Yates will not pursue joint position

YATES COUNTY--Due to liability concerns, Yates County will no longer look to share their highway superintendent with Schuyler County. Yates had recently notified Schuyler County of this conclusion last week, resulting in a canceling of the once proposed agreement. Yates and Schuyler Counties currently share a director of weights and measures position, but Yates determined the liability risks would be too great to continue seeking the sharing of a highway superintendent.
Schuyler County was first to pass resolutions approving the sharing of the position in January. However, the Yates County Legislature hesitated when it came time to approve the resolutions when additional liability concerns were brought up. After further discussion, the Yates County Legislature decided not go ahead with the shared position. However, Schuyler County Legislative Chairman Dennis Fagan said he believed Schuyler had adequately dealt with the liability issues.
"Their legislature expressed some concerns regarding insurance and liability issues," Fagan said. "We thought we addressed those adequately. I voiced my displeasure to their chairman (Tim Dennis) since we had been working on this for quite a few months, with us basically giving them hold harmless in terms of highway superintendent operating in our county. [...] Unfortunately the opportunity has gone by the wayside, so we are looking at other opportunities and also advertising the position."
Yates County Administrator Sarah Purdy had previously said the proposed agreement would have had Schuyler County paying Yates $50,000 annually for the services of current Yates County Highway Superintendent David Hartman. She said the savings to Yates County would have been $44,500. The agreement would have seen Hartman assume all the responsibilities that go along with being Schuyler County's highway superintendent.
In other business:
• After their regular legislative session Monday, March 9, the Yates County Legislature met to address their top priorities as a group. Topping the priority list of tasks was the completion of the county's dark fiber project, which Dennis said is expected in 2016. Following up the fiber project included staying within the 2015 budget and within the tax cap for next year, completing the Penn Yan Marine deal and ensuring the remediation work meets its deadline, settling contracts in negotiation, get a resolution on use of overtime, and continue working on shared service opportunities. The legislature also discussed different ways of improving the way they communicate both internally and with the public. The group discussed the possibility of broadcasting their meetings on cable TV or recording the sessions for review online.
• The legislature passed a resolution encouraging the state to repeal or defund the Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement (SAFE) Act during their regular session. Dennis said this is the third time the legislature has passed a similar resolution.
• The Schuyler County Legislature voted to rescind the three resolutions authorizing an intermunicipal agreement with Yates County to share the Yates County highway superintendent position. The action happened during the Schuyler County Legislature's regular meeting Monday, March 9. Schuyler County Administrator Tim O'Hearn said they will advertise for the position, while also seeing if Chemung County wished to share the position.