General News: Town Opposes Moving Vital Records
|
| Town clerk Elaine Tilford Schneer currently holds an elected position. |
December 03, 2008
Cornwall town board members expressed their opposition to a state initiative to consolidate local governments when they approved a resolution Monday that opposes moving birth, death, marriage and other vital records from Cornwall town hall to the county seat.
The proposal to consolidate vital records was included in a report issued last April by a commission on local government efficiency and competitiveness that was created by former N.Y. governor Eliot Spitzer.
In the resolution, Cornwall town clerk Elaine Tilford Schneer, who is also the registrar of vital statistics, notes that moving the records to Goshen would create a hardship for local residents. The proposed move would also raise the fee for each document copy from $10 to $30.
Cornwall deputy supervisor and town board member Mary Beth Greene Krafft said that she attended a workshop about local government consolidation and left with the sense that the actual savings to taxpayers is small while the loss of local services is significant. She cited the fact that the county has taken over election expenses, a move that resulted in an increase for Cornwall from $14,000 to $28,000, she said.
Municipalities throughout New York State have issued similar resolutions opposing the move of vital records to the county level. Any change in the procedure would require a state-wide bill and Cornwall clerk Schneer noted that a copy of the local resolution would be sent to the governor, as well as state senator William Larkin and assemblywoman Nancy Calhoun.
Comments:
No comments have been posted.
Add a Comment:
Please signup or login to add a comment.
|
 |
|
