By Bill James (May 1995)
Town of Thompson Councilman

The information regarding dissolution applies to all villages in New York State. Much of it is from a video teleconference at Cornell Cooperative Extension in May of 1993 which was sponsored by the State of New York. The video features an opening statement by then Governor Mario Cuomo and a panel of officials with information to share.

The purpose of intergovernmental cooperation is to do business in a more efficient manner. One option is dissolution of a village into its township. That is, the village government ceases to exist.

On December 31, 1993 the Village of Ticonderoga, New York dissolved into the Town of Ticonderoga. Under Article 19 of Village Law of the State of New York, "a village may start the dissolution process by either a motion by the village board or by a petition signed by one third of the village voters." The next step is a vote on a public referendum. If successful, a committee of citizens decides the terms of the dissolution.

Why should a village dissolve? To save money for the taxpayer! Insurance for the existing town and village could be bid together for a lower overall price. The salaries of the village board, mayor, village attorney, and village manager, would cease to exist. The costly duplication of services would be eliminated and the town would have the added advantage of increased purchasing power.

Why would a town want to expand its responsibilities over a village? The resulting merged government would also make the existing town government more streamlined. It is also more important to note that the existing village residents will have to make up for any past debts, not town residents.

What about village employees? The Monticello Police Department could become a town police department such as the one in Fallsburg. The village sewer and water districts would continue to exist as districts in the township.

Does the name of the town or village have to be changed? Not necessarily The village could become the hamlet of Monticello in the Town of Thompson. Visual impact of the dissolution would be minimum. Welcome signs could still say "Welcome to Monticello."

What if consolidation occurs first? A complete dissolution of the village is not necessary right away. Consolidation can occur first. Consolidation is already a reality in the Town of Thompson and Village of Monticello. The town is now handling the assessing function for the village. The town dog control officer now covers the village as well. Across the State of New York neighboring towns are getting together to share services like assessing and dog control. The cities of Gloversville and Johnstown, N.Y. have pooled their resources by co-purchasing fuel and insurance. The two cities also share highway equipment. Towns and villages may enter into similar agreements.

What about that idea of making Monticello into a city? NYS Association of Towns attorney Kevin Crawford says the last time a village became a city was in New York was way back in the 1940s. Crawford says a village's hopes of gaining revenue sharing money for cities is not a good reason to propose a city. Crawford says the state legislature knows that is the reason and is reluctant to allow any new cities to form. Crawford adds that the existing cities have political clout in Albany and they don't want to share the money which is frozen into place for them with anyone else. Crawford says there are some drawbacks to becoming a city: The school system would have to be completely changed, and the public would no longer be able to vote on the budget of a city school system. Crawford also indicates that a city court system is very expensive to establish and operate. There are physical space requirements for city court systems that result in expensive construction projects. These prohibitive costs have stopped some villages from going any further in exploring the idea. Crawford concludes by saying that becoming a city provides no magical benefits over any other form of government.

In conclusion, how long can dissolution take? The Village of Ticonderoga is about 95 years old. Residents started talking about dissolution when the village was just a few years old, 85 years ago. It came up for a vote every 20 or 30 years. The last time they did... it passed. If a referendum to dissolve a village fails for any reason, it's two years before it can be brought up again.

 

CONSOLODATE