[Amended 4-1-2011 by L.L. No. 8-2011; 11-12-2024 by L.L. No. 3-2025[2]]
The County Executive shall be elected from the County at large in an even numbered year for a term of four (4) years commencing on the first day of January immediately following his or her election. He or she shall serve a maximum two (2) consecutive full terms. At the time of nomination and election, the County Executive shall be, and he or she shall remain, a qualified elector of Putnam County. He or she shall hold no other elected public or elected political office during his or her term and shall devote his or her full working time to the duties of the office. He or she shall be the highest paid salaried County employee with the exception of those County employees required to be duly licensed to practice medicine in the State of New York as a qualification of employment, the District Attorney or any other employee whose salary is partially or fully set by state law. The compensation of the County Executive shall not be decreased during his or her term of office.
Except in the instance where a general or special state law would otherwise necessitate, amending, modifying or repealing the term limit provisions as set forth in this § 3.01 may only be accomplished by the enactment of a local law adopted by the County Legislature by a unanimous vote of the whole of its number, subject to referendum on petition as provided in the Municipal Home Rule Law.
[1]
Editor's Note: Local Law No. 20-2001 provided that this section shall become effective 1-1-2003.
[2]
Editor's Note: This local law was subject to permissive referendum; no valid petition was received.
[Amended 3-24-2022 by L.L. No. 5-2022]
The County Executive shall be responsible for the proper administration of all County affairs placed in his or her charge. He or she shall have and exercise all the powers and duties now or hereafter conferred or imposed on him or her by law or this Charter or the Administrative Code. Among such powers and duties, but not by way of limitation, the County Executive shall:
(a) 
Execute and enforce all laws and resolutions of the County Legislature;
(b) 
Exercise supervision and control over all administrative departments, offices and agencies of the County government and prescribe the internal organization of such departments, offices and agencies;
(c) 
Be the Chief Budget Officer of the County and be responsible for the preparation of the operating and capital budgets of the County in the manner provided by this Charter and the Administrative Code to execute the same in accordance with the resolutions and appropriations made by the County Legislature;
(d) 
Be responsible for keeping the County Legislature fully advised as to the financial condition;
(e) 
Appoint, supervise and terminate, except as otherwise herein provided, all executive committees, commissions and boards to assist him or her in exercising his or her executive functions in the planning, formulation and administration of executive programs;
(f) 
Appoint without confirmation by the Legislature, to serve at his or her pleasure, such assistants and employees of this office as may be authorized by the County Legislature;
(g) 
Make, sign, and implement all contracts on behalf of the County within authorized appropriations or involving expenditures of County funds, which power may be delegated for specific matters;
(h) 
Approve or disapprove the sufficiency of sureties on official bonds and undertakings;
(i) 
Approve or disapprove in writing every proposed local law and resolution and the County budget by specified items, subject to provisions of § 3.04 of this Charter;
(j) 
Supervise and exercise control over all central administrative services for the County government, including data processing, tabulation, mail and the messenger service, printing and reproduction, and telephone and related support services;
(k) 
Make such recommendations to the County Legislature with respect to the affairs of the County and its government as he or she may deem appropriate;
(l) 
Declare the existence of emergencies affecting the life, health or safety of the inhabitants of the County and, except as otherwise provided by law, exercise all the powers and duties necessary for the protection thereof; notice of any such emergency shall immediately be given to the Legislature;
(m) 
Perform such other duties and have such other powers as may be prescribed by law or by the County Legislature and have all necessary and incidental powers to perform and exercise any of the duties and functions specified or lawfully delegated to him or her;
(n) 
Make any study or investigation in the best interests of the County, including but not limited to any study or investigation of the affairs, functions, accounts, methods, personnel or efficiency of any department, office or agency under his or her jurisdiction and in furtherance of his or her executive functions;
(o) 
Make available to the Legislature or any Committee of the Legislature, upon request of the Clerk of the Legislature, department heads to advise or discuss any program or issue that currently or potentially affects the operation of that particular department.
[Amended 12-4-2007 by L.L. No. 15-2007]
The County Executive shall appoint all County departments and administrative units not administered by elected officials except as otherwise provided by law or this Charter. Appointments shall be subject to the confirmation of the County Legislature, as specified in this Charter.
All appointments by the County Executive shall be made in writing and filed in the office of the Clerk of the County Legislature within ten (10) days after such appointment is made or in the case of an incumbent appointee within ten (10) days of the County Executive's new term. Appointees requiring confirmation shall not take office until such confirmation is voted or the time limit for rejection has passed, as provided in § 2.08 hereof.
[Amended 7-2-2002 by L.L. No. 7-2002; 3-24-2022 by L.L. No. 6-2022
Unless otherwise provided in this Charter, every resolution adopted by the County Legislature, except resolutions establishing the rules and regulations of the Legislature and other matters pertaining solely to the conduct of its own procedures, shall be submitted to the County Executive for his or her action within five (5) days after passage.
Within ten (10) days after receipt of the original enactment as passed by the County Legislature, he or she shall take action approving or vetoing the same.
(a) 
Approval. In the event of approval by the County Executive, he or she shall endorse the original document and return it to the Clerk of the County Legislature within ten (10) days.
(b) 
Veto. If vetoed by the County Executive, he or she shall so indicate in writing, setting forth his or her objections to the legislation, and within ten (10) days after receipt thereof return the original document to the Clerk of the County Legislature with his or her veto message attached.
(c) 
Failure to act. If within the ten-day limit the County Executive shall fail either to approve or veto an enactment as provided above, such enactment shall take effect in due course without his or her endorsement.
(d) 
Reconsideration. A vetoed enactment shall be resubmitted to the County Legislature together with the veto message at its next regular or special meeting, and such message shall be entered into its Book of Proceedings. Within thirty (30) days after such receipt and entry, the County Legislature may consider the vetoed enactment and pass the same over the County Executive's objections by a favorable vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the whole of its number on a roll-call vote. Only one such reconsideration vote shall be taken on any single vetoed enactment.
[Amended 3-24-2022 by L.L. No. 7-2022; 11-12-2024 by L.L. No. 2-2025[1]; 11-12-2024 by L.L. No. 3-2025[2]]
Every local law adopted by the County Legislature shall be submitted to the County Executive for his or her action within five (5) days after passage. Prior to any action by the County Executive and not later than twenty (20) days after receipt of the local law, a public hearing shall be held by the County Executive on public notice of at least five (5) days.
Within twenty-five (25) days after receipt of the original enactment as passed by the County Legislature, he or she shall take action approving or vetoing the same.
(a) 
Approval. In the event of approval by the County Executive, he or she shall endorse the original document and return it to the Clerk of the County Legislature within twenty-five (25) days.
(b) 
Veto. If vetoed by the County Executive, he or she shall so indicate in writing, setting forth his or her objections to the legislation, and within twenty-five (25) days after receipt thereof return the original document to the Clerk of the County Legislature with his or her veto message attached.
(c) 
Failure to act. If within the twenty-five-day limit the County Executive shall fail either to approve or veto an enactment as provided above, such enactment shall take effect in due course without his or her endorsement.
(d) 
Reconsideration.
Except as otherwise set forth in this § 3.04-B, a vetoed enactment shall be resubmitted to the County Legislature together with the veto message at its next regular or special meeting, and such message shall be entered into its Book of Proceedings. Within thirty (30) days after such receipt and entry, the County Legislature may reconsider the vetoed enactment and pass the same over the County Executive's objections by a favorable vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the whole of its number on a roll-call vote. Only one such reconsideration vote shall be taken on any single vetoed enactment.
Other than the veto of an enactment necessitated by the passage of a general or special state law, a vetoed enactment amending, modifying or repealing the term limit provisions as set forth in § 3.01 of the County Charter shall be resubmitted to the County Legislature together with the veto message at its next regular or special meeting, and such message shall be entered into its Book of Proceedings. Within thirty (30) days after such receipt and entry, the County Legislature may reconsider the vetoed enactment and pass the same over the County Executive's objections by a unanimous vote of the whole of its number on a roll-call vote. Only one such reconsideration vote shall be taken on any single vetoed enactment.
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law was subject to permissive referendum; no valid petition was received.
[2]
Editor's Note: This local law was subject to permissive referendum; no valid petition was received.
[Amended 3-24-2022 by L.L. No. 8-2022]
The County Executive shall designate in writing within thirty (30) days of assuming office an appointed head of a department or division to perform the duties of the County Executive during his or her absence from the County or his or her inability to act for any reason. Such written designation shall be filed with the Clerk of the County Legislature and may be changed by the County Executive at any time by a new designation filed with the said Clerk. In the event that no Acting County Executive has been so designated, or that he or she is unable to serve during the absence or disability of the County Executive, the Chair of the County Legislature shall designate the appointed head of a County department or division to perform such duties.
If a vacancy occurs in the Office of County Executive, it shall be filled at the next general election for the remainder of the unexpired term. Pending such election, the County Legislature shall designate any qualified elector of the county to serve as County Executive.
Pending the designation of a County Executive by the County Legislature, the Acting County Executive shall serve.