COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

March 24, 2008

 

** NOT APPROVED **

Members Present: Chairman C. Crandall, G. Benson, D. Burdick, W. Dibble, D. Fanton, W. Hall, T. Hopkins, K. Kruger, M. McCormick, T. O’Grady, B. Reynolds, D. Russo, R. Truax, N. Ungermann;  Absent: D. Pullen

 

Call to Order:  The meeting was called to order at 3:10 p.m. by Chairman Curtis W. Crandall for the purpose of hearing a special presentation.

 

NYS Attorney General’s Office, Intergovernmental Affairs:

 

            Marthe Ngwashi, Assistant Director of Intergovernmental Affairs with the NYS Attorney General’s Office, presented information on the functions of her office.  In addition to promoting the Attorney General’s agenda, they work with elected officials to increase understanding of what the Attorney General’s Office does, create and build on relationships with elected officials through outreach and speaking engagements, and make referrals to other government representatives, whom they also work closely with.  The Attorney General’s Office performs the following functions:  educate, mediate, investigate, litigate, and propose legislation.  An outreach representative comes to Allegany County monthly to address consumer concerns.  Although the office addresses mainly consumer concerns, they work with a large number of bureaus also, such as Labor, Anti-Trust, Organized Crime, Medicaid Fraud, and Economic Justice.  (Handout packets were distributed which included complaint forms and information pamphlets – copy attached to original minutes.)

 

            Mr. Ungermann noted business is declining rapidly in New York State due to excessive government regulations and taxes. 

 

            Mr. Fanton mentioned the lack of response from the Attorney General’s Office over the past three years regarding the agreement for NYS DEC take-over of the WAG Trail, and asked if Ms. Ngwashi could look into it.

 

            Mr. McCormick asked if there was any situation where a municipality could bring suit against the state.  Ms. Ngwashi stated that there wasn’t, and that the Attorney General’s Office defends the state entity.  Mr. McCormick commented that the Genesee River is eroding very closely to State Route 19, and the state has been asked for help.  The County is left in a bind and could stand to lose the road.  Even though this is a political issue involving legislation, Ms. Ngwashi stated they want to know about these issues in order to help resolve them.

 

NYS Comptroller’s Office:

 

            Michael Johnson, WNY Regional Representative from the Comptroller’s Office, also addressed the Committee of the Whole on some of the programs he is involved in.  He spends a lot of time in the field meeting with the public, and one of their most popular programs is Unclaimed Funds.  (An informational brochure was distributed and is attached to the original minutes.)  Mr. Johnson works with the Local Government Office on issues such as audits, problem resolution, and school district audits, and he is available to address concerns.  Chairman Crandall mentioned that he has seen representatives from the Office of Unclaimed Funds set up at the Allegany County Fair in the past, and they have a laptop computer available to allow participants immediate access to information.

 

Adjournment:  Following a motion made by Truax and seconded by Fanton, the meeting was adjourned at 3:40 p.m.

 

Respectfully submitted,

Adele Finnemore, Journal Clerk