[HISTORY: Adopted by the Suffolk County Legislature 8-10-1982 by L.L. No.
23-1982 (Ch. 184 of the 1985 Code). Amendments noted
where applicable. Uncodified sections of certain local laws amending
these provisions are included at the end of this chapter.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Vanderbilt Museum Oversight Committee — See Ch. 1160.
The County Legislature finds and determines that the operation
of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum by the agencies that have
been provided since the acquisition by the County of the Vanderbilt
bequest has been characterized by a division of the powers and functions
of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum Commission on the one hand
and the Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum on the other.
The Legislature further finds and determines that it should establish
policy with respect to the development, maintenance and operation
of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium, the management
of property and the maintenance fund and the employment of personnel.
The County Legislature has the sole power and control over the
museum property and the funds provided for its operation, care and
perpetuation, subject only to the contractual conditions under which
the County accepted the Vanderbilt bequest. The County Legislature
also declares that the Board of Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt
Museum has the sole power and control over the development, maintenance
and operation of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium
and the conduct of its programs and activities, subject only to the
contractual conditions under which the County accepted the Vanderbilt
bequest.
Notwithstanding the delegations of power and authority heretofore
made by the prior Board of Supervisors of the County or the course
of action taken by the agencies to which such delegations were made,
the County Legislature declares that the Board of Trustees of the
Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum shall be the operating agency and
the appointing body with respect to all personnel engaged in the maintenance,
operation and conduct of the programs and activities of the museum
and planetarium, including the Director.
[Amended 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986; 2-10-1987 by L.L. No.
7-1987]
A.
The Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum, the Regents-chartered
educational corporation formed to carry out the educational direction
of the Vanderbilt bequest, are charged with preparing a budget and
making a report of financial operations to the Suffolk County Vanderbilt
Museum Commission. The members of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum
Commission are to be a liaison between the County Legislature and
the Trustees in the use and application of the funds of the Vanderbilt
gift in the operation of the museum and planetarium.
B.
Prior to preparing a budget and making a report of financial operations
to the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum Commission and prior to filing
such budget and report with the Suffolk County Executive and Suffolk
County Legislature, the Board of Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt
Museum shall hold a public hearing on said budget each year before
the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Committee of the Suffolk
County Legislature for the purpose of obtaining information, input,
suggestions, advice or recommendations concerning said budget from
members of the public.
[Amended 7-8-1986 by L.L. No. 21-1986; 10-28-1986 by L.L. No.
30-1986; 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986; 5-19-1998 by L.L. No.
6-1998; 3-5-2013 by L.L. No. 12-2013]
A.
The Board
of Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum shall appoint
and fix the term of office of the Executive Director of the Suffolk
County Vanderbilt Museum and engage all employees of the museum and
planetarium, and determine and fix salaries, retirement and other
benefits.
B.
In selecting
an Executive Director, the Board of Trustees shall require that the
Executive Director have the appropriate professional qualifications
and demonstrated administrative ability and experience, including,
as a minimum, the following qualifications:
(1)
An
advanced degree (at least a master’s degree) from an accredited
college or university in a subject matter area compatible with the
collections of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum in the physical
or biological sciences and at least seven years’ previous experience
in an administrative position at a museum or at least seven years’
experience in managing or monitoring historic properties in either
the public or private sector; or
(2)
At
least two years’ experience in an executive management position
at an American Alliance of Museums (AAM) accredited museum and at
least 10 years’ experience managing or monitoring budgets and
finances for historic properties or museums in either the public or
private sector.
C.
In the
event that the Board of Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt
Museum creates positions of Assistant or Deputy to the Executive Director
of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum for the purpose and with the
power of discharging the duties and responsibilities of the Executive
Director in his or her absence or in the event of his or her inability
to discharge such duties and responsibilities, then, in selecting
an individual to fill such position as the Board shall so designate
to fulfill such duties and responsibilities, the Board of Trustees
shall require that such individual have the appropriate professional
qualifications and demonstrated administrative ability and experience,
including, as a minimum, but not limited to, the following qualifications:
(1)
An
advanced degree (at least a master’s degree) from an accredited
college or university in a subject matter area compatible with the
collections of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum in the physical
or biological sciences and at least five years’ previous experience
in an administrative position at a museum or at least five years’
experience in managing or monitoring historic properties in either
the public or private sector; or
(2)
At
least two years’ experience in an executive management position
at an American Alliance of Museums (AAM) accredited museums and at
least five years’ experience managing or monitoring budgets
and finances for historic properties or museums in either the public
or private sector.
[Amended 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986]
A.
Legislative
history of establishment of Commission. The Suffolk County Vanderbilt
Museum Commission devolved from the former Suffolk County Park Commission
(which was established by a resolution of the Board of Supervisors
adopted on June 27, 1949, and enlarged pursuant to § 221
of the County Law by a resolution of the Board of Supervisors adopted
on December 28, 1959) pursuant to the provision of Local Law No. 1-1966,
by Section 2(a) of which it was given the management and control of
the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum.
B.
Membership
of Commission.
[Amended 3-10-1987 by L.L. No. 9-1987; 8-13-1991 by L.L. No.
22-1991; 3-8-1994 by L.L. No. 2-1994; 3-4-2008 by L.L. No.
4-2008]
(1)
The County Legislature shall appoint the 15 members of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum Commission. The Board of Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum Commission shall appoint the Director of the museum. The appointment of the 15 members of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum Commission, which is the device for appointment of the Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum in accordance with the laws cited in Subsection A and the provisions contained herein, and terms of the 15 members shall be staggered and shall be four years; such terms shall be deemed to have commenced upon the expiration date of the terms set forth in the laws stated in Subsection A; and any appointment shall be for the expired portion of such term. Any vacancies in the membership of said Commission, other than by expiration of term, shall henceforth be filled by the County Legislature for the unexpired term.
(2)
At least six months prior to any vacancy in the membership of said
Commission, the Board of Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt
Museum Commission shall meet with the Parks, Recreation and Cultural
Affairs Committee of the Suffolk County Legislature, or any such successor
committee, for the purpose of discussing the needs, if any, of the
Board of Trustees in filling any such a vacancy.
(3)
No person shall be appointed or reappointed to a position under Subsection B(1) of this section who is an elected official of the State of New York or of any political subdivision thereof or who is a party officer. For the purposes of this section, "party officer" shall mean one who holds any party position or any party office, whether by election, appointment or otherwise, excluding committeeman, and "party" shall mean any political organization which at the last preceding election for governor polled at least 50,000 votes for its candidate for governor.
(4)
No person shall be appointed or reappointed to a position under Subsection B(1) of this section unless and until such person shall first appear at least once before the pertinent legislative committee of the County Legislature having primary jurisdiction over such resolution naming such person for approval to such appointment or reappointment and before such other legislative committees of the County Legislature as shall request an appearance by such person.
(5)
No person shall be reappointed to a position under Subsection B(1) of this section unless such person shall have attended at least 75% of the regular and/or special meetings held by said Board of Trustees of said museum. Absences from such meetings caused by death in the immediate family of the Trustee, viz., children, parents, brothers, sisters, in-laws and/or grandparents, or caused by a verifiable illness shall not be counted for the purposes of this calculation of attendance.
(6)
Any person who has served as a member of the Board of Trustees of
the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum Commission is prohibited from
being employed in any position at the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum
or Planetarium for which any form of compensation or remuneration
is granted for a period of five years subsequent to the expiration
of such individual's service as a member of the Board of Trustees
of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum Commission.
[Amended 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986]
A.
The Comptroller
of the State of New York has conducted a hearing on October 3, 1973,
and rendered a decision on April 29, 1974, which concluded that the
employees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum are not employees
of Suffolk County, but are employees of a privately endowed institution.
B.
The Suffolk
County Legislature finds that the employees of the Suffolk County
Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium are not civil service employees
of the County of Suffolk or the State of New York.
[Amended 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986]
William K. Vanderbilt II, in his will, bequeathed his estate
in Centerport, Town of Huntington, State of New York, together with
all real property, furnishings, exhibits, works of art, artifacts,
memorabilia and certain moneys, to the State of New York or the County
of Suffolk or the Town of Huntington. The County of Suffolk accepted
the generous bequest in accordance with the terms of the agreement
dated August 3, 1949, between the trustees under the will of William
K. Vanderbilt II, the County of Suffolk, Suffolk County Park Commission
and the Board of Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum
and the mutual covenants and agreement contained therein.
[Amended 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986]
The County of Suffolk is the sole and exclusive owner of the
real and personal property, maintenance fund, tangible and intangible,
of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum received from the trustees
under the will of William K. Vanderbilt II and shall hold all funds,
income derived therefrom and income from the operation of the museum
and planetarium separate and apart from County funds. The use, occupancy
and exclusive control of the museum and planetarium shall be in the
Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum, without rental or
other charges, in perpetuity. Any and all income derived from the
maintenance fund and from the activities of the museum and planetarium,
conducted upon authorization of the Trustees of the Suffolk County
Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium, shall be appropriated by the County
Legislature to the use of the Trustees, who shall have full power
of the disposition thereof.
[Amended 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986]
The County Legislature declares that the Suffolk County Vanderbilt
Museum is the foremost cultural, educational and scientific museum
in the County and is deserving of all possible support by the County
of Suffolk. The Trustees of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum shall
be given, upon request and without charge, the use and benefit of
various supportive services, such as purchasing, budgetary and technical
assistance afforded by the County.
[Added 11-12-1986 by L.L. No. 35-1986]
A.
The Vanderbilt Museum is hereby designated and renamed as the "Suffolk
County Vanderbilt Museum."
B.
The name "Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum" shall appear on all official
correspondence, publications, brochures, newsletters and printed advertisements
of the museum.
C.
The Official Seal of the County of Suffolk shall appear on all official
correspondence, publications, brochures, newsletters and printed advertisements
of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum.
D.
All other references in this chapter to the Vanderbilt Museum, including
but not limited to the Vanderbilt Museum Commission, shall be correspondingly
renamed by the addition of "Suffolk County" to said title.
[Added 9-14-1993 by Res. No. 683-1993]
The Vanderbilt Museum and the County of Suffolk, through its
Risk Management and Benefit Division, is authorized to enter into
an agreement which would be based upon an appropriate reimbursement
schedule based on County expenditures for general liability and employee
benefits.
[Added 12-15-2020 by L.L. No. 2-2021]
A.
The County
hereby establishes the Vanderbilt Museum Enterprise Fund to provide
dedicated funding for capital improvements at or the reduction of
debt incurred by the Vanderbilt Museum. Beginning on January 1, 2022,
and continuing each year thereafter, the Vanderbilt Museum Enterprise
Fund shall be funded through an annual disbursement of 2% of the market
value, provided that such disbursement does not pierce the corpus
of the endowment generated from the Vanderbilt Museum's endowment.
B.
Monies
deposited into the Vanderbilt Museum Enterprise Fund may be utilized
upon the approval of the Board of Trustees and the approval of an
appropriating resolution by the County Legislature for either capital
improvements to the Vanderbilt Museum or to reduce debt incurred by
the Vanderbilt Museum after the formation of the Enterprise Fund.
