Cayuga County is authorized by County Law § 400(4)(a)
and the Municipal Home Rule Law § 10(1) to create and establish
appointive positions, define their powers and duties, and fix their
terms of office, so long as it is not inconsistent with the New York
State Constitution or general law. Accordingly, the Cayuga County
Legislature ("Legislature") hereby finds as follows:
A. Local Law No. 5 of 2014 established the position of Director of Community
Services, which had management and administrative responsibility over
the Departments of Social Services and Mental Health.
B. Due to the increasingly complex operational and regulatory demands
of these two departments, the Legislature finds that having separate,
full-time administrative leadership would better serve the departments
and their constituents.
C. The Legislature further finds that it is in the public interest to
set forth a transition process that involves the following steps:
(1) Create and establish the position of Commissioner of Social Services
to oversee and administer the provision of social services within
Cayuga County pursuant to the Social Services Law;
(2) Reestablish the position of Director of Community Services with a
revised job description that limits the duties and responsibilities
to oversight and administration of mental health services in Cayuga
County pursuant to the Mental Hygiene Law;
(3) Repeal Local Law No. 5 of 2014 as obsolete.
D. The Legislature intends this article to authorize the Legislature
to implement the above-described plan in a manner that is timely and
effective and best meets the needs of the County.
The continued existence of the Cayuga County Public Health Department
is hereby recognized and acknowledged, to be overseen and managed
by the Public Health Director.
Local Law No. 5 of 2014 is deemed repealed effective January
28, 2022.
It is the intent of the Legislature that in the event that any
clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part of this article shall
be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid,
such judgment, decree or order shall not affect, impair or invalidate
the remainder thereof but shall be confined in its operation to the
clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part thereof
directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment, decree
or order shall have been rendered and that the remainder of this article
shall not be affected thereby and shall remain in full force and effect.