Suffolk County, NY - July 16, 2018 - Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone today announced that Putnam County Executive and President of the New York State Association of Counties, MaryEllen Odell, will serve on a local government panel as part of the SuffolkShare: Inter-Municipal Procurement Conference. The panel will be moderated by Suffolk County Executive Bellone and include Albany County Executive Daniel P. McCoy, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, Nassau County Executive Laura Curran and Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell.
“Here in Suffolk County we are always examining how we can make government more efficient. This first of its kind conference on Long Island is the first step in the process and will bring together both government officials and field experts to share ideas and insights,” said Suffolk County Executive Bellone. “I look forward to working with my fellow County Executives from across New York State to find new and innovate ways to implement best practices and save our taxpayers money.”
Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell said: “The efficiencies and cost-saving opportunities available to county governments and local municipalities through the sharing of services allow elected officials to be fiscally prudent for the taxpayers, while also being social responsible to our residents. I applaud County Executive Bellone on developing the Local Government Procurement Panel to further open up the conversation on shared services and discuss what initiatives are being done in neighboring counties.”
The conference, which will feature a keynote address by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, will be held on July 24, 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM at Timber Point Golf Course in Great River.
Panels will be focused on procurement challenges and roadblocks, procurement innovation and trends, and cooperative purchasing, featuring highly qualified panelists from independent government agencies, think tanks, academia, state and local government, and the private sector. The goal of the conference is to encourage a conversation about best practices for municipal purchasing, foster a more cooperative municipal purchasing environment, and address people, processes, and technology associated with procurement of goods and services.
The conference will have four morning breakout panels, with topics ranging from navigating procurement roadblocks, technology challenges and opportunities, the future of municipal procurement, and examining innovations and opportunities. Procurement officials from Suffolk County’s 10 towns, 33 villages, and 69 school districts will be in attendance including thought leaders from the following agencies and organizations:
- Government Finance Officers Association
- Rockefeller Institute of Government
- New York State Association of Counties
- Hofstra University, National Center for Suburban Studies
- New York State Office of General Services
- New York State Authorities Budget Office
- Long Island Association
The process of reforming Suffolk County’s procurement system includes responsibly reorganizing the procurement team, streamlining regulations, simplifying the payment process and upgrading outdated technologies. The reformed system will focus on smart government and best practices in the public sector, with the ultimate goal of the new procurement model being to save taxpayer dollars.
The conference supports Suffolk County Executive Bellone’s Shared Services Initiative. The SuffolkSHARE plan, devised under Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s Shared Services Initiative, is projected to save Suffolk County and participating local governments approximately $37 million over the next two years. Under County Executive Bellone’s leadership, Suffolk County has become a statewide leader in the field of shared services, gaining recognition for its innovation and cost-saving efforts in transitioning inter-municipal partnerships into a modern and comprehensive government reform mechanism.