Can a NY county enter a mutual aid agreement with a county in another state for fire and emergency services?

Subject

A New York county may enter a cross-border mutual aid agreement with a county in another state under General Municipal Law Article 14-G

Plain-English summary

The Cattaraugus County Attorney asked whether his county could enter a mutual aid agreement with Potter County, Pennsylvania. The plan called for fire companies and emergency-service units within Cattaraugus to provide help at fires and natural disasters in Potter County, with Potter County units reciprocating in Cattaraugus. The question was whether General Municipal Law § 209-j (the county-mutual-aid statute) reached cross-border arrangements.

The AG answered yes to the underlying question, but no to the framing.

Section 209-j authorizes counties to fund and maintain mutual aid plans for fire and similar emergencies. The statute's language and history aim at intra-county coordination, plans by which municipalities within a single county provide aid to one another with the county supervising and helping pay. It is not a cross-border authorization.

The actual authority for the proposed Potter County arrangement was General Municipal Law Article 14-G, which is specifically about interlocal agreements between New York public agencies and out-of-state public agencies. Section 462 authorizes such agreements for a long list of services. The ones relevant to Cattaraugus's plan were fire prevention and fire fighting, ambulance service, fire and police radio and communication systems, and hospital service.

The reach is constrained. Section 461(1) defines "public agency" to include any county, city, town, village, school district, improvement district, or district corporation of New York, plus any local governmental unit, subdivision, or special district of another state. So Potter County (a Pennsylvania county) qualifies on its side.

Section 462(2) imposes a constitutional and statutory authority requirement on the New York side: the New York public agency can only receive or provide services under Article 14-G that it has independent constitutional or statutory authority to perform on its own. A county cannot use an interlocal agreement to do something it could not do unilaterally. So if Cattaraugus has authority for emergency communications, fire response, and ambulance services (which it does, under various provisions and under General Municipal Law § 209 for cross-jurisdictional emergency response within New York), it can extend that authority into Pennsylvania through Article 14-G.

The AG had previously concluded that counties can maintain centralized communication systems for emergency service calls (1974 Op Atty Gen (Inf) 248). That made it natural to extend the agreement to cover coordination of emergency communication services across state lines. New York emergency service providers are also independently authorized under § 209 and Article 14-G to answer calls for help from other states' public agencies and territories.

The footnote explains that Article 14-G has detailed setup requirements: contents of agreements, compensation structure, authorization procedures (§§ 463, 466, 467). Counties cannot just casually agree to help each other across state lines; they need to formalize the agreement consistent with those statutory requirements.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1995. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Why was § 209-j inadequate?

Because the statute's language and structure focused on county-supervised plans for fire and emergency response within a single New York county. It authorizes the county to spend money on a mutual-aid plan and reimburse participating municipalities (cities, towns, villages, fire districts). Extending it to municipalities or districts outside the state was not contemplated.

What practical sections drive an Article 14-G agreement?

Section 461 (definitions, including "public agency"), § 462 (the substantive authorization listing the categories of services), § 463 (contents of interlocal agreements), and § 466 (manner of authorization) are the core. The participating agencies need to draft an agreement that names the services, who provides what, compensation, duration, termination, and approval mechanisms.

What independent authority did Cattaraugus rely on?

Several. General Municipal Law § 209 authorizes mutual aid for fire and other emergencies. Article 14-G itself authorizes emergency service providers to answer calls from public agencies in other states. The AG also cited a 1974 informal opinion concluding that counties may maintain central emergency communication systems.

Does Article 14-G work the same for any New York public agency?

Subject to the constitutional or statutory authority requirement in § 462(2), yes. Cities, towns, villages, school districts, improvement districts, and district corporations can all use Article 14-G to enter interlocal agreements with out-of-state public agencies. The categories of services range across fire, EMS, communications, hospital services, sewage, water, public health, and others.

What about liability and workers' comp issues when firefighters cross state lines?

The opinion does not address this. Practical interstate mutual aid agreements typically include indemnification, workers' compensation, immunity, and equipment-damage provisions. Those are part of the "contents of interlocal agreements" requirement in § 463. Drafters should also consider applicable interstate compacts and the federal Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) framework, even though those structures sit outside this opinion's scope.

Statutory framework

General Municipal Law § 209 authorizes mutual aid for fire and other emergencies generally.

General Municipal Law § 209-a is the related provision for ambulance and emergency medical service mutual aid.

General Municipal Law § 209-j authorizes counties to maintain mutual aid plans within the county.

General Municipal Law Article 14-G (§§ 461 to 469) authorizes interlocal agreements between New York public agencies and out-of-state public agencies for a wide range of services. Section 461(1) defines "public agency." Section 462 authorizes the agreements and lists services. Section 462(2) imposes the independent-authority requirement. Sections 463 and 466 cover contents and authorization.

Source

• Landing page: https://ag.ny.gov/libraries-documents/opinions/opinions-year
• Original PDF: https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/opinions/I_95-47_pw.pdf

Original opinion text

GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW §§ 209, 209-a, 461(1), 462(2), 463, 466, 469.

The county may enter a mutual aid agreement with a county from another state pursuant to General Municipal Law Article 14-G, which permits interlocal agreements in specified circumstances.

September 26, 1995

Dennis V. Tobolski, Esq.
County Attorney
County of Cattaraugus
303 Court Street
Little Valley, NY 14755

Informal Opinion
No. 95-47

Dear Mr. Tobolski:

You have asked whether Cattaraugus County may enter a mutual aid agreement with Potter County, Pennsylvania. You note that the Director of the Potter County Department of Emergency Services has contacted your Office of Emergency Services to discuss the feasibility of such an agreement. In a telephone conversation, you indicated that in your county the Office of Emergency Services coordinates the provision of firefighting, ambulance and other emergency service by municipalities within the county. You explain that under the proposed mutual aid agreement, firefighters from fire companies or districts within your county would provide assistance at fires in Potter County. Similarly, local emergency service units would offer emergency service in Potter County in the event of floods, tornadoes or other natural disasters. Potter County units would provide like services in your county. You also ask whether the authorization of county mutual aid plans in General Municipal Law § 209-j includes a plan like the one you propose, which crosses state lines.

We believe your county may enter a mutual aid agreement with Potter County. The authority for such an agreement is contained in provisions other than the one you cite, General Municipal Law § 209-j.

General Municipal Law § 209-j states:

The board of supervisors in any county may appropriate and expend such sums as it may deem necessary and proper for the establishment and maintenance of a county mutual aid plan in cases of fire and other emergencies in which the services of firemen would be used and may prescribe the method of auditing or approving expenditures under any such appropriation. Expenses incurred by any city, town, village or fire district participating in such mutual aid plan shall be a lawful municipal or fire district charge to be paid in the same manner as other like charges.

As you point out, this statute does not expressly authorize a county mutual aid plan that crosses state lines. It appears that the statute was intended to authorize plans through which various municipalities within a county would provide aid to one another subject to supervision or coordination by the county. See, e.g., Opinions of the State Comptroller, Opn. No. 83-128. Thus, this section does not empower the county to enter a mutual aid agreement with a county from another state.

Other provisions of State law do authorize such agreements. General Municipal Law Article 14-G governs interlocal agreements with governmental units of other states.[1] Section 462 provides:

1. Any public agency of this state may enter into interlocal agreements with any public agency or agencies of any other state or states providing for any of the following:

(a) The exchange, furnishing or providing by one or more of the contracting public agencies to one or more of the other contracting public agencies of services, personnel, facilities, equipment, or any other property or resources for any one or more of the following purposes or uses: [Those relevant to your inquiry include:]

(1) Fire prevention and fire fighting
. . .
(13) Ambulance service
(14) Fire and police radio and communication systems
(15) Hospital service
. . .

"Public agency" is defined to include "any county, city, town, village, school district, improvement district or district corporation of the State of New York; and any local governmental unit, subdivision or special district of another state. General Municipal Law § 461(1).

The statute also contains a limitation in section 462(2):

Nothing contained in this article shall be construed to authorize or permit any public agency of this state to receive, obtain, furnish or provide services, facilities, personnel, equipment, or any other property or resources, or to engage in or perform any function or activity by means of an interlocal agreement if it does not have constitutional or statutory power or authorization to receive, obtain, furnish or provide the same or substantially similar services, facilities, personnel, equipment, other property or resources, or to engage in or perform the same or a substantially similar function or activity on its own account.

The county may enter into an agreement with a county in another state for only those purposes listed in the statute that the county also has constitutional or statutory authorization to undertake. For example, we previously concluded that a county may maintain a central communication system handling all emergency service calls for towns and fire districts within the county. 1974 Op Atty Gen (Inf) 248. The county, therefore, may enter an agreement to coordinate the provision of emergency communication services outside the county as well as within it, with the agreement of New York State local emergency service providers, who are also authorized by Article 14-G and by General Municipal Law § 209 to answer calls for assistance from a public agency or territory of another state.

We conclude the county may enter a mutual aid agreement with a county from another state pursuant to General Municipal Law Article 14-G, which permits interlocal agreements in specified circumstances.

The Attorney General renders formal opinions only to officers and departments of State government. This perforce is an informal and unofficial expression of the views of this office.

Very truly yours,

SIOBHAN S. CRARY
Assistant Attorney General

[1] The General Municipal Law sets forth detailed requirements for establishing interlocal agreements. It specifies, among other things, the contents of interlocal agreements, the structure of compensation and the manner in which agreements are to be authorized. General Municipal Law §§ 463, 466, 467.