By Joyce Kryszak
Buffalo, NY – Erie County Executive Chris Collins gave his first state of the county address Wedday before a packed auditorium at the Albright Knox Art Gallery. Collins said there has been real progress during his first three months in office. But he said there needs to be much more.
The county executive said he delivered on his campaign promises to improve efficiency and accountability, and to make government more transparent and inclusive. He said the public demands and deserves that. And Collins said they will get it under his administration.
Before that can happen however, Collins said some things need to change. For starters, he said he's taking on the unions, demanding that they negotiate new contracts. He also wants them to accept that there will be more public private partnerships to reduce the burden on county government.
And he wants to see the county's responsibility for the Erie County Medical Center lifted.
Collins called for a full merger of Kaleida and ECMC that would eliminate the public benefit corporation. ECMC Chief Executive Michael Young agrees.
But Kaleida President James Kaskie sees it differently. He said the joint board overseeing the consolidation is taking a necessary incremental approach.
But Collins said the state is backing that plan because it has buckled to the public sector unions. He said for progress to continue, leaders must reject the status quo.
The first place he intends to start is with the unions. He said new contracts and benefits must be negotiated that are sustainable.
Collins chastised the legislature for undermining his efforts. He said they were wrong to award money to AFSCME without concessions.
But Legislator Robert Reynolds said they acted because talks were at an impasse. He said Collins needs to temper his approach - with the unions and the legislature.
He said the trust factor is not there right now because the legislature "has been burned" a couple time already by Collins.
Reynolds said Collins ignored their plan for cleanup of the parks and instead brokered a volunteer effort that is further angering the union.
In his speech, Collins held up his plan as an example of the kind of public private partnerships he will continue to advance. But lawmaker Michelle Ianello said Collins should remember he will need the cooperation of union workers for his six sigma plan to succeed.
Collins said in his speech that Six Sigma will save millions - and boost employee morale. But he also acknowledged the program needs the legislature's and the control board's continued support.
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