As I walked around the four wards of the Village gathering signatures for my petition to be a candidate for mayor, I was often asked why it is that when reading newspaper reports on Village Board actions, or watching the Board meetings on Channel 12, the Board votes are 4-0, or on occasion, 3-1. People asked why, if there are five Board members, there is seldom a five vote total, noting that Mayor Diana Smith does not vote.
Our Village Board's less-than-five vote totals are partly explained by the fact that, by New York State Village Law, a mayor may vote on any question before the Board of Trustees, but is not required to vote except to break a tie.
In my years of working for the Village under several different mayors, and attending literally hundreds of Board meetings, I can say that all of the previous mayors spoke out and recorded their votes on questions before the Board.
It is Mayor Smith's legal right to remain silent regarding resolutions before the Board. I believe, however, that when residents elect someone to lead their community they deserve to know where that person stands on the issues.
Our Village Board's less-than-five vote totals are partly explained by the fact that, by New York State Village Law, a mayor may vote on any question before the Board of Trustees, but is not required to vote except to break a tie.
In my years of working for the Village under several different mayors, and attending literally hundreds of Board meetings, I can say that all of the previous mayors spoke out and recorded their votes on questions before the Board.
It is Mayor Smith's legal right to remain silent regarding resolutions before the Board. I believe, however, that when residents elect someone to lead their community they deserve to know where that person stands on the issues.
