Tompkins County · issues
Civic issues
Topics getting the most attention in Tompkins County public meetings, ranked by how frequently they come up.
Whole Health Electronic Health Record System
The county's health department runs on an outdated EHR with frequent outages, no patient portal, and heavy manual billing. A replacement could cost a few hundred thousand to $2 million; an RFP is planned for late 2026 with implementation in 2027.
Discontinuation of landline telephone service
Legislator Irene Weiser raised constituent concerns that Verizon and Frontier may discontinue copper landline service, a serious problem in rural areas without reliable cell coverage. Randy Brown said the Office for the Aging and Rep. Josh Riley are tracking it.
NYSEG Rate Case
The CaSE Advisory Board wants the county to consider funding a public power feasibility study; Chair Weiser asked for a deeper presentation covering costs, obstacles, and lessons from Rochester's roughly $500,000–$1 million study effort before supporting it.
Stream corridor assessment studies
The county is reviewing two bids for a state-funded study of Fall Creek to identify water quality, sediment, and flood storage projects. Cornell is involved since the creek supplies its water.
NYSEG/RG&E Management Audit and Public Review
The Legislature unanimously demanded that state regulators let the public review NYSEG's plan to fix problems flagged in a scathing management audit — years of missed reliability targets, thousands of overdue repairs, and gas safety violations — before settling a notice of apparent violation behind closed doors.
Medicaid Eligibility Transition to State DOH
Starting in January, the state Department of Health takes over Medicaid eligibility determinations from county DSS. A new community Medicaid work group is forming, and a regional convening is set for July 28.