Advance copies of the report, embargoed for use after 3 pm Wednesday, July 1, are available by email on request

Contacts: Michael Genito, Michaelian Institute, 914-422-4462, mgenito@pace.edu or Cara Cea, public information, Pace, 914-906-9680, ccea@pace.edu

$47 MILLION SAVINGS TO HOMEOWNERS AND BUSINESSES POSSIBLE BY CONSOLIDATING WESTCHESTER FIRE DISTRICTS, SAYS NEW REPORT FROM PACE UNIVERISTY’S MICHAELIAN INSTITUTE AND WESTCHESTER COUNTY CAREER FIRE CHIEFS ASSOCIATION

Document to be released at open meeting Wednesday, July 1, 3pm-5pm, at Pace Graduate Center in White Plains, NY

WHITE PLAINS, NY, June 29, 2009 – The Edwin G. Michaelian Institute for Public Policy and Management will make a public presentation of a report, “Fire Services of Southern Westchester County: A Case for Consolidation" on Wednesday, July 1, 2009 from 3pm-5pm at the Pace Graduate Center auditorium, Room 206, One Martine Ave, White Plains, NY.

The event is open to the public. Media admission by press pass.

The 219 page study, commissioned by the Westchester County Career Fire Chiefs Association, evaluates the feasibility of consolidating 10 fire departments serving a population of 250,000 people in a 50 square mile area of Westchester County. The departments are those of Eastchester, Fairview, Greenville, Hartsdale, Larchmont, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, Pelham, Pelham Manor, and Scarsdale.

“The timeliness of this study cannot be overstated,” said Michael A. Genito, Director of the Michaelian Institute, “given the state of the economy, the need to improve service delivery, and especially the recent consolidation legislation adopted by the State of New York.”

In addition to more effective and efficient operations, consolidation can result in cost savings through the elimination of duplicate staffing, equipment and facilities. Lower Insurance Services Office (ISO) ratings could result in additional savings totaling an estimated $47 million on homeowner and business insurance premiums.

"This study can serve as the basis for a more comprehensive and granular study that would involve an in-depth evaluation of labor agreements, equipment and facility inventory, operational costs, managerial, legal and other issues that a consolidated district would need to address," said Genito. "New York State has a keen interest in what we are doing and may be willing to fund a more detailed study entirely with State grants."

About Michaelian and Pace. The Michaelian Institute and its legal research affiliate, the Municipal Law Resource Center, respond to the need of the public and nonprofit sectors for governance and management training and development, and for research to support and enhance their operations. The Michaelian Institute operates within the Pace University’s Department of Public Administration in the Dyson College of Arts and Sciences; New Rochelle Fire Captain Barry Nechis, enrolled in Pace University’s Master of Public Administration (MPA) program, was a major contributor to the study. Research assignments often help train students pursuing the MPA degree. For more information on the MPA program see http://www.pace.edu/page.cfm?doc_id=3308.

For 103 years Pace University has produced thinking professionals by providing high quality education for the professions resting on a firm base of liberal learning, amid the advantages of the New York metropolitan area. A private university, Pace has campuses in New York City and Westchester County, New York, enrolling nearly 13,000 students in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs in its Lubin School of Business, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, Lienhard School of Nursing, School of Education, School of Law, and Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems. www.pace.edu

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