N.Y. Alternative County Government Law § 300: Department of audit and control

§ 300. Department of audit and control. 1. The head of the department

of audit and control in a county operating under the county manager

form, the county director form or the county president form shall be the

comptroller. The office of comptroller shall be elective, except that

under the county manager form it shall be appointive and under any of

the other forms provided by this chapter it may be made appointive by

vote of the people as provided in section fifty-eight.

2. If the comptroller is elective, the first comptroller elected under

the form adopted shall be elected at the first general election after

its adoption, except that, if the county has an elective county auditor

at the time of such adoption, the first comptroller shall be elected at

the general election in the last year of the term of the last county

auditor elected or, if the office of such auditor becomes vacant before

the last year of his term, at the next general election thereafter at

which the vacancy may be filled by the election of a comptroller. The

second comptroller shall be elected at the general election in the

second odd-numbered year after the year in which the first comptroller

is elected, and subsequent comptrollers shall be elected at the general

election in every fourth year thereafter. The term of office of the

comptroller shall be four years from and including the first day of

January next following his election, except that the first comptroller

elected shall serve for a term of three years if he is elected in an

even-numbered year. A vacancy in the office of an elective comptroller

occurring otherwise than by expiration of term shall be filled by

appointment by the board of supervisors and the person so appointed

shall hold office until the commencement of the calendar year next

succeeding the first general election at which the vacancy may be

filled.

3. If the comptroller is appointive, he shall be appointed by the

board of supervisors for an indefinite term and shall be removable by

the board of supervisors at its pleasure. If the office becomes vacant

in such a county, the board of supervisors may appoint an acting

comptroller pending its appointment of a new comptroller.

4. In counties adopting the county manager form, the county director

form or the county president form, the office of county auditor is

abolished, and the functions, powers and duties of the office shall

devolve upon the department of audit and control.

5. In a county having an elective county auditor wherein the office is

thus abolished, the last county auditor elected before the alternative

form becomes effective in the county shall perform the duties of

comptroller, unless a vacancy otherwise occurs, until the expiration of

the term for which he was elected county auditor. If the office of the

last auditor elected becomes vacant otherwise than by expiration of

term, the board of supervisors shall forthwith appoint a comptroller,

who shall serve until his successor is elected or appointed and has

qualified.

6. In a county having no county auditor or having an appointive county

auditor in which the form adopted provides for a comptroller, the board

of supervisors shall appoint a county comptroller as soon as the

alternative form takes effect and the person so appointed shall succeed

the county auditor, if any, forthwith and hold office until his

successor is elected or appointed and has qualified.

7. Nothing in this article contained shall be construed to impair the

powers of the county auditor in counties adopting the county

administrator form of government.