Provides that members of the board of trustees of the Pound Ridge library district shall not hold office for more than 2 consecutive full terms

Title of bill

An act to amend chapter 285 of the laws of 2003 creating the Pound Ridge library district in the town of Pound Ridge, New York, in relation to placing term limits on the members of the board of trustees of such district and the budget of such district

Purpose

Provides that members of the board of trustees of the Pound Ridge library district shall not hold office for more than two consecutive full terms.

Summary of provisions

Section one amends closing paragraph of section three of chapter 285 of the laws of 2003 by establishing that no member of Pound Ridge shall be elected to hold office for more than two consecutive full terms.

Section two amends section four of chapter 285 of the laws of 2003 by requiring the clerk of the town of Pound Ridge on or before the first day of December to annually file an estimate of the proposed budget including costs of library service to be raised by levy for the library district in the fiscal year beginning on the first day of April and ending on the succeeding thirty-first day of March.

Section three establishes the effective date.

Justification

Current law provides for library trustees to serve three-year terms, but precludes them from serving more than six consecutive years. Aside from cooperative library system trustees (who are limited to two consecutive five year terms), the law governing public library trustee elections contains no term limit provisions. Alternatively, the current law governing the election of trustees of the Pound Ridge Library District is restrictive in that trustee elected to fill a remainder term (i.e. a "fill in" for a term shorter than three years) would be limited and unable to serve consecutively for one more full term. This bill would allow for a trustee elected to fill a remainder term to serve consecutively for two additional three year terms if elected.

Additionally, amending the law to utilize a fiscal tax year rather than on a calendar year basis is essential for the fiscal survival of the Pound Ridge Library District. As currently structured, the Library District does not receive full payment on property taxes until the end of the fiscal year, after it has already provided the services for which it billed, causing the District to perpetually bill in arrears. The District's proposal would shift cash flow so that the District receives property tax payment earlier in the fiscal year, rather than at the end.

Legislative history

New bill

Fiscal implications

None

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.