N.Y. County Law § 151: Organization of board

§ 151. Organization of board. 1. The members of the board of

supervisors shall organize the board and select a chairman on or before

the eighth day of January in each year. The board shall annually, by

resolution duly adopted during the month of December, fix the date, time

and place of the meeting to organize the board. The board may provide by

local law that the members of the board shall meet to organize and

select a chairman on or before the eighth day of January in each

even-numbered year. The clerk of the board of supervisors shall serve

upon each member a notice stating the date, time and place of each

meeting to organize the board and that a chairman will then be selected.

The notice shall be in writing and shall be served by mail addressed to

each member at his last known post-office address at least forty-eight

hours before the date of the meeting.

2. In the event of the death, inability or failure of the clerk of the

board of supervisors to call any such meeting or to serve such notices,

the county clerk of the county shall call the meeting to organize the

board and select a chairman on or before the fifteenth day of January

following. Notice of such meeting shall be served by the county clerk in

like manner and time as provided for service of notice by the clerk of

the board in subdivision one.

3. At such organization meeting, or at an adjourned meeting not later

than February first, the board shall select a chairman and may select a

vice-chairman.

4. The term of office of the chairman shall expire at the end of the

calendar year in which he is selected, unless the board shall provide by

local law for the selection of the chairman in January of each even

numbered year, in which event the term of office of the chairman shall

be for a term expiring with that of his term of office as supervisor.

5. In the event of a failure of the board of supervisors to select a

chairman on or before February first, the county clerk of the county

shall appoint a member of the board as chairman, who shall serve until

the end of the calendar year in which he is appointed.

6. In the absence of the chairman and the vice chairman, if one has

been selected, at any meeting of the board of supervisors, the members

present and voting, by majority vote, shall select a member of the board

to serve as acting chairman at such meeting. The acting chairman shall

have and exercise all the powers and duties of the chairman at the

meeting over which he is called to preside.

6-a. In the absence of the chairman, the vice-chairman, if one has

been selected:

a. shall preside over each duly constituted meeting of the board;

b. shall have and exercise all the powers and duties of the chairman

at any meeting over which he is called to preside;

c. shall have and exercise those additional powers and duties

authorized by resolution of the board, provided such resolution shall

specify:

(i) the dates during which the vice-chairman may exercise those powers

and duties; and

(ii) that the powers and duties authorized to the vice-chairman shall

not be exercised by the chairman during that designated time period.

7. In case of a vacancy in the office of chairman, the clerk of the

board of supervisors shall call a meeting of the members of the board

upon like notice as provided in subdivision one, at which a successor

shall be selected chairman who shall be a member of the board. The

person so selected shall serve as chairman of the board for the

unexpired term of the previous chairman. In the event of the failure of

the board to select such chairman within thirty days after the vacancy

shall have occurred, the county clerk shall appoint a member of the

board as chairman, who shall serve until the end of the calendar year in

which he is appointed.