IV. FINDINGS

Program Administration

The STOP-DWI Program is administered at the local level, and in the case of New York State, the model is predominantly the County Administrator model of government. While a smaller proportion of counties elect their officials, who then appoint the STOP-DWI coordinator, the model is very similar for both government structures.

Key elements of New York STOP-DWI Program Administration are:

• local program (county-based) budget approval on annual fiscal year;
• quarterly funding cycle based on statutory definition;
• annual administrative plan based on local needs;
• coordinator with defined duties and responsibilities;
• advisory board requirement for each program; and
• program organization.

There are no notable differences in the cycle of funding and expenditure as these processes are structured by statute. Offender fines fund the program and this money remains in local coffers, although there may be variation in how counties approve the local annual budgets. Throughout the discussions about program administration, and in the context of program components and countermeasures, the common theme reported is that the simplicity of the program as defined by the STOP-DWI law is critical to its success.