Picente Delivers 10th State Of The County Address [VIDEO]

Onedia County Executive Anthony Picente delivered his 10th State of the County Address at the Radisson Hotel in Utica this morning.

Picente touched on a number of issues, including economic development.  He says in order to move the area forward, we need to think regionally.

Picente also talked about consolidation of local governments.  He says to accomplish that the county will change the way sales tax is distributed.

Picente says a scenario in which village governments no longer exist can propel us to the right size of government to fit our population.

The County Executive says right now, we have 235,000 people in the county with 345 taxing jurisdictions within 47 governmental units.

He also announced a proposal to unite cultural, athletic and entertainment facilities under one umbrella to maximize assets and streamline costs.

Utica Mayor Robert Palmieri and Rome Mayor Jacqueline Izzo issued the following joint statement in response to Picente's State of the County Address:

“We commend County Executive Picente for his bold vision and fully support his effort to recalculate the County Sales Tax formula.  As the County Executive accurately stated in his address, there are too many taxing jurisdictions in Oneida County.  

A more equitable sales tax formula that reflects population and the services municipalities provide will save money, make all governments in Oneida County more effective and efficient and would have a tremendous impact for the Cities of Utica and Rome.

We stand united and offer our assistance to pursue this worthy and necessary endeavor.”

Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente's 2016 State of the County Address