Picente Presents Body Armor To Local Police Agencies

First Disbursements of Partners In Prosperity Public Safety Funding From Historic Oneida Nation Settlement

Today, County Executive Picente presented Body Armor to local Police Agencies. The Body Armor was purchased with Partners In Prosperity Public Safety Funding that was allocated in the 2015 budget through funds received from the historic Oneida Indian Nation Settlement. This is the first disbursement of these funds.

County Executive Picente said “When we finally settled longstanding lawsuits with the Oneida Indian Nation and became true partners in the future of this region days like today are what we all had in mind. The revenue being generated from the settlement is being used to move the county forward, today is the best example of doing just that.”

Body Armor was purchased for the City of Utica, The City of Rome and The Town of New Hartford Police Agencies’ Emergency Response Team members as well as the Oneida County Sheriff, the County Department of Probation and the CNYSPCA.

Picente went on to say “If, and unfortunately when, these individuals are called to respond to emergency situations they can at least know they are possibly going into harm’s way with the best equipment we can provide to them in our hopes in making them as safe as they can be.”

51 Body Armor Units were purchased by the County. The total expenditure is $105,520 spent from the Partners In Prosperity Public Safety Funding. The individual vest costs about $2,069 apiece. The Public Safety Partners in Prosperity Funding was allocated $500,000 from the Oneida Nation Revenue Sharing funds in the 2015 budget.

The Oneida Nation Settlement which was signed in 2013 and went into effect in March of 2014 generates an estimated 12.5 million a year to the County in shared gaming revenue. In 2015 budget 5 million was allocated for Partners In Prosperity Funding. The funding areas include, public safety, economic development, infrastructure, arts and culture and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Education initiatives.