Counties Give Testimony on Procurement Reforms

On Wednesday, November 12, NYSAC Executive Director Stephen Acquario testified before the Assembly Local Governments and Cities committees on critical procurement reforms.

In his testimony, Acquario noted that as governments of general jurisdiction, counties are the on-the-ground service providers for nearly all state and federal programs— delivering social services, public and mental health programs, indigent defense, 9-1-1 coordination, and many other essential programs.

To deliver these services, counties make thousands of purchases annually, from road salt and highway equipment to jail security systems and public health supplies. This requires extensive and varied procurement activities across multiple departments.

State procurement law directly affects how well counties can serve residents, how quickly we can respond to needs, and how responsibly we can manage taxpayer dollars.

In our testimony, we address nine critical areas where procurement law reform would significantly improve county operations and deliver better value for New York taxpayers, including:

• making piggybacking authority permanent,
• raising outdated bidding thresholds, and
• authorizing design-build for counties

To learn more, read our complete testimony below.