Washington County supervisors authorize lawsuit over governor—s executive order on hiring

Washington County Board of Supervisors voted to authorize the county attorney to commence litigation challenging Executive Order 47.3 of the governor of the State of New York, which concerns county hiring of former employees of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. The board adopted Resolution 91 at its meeting; the resolution was introduced by Supervisor Robert Henke and approved by roll call.

The resolution matters because it directs the county attorney to pursue court review of a state executive order that supervisors said affects local hiring decisions and may impose costs the county must absorb. Supporters argued the county should push back against state policies they called unfunded mandates; some supervisors said litigation is necessary to protect local authority.

County Attorney Dan described the immediate financial exposure for the county as limited to court filing fees. "Initially, there would be, you know, application for an index number and an RGI, which is filing fees. That's within $500," Dan said. He added that if "anything else that's extraordinary" arises, he will return to the board for prior authorization: "If there's anything else that's extraordinary, I'll come back to the board and let them know ahead of time and get authorization."

Several supervisors framed the vote as a response to what they described as repeated state mandates that shift costs to the county. One supervisor told colleagues, "I believe there comes a time where we have to stand up and no longer live in fear of the state taking funding. And at some point, we have to fight. And I think this is the hill we need to stand on." Supervisor O'Brien urged a structured staff process to identify what the county controls, where costs originate and where efficiencies might be found during budget development.

The board recorded a roll-call vote on Resolution 91. The following supervisors voted yes: Henke; Feddler; Tall; Shaw; Hall; Fisher; Baker; Nolan; O'Brien; Hahn; Campbell; Skelly; Hogan; Wilson; Clary; Wang; Roselle. The resolution passed with all recorded votes in favor.

Next steps: the county attorney may file the litigation and indicated the county's initial outlay will be limited to filing fees; any extraordinary expenses, including hiring outside counsel, will be brought back to the board for approval. No litigation filing date or court venue was specified in the meeting record.

Votes at a glance

- Resolution 91: Authorize county attorney to commence litigation regarding Executive Order 47.3 (governor of the State of New York) and county hiring of former employees of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. Mover: Supervisor Robert Henke. Second: not specified. Vote: 17 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain. Outcome: approved.