September 11, 2003

Steinhaus Announces Cost Savings Through Purchasing Co-Op
Effort to be largest of its kind in USA

Poughkeepsie… Dutchess County Executive William R. Steinhaus has forwarded to the Legislature a resolution that could save money for local taxpayers. As drafted, the cooperative arrangement will allow the county and its partners to drastically reduce costs on hundreds of expense categories for supplies and services.

“This cooperative intermunicipal mechanism gives our county greater purchasing power. I’m happy to see this priority of mine ready to go -- it’s a continuation of our commitment to achieve efficiencies in Dutchess County government. It benefits all partners involved,” said the County Executive.

The Hudson Valley Municipal Purchasing Group founded by the Counties of Dutchess, Rockland, and Ulster, the City of New Rochelle and the Town of Cortlandt successfully implemented the Hudson Valley Municipal Purchasing Group (HVMPG) Regional Bid Notification and E-Procurement System.

Over 3,870 companies have registered for the HVMPG Regional Bid Notification System and over 1,075 government-contracting opportunities within the Hudson Valley have been posted to the system.

Steinhaus added, “Government efficiency and E-government go hand-in-hand. As our internal technology is enhanced, so are our opportunities to provide top-notch services. This type of agreement really exemplifies results.”

Any of the hundreds of municipalities or political subdivisions, school districts, fire companies, colleges and not-for-profits in Dutchess, Rockland, Orange, Sullivan, Ulster, Westchester, and Putnam Counties can use the HVMPG Regional Bid Notification System. All municipalities and political subdivisions are being encouraged to join this new Regional Bid Notification System.

Some of the benefits of the Regional System for Hudson Valley businesses are:

• Single Point of Access – Local Hudson Valley Businesses now have a single point of access to register, search for, and obtain Bid documents from all participating members of the Hudson Valley Municipal Purchasing Group.

• Easy Registration - Registration is free. Businesses can go to any of the participating member's website to register on the new system. Free registration provides access to the Regional Website to search and download contracting opportunities by agency. Registered businesses also have access to award information related to each contract opportunity.

• Optional Paid Registration - The Regional Notification System also provides an optional paid service for those businesses that do not want to search the HVMPG site themselves on a regular basis. The Optional Paid Service offers instant notification by e-mail or facsimile of all contracting opportunities that match businesses product line. The annual fee or instant notification is $49.95.

Some of the benefits of the HVMPG System for municipalities and political subdivisions are:

• Public Web Pages - The HVMPG System provides municipalities with the capability of posting their contract opportunities to the Internet for easy public access.

• Combined Vendor Database: The vendor databases from participating agencies are combined thereby providing each member with an expanded vendor pool to solicit bids and proposals.

• Reduces Printing and Postage Costs - The HVMPG System will reduce a municipality's costs associated with the printing and mailing of bidding documents.

Although the initial founding members of the HVMPG System were not able to gain commitments from all of the County Governments within the Hudson Valley prior to starting this system they are confident that they will join over the next several months. Both the Pearl River School District and the Clarkstown Central School District have joined the HVMPG System.

The following jurisdictions are also using the system: Orange County, City of Poughkeepsie, Town of Clinton, Fairview Fire District, Dutchess County Cornell Cooperative Extension, Dutchess County Water and Wastewater Authority and Dutchess Community College.

The following jurisdictions have expressed interest in the system and are currently reviewing their participation on the system: City of Yonkers, White Plains City School District, Mt. Vernon City School District, and the Scarsdale Union Free School District.

The HVMPG Regional Bid Notification System has the potential of having in excess of 150 government entities posting their contracting opportunities and also has the potential of listing thousands of government contracting opportunities within the Hudson Valley on an annual basis. Based on the initial response from the over 3,870 companies who have already registered on the system and the increased interest in the system from Hudson Valley municipalities, the HVMPG Regional Bid Notification System has the opportunity to become the largest Regional Bid Notification System in the nation.

“A key factor in our success is the united effort of the founding agencies, which helped to ensure maximum vendor participation. In addition, we worked with an outside company, BidNet, to create a customized system that meets the needs of our vendors and each agency participating in this regional system,” said Steinhaus.

While Regional Planning or Regional Cooperation always seems to be hot topics when talking about local governments within New York State, finding actual success stories can be a daunting task. The HVMPG Regional Bid Notification System is now one of those few successes.

Businesses can register on the Regional Bid Notification System at the following websites:
 

For additional information, please contact:

Donald C. Miller, MBA, CPPO, Director of Central Services, Dutchess County at 845-486-3655
Paul J. Brennan, C.P.M., CPPB, Director of Purchasing, County of Rockland at 845-364-3820
Robin Peruso, CPPB, Director of Purchasing, Ulster County at 845-340-3400

Danielle Ansell, Executive Vice President, BidNet at 800-677-1997, extension 222.
 

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