[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6454421,"mediaKeyId","5860823-4787771aab894723cc4ecb16ec7b89e2","parentId",5860823,"title","Jefferson County previews 2026 capital and personnel plans; finance committee approves new health-plan contracts with projected savings","audioSeconds",2466,"startMs",2188000,"endMs",4654000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5860823-4787771aab894723cc4ecb16ec7b89e2&start=2188&end=4654","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5860823-4787771aab894723cc4ecb16ec7b89e2/thumbnail_2188000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6454421/Jefferson-County/New-York/Jefferson-County-previews-2026-capital-and-personnel-plans-finance-committee-approves-new-health-plan-contracts-with-projected-savings","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6454421-9bc7427b5400d9ec16cb72b1b9cf55a3/orig.mp4?Expires=1771098020&Signature=dnoIy2OnDGJkHsYMD2e~3NFbJikEZY615HeDsy3Tn9lPca~6W9Mi9-2sUMImgmvIwARFnkMKZxkXcpExbKFx0-YIcwuzeUrmFJmFESfAvJ63g0bAHYwkyGB71pmrPLnVn4TmAeaPOArCR~CY4mKHo8sDon3Q2weBVRITbRzOZ9tuJ8oqn~dDZL8dFIHLONmMEBohuIZXbrui0oDys-F9KBw4HpGznNl8CZXLkzWv~FLQrNanX0nCITZHoElcvtXpNa8aFn~wk~jCgXDdHZkszbGVy2J1taW~ZJipMpdRLn1ew2WU3i1SSHvyqFT-FJ368NkGu4VMNNG4ZdMVGH3Egw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Jefferson County, NY","date","2025-09-30T19:06:00Z","article","County budget and finance leaders presented an early look at the planned 2026 capital and personnel budgets and related policy issues to the Finance and Rules Committee, and the committee approved contracts for administration of the county's self-funded health plan and prescription benefit management.

The county budget officer said combined capital and personnel typically account for about 25–30% of the county budget and highlighted several major planned capital projects for 2026: roughly $9.8 million in airport projects (including a $2.5 million general aviation apron expansion and a $610,000 local-share parking-lot paving project), about $4 million in building upgrades and $3 million in security upgrades at the Human Services Building, and an estimated $12.3 million in highway infrastructure projects financed from county and CHIPS funding. The presenters said they plan to bond the Human Services building upgrade; the county expects state aid to cover a large share of borrowing costs under New York's financing mechanisms.

Budget staff also described personnel and benefits drivers. The county is incorporating recently settled labor agreements, including a multi-year contract with CSEA that contributes materially to budgeted salary increases; the presentation said those market adjustments help the county catch up with recent wage growth. Officials warned the county received a staffing guidance from the New York State Commission of Corrections that would require 14 additional correctional officer posts to fully staff the jail; staff estimated salary-and-benefit costs of those positions at about $1.3 million and said that obligation could consume a large share of the county's 2% property-tax cap if implemented as proposed.

Matthew Roy, Jefferson County's insurance director, presented results of a request-for-proposals process for the county's third-party administrator (TPA) for health-claims administration and its pharmacy benefit manager (PBM). Roy said a committee evaluated vendor responses on administration capability, price, local network, and relevant experience. The county will continue with UMR as TPA for three years with a negotiated reduction in administrative fees of about $20,000 per year. The county also will continue with ProAct as PBM; Roy said the negotiated agreement is expected to reduce county prescription-related costs by roughly $2 million per year in a mix of improved drug pricing, higher rebates (about $1.35 million) and lower administrative fees (about $70,000).

Committee members then considered a series of resolutions. The Finance and Rules Committee recorded votes carrying a number of measures on personnel and contract matters, including authorizing agreements with UMR and ProAct, appointing a director of Real Property Tax Services, and approving joint services assessment agreements with local towns. Many items were approved unanimously during the meeting.

Votes at a glance

- Authorize agreement with UMR Incorporated for administration of Jefferson County health benefits (contract award): approved (motion by Legislator Potter; second Legislator Calarco). The committee noted an administrative-fee reduction of about $20,000 per year.

- Authorize agreement with ProAct Incorporated for prescription benefits management (contract award): approved (motion by Legislator Clerico; second Legislator Bridal). Projected net savings on drug costs and rebates about $2,000,000 per year.

- Set time and place for public hearing on tentative budget for fiscal year 2026: approved.

- Appoint director of Real Property Tax Services: approved (motion by Legislator Cantwell; second Legislator Calarco).

- Authorize joint services agreement with Town of Alexandria for county assessment services pursuant to Real Property Tax Law §1537: approved.

- Authorize joint services agreement with Town of Clayton for county assessment services pursuant to Real Property Tax Law §1537: approved.

- A block of general services and public-safety budget amendments and contract authorizations (airport fuel budget amendment; agreement with McFarland Johnson; correctional facility medical expenses amendment; traffic safety and DWI enforcement grants; demolition project amendments): approved as presented.

Committee members and staff said more detailed capital-plan documents will be circulated and a full tentative budget presentation was scheduled for the next month, with a budget hearing set for Nov. 12. Budget staff noted some capital accounts carried over from larger airport and mill projects in 2024–25 and said the 2026 capital plan would be aligned to anticipated cash flows to avoid mid-year appropriations when possible.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","September 2025 Health & Human Services and Finance & Rules Committee Meetings","oneSentenceSummary","County budget staff previewed key 2026 capital and personnel investments, citing major airport, Human Services building and highway projects, while the Finance and Rules Committee approved contracts to administer the county's self-funded health plan and pharmacy benefits at reduced fees.","taxTitle","Jefferson County, New York","taxId",24864,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6454426,"Jefferson County presents homelessness dashboard as cooling center and outreach use rises",230,788000,1018000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5860823-4787771aab894723cc4ecb16ec7b89e2&start=788&end=1018","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5860823-4787771aab894723cc4ecb16ec7b89e2/thumbnail_788000.jpg","/articles/6454426/Jefferson-County/New-York/Jefferson-County-presents-homelessness-dashboard-as-cooling-center-and-outreach-use-rises","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6454426-da9a52fac28e2b45be99c242bb3aa18f/orig.mp4?Expires=1771098020&Signature=iZajBMX-VuW7l3XIKsjqn9zY2B9Z5ryFbV~lhAhWlsH2430Ezq13rpVbGX5hCzUWIjYkt54lFJRszZql3TdedROHN~7IbPg4PGJKZINtsqcJSagO01d60mjt~TTs7UXFd5vbCe6NGZ42j8SVEK~9r9jbjcGb8-KgXg0f0mmsUvCzmg~fl6-~PBTx3ai~j79wPRmQXxa6So04mIaI8ygtq9lJEHvBQ3UfUiK7HDV8EAL1KVi8FIU3qTrlg0kIGczD9~3mG420lRJlUTTTT1NzWYVyi~BnbGkgZakP7Vre7k9RP4iWwfCMBM94buBVr1quXh5gZ6LtnzldHqySyK1eVA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","County housing staff presented a new homelessness data dashboard and summer program update to the Jefferson County Health & Human Services Committee, saying the tool will help measure use of cooling centers, emergency placements and street outreach and guide future planning.

Jillian Ritter, director of housing, and Karen Markham, RDSS commissioner, told the committee the dashboard aggregates service data for the county's emergency housing programs from Jan. 1 through Aug. 31, 2025. Ritter said the Salvation Army's overnight capacity was used about 65% of nights in May and had risen to about 88% by late September; New Life Christian Church's daytime cooling center increased from roughly 31% utilization in May to about 62% by September. \"We've seen that increase through September as of yesterday. They're at an 88% utilization now,\" Ritter said of the Salvation Army facility.

The Emmanuel Congregational Church summer meal program grew from roughly 1,900 meals per month in May to more than 2,000 per month by August, the presenters said. County-contracted street outreach teams reported contacts and housing outcomes: the NERCAL-contracted team engaged 94 separate individuals since starting in December, with 15 discharged to permanent housing after a total of 198 contacts; an ACR Health outreach team that began in July engaged 34 individuals to date. Ritter said outreach encounters often require many contacts—she cited one person who had 34 contacts before being housed.

Deputy staff member Dylan (last name not specified) demonstrated portions of the dashboard, showing daily census views for hotel/motel placements, cooling centers and street outreach and a rolling count of \"unique individual touch points\" across programs in the prior 30 days. Using the dashboard's current definition, staff reported about 150 unique individuals had had at least one program contact in the previous 30 days as of late August. Dylan said the team plans to expand the dashboard to track service pathways and measure how many people move from outreach to shelter to supportive housing.

Ritter and Markham emphasized the dashboard's role in coordinating multiple providers and programs and said street outreach teams visit the three main program locations weekly to meet and follow up with people. No committee action was taken on the presentation; staff said the dashboard is a work in progress and will inform future planning and funding decisions.","County housing and social services staff updated the Health & Human Services Committee on a new dashboard tracking emergency housing, cooling centers and outreach. Data Jan–Aug 2025 show sustained shelter use, rising cooling-center utilization and dozens of individuals engaged by street outreach teams.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6454431,"EMS providers urge Jefferson County to withdraw proposed EMS grant, warn municipal ambulance risk",465,102000,567000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5860823-4787771aab894723cc4ecb16ec7b89e2&start=102&end=567","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5860823-4787771aab894723cc4ecb16ec7b89e2/thumbnail_102000.jpg","/articles/6454431/Jefferson-County/New-York/EMS-providers-urge-Jefferson-County-to-withdraw-proposed-EMS-grant-warn-municipal-ambulance-risk","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6454431-3bae75317dd8c7c431b7b8f167c20c7f/orig.mp4?Expires=1771098020&Signature=kL-qZ7qWDg9iemW8Pm0jK3yhnwtKm6hCx3ozFiqwWyu1cJrrY-QJvqfQ8BtpfxRRX~m3ADhYsSjL5DG9RioG5dSDf-vymE~w4vxJXu0ovI7~FyVqjeIrBLpIq8RBjYoO2RO6-XGT20i5YncK14x4xGvDSGS5NXq9RZEKNhbki4qpQnXdyhXFW~ReeFfuh02KPVYEaSbPb3c-ypMx50GzM1hfwBp8UDTMN1levoM6W76ajhjFbF8B5khs6kyxk3kqbUUg68GAN8SB3l5mMZXdeoA2icAizQmEP9WaNKDeTiHD3zeWHzpje5VSqEhYpmpyMfBmWJF5k0N2bTglPOk5TA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Bruce Wright, president and CEO of Guilfoyle Ambulance Service and chair of the Jefferson County EMS advisory board, and Dominic Doldo, vice president of emergency services and security for Carthage Area Hospital, spoke during public comment at the Health & Human Services Committee meeting and urged county legislators to reconsider a county grant application to the New York State Department of Health.

Wright said the grant, which he said was for $500,000 split among 10 counties and awarded to Jefferson County, requests funding for three items: a bariatric-capable ambulance, a so-called \"fly car\" (a paramedic intercept SUV that does not provide patient transport) and billing changes tied to mutual-aid ambulance responses. \"This is a service that isn't needed because it's already being taken care of by not only Guilfoyle Ambulance, but other ambulance agencies in this county,\" Wright said, adding that 11 of the 13 ambulances in the county already are staffed at the paramedic level.

Wright also said Guilfoyle Ambulance is retrofitting an ambulance to be bariatric-capable and that the proposed fly car would risk drawing Jefferson County into operating ambulance assets that compete with private and nonprofit providers. \"Once that door is opened, it gives the county the ability to get into that service, which is gonna start using taxpayer money to compete with private business and private not for profits around the county,\" he said. Wright disputed claims in the grant that mutual-aid providers cannot bill for services, calling that \"not true\" and saying billing can be addressed by agreements between neighboring agencies.

Doldo, speaking afterward, said the Northstar Health Alliance and Carthage Area Hospital previously sought a Certificate of Need (CON) for an ambulance service, and that the regional EMS council voted against a finding of public need for another ambulance in the proposed area. He also said a county municipal CON could circumvent the CON process private providers must follow. \"If the county proposes to allow Samaritan Medical Center to operate an EMS vehicle, which is a municipal CON on the county's municipal CON, we will request that courtesy to be extended to us,\" Doldo said, adding that his comments echoed those he raised earlier at the EMS advisory board.

Neither Wright nor Doldo proposed a specific alternative to the grant; both cited concerns that the grant's proposals duplicate existing capacity and raise regulatory hurdles. Wright also said the county did not bring the application to the EMS advisory board for formal review, and he criticized parts of the grant application as business decisions rather than system needs.

The committee did not vote on the grant application during the meeting. An agenda item titled \"Authorizing an agreement in connection with New York State Department of Health County Emergency Medical Services support grant and amending the 2025 County budget in relation thereto\" was listed but, according to the transcript, received \"no motion\" and was not advanced that evening.","Local EMS leaders told the Jefferson County Health & Human Services Committee they oppose a county application to a New York State rural health EMS grant, saying it duplicates existing services, could force a municipal Certificate of Need and compete with private and nonprofit ambulance providers.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Jefferson County previews 2026 capital and personnel plans; finance committee approves new health-plan contracts with projected savings

Jefferson County presents homelessness dashboard as cooling center and outreach use rises

EMS providers urge Jefferson County to withdraw proposed EMS grant, warn municipal ambulance risk