Westchester County Business Journal Lawmakers suggest consolidation
Lawmakers suggest consolidation
“We get it,” a Democratic sextet of Westchester County lawmakers chorused at a recent unveiling of their plan to consolidate government departments and so trim about $7.7 million from the proposed 2010 county budget.
While applauding that initiative, Westchester business and civic groups want the county Board of Legislators to get another message and get more done on behalf of heavily burdened taxpayers: no increase in spending on county operations and no property tax increase in 2010.
As the county Board of Legislators prepared for its Dec. 10 public hearing on a $1.82 billion budget proposed by departing County Executive Andrew Spano, six Democrats presented a plan to streamline county operations by consolidating 36 departments into 19. The restructuring would eliminate 51 nonunion positions at a total annual savings of $7.7 million.
“We the legislators get it,” said Legislator Michael B. Kaplowitz, D-Somers, board vice chairman, alluding to the county’s $45 million sales tax revenue shortfall, record unemployment, an “economy in shambles” and the recent election in which Westchester voters unseated a 12-year incumbent for a candidate who pledged to trim bloated county government and ease the burden on taxpayers. “We need to bring our expenditures down to a level that’s sustainable and down to a level of revenue that taxpayers in the county can afford,” he said.
Kaplowitz and fellow Democrats said the budget the board expects to adopt Dec. 14 will not include the 4.9 percent tax increase in Spano’s proposed budget. “This is step one,” he said. “Budget cuts will follow.” At the same time, the county must continue to provide a safety net of services for needy residents and maintain its triple-A bond rating, he said.
“Tax savings is a goal,” Kaplowitz said. “Maintain services, but in a streamlined fashion is how we’re going to do it. This world of 36 departments and Rube Goldberg-like structure is not one that works.”
The Westchester County Association in a statement applauded the lawmakers’ cost-trimming plan, calling it “a positive though long-overdue development by the legislators in taking a very hard look at the annual county budget to help bring relief to Westchester’s overburdened taxpayers.”
But much more needs to be done, WCA officials said. The WCA has called for a zero increase in the county’s 2010 operating budget.
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