Westchester County Board of Legislators (BOL) Chairman Ken Jenkins (D-Yonkers) called today for recommencing the County’s Council for Seniors, which has not been convened since December 2009.
“There are too many important issues facing our senior community today that need to be addressed by leaders and officials here in Westchester,” said Jenkins. “The Council for Seniors has been inactive for over two years, a period of time when services offered by the County to many seniors have been imperiled by proposed budget cuts. We need to hear regularly from our seniors, and the Council will provide a fit and proper forum for this dialogue to be maintained, as it has in the past.”
The Westchester County Charter, in Section 157.03, calls for a Council for Seniors, which “shall consist of 17 members, one from the residents of each county legislative district to be appointed by the County Executive and confirmed by the Board of Legislators.” The Council was formed in 2001 at the same time the Westchester County Department of Senior Programs and Services was created, with the idea of addressing the needs of this growing population and allow seniors to participate in developing relevant policies.
The Council for Seniors is empowered to provide recommendations to the Commissioner of the Department of Senior Programs and Services “with respect to any matter within the jurisdiction of the department, including, but not limited to, recommendations regarding the implementation of new programs and services for the elderly or regarding improvements for those programs already in operation,” according to the County Charter.
Since he has taken office in 2009, there have been no appointments by County Executive Astorino to the Council for Seniors, however. The County Charter states that all members of the council shall be appointed once every two years and serve without compensation but are entitled to receive all reasonable expenses incurred in the performance of their duties.
In the recent reorganization of the BOL committees, the former Generational, Cultural & Ethnic Diversity (GCED) Committee was folded into the Community Services Committee, where a GCED subcommittee will continue to address the needs of Westchester seniors.
“Seniors around Westchester know the Board of Legislators has consistently worked to address their needs and protect the services they require,” said Jenkins. “Seniors add so much to the cultural and sociological fabric of Westchester, so it makes sense in so many ways to ensure that our senior population has the ability to be part of the decision-making process in regard to County policy and programs.”
