October Committee & November Session Update
The month after the budget process is typically quiet for the Legislature, and in October, only three committee meetings were held.
One was the Public Safety Committee which had just one item on its agenda: authorizing $200,000 in previously approved money to be used for a comprehensive study of emergency medical services in Onondaga County. Commissioner Dan Wears with the Office of Emergency Management told the committee that study will look into and then hopefully help address some of the challenges with EMS in the county.
Commissioner Wears explained that the study by an outside firm would examine “everything from the 911 dispatch through the transfer to hospital care and would look at what we do, how we do it as a whole system and make recommendations for how we can improve it for sustainability and for the long term and how we can continue to provide this vital service to people in the county.”
Committee Vice Chair Richard McCarron (11th District) asked the Commissioner, “Are we moving towards a countywide EMS somewhere in the future? Are we looking at expanding independent ambulance services?”
Commissioner Wears said all possible solutions will be on the table but decisions will not be made until the study is complete. “It will provide recommendations of what we can do. The intent is to be very inclusive of the agencies and not surprise any of the agencies that provide this service. We want them to be partners in this study and let them have a say in how we can move forward in a better way.”
Vice Chair McCarron called it “very forward thinking” that the Legislature previously put the funds aside knowing EMS services in the county need to be addressed. Committee Member Ken Bush Jr. (13th District) asked Commissioner Wears what the greatest challenge they are seeing with EMS is, and he said the amount of mutual aid services EMS crews are providing and the length of time those crews often have to wait upon arrival at the hospital (which takes them away from responding to other calls).
The study will take six to nine months with the results and recommendations expected in about one year. The resolution was advanced.
Commissioner Wears also provided an informational update on the Office of Emergency Management. He highlighted their move into a new Emergency Operations Center in Liverpool earlier in 2024. The space allows officials from various agencies – including hospitals, fire/ems, National Grid, transportation agencies, etc. – a single space to gather together to handle any type of emergency that happens in county. The center has held numerous training exercises and classes for emergency responders.
He also spoke about a fire/EMS website used for recruitment (made possible by funding from the Caucus) which has proven successful, and the current efforts to update Onondaga County’s mutual aid plan, which hasn’t been done since 2008.
The Environmental Protection Committee received an informational update from the Office of Environment’s recently appointed Director, Elizabeth Bough Martin. She started by talking about an update project just getting underway which will look at Onondaga County’s climate action plan/greenhouse gas initiative.
“About a decade ago, the county did plan a goal of 25% reduction in 25 years” the Director shared. “So what the update will do is it will give us a chance to go through the data and see where we’re at in meeting those goals and then also kind of give us a direction to see if things need to be changed.”
The Director also spoke about water quality and ongoing improvement projects at Jamesville Reservoir, Skaneateles Lake, Oneida Lake, and Otisco Lake. Committee Chair Julie Abbott (6th District) toured the last one with the Otisco Lake Perseveration Association and saw some of the issues firsthand
Director Bough Martin also spoke about climate smart communities, future grant funding opportunities, water chestnuts, harmful algal blooms, Emerald Ash Borer and a tree assessment in the Towns of Cicero, Clay, Lysander, and Van Buren.
“Director Bough Martin provided us with a fantastic and informative update” Committee Chair Abbott shared after the meeting. “She’s only been with the county a short time and is already well-versed and knowledgeable of all her department is working on. Onondaga County is making great progress in protecting our environment and preserving it so our kids and future generations can enjoy it as much as we do.”
Emergency Management Commissioner Dan Wears returned to the Legislature for October’s Ways & Means Committee meeting, as the funding for the proposed EMS study was being discussed.
Committee Chair Colleen Gunnip (4th District) asked, “If they do make a recommendation in order to implement that we are relying on these agencies to implement. There’s no way we can enforce that on them, correct?”
The Commissioner says that is true as Onondaga County has no regulatory authority over any of the EMS agencies or fire service within the county. He adds that New York State does, but they have not updated regulations for EMS agencies in many years, so state changes would be welcome. He also said some EMS agencies in the county have already shown a willingness for whatever recommendations the study produces.
The committee advanced this resolution along with one authorizing an agreement with the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. ESF students would offer tutoring after school and during early evening hours at 6 city library branches for free, with subjects to include reading, writing, science and math.
The Executive Director of the Onondaga County Public Libraries, Dawn Marmor, explained how it came about. “We were approached” she shared. ESF has “a community program where they place work study students within the community. It’s a natural fit for the libraries. We have lots of students that need lots of help and not only is it a benefit for their school subjects, but also, it allows students to interact with college students within the city and so I think it’s a great program.”
The resolution was quickly advanced.
A local law was also on the agenda, relating to drivers who fail to stop for school buses with red flashing lights and/or stop-arms extended. The pilot program would have cameras installed on buses and any video captured of a vehicle passing the stopped bus would be sent to the county, with the vehicle driver then receiving a fine. So far, five districts have expressed interest: Baldwinsville, Liverpool, North Syracuse, Jamesville-DeWitt and East Syracuse Minoa.
A healthy discussion was had at the meeting but with many questions and specifics remaining, the law was sent back to the Public Safety committee for further review.
November’s Session brought swift approval for the EMS study funding by the full Legislature, which Legislator Mark Olson (10th District) was pleased about. He’s Chair of the Public Safety Committee.
“We have the ability to help and come up with a solution that will help with staffing, coverage models, response times, making sure we have the best equipped, best staffed, best trained EMS agency whether it’s in the City of Syracuse or LaFayette or Skaneateles or Cicero” Legislator Olson said after the meeting. “It’s a complex system and one we need to study and figure out the best way to provide this service and help these agencies.”
The resolution authorizing the SUNY ESF-Onondaga County Public Libraries tutoring program was also approved by the full Legislature.
Legislator Kevin Meaker (2nd District) presented a Gold Seal – the Legislature’s highest honor – to Lisa Luteran. She put herself in harm’s way and helped people she did not even know following a serious car accident in the Town of Clay in October, squeezing through a small space in the trunk section of a mangled vehicle and pulling an unconscious baby to safety.
“It’s just an amazing thing that you did” Legislator Meaker said to Ms. Luteran. “You saved someone’s life. You’re a superhero. Thank you for what you did.”
