Cuomo allows Otsego to exit MOSA

Local News

Discussion

COMMENTING ON STORIES:

Welcome to our story comments feature. We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including the unpopular ones. We only ask that you keep your conversations clean, civil and on the topic of the story you are commenting on.

Coinciding with our websites redesign, we launched our new story comments feature through Disqus.

Disqus gives users the ability to log into our story comments feature so that they may be able to track their conversations, receive emails when their comments get a reply or to even have your comments update onto your Facebook or Twitter accounts.

For the time being, our story comments feature will continue to have the ability to post comments anonymously. We reserve the right to require registration in the future using your name and verified email address.

Not all comments are deemed printable. Some are disqualified at the newspaper’s discretion for a number of different reasons. Please follow our Online Rules of Conduct at all times.

RULES OF CONDUCT:

We reserve the right to remove comments that are unacceptable, to wit:

1. False and inacurate statements.
2. Personal attacks. Explicit name-calling.
3. Harassing, harmful, vulgar, obscene and defamatory language.
4. Threatening statements or statements that suggest violence.
5. Hate speech of any kind.
6. Intolerant comments on religion, race, age, gender, sexual preference or disabilities.
7. Accusations of criminal activity.
8. Content that is harmful to children and minors in any way.
9. References to any type of sexual activity and other private matters.
10. Random and inflammatory statements that are off topic.
11. Advertising of any kind.
12. Typing in all caps.

WE ENCOURAGE REASONABLE AND COURTEOUS COMMENTS THAT:

1. Create conversation on issues of interest and concern to fellow readers and local community members.
2. Express opinions and contrarian views.
3. Stimulate debate with respectful language.
4. Stay within the boundaries of these rules.

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO SUSPEND OR TERMINATE ACCESS FOR:

1. Violating any of these Online Rules of Conduct.
2. Deliberately disrupting discussions with repetitive messages, meaningless messages or spam.
3. Misrepresentation of identity or impersonating another user.

WE WELCOME:

1. Flagging violations of these rules that you observe to our attention.

MONITORING:

We monitor comments regularly Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Approval of comments outside of this time (including weekends) will be sporadic.

comments powered by Disqus

February 4, 2012

BY JOE MAHONEY Staff Writer The Daily Star Sat Feb 04, 2012, 02:30 AM EST

COOPERSTOWN -- With a stroke of the pen Friday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo empowered Otsego County with the ability to cut its ties with the regional trash authority known as MOSA.

Otsego County officials have been maneuvering for months to break away from the Montgomery-Otsego-Schoharie Solid Waste Management Authority. The county has been locked into a 25-year service contract with MOSA, one that doesn't expire until 2014. Otsego officials have contended the county -- with a private partner -- to get rid of trash at a more economical cost than what MOSA charges.

Officials from Schoharie and Montgomery counties had been urging Cuomo to veto the legislation. MOSA's management team also opposed allowing Otsego to split from the public authority.

The home rule measure was drafted by a native son of Otsego County, Sen. James Seward, R-Milford, who had argued that county officials here should be empowered to chart their own course on matters relating to refuse disposal.

"I appreciate Governor Cuomo honoring the home rule request made by the Otsego County Board of Representatives to leave MOSA and pursue other options for trash disposal," Seward said in a statement.

Otsego County Board of Representatives Chairwoman Kathleen Clark, R-Otego, said she hoped that officials from all three counties involved in the authority will meet "and equitably make the split."

"MOSA hasn't been a good deal, and even though they have made changes, they continue to have tipping fees higher than private industry," she said.

She said she fears the effort to have Otsego break from MOSA "could be more protracted than we would like" because MOSA and Otsego County differ on which assets should be included in assessing the value of the authority's holdings. The legislative gives Otsego County claim to 40 percent of the MOSA assets.

Otsego County Treasurer Dan Crowell, who has said the county can save more than $1 million a year by leaving MOSA, called the legislation's enactment "a very significant step," adding: "But we still have a few steps left on the journey."

Crowell said while MOSA has become more efficient under its new director, Dennis Heaton, its tipping fee -- the amount collected to drop off one ton of trash -- remains at $87, a sum he says exceeds what Madison County has to pay. "MOSA is still not competitive with what our neighbors are paying," he said.

Hans Arnold, a solid waste management consultant for Otsego County, said of the enactment of the home-rule legislation: "This is definitely good news. It's been a long time coming. I'm very hopeful we can meet soon and begin hammering out the allocation of assets."

Arnold said he believes MOSA's assets are worth at least $5 million, including the two transfer stations in Otsego County. He said Otsego County will need to gain title to those transfer stations from MOSA in order to operate its own independent public-private partnership for trash disposal.

"It's really in everyone's interest to work for a good conclusion for all three counties," Arnold said.

MOSA officials have said the simmering dispute with Otsego County over the authority's assets might have to be resolved in court.

Otsego County Rep. James Powers, R-Butternuts, agreed. "I think there is every chance this could end up in court. But I hope it doesn't." He said it is imperative that Otsego County "have an exit strategy in place" before formally severing its participation in MOSA. McCarty said he feared the effort to tally up MOSA's assets could drag out for as long as four months.

"That's an awfully long time," he said. "I think it's going to be a battle."