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Village Board of Trustees Minutes 02/02/2009
                                        Board of Trustees
                                                        Village of Tarrytown
                                                        Regular Meeting No. 28
                                                        February 2, 2009 8:00 p.m.

PRESENT:  Mayor Fixell presiding; Trustees Basher, Butler, Hoyt, McGee, McGovern and Zollo; Village Administrator Blau; Village Treasurer Hart; Village Attorney Shumejda; and Village Clerk Booth

The meeting began with the Pledge to the Flag.

REPORTS

Trustee Hoyt stated that the Tarrytown Lakes is open for ice skating.  The hours of operation during the week are 1 p.m. – 8 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.  He welcomes everyone to come and enjoy.  Skate rentals are available.

PUBLIC HEARING TO AMEND THE CODE OF THE VILLAGE OF
TARRYTOWN CHAPTER 27, ETHICS (adopted)

Trustee Zollo moved, seconded by Trustee Basher and unanimously carried that the public hearing be opened.

Mayor Fixell stated that Fred Mauhs, Chairman of the Ethics Board and the members of the Ethics Board have worked very hard reviewing our Ethics Code and making
several revisions.  He thanked Fred and the Ethic Board members for the truly remarkable amount of work and effort by a committee of volunteers to accomplish this
enormous task.  He also thanked Trustee McGee, the Board’s Liaison and member of the Ethics Board for all her work.  Mayor Fixell asked Fred Mauhs to briefly review
some of the highlights of the Ethics Code.

Fred Mauhs, Chairman of the Ethics Board stated that the existing Ethics Code of  Tarrytown dates back to the 1960’s and has been revised a few times since then.   In 1988, the Municipal Ethics Act for New York State Municipalities was established   which came up with a model Ethics Code.  It is a complete work over of the existing Ethics Code.  The following are the most significant parts of the proposed Ethics Code:

  • Section 27-3 Conflicts of Interest of Village Officers and Employees
  • Section 27-3-1(a) No Village Officer or Employee shall act as attorney, director, broker, agent, consultant, representative or employee for any firm directly doing business with the Village.  It contains an escape clause whereby you can be an employee with a company that does business with the Village if there is full disclosure and if the Village Ethics Board affirmatively permits by waiver.
  • Section 27-3-1(c) No Village Officer or Employee shall not accept a gift of over $75 in value from any person, other than a Family Member.  However, an Officer or Employee may agree to accept a gift provided that it was not received under circumstances in which it reasonably might be inferred that such gift was intended to influence the Officer or Employee.
  • Section 27-3-1(e) No Village Officer or Employee shall disclose during his/her term of office with the Village or thereafter any confidential information which was acquired during his/her official duties.
  • Section 27-3-1(g) No Village Officer or Employee after termination of his/her term of office or employment with the Village shall appear before the Village, or receive compensation for services rendered on behalf of any person, in relation to any Particular Matter upon which he or she took any action or that came before him/her during his/ her term of office or employment with the Village.
  • Section 27-3-1(i) However, within a period of one year after termination of his/her term of office or employment shall appear or practice before the Village
Agency in which he/she served and, if having served as Mayor, Trustee, Justice, Acting Justice, Village Attorney, or Chairman or member of the Zoning Board of Appeals or Planning Board, any other Agency as well.  This shall not, however, preclude any Village Officer or Employee from Appearing in his/her own behalf or in the performance of public or civic obligations.
  • Section 27-3-1(l) No Officer or Employee shall request or permit the use of Village-owned vehicles, equipment, materials or property for personal convenience or profit, except (a) if such services are available to the public generally, or (b) with respect to a vehicle provided to such Officer or Employee for the conduct of official business.
  • Section 27-3-5 No Village Officer or Employee shall solicit, directly or indirectly, any business, donations or personal services from any direct or indirect subordinate.
  • Section 27-3-6 No Village Officer or Employee shall solicit any other Village Officer or Employee, directly or indirectly, to contribute, donate, give or grant any monies, property or services to any Village political party, political campaign or political office.
  • Section 27-4 Interest Disclosure and Recusal – If a Village Officer or Employee has a conflict of interest on a particular matter that comes before you, you have to recuse yourself.  You have to disclose what the conflict of interest is, that disclosure has to go on the record, and then you have to recuse yourself.
  • Section 27-5 Financial Disclosure for Village Officers, Employees and Political Party Officials – It was decided to have a slim-down version of the financial disclosure.  You don’t have to disclose your income or assets.   But you do have to disclose a source of income or assets that creates a conflict of interest.
  • Section 27-6 Disclosure by Applicants – Anyone applying for work in the Village has to make a disclosure.  That disclosure has to contain the name of the Village Officer or Employee to whom the applicant has made campaign contributions and the name of any Village Officer or Employee who to the applicants’ knowledge has an interest in the submission of the applicant.
  • Section 27-7 Village Ethics Board – There is now a provision for the establishment of a Village Ethics Board.  
  • Section 27-10-3 The Ethics Board shall have the following powers and duties:
  • (a) to prescribe and promote rules and regulations governing its own internal organization and procedures.
  • (b) to conduct inquiries pursuant to Section 27-11 of this Code of Ethics
  • (c) upon conclusion of any such inquiry, to recommend that an Officer or Employee be disciplined for a violation of this Code of Ethics.
  • (d) to grant waivers of any provision contained in this Ethics Code.
  • (e) to render advisory opinions with respect to the interpretation or application of this Code of Ethics.
  • (f) to review all interest disclosure statements for possible or potential violations of the Code of Ethics.
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown will hold a public hearing on the 2nd day of February, 2009, at 8 PM, in the Municipal Building, One Depot Plaza, Tarrytown, New York 10591, to hear, discuss and to act upon the repeal of the existing Chapter 27 entitled "Ethics, Code of” and adoption of a new Chapter 27 entitled "Ethics, Code of" to the Code of the Village of Tarrytown. The complete text of the proposed amendment is available at Village Hall.  A summary of the proposed legislation follows:

A LOCAL LAW to amend the Code of the Village of Tarrytown by repealing the existing Chapter 27 entitled "Ethics, Code of" to the Code of the Village of Tarrytown and adopting a new Chapter 27 entitled "Ethics, Code of" to the Code of the Village of Tarrytown.  
       
SECTION 1.  LEGISLATIVE INTENT AND FINDINGS OF FACT.

A.      Findings of Fact.

The Board of Trustees of the Village finds that the current Code of Ethics, as found in Chapter 27 of the Tarrytown Code, may not address circumstances concerning conflicts of interest and other ethics issues which the Board of Trustees finds should be addressed in a Code Ethics; therefore, the Board of Trustees finds a need to adopt a new Code of Ethics which will result in a more comprehensive Code of Ethics.

B.      Legislative Intent.

The intent of this amendment is to repeal the existing Code of Ethics and adopt an entirely new Code of Ethics in order to address perceived deficiencies and establish a revised Code of Ethics which will be more comprehensive.

Material to be deleted appears in (parenthesis) , material to be added is in bold typeface.

SECTION 2.  Chapter 27 entitled "Ethics, Code of" to the Code of the Village of Tarrytown is hereby repealed in its entirety and replaced with the following:

Sec. 27-1.  Declaration of Policy.

        The goal of Village government is to provide for the fair, impartial, open and lawful administration of the Village.

        In order to accomplish this goal, it is necessary that all Village Officers or Employees, as those terms are defined below, whether volunteer, paid or elected:

[i]     be independent, impartial and responsible to the residents of  the Village, and

[ii]    make government decisions in the proper channels of government in an open and non-secretive manner.

        In recognition of this goal, there is hereby established a Code of Ethics which is based upon the 1988 Municipal Ethics Act for New York State Municipalities.

        This Code of Ethics supplements the rules setting forth certain impermissible interests and conduct contained in Article 18 of the General Municipal Law of New York State (the “General Municipal Law”) and applicable to all Officers and Employees of municipal governments in New York State.  All Village employees are required to familiarize themselves with both General Municipal Law Article 18 as well as this Code.  Nothing in this Code may be construed to permit any interest or conduct which is prohibited under General Municipal Law Article 18.

   Sec. 27-2 Definitions

       1. "Agency" shall mean any office, board, body, advisory board, council, commission, agency, department, district, administration, division or bureau of the Village, as well as any committee of the Village established by Village ordinance.

       2. "Appear" and "appear before" shall mean communicating in whatever form, whether personally or through another person.

       3. "Discretionary Action" shall mean any action involving the exercise of judgment or discretion by a Village Officer or Employee, either individually or as a member of any Agency, and includes, but is not limited to, negotiation, approval, advice, recommendation, authorization or audit.

       4. [reserved]

       5. "Particular Matter" shall mean any business dealing with the Village, or any application for such business, or any case, proceeding, determination, investigation, charge, accusation or arrest or any other matter involving a Discretionary Action of a Village Officer or Employee, but does not include the proposal, consideration or enactment of local laws, ordinances or regulations of general application.

       6. "Village Officer or Employee" shall mean any officer or employee of the Village of Tarrytown, whether paid or unpaid, including members of any administrative board, commission or other Agency thereof. No person shall be deemed to be a Village Officer or Employee solely by reason of being a volunteer member of the Village Ambulance Corp or a volunteer fireman, except that a Fire Chief or Assistant Fire Chief shall be considered a Village Officer or Employee.

        7.  “Spouse” shall mean a husband or wife from whom the Village Officer or Employee is not legally separated, and any person with whom the Village Officer or Employee lives as a single household unit.

        8.  “Family Member” shall mean an individual’s spouse, child, parents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles , siblings , grandparents, stepchild and stepparent or any such person as listed herein so related to the spouse of the Village Officer or Employee.
    
        9. "Interest," unless otherwise defined, shall mean a pecuniary or material benefit accruing to a Village Officer or Employee as the result of a business or professional transaction with the Village. For the purposes of this Code a Village Officer or Employee shall be deemed to have an Interest in the affairs of a Related Person.

        10. “Related Person” means

               (a)      a Family Member;

(b)     any entity of which the Village Officer or Employee is an officer or director, or legally or beneficially owns or controls more than five percent of the outstanding securities;
  
(c)     any person or entity with which the Village Officer or Employee has or intends to enter into an employment, professional, business or financial relationship, and any principal of such entity; and

(d)     any person or entity from whom the Village Officer or Employee has received, within any twelve month period during the previous twenty-four months, a pecuniary or material benefit having an aggregate value greater than one thousand dollars.


    Sec. 27-3 Conflicts of Interest of Village Officers and Employees.

      1. No Village Officer or Employee shall:

(a)     act as attorney, director, broker, agent, consultant, representative or employee for any person, firm or corporation interested directly or indirectly in any manner whatsoever in business or professional dealings with the Village unless full disclosure is made as to such interest to the Village Ethics Board  in writing and the Ethics Board affirmatively permits by waiver, pursuant to Section 27-10(3)(d), below, the business relationship otherwise prohibited by this section.  

(b)     knowingly have an Interest, financial or otherwise, direct or indirect, or engage in any business or transaction or professional activity or incur any obligation of any nature, which is in conflict with, or might reasonably tend to conflict with, the proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest.

(c)      directly or indirectly solicit any gift, or accept or agree to accept any gift of over $75 in value (or such higher value as may be set forth in the prohibition on gifts contained in General Municipal Law Section 805-a(1)(a), if any), from any person, other than a Family Member.  However, a Village Officer or Employee may accept or agree to accept a gift which would otherwise be prohibited, provided that it was not received under circumstances in which it reasonably might be inferred that such gift was intended to influence the Village Officer or Employee in the performance of his or her official duties or reward him or her for any Discretionary Action.  A "gift" shall include money, services, loans, travel, entertainment, hospitality, things or promises thereof or any other gratuity or promise thereof, including any financial transaction on terms not available to the general public, but shall not include a campaign contribution.

(d)      take or refrain from taking any Discretionary Action, or agree to take or refrain from taking any Discretionary Action, or induce or attempt to induce any other Village Officer or Employee to take or refrain from taking any Discretionary Action, on any matter before the Village in  order to obtain a pecuniary or material benefit for: (1) himself or herself or (2) a Related Person.

(e)      except where such disclosure is authorized by law, disclose during his or her term of office with the Village or thereafter any confidential information which was acquired in the course of his or her official duties, or use any such information to advance the financial or other private interest of himself or herself or any other person.

(f)     Appear as attorney or counsel against the interests of the Village in any matter in which the Village is a party or a complainant.

(g)     after termination of his or her term of office or employment with the Village, Appear before the Village, or receive compensation for services rendered on behalf of any person, in relation to any Particular Matter upon which he or she took any action or that came before him or her during his or her term of office or employment with the Village.

(h)     during his or her term of office or employment with the Village, solicit, negotiate for, or accept any employment from which he or she would be disqualified under Section 27-3(1)(g).

                (i)     within a period of one year after termination of his or her term of office or employment Appear or practice before the Village Agency in which he or she served                                 and, if  having served as Mayor, Trustee, Justice, Acting Justice, Village Attorney, or Chairman or member of the Zoning Board of Appeals or Planning Board,                            any other Agency as well. This shall not, however, preclude any Village Officer or Employee from Appearing in his or her own behalf or in the performance of                             public or civic obligations.

(j)     appear on behalf of third-party interests in any matter involving the Agency which he or she currently serves.

(k)     as Mayor, Trustee, Justice, Acting Justice, Village Attorney or Chairman or member of the Zoning Board of Appeals or Planning Board of the Village, Appear in behalf of any third-party interests before or in any matter involving any Agency of the Village.

                (l)     request or permit the use of Village-owned vehicles, equipment, materials or property for personal convenience or profit, except (i) if such services are available to                  the public generally, or (ii) with respect to a vehicle provided to such Officer or Employee for the conduct of official business, if and to the extent personal use of                                 such vehicle is permitted pursuant to official Village policy;

        2. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a Village Officer or Employee or any other person from receiving a Village service or benefit, or using a Village facility, which is generally available to residents in the Village.

       3. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit campaign contributions that are allowed by Article 14 of the Election Law of the State of New York.

       4. [reserved]

        5.  No Village Officer or Employee shall solicit, directly or indirectly, any business, donations or personal services from any direct or indirect subordinate.

       6. No Village Officer or Employee shall solicit any other Village Officer or Employee, directly or indirectly, to contribute, donate, give or grant any monies, property or services to any Village political party, political campaign or political office except indirectly through campaign flyers and mailings.

       Sec. 27-4 Interest Disclosure and Recusal.
 
        1. Whenever the Village Officer or Employee is requested or required to take any action on a matter before the Village and, to his or her knowledge, either the performance or nonperformance of that action would result in a pecuniary or material impact to himself or herself or to any Related Person different from that which would result from the action by reason of its general application to a broad class of impacted persons, the Village Officer or Employee shall not participate in that matter or be present during any discussion in executive session of the matter.  A Village Officer may also voluntarily recuse himself or herself to avoid conflicting Interests not prohibited herein or the perception of any conflicting Interests.  Upon either mandatory or voluntary recusal, the Village Officer or Employee shall also make a record, either by a statement in the minutes of the relevant meeting or by filing a signed statement promptly with  the Village Clerk and his or her immediate supervisor of the nature of that Interest.  Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a Village Officer or Employee from participating in any matter in his or her capacity as, and in the same manner as, an ordinary citizen of the Village and not in his or her capacity as a Village Officer or Employee, provided the disclosure described in the preceding sentence be undertaken and complete.

       2. For purposes of the preceding section, the term “Related Person” shall include any organization, other than a political party or a major religious organization, in which the Village Officer or Employee is employed or is a member, as well as any individual who holds a supervisory or managerial position in such organization.

       3. Whenever a vote is required from which a Village Officer must recuse himself or herself under this section or from which he or she chooses to recuse himself or herself, such recusal shall not be counted for the purpose of determining whether a majority or other ratio required by law to pass a measure has been reached, provided, however, that no action may be taken by a body unless a majority of all of the members appointed or elected to such body vote on the matter.  If a body, with respect to a particular vote, is or will be reduced below such majority by reason of a recusal required or permitted pursuant to this section, then (a) if such vote relates to the Village Fire Department, the body may, by majority vote of all members present, decide to waive, for all (but not less than all) of its members, the recusal requirements of this section, and (b) with respect to any other matter, any member of such body may apply to the Village Ethics Board for a waiver of the recusal requirements of this section.

   Sec. 27-5  Financial Disclosure for Village Officers, Employees and Political Party Officials

       1. Each elected or appointed Village Officer and each managerial Employee shall file with the Village Clerk an annual statement of financial disclosure containing the information and appearing in the form as promulgated from time to time by the Ethics Board and kept on file with the Village Clerk.  Such statement shall be filed on or before the fifteenth day of May with respect to the preceding calendar year.  Any elected or appointed Officer or managerial Employee who commences employment or takes office after May fifteenth of any year shall file such statement within thirty calendar days after commencing employment or taking office.

       2. Anyone who is subject to two or more filing requirements as set forth above need not make a second filing in any one calendar year.  

    Sec. 27-6 Disclosure by Applicants
 
        1. For purposes of this section:

(a)     "Submission" means any written application, petition, bid, proposal or other request concerning a business dealing with the Village which has a value or cost to the Village of two thousand dollars ($2,000) or more, but shall not include an application to be considered for eligibility to apply for or bid on any business dealing; and
 
(b)     "Applicant" means any person making a Submission.

       2. For purposes of this section, a campaign contribution shall be considered to have been made to a candidate if such contribution is made to any committee soliciting or receiving funds for the purpose of supporting the candidate, except that a contribution to a political party shall not be considered a contribution to a candidate unless it is earmarked for the use of a particular candidate.  Where contributions are made to committees which support more than one candidate, the contribution shall be considered to have been spent equally on all the candidates unless otherwise specified by the contributor.  For the purpose of this section, a loan to a candidate or campaign committee shall be considered a campaign contribution.
    
        3. Any person who makes a Submission to the Board of Trustees of the Village shall disclose in writing the information set forth in (a) and (b) of this Section, and any person who makes a Submission to any other Agency of the Village shall disclose in writing the information set forth in (b) of this Section.  Such disclosure shall be made, on a form provided by the Village Clerk (the “Applicant Disclosure Form”) as part of the Submission, in addition to the information required under General Municipal Law Section 809(1):  

(a)     The name of the Village Officer or Employee to whom the Applicant has made one or more campaign contributions totaling two hundred fifty dollars or more within any six month period during the previous twenty-four months.

(b)     The name of any Village Officer or Employee who, to the Applicant’s knowledge: (i) has an Interest in the Submission or in the Applicant, and (ii) is required to take any Discretionary Action on the Submission.  The Applicant also shall identify in the Submission the nature and extent of the Interest.  

4. Such disclosure shall be submitted to the Village Clerk for review and filing.  If the disclosure is incomplete or otherwise deficient on its face, the Village Clerk shall return such disclosure to the Applicant.  In such case the Submission will however be deemed to have been filed on the date it was originally received by the Village, provided that a completed Applicant Disclosure Form is returned to the Village Clerk within 10 calendar days of its return to the Applicant.  If the Applicant Disclosure Form on its face indicates a possible conflict of interest, the Village Clerk shall forward a copy thereof immediately to a member of the Ethics Board for review pursuant to Section 27-10(3)(f), below.
   Sec. 27-7 Village Ethics Board

1. In accordance with Section 808 of the General Municipal Law of the State of New York, the Ethics Board of the Village of Tarrytown (“Ethics Board”), created by resolution of the Tarrytown Board of Trustees (the “Board of Trustees”) on March 6, 2006 (the “Ethics Board Resolution”), shall consist of seven (7) members, each of whom shall be residents of the Village during the entire tenure of his or her term. The Board of Trustees may at any time by resolution increase or decrease the number of members who shall sit on the Ethics Board; however, the Ethics Board must have a minimum of three (3) members. The Board of Trustees shall designate one member of the Ethics Board as its Chairperson.

2. At all times one member of the Ethics Board other than the Chairperson shall be a member of the Village Board of Trustees.  The Chairperson of the Ethics Board shall immediately inform such member whenever the Ethics Board has been asked or directed to involve itself in any matter involving such member, any other member of the Board of Trustees or the Board of Trustees generally, whereupon such member shall immediately recuse himself or herself from all consideration of such matter by the Ethics Board.  Other than the Village Trustee who serves on the Ethics Board pursuant to this section, no other Village Officers, Employees or candidates for Village office shall serve on the Ethics Board.

3. The term of office for Ethics Board members other than the member who is a Village Trustee shall be three years; however, the terms of office for the initial Ethics Board members shall be as set forth in the Ethics Board Resolution.  All reappointments and/or new appointments shall commence on the first day of May and terminate three years later, on 30th day of April of said year.  The term of office for the Ethics Board member who is a Village Trustee shall be for one year commencing on the first day of April and terminating on the 31st day of March the following year.

4. Pursuant to New York State General Municipal Law Section 808, Subsection 3, the Board of Trustees is hereby designated as the appointing authority for all members of the Ethics Board.

5. The Board of Trustees shall fill all vacancies on the Ethics Board.

6. No member of the Ethics Board shall hold office in any political party or be employed as a lobbyist before the Village.  An Ethics Board member may make campaign contributions but may not participate in any Village election campaign, except for the member of the Board of Trustees who serves on the Ethics Board, who may campaign for himself or herself as well as for other candidates appearing on his or her slate of candidates for the same office.

7. The Ethics Board shall adopt rules and regulations as to forms and procedures and shall at all times maintain appropriate records of its opinions and proceedings.

   Sec. 27-8 Removal of Member of Ethics Board.

       1.  A member of the Ethics Board may be removed by the Village Board of Trustees, but only for the grounds set forth below.

       2.  Grounds for removal of a member of the Ethics Board shall be substantial neglect of duty, misconduct in office, inability to discharge the powers or duties of office, or violation of this Village Ethics Code, after written notice and opportunity for reply.

    Sec. 27-9 Ethics Board Meeting and Quorum Requirements.
  
        1.  A quorum of the Ethics Board shall be necessary for the Board to vote upon any matter.  A quorum shall consist of no less than a majority of the Ethics Board positions, including all vacant positions.  A vote of the majority of the members of the Ethics Board constituting a quorum shall be required for the Ethics Board to take any action.  The Chairperson or any three members may call a meeting of the Ethics Board.

       2.  The Ethics Board shall hold at least one meeting per year and may hold as many additional meetings per year as it deems necessary or as shall be called by the Chairperson or any three members, provided that a meeting of the Ethics Board shall be held promptly and in no case later than 30 calendar days after its receipt of either a complaint alleging a violation of this Code of Ethics or a request for an advisory opinion, at which meeting the Board shall consider such complaint or request as well as any other matters before it.

   Sec. 27-10 Powers and Duties of Ethics Board.

       1. The Ethics Board may act only with respect to Village Officers and Employees.

       2. The termination of a Village Officer’s or Employee's term of office or employment with the Village shall not affect the jurisdiction of the Board with respect to the requirements that this Code of Ethics imposes on the former Village Officer or Employee.

       3. The Ethics Board shall have the following powers and duties:

(a)     to prescribe and promote rules and regulations governing its own internal organization and procedures in a manner consistent with this Code of Ethics;

(b)     to conduct inquiries pursuant to Section 27-11 of this Code of Ethics;

(c)     upon conclusion of any such inquiry, to recommend that an Officer or Employee be disciplined for a violation of this Code of Ethics.

(d)     to grant waivers of any provision contained in this Ethics Code, except that the Board shall have no power to waive any of the requirements contained in the following Sections:-

(i)     Section 27-3(1)(d) (prohibiting purposeful self-enrichment),
(ii)    Section 27-3(1)(e) (prohibiting disclosure and private use of confidential information),
(iii)   Section 27-3(1)(l) (prohibiting personal use of Village property),
(iv)    Section 27-3(5) (prohibiting solicitation of subordinates),
(v)     Section 27-3(6) (prohibiting solicitation of political contributions from other Officers and Employees),
(vi)    Section 27-5 (requiring financial disclosure by Officers and Employees),
(vii)   Section 27-6(3) (requiring Applicant disclosures).

The Board shall grant any such request for a waiver when in its view the benefit to the Village in doing so outweighs the risk that the waiver may defeat the policy goals of this Code of Ethics.  The Ethics Board may place whatever limitations or conditions on its waiver as it deems appropriate.  Any such waiver shall be recorded in the minutes of the meeting in which the Board of Ethics granted the waiver.  The Ethics Board shall immediately notify in writing the Village Board Trustees of any decision it reaches on an application for such waiver, together with the terms of any waiver which is granted, and the Board of Trustees shall record such decision in the minutes of its next public meeting.

(e)     to render advisory opinions with respect to the interpretation or application of this Code of Ethics upon written request by any Board, Agency, individual Village Officer or Employee, or any Applicant.

(f)     to review all interest disclosure statements submitted pursuant to Section 27-6(3), above.  If the Board determines that a statement reveals a possible or potential violation of the Code of Ethics, it shall notify the Applicant as well as any Village Officer or Employee to which a possible conflict of interest relates, the administrative body to which that Officer or Employee belongs, if any, as well as his or her supervisor, if any, in writing of the deficiency or possible or potential violation, and of the consequences for failure to comply.

(g)     to make information concerning this Code of Ethics available to all Village Officers and Employees, to the public, and to any person who is interested in doing business with the Village.

 Sec. 27-11 Inquiries of Alleged Violations.

       1. Upon receipt of a sworn complaint by any person alleging a violation of this Code of Ethics, or upon determining on its own initiative that a violation of this Code of Ethics may exist, the Village Ethics Board shall have the power and duty to conduct any inquiry necessary to carry out the provisions of this Code of Ethics.  In conducting any such inquiry, the Village Ethics Board may administer oaths or affirmations, request the attendance of witnesses and request the production of books and records which it may deem relevant and material.

       2. Nothing herein shall be construed to permit the Ethics Board to conduct an investigation or inquiry of itself or any of its members. Should the Village Ethics Board receive a sworn complaint alleging that the Ethics Board or any of its members has violated any provisions of this Code of Ethics or any other law, it shall promptly transmit a copy of the complaint to the Mayor, the Board of Trustees, the Village Administrator and Village Counsel, who shall investigate the complaint and take appropriate remedial action should the results of their investigation so warrant.

       3. Notwithstanding the requirements of Section 27-11(4), below, the Ethics Board shall, to the extent permitted by law:

(a)     provide any subject of an inquiry with both notice of the inquiry prior to its commencement and with an appropriate opportunity to be heard on the matter;
(b)     advise both the subject of an inquiry and the Board of Trustees of any decision by the Ethics Board resulting from the inquiry together with the Ethics Board’s findings and analysis;
(c)     inform both the subject of an inquiry and the Board of Trustees as to whether or not the Ethics Board has recommended that the subject be disciplined; and
(d)     advise any person who has filed a sworn complaint of any decision resulting from any inquiry or any other disposition of the complaint.

4. The Ethics Board shall, with respect to every complaint that it receives and all related deliberations, findings, opinions, recommendations and dispositions thereof:

(a)     use its best efforts to hold all such matters in confidence and not publicly reveal them, to the fullest extent allowable by applicable law, including the New York State Freedom of Information Law and,

(b)     meet in accordance with the prerequisites of the Open Meetings Law of the State of New York, including in executive session when applicable.

   Sec. 27-12 Administrative Penalties for Violation of the Code of  Ethics.

       Subject to applicable law or collective bargaining agreement, any Village Officer or Employee who engages in any action that violates any provision of this Code of Ethics may be warned, reprimanded or suspended or removed from office or employment or be subjected to any other sanction by the appointing authority or person or body authorized by law to impose such sanctions.  A warning, reprimand, suspension, removal or other authorized sanction may be imposed in addition to any applicable penalty contained in any other provision of law.  

    Sec. 27-13 Distribution of Code of Ethics.

       The Mayor shall cause this Code of Ethics to be distributed to every Village Officer and Employee.  Each such person who enters government service after this distribution shall receive a copy of this Code of Ethics before entering upon his or her duties and shall sign a statement signifying receipt.  Within thirty days after the effective date of this Code of Ethics, the Village Administrator shall obtain a similar signed statement from every Village Officer or Employee whose office predates this Code of Ethics.  Failure to have been delivered a copy of this Code shall have no effect on the duty of compliance or the enforcement of this Code.

    Sec. 27-14 Severability.

       Should any section, clause or requirement of this Code of Ethics be found by a Court of competent jurisdiction to be unenforceable, unlawful or invalid, that section, clause or requirement shall be severed from this Code of Ethics and the remainder shall continue in full force and effect.

   Sec. 27-15 Effect on General Municipal Law

        Nothing in this Chapter shall be deemed to permit any interest or conduct prohibited by Article 18 of the General Municipal Law of New York State.

   Sec. 27-16 Repeal.

       The Code of Ethics of the Village of Tarrytown Local Law Chapter 27, adopted 2-16-1960 by L.L. No. 1-1960, as amended, is hereby repealed.

   Sec. 27-17 Effective Date.

       This local law shall take effect immediately upon filing in the Office of the Secretary of State and in compliance with all applicable provisions of law.

SECTION 3.  EFFECTIVE DATE

This local law shall take effect immediately, as provided by law.

All interested parties are invited to attend and be heard.  Access to the meeting room is available to the elderly and the handicapped.  Signing is available for the hearing-impaired; a request must be made to the Village Clerk at least five days in advance of the meeting.

BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
OF THE VILLAGE OF TARRYTOWN

Mayor Fixell questioned whether anyone wished to address the Board on this matter.  No one appeared.  

Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Hoyt, and unanimously carried that the public hearing be closed.

Trustee McGee moved, seconded by Trustee Butler, and unanimously carried that the following be approved:  Approved:  7-0
                                                          
WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby repeals the existing Chapter 27 entitled “Code of Ethics, and adopts a new Chapter 27 entitled “Code of Ethics,” and

WHEREAS, the intent of this amendment  is to repeal the existing Code of Ethics and to adopt a new Code of Ethics to address perceived deficiencies in the existing law and to establish a more comprehensive Ethics Law; and

WHEREAS, a public hearing was held for the proposed action on February 2, 2009; and

WHEREAS, a notice of public hearing was published in the Journal News on January 27, 2009; and

WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown is the only agency which has approval authority over the Proposed Action, and is therefore the Lead Agency for the Proposed Action

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED AS FOLLOWS:

In accordance with Article 8 of the State Environmental Conservation Law and 6NYCRR Part 617, including without limitations the criteria set forth in 6 NYCRR Part 617.7(c) and based upon review of the Environmental Assessment Form and all other materials that were prepared for the Proposed Action, the Village Board of Trustees hereby determines that Proposed Action will not have a significant adverse impact on the environment, and hereby adopts a Negative Declaration.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby adopts Local Law No. 2 of 2009.

OPPORTUNITY FOR THE PUBLIC TO ADDRESS THE BOARD. SPEAKERSHAVE FIVE (5) MINUTES BEFORE YIELDING TO THE NEXT SPEAKER; THEN THREE (3) MINUTES
FOR ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Beatrice Block, 69 Sheldon Avenue, read a letter that was addressed to her from the Village Administrator, Michael Blau (affixed to the official minutes of this meeting) regarding the catch basin and curb that Ms. Block had addressed to the Board at a prior board meeting.  Ms. Block also stated the following:
  • she wants the curb on her property removed
  • larvaside is a pesticide that has been known to contribute to autism
Trustee Butler asked Ms. Block if she wants the Village to remove the curb on her property and Ms. Block answered, “sure.”  Ms. Block did not think the letter was professional and didn’t appreciate the following statement, “…the Village will not be expending any time, effort, or money to address this drainage issue in the future.”  Administrator Blau stated that the reason he included that in the letter was to let Ms. Block know that once we have addressed this situation, we would not be going back to address it again.

Lori Semeraro, 205 Martling Avenue, asked the Board if there were any updates on grants for playground equipment that can be used for disabled children.  Trustee Hoyt stated that the Village Administrator has been working on grants for this purpose and the Board has been discussing the same.  Village Administrator stated that the Village has been recommended for a grant for playground equipment at Patriots Park.  Ms. Semeraro also stated that she wanted to be clear that this playground equipment can be used by all children.

Felix Lantigua, 69 N. Washington Street stated the following:
  • he asked the Board for the status of the petition he submitted to the Board on September 2, 2008 regarding the parking situation on N. Washington Street.  Village Administrator stated that he discussed this with the Board and having received other parking issue requests, we will be analyzing the entire parking issue in the downtown area.  
  •  - he asked the Board why he gets a ticket for parking his vehicle for one day and he has observed and placed a complaint to the Police that a truck was parked on Wildey Street for approximately twelve days without getting a ticket.  Mayor Fixell stated that he would have it looked into.
  • -  he asked when the new taxi holding area, which has already been approved, will be ready.  Village Administrator stated that this has been directed to get done and he will see to it that it gets done very soon.
        
AGREEMENT – HUDSON HARBOR, LLC

Trustee Hoyt moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo, and unanimously carried that the following be approved:  Approved:  7-0

WHEREAS, Hudson Harbor, LLC has requested permission to construct an island on West Main Street, to erect a Clock  Tower in the island and replace certain asphalt roadways with cobblestone; and

WHEREAS, these concepts have been reviewed and recommended for approval by the Tarrytown Planning Board and the Architectural Review Board.

WHEREAS, only the Board of Trustees can grant permission to construct any structure or replace the asphalt with cobblestone on the local streets and roadways of the Village of Tarrytown; and

WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees believes that the proposed island, Clock Tower and cobblestone will benefit the area of West Main Street and the Village of Tarrytown and is therefore desirous of taking action to allow for such construction.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Village Administrator is hereby authorized and directed to execute an agreement between the Village of Tarrytown and Hudson Harbor, LLC (the “Developer”)

FIRE DEPARTMENT – SNOW WATCH

Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo that the following be approved. The Board was polled all voting “aye” with the exception of Trustee Butler who voted “nay,” citing that he would like to see the budget before he approves this increase.
Motion carried.   Approved:  6-1

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby approves the hourly rate for the Fire Department Snow Watch pay to $9.00 effective February 3, 2009.

CHANGE THE DATE OF THE FEBRUARY 16, 2009 REGULAR MEETING OF
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES (PRESIDENTS DAY)

Trustee Hoyt moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo, and unanimously carried that the following be approved:  Approved:  7-0

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby reschedules the Monday, February 16, 2009 Board of Trustees meeting to Tuesday, February 17, 2009 in honor of Presidents Day.

NEPERAN ROAD PROPERTY

Trustee McGovern moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo, and unanimously carried that the following be approved:  Approved:  7-0

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees hereby authorizes the Village Administrator to execute an agreement with Legends Realty Group to act as Agent for
the sale of property known as 75 Neperan Road, Tarrytown, New York.  The term of this agreement shall be six months from the effective date.

 EASEMENT AND LICENSE AGREEMENT – RIVER WALK

Trustee Zollo moved, seconded by Trustee McGovern, and unanimously carried that the following be approved:  Approved:  7-0

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby authorizes the Village Administrator to execute an Easement and License Agreement with the County of Westchester to construct a portion of the RiverWalk Trailway to be located in the southern portion of the Village and for the Village to operate and maintain the RiverWalk Trailway within the Village.

CHIEF OF POLICE BENEFITS

Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo, and unanimously carried that the following be approved:  Approved:  7-0

BE IT RESOLVED that the Policy Statement, Benefits to the Chief of Police shall be amended as follows:

3.d. Vacation – Chief of Police Brown shall be entitled to five (5) weeks of vacation per year.  Chief of Police Brown shall continue to be entitled to take vacation time in conformance with the Policy Statement, Vacation Time – Non-Union Employees.

TAX CERTIORARI – RIVERCLIFFE CONDOMINIUM

Trustee Hoyt moved, seconded by Trustee McGovern, and unanimously carried that the following be approved:  Approved:  7-0

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby approves the tax certiorari settlement with Rivercliffe Condominium as outlined in the Village Attorney’s memorandum dated January 19, 2009.

APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES HELD ON JANUARY 20, 2009

Trustee McGee moved, seconded by Trustee McGovern that the following be approved. Motion carried, all voting “aye” with exception of Mayor Fixell who abstained.  Approved:  6-0

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby approves the minutes of the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees held on January 20, 2009 as submitted by the Village Clerk.

APPROVAL OF AUDITED VOUCHERS NO. 002914 THROUGH NO. 003057

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby approves the audited vouchers No. 002914 through No. 003057 is hereby ordered paid in the following amounts as presented by the Village Treasurer with the exception of Voucher No. 002646 to be tabled until further clarification:

                General                  $ 1,133,362.51
                Water                                79,431.32
                Capital                                414,733.20
                Library                                3,847.81
                Trust & Agency                 5,727.92
Total                             $ 1,637,102.76

The Board was polled all voting “aye” with the exception of Trustee McGee who abstained from Voucher Numbers 002954, 003022, 003023, and 003024, and Trustee Hoyt who abstained from Voucher Number 002646.   Motion carried.  7-0

ADJOURNMENT

Trustee Hoyt moved, seconded by Trustee Basher and unanimously carried, that the meeting be adjourned at 8:50 p.m.

Carol A. Booth
Village Clerk