Onondaga County, partners awarded $19M in state matching funds for shared-services projects

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Onondaga County and some of its municipal partners will share more than $19 million in state matching funds through the County-Wide Shared Services Initiative (CWSSI).

The matching funds are the result of efficiency partnerships with the City of Syracuse; Syracuse City School District; Cayuga and Oswego counties; and the villages of Manlius and Fayetteville, the office of Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Tuesday.

Onondaga County led efforts to consolidate services and save taxpayer money through government efficiencies in services and community programs.

Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said he convened a group of local government partners in 2019 to figure out way that they could work together to create efficiencies and savings for taxpayers.

McMahon went on to say that those involved “executed a plan [in which] we saved over $19 million between all of our partners, including the City and the City School District being main partners and from that savings … New York State in 2021 has now matched that savings … and I want to congratulate all of our partners on that for their good work in helping to create these efficiencies and savings for the taxpayers,” the county executive said.

He commented on the matching-funds grant during his latest COVID-19 briefing held Tuesday at the Oncenter.

The 95 percent state match for identified shared services resulted in the following total award amounts:  

• Onondaga County — $5,424,961
• City of Syracuse — $9,416,936
• Syracuse City School District — $4,285,070
• Village of Fayetteville — $106,238
• Village of Manlius — $108,860 

Efficiency projects  

Onondaga County municipalities initiated five shared-services projects that resulted in more than $20 million in taxpayer savings in the first year of project implementation. Savings of similar amounts should continue into future years as the shared-services partners continue these projects and services.

The five projects implemented are listed below, per Hochul’s office.

• Partnered with the City of Syracuse and the Syracuse City School District to save $16,609,003 through the creation of a joint Medicare Advantage prescription drug plan.
• Onondaga County teamed up with the City of Syracuse and Oswego County to offer pharmacy benefit manager services for a savings of $3,412,968.
• The villages of Manlius and Fayetteville partnered to share deputy fire-chief duties to save $214,418.
• Onondaga County collaborated with Cayuga County on a combined road-salt bidding initiative for a savings of $111,678.71.
• The villages of Manlius and Fayetteville partnered to purchase five ambulances, saving taxpayers $12,000.