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Powers
The specific powers of the Board of Legislators are enumerated in Section 107.21 of the County Charter.

The Board's key power lies in its authority to make appropriations and to levy taxes. The Legislators may amend and must ultimately approve the County Budget which is prepared by the County Executive, released in mid-November and adopted no later than December 27.

The Board passes laws, acts and resolutions, either requiring a majority or a two-thirds vote (depending on the situation) of the entire Board for passage. The Board also approves appointments of the County Executive, sets and approves the number and compensation of persons employed by the County, employs consultants and investigates various areas of County government, as well as the conduct of officers of the County government if necessary. It has the power to subpoena anyone to appear before it. All other employees, except the Clerk and Deputy Clerk of the Board, who are elected by the entire Board, are designated by the Chairman.

Organization
After an election, there is an organizational meeting on the fist Monday after January 1. The members of the Board adopt rules and choose a Chair and Vice Chair, who are elected by majority vote of the members. The two major political parties also determine the Majority and Minority Leaders and Majority and Minority Whips, who manage each parties activities.

Meetings
The Charter mandates that the County Legislators meet at least once a month. There are usually two meetings a month, held in the Legislative Chambers on the eighth floor of the Michaelian Office Building. The rules require that there must be a least seven night meetings each year. Additional meetings are held when deemed necessary by the Chairman or on request of the County Executive or by a majority of the Board members.

The Agenda and the Blue Sheet
An Agenda, published by the Clerk for each meeting of the Board, must appear five days before each Board meeting.

The Blue Sheet is a special item calendar or agenda which supplements the regular agenda. Items may be entered on the Blue Sheet with the unanimous consent of the Chairman and the Majority and Minority Leaders. The Blue Sheet contains special items from members of the Board and communications and recommendations from the County Executive or from any committee which are accompanied by a message requesting immediate consideration and are received by 1:30 p.m. on the day of the meeting.

Any matter, such as a report, letter or resolution which a member wishes to present to the Board, must be signed by that member and cannot be withdrawn without the approval of a majority of the Board.

Copies of Agendas and Blue Sheets are available to the public prior to the meetings and can be obtained in Room 822.

Procedures
All meetings of the Board are open to the public. Observers sit in the visitors gallery at the rear of the chambers. The Chairman sits on the dais in the front of the chambers, with the press to his left and advisors and employees to his right. The Clerk of the Board sits below and in front of
the Chairman.

The Chairman faces the Legislators who are seated at desks, the Democrats to his right and the Republicans to his left. The Majority and Minority Leaders sit in the last row on the aisle on their respective sides.

The order of business is as follows:
1. Unfinished Business
2. Communications from government officials, departments, agencies, and the general public. (Correspondence from the general public may appear on the Board's agenda if such inclusion is so requested in the body of the correspondence.)
3. Notices and Petitions
4. Reports of Committees
5. Special Orders
6. Items discharged from Committee
7. Motions and Resolutions and Call of the Districts

The Clerk of the Board reads aloud the agenda items, one by one. The Majority Leader responds by assigning each item to appropriate committee or committees or requests that it be filed. If required, he/she will designate a date for a public hearing on an item.

Every member speaking to a question or making a motion must address the Chair and confine remarks to the question under debate. The Majority and Minority Leaders have preference in speaking. Under the rules, no member may speak a second time until all other members have had an opportunity to address the matter.

Voting Procedures
Votes may be taken in one of three ways: voice vote; a short roll call of the Chairman (the chairman of the sponsoring committee, and the Majority and Minority Leaders); or a long roll call in which each member's vote is given. The long roll call may be requested by any member on any question.

A member must vote on every question before the Board unless excused by the Chair for a conflict of interest, and should the Chair refuse, must be excused by a majority of the members. Once a question is on the floor and the vote is being taken, members shall confine themselves to voting and not resume discussion or debate.

Special Motions
There are several parliamentary procedures Legislators can use to speed up, delay, or set a deadline for consideration of legislation. Any member may "move the previous question" to terminate debate and force a vote on the matter under discussion; but only after each member of the Board has had at least one opportunity to speak to the issue before the Board.

To delay action, a member may ask that a matter on the agenda be "laid over." This cannot be done if the item is unfinished business, a special order or a motion to make a main motion a special order. A "lay over" is a matter of privilege not subject to debate or amendment and must be made before there has been any debate on the issue. The Chair's recognition of a lay-over request cannot be appealed by the Board. Since the laid-over item will come up as unfinished business at the next regular meeting, it cannot be requested at the last meeting of the year or at a special meeting.

To delay or to stop discussion for a time, a motion may be made to "lay on the table" a question under debate. That motion bars further debate on, or amendments to, the main question. The motion to table is not debatable and is put to an immediate vote. If passed by a majority, the item remains on the table until a majority of those present agrees to consider it either later in the same meeting or at a future meeting.

Members may assure consideration of an item at a specified future date by making it a special order of business and setting a specific date for its consideration. This is done by majority vote and is not subject to lay over.

Committees
The Board of Legislators operates under a Committee System. Current committees are:

• Budget & Appropriations
• Legislation
• Community Affairs & Housing
• County Officers & Departments
• Health & the Medical Center
• Public Safety & Criminal Justice
• Public Works
• Environment
• Rules
• Task Force on Families
• Task Force on Senior Citizens
• Minority Affairs

The Chairman of the Board appoints all committees, and the members and chairpersons of each.

Municipal Partner
This program was established to provide a cooperative governing relationship between the Board of Legislators and the municipalities. Before the formal business of a meeting begins, a city mayor or a town supervisor is invited to address the Board briefly on their local issues that have an impact at the county level. Following this, at each meeting a different legislator presides as Chairman Pro Tem over the "Public To Be Heard" session. During this session, an observer may speak on any topic for five minutes. In order to speak, one must get a card from a Board attendant, fill it out, and return it. Also, the Chairman Pro Tem may make a presentation to an individual or group from his or her district. Then a clergy member from that district is invited to give the invocation. At this point, the chairman of the Board resumes presiding over the meeting and agenda.

Committee Meetings
Meetings of all committees, except Executive sessions, are open to the public and are subject to provision of the New York State Open Meetings Law.

Notices of the meetings are posted on the bulletin board on the eighth floor, on the website and on the telephone hotline. A record of the meetings is filed in the Clerk's office and is available to the public.

Committees may hold public hearings on issues pending before them; they are not limited to considering matters referred to them but may initiate resolutions to be referred to the Board for action.

Committees must promptly consider matters referred to them. Unless the committee votes to take no action, matters will either be discharged back to the agenda for debate and possible action, or must be reported upon within 90 days.

Matters referred to more than one committee must be discharged from all committees prior to being returned to the Board for action.

The Budget and Appropriations Committee
The Budget and Appropriations Committee is considered the most powerful of the committees. This Committee has its own budget analyst in addition to its clerk. All matters of budgetary significance are referred to it, as is the proposed County Budget after its release in mid-November. This Committee holds public budget hearings before presenting the document to the full Board with recommendations for additions and cuts. The full County Board then conducts a formal public budget hearing.

Checks and Balances
Once passed by the Board, Acts and Local Laws are sent to the County Executive who will either sign them or return them within ten days accompanied by a written statement of the reasons for disapproval. The County Executive's "veto" can be overridden by a two-thirds vote. If a measure is not signed or returned after 10 days, it will become law without the County Executive's signature.

Under the Charter, the County Attorney is the legal advisor to the Board of Legislators in drafting proposed legislation, although the Board may also employ outside legal counsel.

How Measures Become Law

Proposal comes from Legislators, Committees or County Executive			A citizen or group of citizens can initiate the idea for writing or rewriting a law.
Item is placed on "calendar" or Agenda			Citizens can send letters to the Legislators or the committee chairmen. They can ask in the letter that it be put on the Agenda.
Item is referred to Committee			Citizens can attend committee meetings. They should communicate their views before the legislation is written. Committee meetings are announced in advance and notices are posted on the 8th floor of the Michaelian Office Building.
Approval or Disapproval
Within 90 days, item is discharged back to Agenda or reported upon.
Approval or Disapproval
Item is on Agenda for debate and consideration by all Members			By lobbying their Legislators on their opinions of an item, citizens have another opportunity to participate in the law-making process. Lobbying can take the form of writing letters, visiting the Legislator in person, signing petitions and telephoning.
If passed, it goes to County Executive for signature. If disapproved, item expires			The County Executive's desk is the next point in the legislative process for citizen lobbying.
Approval or Disapproval
If signed, or allowed to sit on County Executive's desk for 10 days, measure becomes law	If returned with reasons for disapproval in 10 days, Board can override veto.
County Executive's veto can be overridden by two-thirds vote. Becomes law.

Often one person's idea on how to solve a problem has resulted in good legislation to help solve problems facing many people.

Mail to County legislators should be directed to:
The Honorable _________________________
800 Michaelian Office Building
148 Martine Avenue
White Plains, New York 10601

The Legislative Chambers, offices and committee rooms are on the 8th Floor of the Michaelian Office Building

The Clerk of the Board of Legislators can be reached at (914) 995-2805

Telephone: (914) 995-2800
Fax: (914) 995-3884
E-mail: westchestergov.com
Website: http://www.watpa.org/wcbol
Hotline for meeting schedules: (914) 995-2424