Albany County law committee tables public hearing on pay changes for legislators amid legal concerns

The Albany County Law Committee on Monday agreed to table a public hearing on a proposed local law that would permit changes to a county officer's salary during a term, after members raised concerns the change could conflict with New York State County Law §200.

The committee chair opened the meeting saying there was one agenda item: a public hearing on Local Law A for 2025 (also referred to in discussion as Local Law U for 2024), a proposal described by staff as codifying current practice by allowing certain leadership positions to receive additional compensation during a legislative term. "It is the public hearing on Local Law A for 2025," the chair said at the start of the item.

The measure drew immediate procedural objections from a committee member who called proceeding to a public hearing "putting the cart before the horse," and another member who said the proposal appeared "blatantly illegal under state law" and urged the committee to seek formal legal opinions before moving forward.

Legislator Burgdorf argued that New York State County Law §200 restricts salary increases during a term and specifically allows additional compensation only for the chair, the majority leader and the minority leader. Burgdorf said he would request opinions from the county attorney and the New York State Controller and asked that the item be sent back to committee for further review. "County Law 200 sets the restrictions for salaries of county legislators and allows for additional compensation for the chair, the majority leader, and the minority leader," Burgdorf said.

A separate committee member noted that some leadership roles that have received stipends historically — for example, a deputy chair position — had been ceremonial and unpaid in prior decades and that adopting new stipends could create a precedent for additional compensated positions. "In the 50 years that this county legislature has been formed ... there's never been a deputy chair before that's been compensated," that member said.

The chair characterized the public hearing as a procedural step to allow public comment but agreed to delay the hearing to align it with a pending charter amendment (discussed as Rule 11 and Local Law A for 2025) and to allow counsel to gather and compare legal authorities. "In the spirit of aligning the two public hearings on the same day, I will table this until our next committee meeting," the chair said.

Committee members directed staff and counsel to coordinate and obtain written opinions from the county attorney and the New York State Controller regarding whether the proposed local law would conflict with County Law §200 and what process would be required if the county sought to add additional compensated positions (for example, whether state legislative action would be necessary).

The committee did not take a formal roll-call vote on the tabling motion in the transcript; the chair announced the item would be held until the next committee meeting for combined consideration with the charter amendment and local law. The meeting concluded after the committee moved to adjourn and recorded a unanimous series of "ayes."