Local Government Snapshot - New York State … · Local Government Snapshot New York State Office...
Transcript of Local Government Snapshot - New York State … · Local Government Snapshot New York State Office...
NewYork’s57counties(excludingNewYorkCity),61cities,932townsand5561villagesreportedspendingnearly$2.6billiontomaintain187,000highwaylanemilesin2009.2Highwaymaintenanceisoneofthelargestcategoriesofexpenseforlocalgovernments,representing7.6percentoftotallocalgovernmentexpenditures.Nearly80percentofhighwayspendingoccursatthetownandcountylevels.
Of the $2.6 billion spent on highways in 2009,$1.9 billion (72 percent) was related toadministrationandoperationsand$0.7billion(28percent)wasattributabletocapitalspending.
It isestimatedthat therearebetween1,000and1,500 local government highway departmentsstatewide that construct, repair and maintainroadwaysandwalkways.3Arecentstudyofsharedservicesopportunities inUlsterCounty revealedthatrestructuringtheprovisionofhighwayservicespresentedthebestprospectforpotentialsavings.4
Given the level of spending that occurs for theservices these departments provide, and thenumberofdifferentgovernmententitiescurrentlyproviding them, greater sharing of highwayservicescouldgeneratesignificantcost-savingsforlocaltaxpayers.Thismaybeespeciallytrueintheareaofadministrativeefficiencies.
Studies that have examined and measuredthe potential for savings through cooperativeactivities and shared services have generallyidentifiedsavingsofbetweentwotofivepercentoftotalcosts.Iflocalofficialsfocusedonsharingthe administrative components of their highwayoperations, savings of two to five percent couldpotentiallyproducetaxpayersavingsof$37millionto$93millionstatewide.5
Theportionofhighwayspendinguponwhichthissavingsfigureiscalculatedexcludescapitaloutlay.Thisexclusionrecognizesthatadequateandtimelymaintenance of local infrastructure is a fiscallyprudentpracticeoverall,regardlessofwhichlocalgovernmentisresponsiblefortheactivity.
NEW YORK STATE OFFICE OF THE STATE COMPTROLLER
Di v i s i on o f L o ca l Gove rnmen t and S choo l A c coun tab i l i t y
Thomas P. DiNapoli • State Comptroller July 2011
Local Government Snapshot
27.7% 32.0%38.6% 37.9%
24.3%23.5%
40.8% 37.4%
48.0% 44.5%
20.6% 24.7%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
City County Town Village
Equipment and Capital
Personal Services and Employee Benefits
Contractual
Highway Expenditure Breakdown by Category, 2009
Local Government Spending on Highways
$166
$498
$997
$203
$144
$363
$172
$50
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
City County Town Village
Capital ExpendituresAll Other Expenditures
$310
$860*
$1,169
$254*
Local Government Spending on Highways: 2009
Millions
*Numbersdonotmatchduetorounding
Aggregate Costs of Highway Services
Thecostsofmaintaininghighwayscanvaryduetomanyfactors.Forexample,roadsthatcarrymoretrafficorthatarelocated in densely populated urbancenters may require more frequentplowingthanlesstraveled,ruralroads.Further, costs can fluctuate from yeartoyearaslocalgovernmentspurchaseexpensive equipment or embark oncapitalimprovementprojects.
Basedonaggregatehighwayspendingreportedin2009,theaveragestatewidecost of maintaining a lane mile was$13,841.Citiesandcountiestendtohavehighercostspermileofroadmaintained($21,966 and $20,260, respectively),followed by villages ($18,536), whiletownstendtospendtheleastperlanemile($9,985).[Appendix A]
GovernmentslocatedintheMid-HudsonandLongIslandRegionsspent$20,807and$20,492perlanemile,respectively,in2009.Thesegovernmentsmaintain26percentofcounty,city,townandvillageroadsstatewide,butaccountfornearly40 percent of total highway spending.Incontrast,SouthernTiergovernmentsspent $8,255 per lane mile, maintain14 percent of the municipal roadwaysacross the State, and are responsiblefor less than 9 percent of statewidehighwayexpenditures.
Basedonaggregatemunicipalhighwayspending in each county, the cost ofmaintaining a lane mile ranges from$35,504 in Westchester County to$5,634 in Lewis County, comparedto the statewide average of $13,841.However,WestchesterCountyreporteda large capital expenditure in 2009,inflatingthecountyper-lanemilecost.
AlleganyCattaraugusChautauqua
ErieWyoming
Genesee
Niagara Orleans
Monroe
Livingston
Ontario
Yates
Steuben
Schuyler
Chemung
Tompkins
Seneca
Wayne
Cayuga
Onondaga
Cortland
Tioga Broome
Chenango
Madison
Oneida
Oswego
Jefferson
Lewis
St. LawrenceFranklin
Clinton
Essex
WarrenHamilton
Herkimer
Fulton
Washington
Saratoga
Schenectady
Montgomery
SchoharieOtsego
Delaware
Rensselaer
Albany
Greene Columbia
Dutchess
Ulster
Sullivan
Orange Putnam
RocklandWestchester
Nassau
Suffolk
Aggregate Highway Expenditures Per Lane Mile
Less than $7,500 per mile
$7,500 - $10,000 per mile
$10,000 - $15,000 per mile
$15,000 - $20,000 per mile
More than $20,000 per mile
New York City
AlleganyCattaraugusChautauqua
ErieWyoming
Genesee
Niagara Orleans
Monroe
Livingston
Ontario
Yates
Steuben
Schuyler
Chemung
Tompkins
Seneca
Wayne
Cayuga
Onondaga
Cortland
Tioga Broome
Chenango
Madison
Oneida
Oswego
Jefferson
Lewis
St. LawrenceFranklin
Clinton
Essex
WarrenHamilton
Herkimer
Fulton
Washington
Saratoga
Schenectady
Montgomery
SchoharieOtsego
Delaware
Rensselaer
Albany
Greene Columbia
Dutchess
Ulster
Sullivan
Orange Putnam
RocklandWestchester
Nassau
Suffolk
Aggregate Highway Expenditures Per Capita
Less than $225 per capita
$225 - $300 per capita
$300 - $400 per capita
$400 - $600 per capita
More than $600 per capita
New York City
New Yo r k S t a t e O f f i c e o f t he S t a t e Comp t ro l l e r
Local Government Snapshot
The statewide average of highway spending percapita in 2009was $233,with counties reportingthe lowest spending per capita ($77) and citiesreportingthehighest($141).Percapitaspendingintownsandvillageswas$131and$134respectively.[Appendix B]
As one would expect, spending on a per capitabasis tends to behigher in rural regions, as therearefewerpeopletosupportthecostofmaintainingroads.CostspercapitaarehighestforresidentsintheNorthCountryRegion($361),whileresidentsinthe heavily populated Long IslandRegion pay theleast($165percapita).
Whenhighwayspendingisaggregatedatthecountylevelandbenchmarkedagainstthepopulationpayingfor thoseexpenses, theoverlappingpercapitacostranges from $678 inDelawareCounty to $148 percapita in more densely populated Monroe County,comparedtothestatewideaverageof$233.
Opportunities for Cost Savings
Given the nature of overlappinghighway service provision,manymunicipalitiesarealreadyrealizingsavingsthroughthesharingofservicesandequipment.Othermunicipalitieshavestructuredformalsharedserviceagreements,oftenwiththehelpoftheDepartmentofState’sadministrationoftheLocalGovernmentEfficiencyGrantProgram.Someexamplesofthetypesofsharingarrangementsandassociatedsavingsareprovidedonthefollowingpage.
To the extent that local officials can streamline the administrativeaspectsoftheiroperations,potentialsavingscouldbequitesubstantial.
Ulster County recently studied diminishing the role of the countyhighwaydepartmentbydecentralizingmostrelatedservicestothetown level.This typeof regionalapproachcouldsave theCountybetween$1millionand$7millionannually, orbetween2and15percentoftotalCountyhighwayspending.6Monroe,JeffersonandChemungCountyalreadyhaveorareintheprocessofdecentralizingtheCountyhighwayfunctiontotowns.
Highway Expenditures and Miles by Region
RegionPercent of Total
Expenditures Miles
Capital District 9.7% 11.3%
Central New York 7.6% 8.5%
Finger Lakes 9.9% 11.4%
Long Island 18.3% 12.4%
Mid-Hudson Region 21.2% 14.1%
Mohawk Valley 5.5% 6.9%
North Country 5.9% 9.6%
Southern Tier 8.5% 14.2%
Western New York 13.4% 11.7%
Cayuga County
In Cayuga County, each municipalgovernment, from the countydownto each city, town and village, hasa highway department – 34 in all.These governments spent nearly$30millionin2010tomaintain2,715lane miles of roadway. Attemptingto capitalize on efficiencies, somecountyandtownleadersinCayugaCountyareworkingtodevelopaplanto phase out the County HighwayDepartmentandtransferitsworktothetowns.
New Yo r k S t a t e O f f i c e o f t he S t a t e Comp t ro l l e r
Local Government Snapshot
Local Government Snapshot
New York State Office of the State ComptrollerDivision of Local Government and School Accountability110 State Street, 12th Floor • Albany, New York 12236
w w w . o s c . s t a t e . n y . u s July 2011
1 AsofJanuary1,2011,therewere555villagesinNewYork.TheVillageofLimestonedissolvedintotheTownofCarrollton.2 ExcludingNewYorkCityand itsboroughs; lanemilesare the lengthof roadway,multipliedby thenumberof lanes.Since roadmaintenance isrequiredofalllanesofaroadway,lanemileswereusedinthisanalysis.
3 According to OSC data, there are 1,048 highway superintendents in counties, cities, towns and villages, statewide. There are also anumber of departments (e.g., publicworks) thatmay be responsible for highways that are not included in this number. The LocalGovernmentCommission on Efficiency and Competitiveness estimated 1,500 highway departments, statewide, in its 2008 report on highway services(www.nyslocalgov.org/pdf/HighwayServices.pdf).
4 Drapkin,Jonathan.July2010.Intergovernmental Collaboration in Ulster County: An Action Plan for Moving Forward.5 Previousstudiesoncooperationhaveidentified2to5percentsavingsasareasonableexpectationforsharingofadministrativefunctions.Spendingoncapitaloutlaywasexcludedfromthesavingsestimate.Thisestimatedoesnottakeintoaccountsharedservicesthatmayalreadyexist.
6 Hattery,Michael. July 2010. Identifying Opportunities for Highway Service Cooperation.http://www.co.ulster.ny.us/municipalities/FINAL%20HIGHWAY%20Study%207-14.pdf.
Examples of Shared Highway Services and Projected SavingsParticipant A Participant B Participant C Shared Service Savings $
Broome County TownofChenango Sharedsaltstoragefacility BroomeCounty:$70,400annually
TownofChenango:$55,200annually
Cayuga County TownofSempronius
Purchaseofasharedsaltstoragefacilityandsharedhighwayservices
CayugaCounty:$89,265annuallyTownofSempronius:$6,845annually
Chautauqua County TownofEllicott Countywideconsolidationofhighway
surfacetreatments ChautauquaCounty:$532,800
Franklin County MunicipalitiesinFranklinCounty
MunicipalitieswillsharepavingequipmentwithFranklinCounty FranklinCounty:$80,402annually
Monroe County MunicipalitiesinMonroeCounty
MunicipalitieswillsharehighwayequipmentwithMonroeCounty MonroeCounty:$83,336annually
Ulster County TownofHardenburgh
TheCountycontractswiththeTowntoprovidewintermaintenanceonninemilesofCountyroadintheTownofDening.
Savingsnotknown
Wyoming County AllTownsWyomingCountyisintheprocessofconsolidatingallhighwaymaintenanceforitstowns
Savingsnotknown
City of Schenectady
SchenectadyCounty
TownsofNiskayunaandRotterdam
Municipalitieshaveagreedtopurchaseasharedsaltstoragefacility
TheCityofSchenectady:$26,400annuallyTownofRotterdam:$26,400annuallySchenectadyCounty:$173,000annually
Town of Clayton VillageofClayton
JeffersonCounty
TheTownandVillageshareajointhighwayfacility.TheTownandCountycooperateonroadandbridgemaintenancework,andtheTownprovidestheCountywithaccesstotoolsandequipment.
Savingsnotknown
Town of Montague TownofHarrisburg
TownofPinckney
LocatedinruralLewisCounty,thethreetownscooperativelypurchaseequipmenttoclearroadsidebrushanddebris.
TownofMontague:$11,455annuallyTownofHarrisburg:$11,455annuallyTownofPinckney:$11,455annually
Webster Central School District
VillageofWebster
TheSchoolDistrictandthevillagereceivedgrantmoneyforasharedfuelfacility.
WebsterCentralSchoolDistrict:$1,000VillageofWebster:$19,131
Highw
ay Exp
enditures Pe
r Lane
Mile
, 200
9
Coun
tyCity Cost
($)
Coun
ty Cost
($)
Town Co
st
($)
Village Cost
($)
Aggregate
Coun
ty Cost ($)
Coun
tyCity Cost
($)
Coun
ty Cost
($)
Town Co
st
($)
Village Cost
($)
Aggregate
Coun
ty Cost ($)
Alban
y31
,665
38,179
10,657
20,439
19,959
Fulto
n14
,058
10,048
5,86
1
12,216
8,16
0
Columbia
15,916
‐7,76
4
25,358
6,78
4
Ham
ilton
‐18
,523
11,827
6,90
8
13,872
Green
e‐
15,927
6,02
3
6,12
7
8,65
1
Herkimer
32,821
13,221
8,56
9
18,945
11,971
Rensselaer
19,580
10,049
7,21
8
27,461
10,022
Mon
tgom
ery
15,189
13,981
8,72
1
7,63
6
11,756
Saratoga
11,900
17,187
9,76
3
12,733
11,491
One
ida
11,847
19,889
7,71
3
15,478
11,828
Sche
nectad
y22
,148
30,197
13,526
9,23
6
20,183
Scho
harie
‐10
,129
5,64
5
21,899
7,66
6
Warren
5,63
6
17,132
8,55
4
32,468
10,652
Moh
awk Va
lley Re
gion
13,476
14,779
7,53
2
15,229
10,897
Washing
ton
‐16
,484
3,88
8
12,322
7,15
8
Capital R
egion
22,113
17,828
8,16
8
15,779
11,902
Clinton
24,478
9,72
6
5,32
8
18,257
7,78
9
Essex
‐14
,150
8,73
9
36,094
11,189
Cayu
ga28
,720
8,13
9
5,97
7
11,469
8,58
5
Fran
klin
‐18
,708
4,40
7
18,457
8,62
1
Cortland
25,970
15,503
6,09
4
27,247
10,609
Jefferson
39,256
9,48
9
7,10
9
19,562
10,387
Mad
ison
16,101
13,205
5,63
3
20,480
9,40
4
Lewis
‐9,78
9
4,30
1
10,341
5,63
4
Ono
ndaga
7,43
1
28,781
11,864
20,857
16,566
St. Law
rence
16,549
17,327
4,44
5
10,720
7,85
5
Osw
ego
18,310
17,478
6,99
0
10,039
11,216
North Cou
ntry Region
29,754
13,240
5,45
2
16,155
8,53
0
Central N
Y Re
gion
13,140
18,343
7,96
5
18,809
12,310
Broo
me
15,494
12,272
9,29
2
14,399
10,842
Gen
esee
32,370
15,225
9,13
4
10,956
12,680
Chem
ung
21,120
13,799
5,13
9
8,83
7
9,55
5
Living
ston
‐12
,275
6,16
1
15,829
8,28
7
Chen
ango
22,588
12,699
4,14
8
16,278
6,55
4
Mon
roe
10,034
19,608
18,266
21,536
16,997
Delaw
are
‐21
,260
5,75
8
14,196
8,29
6
Ontario
34,224
27,547
9,68
0
17,129
14,761
Otsego
36,179
7,65
3
5,07
9
17,159
6,79
4
Orlea
ns‐
8,35
5
7,21
6
12,018
7,98
1
Schu
yler
‐11
,708
3,57
3
13,399
5,80
9
Sene
ca‐
11,534
4,88
7
14,766
7,67
0
Steu
ben
41,391
15,909
4,31
2
14,482
8,84
0
Wayne
‐9,44
1
7,80
1
13,702
8,86
4
Tiog
a‐
17,314
5,06
7
8,98
5
7,08
6
Wyo
ming
‐16
,769
7,05
5
16,320
10,236
Tompk
ins
‐12
,348
7,29
0
12,532
8,61
0
Yates
‐6,99
7
5,40
2
23,024
6,61
5
Southe
rn Tier Re
gion
21,884
13,590
5,48
6
13,381
8,25
5
Fing
er Lakes Region
13,906
15,283
10,188
16,319
12,121
Allegany
‐10
,877
4,15
3
10,205
5,81
6
Nassau
14,066
17,051
27,842
25,820
24,539
Cattarau
gus
19,408
25,470
5,52
4
15,448
11,176
Suffolk
‐54
,626
14,454
15,270
17,876
Chau
tauq
ua23
,592
11,935
6,41
4
14,510
9,93
4
Long
Island
Region
14,066
31,191
18,169
22,030
20,492
Erie
44,582
23,178
19,314
20,336
25,328
Niagara
21,992
18,409
11,124
12,862
16,166
Dutchess
18,245
18,647
11,446
14,480
13,351
Western NY Re
gion
33,540
19,296
10,006
16,610
15,946
Orang
e13
,929
33,358
12,911
17,923
16,611
Putnam
‐36
,387
15,791
11,733
19,069
Statew
ide
21,966
20,260
9,98
5
18,536
13,841
Rockland
‐47
,089
35,957
18,586
32,087
Sullivan
‐20
,488
8,06
0
17,477
10,999
Ulster
17,204
20,864
9,01
3
18,129
12,156
Westche
ster
26,831
242,28
3
17,500
22,702
35,504
Mid‐Hud
son Re
gion
23,293
48,298
13,798
19,958
20,807
Ap
pen
dix
A
*In
som
e in
stan
ces,
mun
icip
alit
ies
have
not
rep
orte
d fi
nanc
ial d
ata
to t
he O
ffic
e of
the
Stat
e Co
mpt
rolle
r pr
ior
to
publ
icat
ion.
Whi
le m
ost o
f the
mis
sing
dat
a is
from
sm
all t
owns
or
villa
ges,
mis
sing
dat
a fr
om C
olum
bia
Coun
ty in
th
e Ca
pita
l Reg
ion
and
the
City
of I
thac
a in
Tom
pkin
s Co
unty
in t
he S
outh
ern
Tier
cou
ld h
ave
a si
gnif
ican
t eff
ect o
n pe
r m
ile c
alcu
lati
ons.
**W
estc
hest
er C
ount
y ha
d a
larg
e ca
pita
l exp
endi
ture
in 2
009,
infl
atin
g it
s pe
r m
ile e
xpen
ditu
re to
tals
.
Highw
ay Exp
enditures Pe
r Ca
pita, 2
009
Coun
tyCity Cost
($)
Coun
ty Cost
($)
Town Co
st
($)
Village Cost
($)
Aggregate
Coun
ty Cost ($)
Coun
tyCity Cost
($)
Coun
ty Cost
($)
Town Co
st
($)
Village Cost
($)
Aggregate
Coun
ty Cost ($)
Alban
y19
4
75
122
147
237
Fulto
n13
1
53
164
182
213
Columbia
184
‐26
0
249
276
Ham
ilton
‐71
1
850
484
1,59
2
Green
e‐
170
164
76
349
Herkimer
343
246
168
147
485
Rensselaer
137
43
136
329
195
Mon
tgom
ery
134
227
166
84
400
Saratoga
118
56
136
135
201
One
ida
105
103
145
145
248
Sche
nectad
y14
5
87
102
60
210
Scho
harie
‐20
7
226
169
480
Warren
50
130
232
533
332
Moh
awk Va
lley Re
gion
121
145
174
143
327
Washing
ton
‐14
9
117
106
300
Capital R
egion
157
76
144
146
236
Clinton
159
85
140
103
241
Essex
‐26
8
297
393
605
Cayu
ga20
9
105
161
102
293
Fran
klin
‐19
8
145
149
383
Cortland
132
160
210
254
368
Jefferson
293
86
161
172
310
Mad
ison
169
166
138
131
346
Lewis
‐18
6
293
95
505
Ono
ndaga
57
105
97
164
206
St. Law
rence
146
183
167
83
375
Osw
ego
186
145
146
84
307
North Cou
ntry Region
220
147
180
131
361
Central N
Y Re
gion
103
120
122
147
254
Broo
me
110
43
132
108
188
Gen
esee
225
136
200
83
353
Chem
ung
194
77
101
93
221
Living
ston
‐95
149
106
288
Chen
ango
162
155
211
147
385
Mon
roe
64
40
115
124
148
Delaw
are
‐24
5
385
167
678
Ontario
221
125
222
155
365
Otsego
240
118
259
208
398
Orlea
ns‐
78
134
95
243
Schu
yler
‐15
2
172
222
379
Sene
ca‐
107
103
122
257
Steu
ben
446
223
212
153
511
Wayne
‐84
145
156
270
Tiog
a‐
98
156
89
273
Wyo
ming
‐19
6
212
148
459
Tompk
ins
‐74
128
133
182
Yates
‐10
3
215
211
378
Southe
rn Tier Re
gion
163
111
180
134
310
Fing
er Lakes Region
90
69
140
129
216
Allegany
‐15
3
211
93
395
Nassau
69
24
96
136
165
Cattarau
gus
198
254
228
165
499
Suffolk
‐42
110
160
166
Chau
tauq
ua21
0
99
169
131
311
Long
Island
Region
69
34
103
142
165
Erie
223
63
112
127
224
Niagara
188
49
124
107
207
Dutchess
103
50
134
122
187
Western NY Re
gion
213
79
132
126
251
Orang
e98
54
110
112
191
Putnam
‐85
184
84
273
Statew
ide
141
77
131
134
233
Rockland
‐57
139
115
243
Sullivan
‐20
9
297
177
536
Ulster
133
97
159
114
262
Westche
ster
111
105
98
130
243
Mid‐Hud
son Re
gion
110
85
132
123
240
Ap
pen
dix
B
*In
som
e in
stan
ces,
mun
icip
alit
ies
have
not
rep
orte
d fi
nanc
ial d
ata
to t
he O
ffic
e of
the
Stat
e Co
mpt
rolle
r pr
ior
to
publ
icat
ion.
Whi
le m
ost o
f the
mis
sing
dat
a is
from
sm
all t
owns
or
villa
ges,
mis
sing
dat
a fr
om C
olum
bia
Coun
ty in
th
e Ca
pita
l Reg
ion
and
the
City
of I
thac
a in
Tom
pkin
s Co
unty
in t
he S
outh
ern
Tier
cou
ld h
ave
a si
gnif
ican
t eff
ect o
n pe
r ca
pita
cal
cula
tion
s.
**H
amilt
on C
ount
y ha
s th
e hi
ghes
t per
cap
ita
cost
per
lane
mile
at $
1,59
2. H
owev
er, t
his
benc
hmar
k m
ay b
e m
isle
adin
g du
e to
the
larg
e nu
mbe
r of
sea
sona
l res
iden
ts w
ho a
re n
ot fa
ctor
ed in
to H
amilt
on C
ount
y’s
popu
lati
on.