Government Management

County, city, town, village and school district leaders turn to CGR for assistance with a diverse range of government management service issues. They seek to:

• Explore ways to consolidate services
• Improve fiscal stability
• Reduce fiscal stress by reducing costs and increasing revenues
• Develop performance measures that better match resources to demand
• Identify options to make government more effective and efficient

CGR has extensive experience with consolidation and shared service projects across New York . Our experience makes us an ideal consultant for the state's Shared Municipal Services Incentive Grant Program (SMSI), which is designed to encourage increased service sharing and consolidation and reduce government expenditures.

In 2006 CGR received widespread recognition for a special analysis for the Long Island Index that identified costs and revenues for all Long Island governments. The analysis for the Index – a multi-year project of the Rauch Foundation – provides a fact-based assessment of opportunities in Nassau and Suffolk counties for reducing local government costs through cooperation and consolidation strategies. We are completing a follow-up special analysis in 2007.

More Examples of CGR's Impact

•  Staffing for Fiscal Stability Study – CGR provided staffing for the City of Elmira's Blue Ribbon Task Force that developed ways of addressing a significant structural fiscal deficit – completing financial and operational analyses, and identifying ways to help improve fiscal stability.

•  City Program Evaluations – We evaluated foreclosure prevention, landlord-tenant, and fair housing electronic resource services Rochester funds with Community Development Block Grant monies.

•  Village-Town Potential Merger – At the request of the Village of Wellsville, CGR updated financial information for a study we conducted in 2005 identifying costs and issues associated with dissolving the village and merging with the local town.

•  Future of an Historic District – Rochester leaders asked us to review local government's long involvement in the historic High Falls District and suggest “next steps” for the city.

•  Alternative Options for Decentralized City Program – The Neighborhood Empowerment Team (NET) Office in Rochester provides decentralized code enforcement and police services at satellite locations. City Council asked us to evaluate whether the $8 million spent annually should be allocated differently to provide more effective services to city neighborhoods.