Oneida County offers incentives for municipal consolidation

UTICA, N.Y. — Oneida County has launched a new incentive program to improve the efficiencies of municipal government. Called the Consolidation Challenge, the program will double the first-year savings achieved by participating municipalities.

“Long-term, real consolidation has always been a goal of my administration,” Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente, Jr., said in a release announcing the program. “We know it works. It creates effective and efficient services at a [lower] cost, saving the taxpayers real dollars. So, I am challenging local municipalities to take a hard look at what they do and how they do it and make fiscally-sound choices for their taxpayers. County government stands ready to help them accomplish these goals.”

The program aims to create true government consolidation and allows local municipalities to create more-effective services, increase efficiencies, and save taxpayer dollars. The county will double the first-year annual savings in a one-time incentive.

Municipalities can download the application at www.ocgov.net/sites/default/files/planning/PlanPdf/Consolidation_App.pdf. Applicants must outline the municipality’s consolidation objectives. The county will only pay the incentive upon completion of the consolidation.

Oneida County’s planning department will administer the applications and incentive program, working with municipalities throughout the process to identify projects, costs, savings, timeframes, benefits, and barriers to and from consolidation.

“We will assist local municipalities with the use of data collection, community participation, and implementation to complete their application, consolidation, and receive their incentive,” Commissioner of Planning James Genovese said.

Picente first mentioned the Consolidation Challenge in his 2022 State of the County Address.