Westchester County Executive George Latimer convened the County’s Shared Services Panel for a meeting to vote on the 2020 Westchester County-Wide Shared Services Plan. The vote was unanimous in favor of the plan’s adoption.
Latimer said: “Shared Services programs are here to help our local municipalities and school districts find ways to save taxpayer dollars by sharing resources, technology and areas of expertise. Westchester County is full of taxing entities, which is why my Administration feels it is so important to include all of them in our Shared Services Panel. The greater reach we have, the greater savings we can provide to hardworking Westchester County taxpayers.”
Of note in this year’s plan was the creation of the “WestchesterShares” portal, which was paid for by a grant from NYS Department of State. This is a web based portal that will serve as a virtual marketplace for municipalities and school districts to share services, procure goods collaboratively, and find the best pricing. It will be an opportunity to find real procurement savings for all municipalities in Westchester. The Portal, which only allows registration by municipal officials, can be seen here: https://westchestershares.com/.
New York State law requires the Shared Services Panel, which includes the Mayor/Supervisor of each municipality in Westchester County, to vote on the plan that must be submitted to the state by the end of the year. State law also enables County Executives to invite the participation of school districts, which the Latimer Administration has done wholeheartedly.
Assistant Director of Operations Susan Spear said: “This portal will be a game-changer for local leaders looking to generate serious cost savings. The evidence is already there, we were watching the municipalities sign up for the portal in real time before our meeting had even ended.”
For more information, email sharedservices@westhestergov.com or check out: https://www.westchestergov.com/shared-services.