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SCHENECTADY
Voters give contract authority to City Council
BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter
Reach Gazette reporter Kathleen Moore at 395-3120 or moore@dailygazette.com.

The ballot proposition to give the Schenectady City Council authority over employee contracts passed Tuesday.
The move will give the City Council sole authority to write and change employment contracts.
It passed with 53 percent of the vote, according to unoffi cial results.
“I think it’s good for the city,” said Acting Mayor Gary McCarthy, who proposed the change. “It will clear up any ambiguity that has existed in the past.”
    The change closes a loophole that Mayor Brian U. Stratton exploited when he paid then-Fire Chief Robert Farstad $117,000 to pad his pension last year.
    Council members tried to stop him once they learned about it, but Stratton argued that he had the authority to offer benefits and other contractual items to employees.
    The council turned to the charter to determine whether he was right. Corporation Counsel L. John Van Norden said the city’s charter was unclear — the authority appeared to be granted to both the council and the mayor.
    With the charter change, the next mayor will still be able to hire at will — but the council will decide how much that person gets paid and what benefits are offered.
    The unofficial vote on the proposition was 3,962-3,509. ...........................>>>>...................>>>>...........................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r01403&AppName=1

This makes sense --- more accountability ... more voices allowed in the decision making progress.   It is hard to see how any person who seriously wants accountable and open government would oppose this.

McCarthy only finds this positive because he still believes Hull will be Mayor.