and State legislative leaders have announced agreement on a series of budget reform measures, including a more comprehensive multi-year assessment of the state budget impact on local government. Prior impact statements were general in nature and based on state fiscal year, which tends to conceal the full long-term impact of state budget actions on localities.
Other highlights of the budget reform agreement include:
- an agreement that the State Legislature will enact a balanced budget. Currently, only the Governor is required to propose a balanced budget,
- the elimination of lump-sum appropriations and the itemization of all legislative additions to the budget,
- an expedited revenue consensus process that will require the Governor and Legislature to reach a revenue compromise by March 1st or the State Comptroller will establish a binding revenue estimate by March 5th,
- a streamlined budget review process with the Governor having 21 days, rather than 30, to submit budget amendments and a schedule of legislative budget conference committees within 10 days of the Governor’s budget submission, and
- a commitment that the Governor and Legislature will hold quarterly budget meetings and set aside a total of five percent of the State’s General Fund to be used in the event of economic downturn or disaster.
NYSAC has long advocated for a more detailed state assessment of fiscal and legal provisions impacting counties from the state budget. This will not only assist local officials, but ensure that state legislators fully understand the impact of specific state budget actions on local governments. (Ken Crannell)
Feds to NY: The long-term buck stops here!
Wouldn’t it be great if the money followed the client? Imagine a world where people could get home and community-based long-term care services. Now, thanks to a $192,981 grant from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), money for long-term care services will, literally, “follow the person” in New York State. Sixteen other states will also be a part of the “Money Follows the Person” (MFP) demonstration program designed to bring long-term care services to people and to ultimately help states shift from the “institutional” model of Medicaid long-term care to a system offering multiple choices of home and community-based services. In addition to the MFP grant, there is a federal match to help with the costs of transitioning from institutions to community settings. This is the first round of grants that will total $1.75 billion over five years. The MFP “rebalancing” initiative was included in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) currently being implemented by CMS. (Jessica Morelli)
Upstate Counties hit by June 06’ flooding eligible for federal funds
New York State Acting Agriculture Commissioner Patrick Hooker today announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will provide $16.8 million in federal funding to assist counties devastated by last summer’s flooding. The funds will be used to help restore agricultural and infrastructure disrupted by flooding, severe stream bank erosion and debris deposits in flood affected counties.
The funding is being made available through USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service's (NRCS) Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) Program and will provide up to 75 percent of the funds needed to restore the natural function of a watershed and up to 90 percent in limited resource areas damaged by a natural disaster. The local sponsor for the work, which may be a municipality, improvement district or conservation district, must pay the remaining cost-share, which can be provided by cash and/or in-kind services. All work performed must be environmentally and economically sound and generally benefit more than one property owner.
For additional information on NRCS Emergency Watershed Protection Program, visit www.usda.gov. (Pete Savage)
Election commissioners air concerns
This week the Election Commissioners Association of the State of New York met in Ulster County. Chief among the commissioners’ concerns is the potential loss of nearly $50 million dollars in Federal funding. This is earmarked for New York State to replace its existing lever voting machines.
To date, the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) has not stated if they will require New York surrender these funds because New York has not implemented HAVA. The New York State Board of Elections (SBOE) will meet with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) next week to discuss an additional extension for the implementation of HAVA. DOJ has requested to meet with representatives from New York City, Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Onondaga, Monroe and Erie Counties, along with representatives from the Election Commissioners Association.
The county election commissioners unanimously agree that HAVA cannot be fully implemented by September 2007. The SBOE has not completed testing on the proposed voting systems or indicated how many voters each system will accommodate. These factors will determine how many machines they will need.
NYSAC will continue to monitor activities involving the state’s election reforms and is coordinating a HAVA session at the upcoming Legislative Conference. (Adriano Bongiorno)
Pelletier Institute announces first graduating class
The Dennis A Pelletier County Government Institute, a joint educational program of NYSAC & Cornell University, has announced that it will award Certificates of Achievement to 6 county leaders who have completed the Institutes requirements during the NYSAC Legislative Conference to be held at the Desmond Hotel and Conference Center, January 29-31, 2007.
Certificates of Achievement will be awarded to Jean Raymond, Supervisor, Saratoga County; William Dibble, Legislator, Allegany County; Jerome Grasso, Legislator, Genesee County; Gayle Hall, Supervisor, Washington County; Cheryl Keyrouze, Supervisor, Saratoga County; and Peter Yendell, Supervisor, Livingston County.
The Pelletier Institute Certificate of Achievement is awarded to County Officials who complete the Institute’s 34 Credit educational program. The Pelletier curriculum includes a mix of required and elective courses in a comprehensive education and training program designed to assist county leaders to better serve the public. Required course offerings under the Institute’s Program include Government Ethics, Building Consensus in a Political Environment, Principles of County Budget and Finance, and Public Sector Labor/Management Relations. For further information on the Pelletier Institute, visit the Institute website at http://www.nysac.org. (Jeff Osinski)
Next week
- The State Senate and Assembly will be in session on Monday and Tuesday on next week.
- Dairy Farming Hearing: A joint Senate Assembly hearing on Critical Issues Facing the Dairy Industry in New York State will be held on Monday at 10 a.m.
- Comptroller Candidate Interviews: On Tuesday, January 23rd at 9:30 a.m., a public hearing will be held to interview candidates to fill the office of the State Comptroller.
