White Plains, NY –
Reform Westchester County Executive candidate Rob Astorino (R-I), called upon
the Westchester delegation of the New York State Legislature to support a bill
advocated by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo (D) to give localities the power to
consolidate local services. Mr Astorino is running for County Executive
to "stop the tax
madness", streamline government services and restore a high standard of
ethics to county government.
The Attorney General's plan would give county and town officials the power to
abolish special districts that serve single functions, such as water and sewer districts.
Current law requires action by the State Legislature. The plan also allows
citizens to put proposals on the ballot to consolidate governments, if they get
the signatures of 10 percent of voters, or 5,000 voters, whichever is less.
Mr Astorino has long advocated smart government consolidation as a way to save
money for taxpayers. In 1996, as a member of the Mount Pleasant Town
Board, he successfully supported merging three separate water districts into
one by abolishing the Hawthorne Water Improvement
District, Thornwood Water District, and Valhalla Water District into the
newly formed Kensico Water District. Hawthorne and Thornwood had separate
commissioners, personnel, operations, and taxing authority and Valhalla
was run by the Town Board. The consolidation realized many cost
efficiencies and is widely hailed as a success.
"Layer upon layer of government are burying Westchester's
taxpayers and it's time for a smart and efficient new approach. This plan is a
critical first step toward reducing the overwhelming tax burden we face in Westchester County
," said Mr Astorino.
"I applaud Attorney General Cuomo for his leadership on this issue and I
urge the governor and legislature to act swiftly in enacting this important
reform."
Westchester County has more than doubled its spending in the past 12 years-from $800 million to
$1.8 billion-and it now has the highest tax burden in the country. In addition
to county government, Westchester has 43 city, town and
village governments; 46 school districts; and 339 special districts, totaling
383 separate taxing districts.
