Musical Chairs: City Moves to Fill Vacant Council Seat 

SARATOGA SPRINGS —The four sitting members of the City Council took steps toward filling a vacancy for its fifth member during its meeting on Sept. 17 at City Hall. 

The vacancy occurred following the resignation of DPW Commissioner Jason Golub in mid-August. Filling the empty seat with an active member is vital. That person serves both – as the operational head of the Public Works Department, as well as a fifth and potentially tie-break voting member in the legislative body of city government.   

Seeking to follow the precedence set by the city when recently filling a similar vacancy, the council has expressed its desire to in turn: appoint an interim fifth member to temporarily occupy the seat, and secondly hold a city-wide election to charge voters with selecting a replacement through the Dec. 31, 2025 conclusion of the term.  

If possible, the city would like to avoid a scenario where the seat would be filled for a couple of months by an appointee, then go vacant again until a “special” election can be held.

Barring any future vacancies, normal processes should return in November 2025 when all five member seats are up for election and new two-year terms beginning Jan. 1, 2026. 

On Sept. 17, a pair of resolutions – one brought to the table by the city Mayor and the other by the Commissioner of Accounts – were presented to the City Council to address the seat vacancy of the Commissioner of Public Works. 

Mayor John Safford’s resolution seeks to appoint a person to temporarily fill the vacancy through the end of this calendar year and recommends forming a five-member advisory committee to interview potential candidates for that temporary appointment. 

According to the resolution, each of the four sitting councilmembers (mayor included) would appoint one member to the ad hoc committee, with the mayor designating a fifth person as committee chair. At the end of the interview process, the committee would then make its recommendations to the council.   

Following a robust discussion this week, that measure was tabled to provide ample time for council members to review it with legal counsel. Presumably, the discussion and potential vote on the resolution will be revisited during the next public council meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 1.

Accounts Commissioner Dillon Moran’s resolution requests an election be held “as soon as is practical.” The proposal initially expressed a desire for an election to take place during this calendar year – with the newly elected official seemingly replacing a temporarily appointed one and taking office early in 2025. Due to time constraints however, the resolution language was changed from a 2025 deadline date to “as soon as is practical.”  

Moran’s resolution was unanimously approved by the council, pending approval from legal counsel. What that means is the city will actively seek a “special” date for an election from the Saratoga County Board of Elections to fill the seat from that date through Dec. 31, 2025. 

The council also discussed how it may seek to avoid a once-again vacant seat after a temporary appointment is made, and prior to a “special” election being held. While city rules would seem to indicate that an appointee may only serve in the calendar year of vacancy (in this case: 2024),state Public Officers Law specifically presents a hold-over provision

Saratoga Springs addresses vacancies in an elective office following an incumbent’s resignation in its City Charter (section: 2.4), stating: “the Council shall appoint a person to fill such vacancy until the end of the official year in which said vacancy occurs.” It continues: “If the term of office of the officer vacating the office continues beyond the official year in which said vacancy occurs, a person shall be elected at a special election held after the occurrence of such vacancy to fill such vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term.” 

New York State Public Officers Law 5:  “Holding over after expiration of term: Every officer except a judicial officer, a notary public, a commissioner of deeds and an officer whose term is fixed by the constitution, having duly entered on the duties of his office, shall, unless the office shall terminate or be abolished, hold over and continue to discharge the duties of his office, after the expiration of the term for which he shall have been chosen, until his successor shall be chosen and qualified; but after the expiration of such term, the office shall be deemed vacant for the purpose of choosing his successor. An officer so holding over for one or more entire terms, shall, for the purpose of choosing his successor, be regarded as having been newly chosen for such terms. An appointment for a term shortened by reason of a predecessor holding over, shall be for the residue of the term only.”