New York Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in New York, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Can a New York village switch from one-vote-per-candidate trustee elections to cumulative voting through a local law, and does the change need a referendum?
Yes on both. The Attorney General concluded that the Village of Port Chester could adopt cumulative voting (where each voter has as many votes as there are open seats and may pile multiple votes on on…
Can a New York town that is in an elected-legislature county switch the town supervisor from a 2-year term to a 4-year term by local law instead of by the slower Town Law § 24-a resolution route?
Yes. Where the county is governed by an elected county legislature (County Law § 150-a) rather than by a board of supervisors made up of town supervisors (§ 150), the town's supervisor is not a county…
Can a New York county move part of the Board of Elections (voting-machine storage, training, staff) to a building outside the city where the Board sits, without holding a referendum under County Law § 216?
Partly. The county can open an additional Board of Elections location outside its existing city office and house equipment, voting machines, training facilities, and back-office work there. What requi…
Can a New York county require a super-majority vote of its legislature to pass certain resolutions, like spending under an austerity plan or hiring under a hiring freeze?
Yes, but only by local law and subject to mandatory referendum. A county cannot impose a super-majority requirement for resolutions through its own internal rules of procedure, because that authority …
Can a New York town replace the town board's power to fill an elective-office vacancy by appointment with a requirement that a special election be held?
Yes. Town Law § 64(5) gives the town board power to fill a vacancy in an elective town office. Under Municipal Home Rule Law § 10(1)(ii)(d)(3), the town can supersede that with a local law requiring a…
Could a Rockland County village dissolve its police department on a permissive referendum, or did a 1936 special state law force the question to a mandatory referendum?
Mandatory referendum. Chapter 524 of the Laws of 1936 is a special, county-specific statute requiring a mandatory referendum to abolish a police department in any Rockland County village. The 1972 rec…
In a New York county that hasn't adopted a charter, can the board of supervisors appoint a county manager to a four-year term when most supervisors only serve two-year terms?
No. Under the common-law 'term limits rule,' a governing board acting in its governmental capacity cannot bind its successors. Appointing a county manager is a governmental act. The exceptions (a clea…
Does a city charter amendment that guarantees every speaker at least five minutes of preliminary public comment at council meetings require a public referendum to pass?
Yes. A Binghamton charter amendment requiring the City Council to give every speaker at least five minutes of preliminary public comment before the legislative agenda would substantially constrain how…
Once a New York village transfers its elections to the county board of elections, can the village take them back by resolution, and does that require a referendum?
Yes. The power to enact a resolution carries with it the power to repeal it. The Village of Fredonia could resume conducting its own elections by passing a resolution rescinding the earlier transfer t…
Can Nassau County, by local law, take zoning power away from the Town of Hempstead and give it to the Village of Atlantic Beach?
Yes. Nassau County may amend its County Charter by local law under N.Y. Const. Art. IX, § 1(h)(1) and Municipal Home Rule Law Article 4 to transfer the zoning function from the Town of Hempstead to th…
Can a New York town extend its supervisor's term from two years to four when that supervisor also sits on the county board of supervisors?
Yes, but only by board resolution subject to a mandatory voter referendum, not by local law. The AG concluded that Town Law § 24-a (added in 1981) permits towns to lengthen the supervisor's term to fo…
Does the Nassau County Charter's mandatory-referendum requirement for local laws affecting elective officers still stand, even though the State Constitution now calls only for a permissive referendum?
Yes. The AG concluded that under the savings clause in Article IX, § 3(b) of the State Constitution, Nassau County Charter § 155 (enacted 1937) remains in force and requires a mandatory referendum for…
If a New York city wants to scrap its city personnel officer and have the county civil service commission take over, does that change require a public vote?
No. Municipal Home Rule Law § 23(2)(k) requires a mandatory referendum only for changes to a city civil service commission's membership or terms. Geneva had a personnel officer, not a commission, so a…
Does a New York town need voter approval to give the town board the power to appoint a deputy tax collector if the elected collector won't?
Yes. The proposed local law transfers a power of an elective officer (the tax collector's discretion to appoint a deputy), so under Municipal Home Rule Law § 23(2)(f) it requires a mandatory referendu…
When New York City changes its civil service classifications to comply with a city council mandate, do the changes still need State Civil Service Commission approval and a notice-and-hearing process?
Yes. The AG concluded that Civil Service Law § 20(2)'s notice, hearing, and State Civil Service Commission approval requirements apply to City Personnel Director rule modifications even when they impl…
Can a Westchester County village move its police disciplinary authority from the board of trustees to the village manager by local law, even though a special State act says only the trustees can hear charges?
Yes. The AG concluded a Westchester County village may, subject to mandatory referendum, enact a local law that amends Unconsolidated Laws § 5711-q to transfer police disciplinary authority from the b…
Can a New York county extend its legislators' terms from three to four years if it has recently reapportioned its districts, or does that count as a 'restructuring' the county can only do once a decade?
Yes. Changing legislator terms outside a reapportionment is not a 'restructuring' under Municipal Home Rule Law § 10(1)(ii)(a)(13)(f). The county may enact the change under its general home-rule autho…
If a New York city wants to take away the mayor's sole appointment power and require city council consent, does the change have to go on the ballot?
Yes. Under Municipal Home Rule Law § 23(2)(f), a local law that abolishes, transfers, or curtails any power of an elective officer is subject to mandatory referendum. The City of Ithaca's local laws m…
Can a New York village move authority over police discipline from the village board to the village manager?
Yes, but only by enacting a local law that supersedes Village Law § 8-804, and the change is subject to a mandatory referendum because it transfers a power of an elective officer.
Can a NY town shorten the supervisor's term back from four years to two years after voters approved the longer term?
Yes. The AG concluded that a town board may reduce the term of its supervisor from four to two years by enacting a local law subject to a mandatory referendum. Although Town Law § 24-a only provides f…
Can a NY county pass a term limits law for elected officials without a public referendum?
Yes. The AG confirmed Informal Opinion No. 83-10 and the Court of Appeals' Roth v Cuevas decision: a county may use its home-rule authority to limit the number of consecutive terms an elected officer …
Can a New York non-charter county create a county administrator position without a public vote?
Yes. The AG concluded that a non-charter county board of supervisors may use Municipal Home Rule Law § 10 to create the position by local law. As long as the local law does not abolish, transfer, or c…
Does changing how the mayor is chosen in a small commission-run city require voter approval?
Yes. The AG concluded the Sherrill charter amendment, which would transfer the power to serve as commission chair and mayor from the top vote-getting commissioner to the commissioner with the most sen…
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Attorney general opinions in New York are written by the New York Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.