It may soon be easier to reduce the number of New York's more than 10,000 units of government and special districts, with the State Senate's approval of a consolidation bill that was passed earlier this week by the Assembly. The measure was proposed earlier this year by Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, and Governor David A. Patterson is expected to sign it into law soon.
The new law would simplify the currently complicated process of merging or eliminating units of local government and special districts, allowing action by local officials or through voter initiative and referendum.
According to a report in The New York Times, the special districts are especially plentiful on Long Island, where they generate half the special district tax revenue in the state. These specialized local units can include sewer, water, and sidewalk districts as well as volunteer fire companies. Many of the districts are considered by critics to be little more than patronage mills, according to the report.
Read the full story at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/nyregion/04consolidate.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion
