SECRETARY OF STATE CORTÉS-VÁZQUEZ ANNOUNCES THE RELEASE OF APPLICATIONS FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY GRANTS

FROM THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE

September 12, 2008

Contact: Lauren Rivera
Press Officer
(518) 474-4752


ALBANY – (September 12, 2008) – New York State Secretary of State Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez today announced the release of grant applications for the Local Government Efficiency (LGE) Grants, which is administered by the Division of Local Government to provide grant money to municipalities that agree to share services by entering into cooperative agreements, mergers, consolidations or dissolutions. Fifteen technical assistance workshops are presently being held throughout the state to outline the newest features and application process for the LGE grant program.

“I am pleased that the applications for the Local Government Efficiency grants are now available. Once again we will be able to provide financial incentives to assist municipalities in their efforts to achieve more cost-effective means of delivering services to New York State. We need to think creatively and act decisively in these fiscally challenging times,” said Secretary of State Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez.“The LGE grants provide forward-looking governments with information and assistance about municipal consolidation and shared services – doing more with less. The grants further the Governor’s agenda to facilitate shared services and ease New Yorkers’ tax burden. Our goal is for these innovative projects to be used as models for other local governments.”

Sixty-seven applications were accepted for a total of $13.7 million in the 2007-2008 round. The winners were selected from a pool of 241 applications requesting a total of $51.7 million in support. Since the inception of these grants, formerly known as Shared Municipal Services Incentive (SMSI) program, 161 projects throughout the state have been funded.

For 2008-2009, the LGE program has expanded the eligible applicants to include: library districts, water authorities, sewer authorities, regional planning and development boards, along with counties, cities, towns, villages, special improvement districts, fire districts, school districts, and in certain instances, boards of cooperative educational services (BOCES). Other changes include a non-competitive grant category for high-priority projects, as well as the availability for transitional costs in certain circumstances. The grant categories are as follows:

High Priority Planning Grants are non-competitive planning grants for city or county charter revisions that include functional consolidations or increased shared services; municipal mergers, consolidations or dissolutions; countywide shared services; or the transfer of local functions to the county and multi-county or regional services. Activities shall have a great potential for cost savings, structural change, and management improvements. The grant maximum is $50,000 for village dissolutions or charter revisions, a single applicant may apply.

General Efficiency Planning Grants are competitive planning grants to help identify and study opportunities to improve local government efficiency and cost savings, including health plan consolidations. The grant begins at $25,000 for the first two municipalities, with an additional $1,000 for each additional municipality. The grant maximum is $35,000.

Efficiency Implementation Grants are competitive grants to assist applicants implement plans to improve local government efficiency and cost savings. The grant begins at $200,000 per municipality. The grant maximum is $1,000,000. Transitional personnel costs essential for implementation are allowed for a period of up to three years. If funding is for the implementation of a past SMSI study, the local cost share for that study shall offset local share of this grant only.

21st Century Demonstration Projects are competitive grants promoting large-scale, transformative change in municipalities that can be used as models for municipal innovation. This may include consolidation of services on a multi-county basis, consolidation of certain services countywide, creation of a regional entity empowered to provide multiple functions on a countywide or regional basis, the creation of a regional or city-county consolidated municipal government, BOCES-wide consolidation of school districts or school district services, or the creation of a regional smart growth compact or program. A maximum of $400,000 per municipality may be awarded.

To date, a total of $29.8 million has been awarded to fund projects which will have an estimated $40 million annually for New York municipalities. The 2008-2009 State Budget appropriated up to $23.03 million for direct financial assistance to local governments under the LGE grant program.

According to the budget appropriation, the funding amounts are as follows:

High Priority Planning & General Efficiency Planning Grants up to $4.9Million Efficiency Implementation Grants up to $9.8Million 21st Century Demonstration Project Grants up to $8.33Million

The submission deadlines for High Priority Planning Grants are Wednesdays at 4:00pm on October 8, 2008, November 12, 2008, December 10, 2008, January 14, 2009, February 11, 2009 and March 11, 2009. The submission deadline for the other three grant applications is Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. on January 14, 2009. Questions about the grant program should be directed to the Shared Service Program Manager, as indicated in the application instructions. The applications are available on the Department of State website at http://www.dos.state.ny.us/lgss. Prospective applicants can also obtain applications by calling the Division of Local Government Services at (518) 473-3355 or 1-800-367-8488.

A regional workshop series sponsored by the NYS Department of State to provide information on the various and unique elements of LGE grant program, discuss best practice models, and review the grant application process has also been scheduled. Information on these 15 workshops is attached and may be found on the LGE website at: http://www.dos.state.ny.us/lgss. .