MONTICELLO — The Sullivan County Legislature is considering putting a new ballot proposition in front of voters this fall – staggered terms. 

The current process is that all nine legislators are elected every four years. However, a major concern of the Sullivan County Charter Review Commission is that all nine legislators could be replaced at the same time, which would lead to a loss of institutional knowledge and a steep learning curve. Thus, the Charter has frequently recommended that the current process be changed so that not all members of the elected body be up for election at the same time. 

The Charter unanimously passed their resolution on recommending staggered terms, 10-0, which Charter member Larry Richardson noted earlier this year. 

The proposal would ask voters to approve a change to the Charter on the ballot in November. The proposed changes would call for four positions to be up for vote for a three-year term at the next County Legislature election in November 2027, running from January 2028 to December 2030; and five positions to be up for vote for a five-year term, running from January 2028 to December 2032. 

After these terms run out, all nine positions would revert to four-year terms, but the end result would be a Legislature election occurring every two years and staggering legislators’ terms in office. 

This change has been considered by the Legislature for several years by recommendations of the Charter Review Commission. New York State now mandates that some local elections only occur in even-numbered years, so the change is seen as the most efficient way to split up the positions. 

A local law to create staggered terms has been set forth and will not become effective unless it is approved by a majority of the electorate at the General Election on Thursday, November 5. If voters approve this proposition, legislators will conduct a random selection (i.e. picking names from a hat) to determine which positions on the board will be up for three years and which will be up for five years.

A public hearing on the proposed local law is scheduled for Thursday, September 5 at 8:45 a.m. im the Hearing Room of the Government Center at 100 North Street in Monticello. Public comment is welcome for anyone who wishes to speak about staggered terms. Legislators are expected to make a decision on whether to put the proposal on the ballot at a special meeting immediately following the public hearing.