§ 33 — Power to adopt, amend and repeal county charters

New York § 33

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law MHR: Municipal Home Rule
• Part 1: The County Charter Law
• Art. 4: Powers of Counties and Cities to Adopt Charters

Text

§ 33. Power to adopt, amend and repeal county charters. 1. Subject to\nrestrictions in the constitution, in this article or in any other\napplicable law, the board of supervisors of any county as defined in\nsection thirty-two of this article and including but not limited to a\ncounty which has heretofore adopted a charter enacted by the legislature\nshall have power to prepare, adopt, amend or repeal a county charter.\n 2. A county charter shall set forth the structure of the county\ngovernment and the manner in which it is to function. Such charter may\nprovide for the appointment of any county officers or their selection by\nany method of nomination and election, provided that there shall be an\nelective board of supervisors, the members of which shall be deemed\ncounty officers, which shall determine county policies and exercise such\nother functions as may be assigned to it.\n 3. Such a county charter shall provide for:\n a. The exercise by the board of supervisors of the powers of local\nlegislation and appropriation of the county.\n b. The agencies or officers responsible for the performance of the\nfunctions, powers and duties of the county and of any agencies or\nofficers thereof and the manner of election or appointment, terms of\noffice, if any, and removal of such officers.\n c. The equalization of real property taxes consistent with standards\nprescribed by the legislature.\n 4. Such a county charter may:\n a. Assign executive or administrative functions, powers and duties to\nelective or appointive officers.\n b. Empower an executive officer elected on a county-wide basis to veto\nactions of the board of supervisors, with provision for overriding of\nsuch vetoes by a specified percentage or percentages of votes of such\nboard.\n c. In accordance with subdivision (h) of section one of article nine\nof the constitution, provide for the transfer of one or more functions\nor duties of the county or of the cities, towns, villages, districts or\nother units of government wholly contained in such county to each other\nor when authorized by the legislature to the state, or for the abolition\nof one or more offices, departments or agencies of such units of\ngovernment when all of their functions or duties are so transferred.\n d. Provide for an administrative code which shall set forth the\ndetails of administration of the county government in harmony with the\nprovisions of the county charter and may contain revisions,\nsimplifications, consolidations, codifications and restatements of\nspecial laws, local laws, ordinances, resolutions, rules and regulations\nconsistent with the county charter.\n e. Provide for the termination of the terms of office of existing\nofficers.\n 5. The board of supervisors by resolution may provide that a draft of\na proposed county charter, or of an amendment or repeal thereof, shall\nbe prepared under its supervision, the supervision of an officer or\ncommittee of the board, or by a charter commission appointed by or\npursuant to such resolution. The county attorney or other legal advisor\nshall provide such assistance and cooperation as shall be required of\nhim and for such purpose shall have power to employ or retain special\ncounsel and technical advisors and assistants within appropriations made\navailable therefor.\n 6. Where a petition is filed with the clerk of the board of\nsupervisors signed by electors of the county equal in number to at least\nten per centum of the whole number of votes cast in the county for\ngovernor at the last gubernatorial election, asking that a charter\ncommission be created by the board of supervisors and be composed and\nappointed as provided by the board of supervisors, and where the board\nof supervisors does not on its own motion create and appoint or provide\nfor the appointment of such a charter commission within three months\nafter such filing, the board of supervisors shall cause a proposition to\nbe submitted to the electors of the county at the next general election\noccurring not less than five months after such filing, on the question\nof whether such a charter commission should be so established and\nappointed. The provisions of subdivision eight of this section shall\napply to the preparation of the form of such proposition and its\nsubmission at such general election. If such proposition receives a\nmajority of the votes cast thereon in the county at such general\nelection, the board of supervisors within two months after such general\nelection shall provide for the creation of such commission and its\nmembers shall be appointed within such two-month period. The provisions\nof subdivision five hereof, so far as applicable, shall apply to such\ncharter commission.\n 7. A charter law\n (a) providing a county charter, or\n (b) proposing an amendment or repeal of one or more provisions thereof\nwhich would have the effect of transferring a function or duty of the\ncounty, or of a city, town, village, district or other unit of local\ngovernment wholly contained in the county, shall conform to and be\nsubject to consideration by the board of supervisors in accordance with\nthe provisions of this chapter generally applicable to the form of and\naction on proposed local laws by the board of supervisors. If a county\ncharter, or a charter law as described in this subdivision, is adopted\nby the board of supervisors, it shall not become operative unless and\nuntil it is approved at a general election or at a special election,\nheld in the county by receiving a majority of the total votes cast\nthereon (a) in the area of the county outside of cities and (b) in the\narea of the cities of the county, if any, considered as one unit, and if\nit provides for the transfer of any function or duty to or from any\nvillage or for the abolition of any office, department, agency or unit\nof government of a village wholly contained in the county, it shall not\ntake effect unless it shall also receive a majority of all the votes\ncast thereon in all the villages so affected considered as one unit.\nSuch a county charter or charter law shall provide for its submission to\nthe electors of the county at the next general election or at a special\nelection, occurring not less than sixty days after the adoption thereof\nby the board of supervisors. Such a county charter or charter law may\nprovide for the separate submission to the electors at such election of\none or more variations of the provisions of such county charter. Any\nsuch variation may include, but shall not be limited to, proposed\ntransfers of functions of local government to other units of local\ngovernment or a class or classes thereof.\n 8. The form of each proposition submitted to the electors of a county\npursuant hereto shall be prepared by the clerk of the board of\nsupervisors with the advice of the county attorney or other principal\nlegal advisor. They also shall prepare a brief abstract of the county\ncharter or charter law so submitted. The form and abstract shall be\ntransmitted to the board of elections of the county. The board of\nelections, at least twenty days before the election, shall send two or\nmore copies thereof to the clerk of each city, town and village in the\ncounty to be made a public record in his office and shall cause a\nsufficient number of copies to be printed and made available to the\nelectors at the time of registration or otherwise. In addition, such\nboard of elections shall cause a sufficient number of copies to be\ndelivered with the other election supplies and distributed to the\nelectors at the election. The board of elections shall cause each such\nproposition to be submitted to the electors of the county in the manner\nprovided in the election law and, so far as applicable, in subdivision\ntwo of section one hundred two of the county law. Expenses incurred in\nconnection with the submission of any proposition under this article\nshall be a charge against the county.\n 9. If two or more propositions having conflicting provisions receive\nthe majorities required for adoption under this section at the same\nelection, the proposition involved in each such conflict which receives\nthe largest affirmative vote shall prevail to the extent of such\nconflict; but in all other respects such proposition shall be deemed\nadopted. Where a proposition submitted to the electors of a county under\nthe provisions of this article receives the majority or majorities\nrequired for adoption, it shall become operative as prescribed therein,\nsubject to any conditions prescribed therein.\n