The County Perspective on this week's issues and events from the Capitol   Visit Our Website   |  NYSAC Publications  February 6, 2017 In this issue (click on topic to view): NYSAC Presents State Update Training & Funding Click to view  county job openings posted on NYSAC.org             PARTNERS    PERMA helps employees get better and back to work, while providing counties with stable costs and great service.   The municipal insurance solution for nearly 600 localities in NYS.   MEGA leverages the buying power of more than 30 counties to reduce energy and gas costs for participating local governments.   From the desk of: Stephen J. Acquario, Executive Director  NYSAC Update County Delegates Convened for 2017 Legislative Conference From January 30th through February 1st, delegates from all 57 counties and the City of New York convened at the Legislative Conference of the New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC). Hundreds of county officials attended meetings, educational forums, keynote addresses and state budget presentations over the course of the three-day conference.   The county delegation received an insightful assessment of the state's economic conditions, a presentation on the sobering numbers of New Yorkers being lost to opioid addiction, and a stirring speech about the Governor's proposal to have county leaders convene local governments to develop a local referendum to share services.   To see a video of NYSAC President William E. Cherry's remarks to the county delegation, visit the NYSAC TV channel at https://youtu.be/bn2rnha3-_s.   Over the three-day period, county delegates also discussed and adopted a series of 41 resolutions on timely state and federal issues that impact counties, including 9-1-1 emergency services, highway funding, heroin addiction, Medicaid administration, preschool special education, early voting, state cost shifts, economic development, and Internet sales taxes.    The full resolutions packet is available here: http://www.nysac.org/resolutions, and will be to counties, state lawmakers, and Governor Andrew Cuomo early next week.   NYSAC Thanks Sponsors and Exhibitors. NYSAC extends our sincere thanks to the sponsors and exhibitors who work with our counties and helped to make this conference successful. www.nysac.org/files/LC17%20ThankYouExhibitorsSponsors.pdf   NYSAC Takes a Position on Shared Services Referendum Proposal "NYSAC supports shared services and has been ever vigilant in the search for increased operational efficiencies at all levels of government. Our goal is the reduction of property taxes in New York State, but in order for a realistic discussion to take place, school taxes and how public education is funded must be a part of the solution. School taxes account for approximately 65% of local property tax bills, and county taxes account for about 20% of that annual tax bill. Furthermore, of the 20% county share, NY State mandates are responsible for almost all of that tax bill. Shared services and consolidation efforts, while laudable, are simply not the answer to the much larger issue of high property taxes in this state. Any solution to that problem must include the addressing of school taxes and unfunded state mandates. NYSAC therefore rejects the consolidation plan and referendum proposal as presented by the Governor as being incomplete in its scope," according to an excerpt in NYSAC's adopted resolution urging state legislative leaders to focus their property tax relief efforts on fiscal reforms that will lead to permanent and historic property tax reduction.   While counties will continue to aggressively pursue improved government operations, they do believe that more can always be done and we should never settle for the status quo. To this end, NYSAC and member counties look forward to working with the Governor and Legislature to identify the appropriate mechanism to foster greater cooperation amongst the local governments.   NYSAC Testifies on the Budget, Raising the Age of Criminal Responsibility, and Local Government Restructuring Incentives   NYSAC Executive Director Stephen J. Acquario presented testimony to a Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Local Government on Monday January 30.  For a copy of the testimony, click here. To see a video recording of Mr. Acquario's testimony, visit the NYSAC TV YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8lEKuUk61c.   Mr. Acquario was accompanied on February 6 th by two members of the Council of Probation Administrators; Rocco Pozzi, Commissioner of Probation at Westchester County and Robert Iusi, Probation Director for Warren County will present testimony to the Senate Children & Families Committee and Senate Crime Victims, Crime, & Corrections Committees to discuss the Governor's Raise the Age budget proposal.   On January 23rd, NYSAC presented testimony to the NYS Assembly Committees on Local Governments and Cities on the series of local government shared service incentive programs offered by the state. To see a recording of the testimony, visit NYSAC TV at www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLSQLQ_d9eU. For a copy of the testimony, click here.   It his verbal testimony, Mr. Acquario referenced the government efficiency plans submitted by counties in 2015 for a total property tax savings of more than $882 million. Those plans are accumulating savings through county fiscal year 2019. For a copy NYSAC's 2015 Report on Government Efficiency Programs, click here.   County Real Property Directors Held 2017 Winter Conference Last week, the NYS Association of County Directors of Real Property Tax Services held their annual winter conference in Albany N.Y.  This conference was led by their president, Cattaraugus County Real Property Tax Director Daniel Martonis.  Tax Directors from over 50 counties met for continual professional training and idea sharing. Workshops included training on tax appraisal challenges for unique properties such as drug stores and condos as well as a seminar on modern municipal revaluation.       State Update   State Legislative Update The Legislature will convene for session on Monday, February 6 & Tuesday, February 7.   The Legislature will also continue their Joint Budget Hearings the Week of February 6. The agenda is as follows: Tuesday, February 7, 9:30am - Taxes Wednesday, February 8, 9:30am - Human Services Thursday, February 9, 9:30am - Housing  A full list can be found at wallabytelicon.com/NY/library/2017/20170118ZV.PDF.   Early Peak at Property Tax Cap Inflation Trends for 2018 December marks the halfway point for property tax cap data collection purposes for determining the 2018 inflation adjustment for counties. Inflation still remains low by historical standards but with six months of data now available for calculating the 2018 tax cap inflation factor for counties, it appears that inflation is running slightly higher than it has in recent years.   For the last four years, 2014 through 2017, the county property tax cap inflation factor has remained significantly below two percent ranging from a high 1.66 percent in 2013 to a low of .68 percent in 2017. With six months of data available for the 2018 inflation factor calculation, assuming the inflation trend for the past 12 months continues for the next six months, the 2018 inflation factor could be around 1.5 percent for counties. This is a very early peak at what might be in store for counties if current inflation trends continue.  NYSAC will continue to monitor actual inflation data in the months ahead.  Training & Funding Opportunities   Grants Training in Syracuse SUNY OSWEGO Division of Extended Learning and Grant Writing USA will present a two-day grants workshop in Syracuse, February 16-17, 2017.  This train ing is for grant seekers across all disciplines.  Attend this class and you'll learn how to find grants and write winning grant proposals. Click here for full event details.   Beginning and experienced grant writers from city, county and state agencies as well as nonprofits, K-12, colleges and universities are encouraged to attend. Multi-enrollment discounts and discounts for Grant Writing USA returning alumni are available.  Tuition payment is not required at the time of enrollment.   NYSAC members receive a tuition rate of $425, which includes two days of instruction, workbook, and access to tools, discussions and more than 200 sample grant proposals.  Please use discount code "NYASSN" to receive this $30 discount off full price at registration. Contact Kaelee DeLisle at Grant Writing USA at 888.435.7281 or kaelee@grantwritingusa.com for more information. Contact Us   NYSAC 540 Broadway, 5th Floor Albany, NY 12207 Phone: (518) 465-1473 Fax: (518) 465-0506 Email: info@nysac.org   Receive alerts and timely updates when you follow us on Facebook or Twitter. View NYSAC-TV on YouTube for video updates.            New York State Association of Counties | 540 Broadway | Albany, New York 12207

New York State Association of Counties, 540 Broadway, 5th Floor, Albany, NY 12207