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Ulster County committee approves local laws, appointments and contract amendments including $70,000 locum pilot for mental-health evaluations
Summary
The committee adopted a series of resolutions aligning county codes with state law, confirmed appointments, accepted state contract amendments for mental-health providers, and approved a $70,000 Jackson & Coker locum tenens contract (to be covered by state OMH funds) to provide psychiatric evaluations countywide to reduce reliance on court-ordered assisted outpatient treatment.
The Ulster County Legislature’s Health, Human Services and Human Rights Committee approved a slate of measures on June 4, including local-law changes, appointments, contract amendments and a pilot contract for locum tenens psychiatric services.
Among the votes, the committee adopted Resolution 307 (proposed local law no. 6 of 2026) to align county regulation of pet sellers with state law; Resolution 309 (proposed local law no. 8 of 2026) clarified county charter language on board-of-health appointments and membership; Resolution 321 confirmed the appointment of Raven Williams to the Ulster County Youth Board; and Resolution 323 reappointed Samantha Michaels to the Community Services Board subcommittee on developmental disabilities.
The committee approved several contract amendments accepting additional New York State funding: $10,331 for County Rehabilitation Support Services, Inc. (Resolution 325, 100% state funds), $16,788 for Ulster County Mental Health Association, Inc. (Resolution 326, 97% state / 3% county), and $38,750 for Gateway Community Industries doing business as Gateway Hudson Valley (Resolution 327, 99% state / 1% county).
In a separate but related action, the committee approved a $70,000 contract with Jackson & Coker Locums LLC to provide locum tenens physicians and advanced practitioners from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027. County staff clarified the contract is funded 100% by New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) funds (it was listed incorrectly in the draft as county-funded and will be corrected before ways-and-means). The pilot is designed to provide targeted psychiatric evaluations countywide for high‑risk individuals to improve voluntary engagement in services and reduce the need for court-ordered assisted outpatient treatment (AOT, commonly called Kendra’s Law cases). Officials described the pilot as limited in hours and scalable if demand and outcomes justify expansion; additional funding would require a future legislative action if county funds are needed.
All resolutions and contract amendments on the committee’s agenda passed by voice vote after motions and seconds were recorded in the transcript; the record shows standard committee voice voting rather than roll-call tallies in the meeting transcript.
The committee moved on to new business and adjourned after brief announcements.
