Rockland County voters will be asked to consider a broad package of proposed changes to the County Charter when they head to the polls for the November 3 General Election.

The County Charter serves as the framework governing how Rockland County government operates and divides authority between the County Executive, County Legislature and other county offices. The proposed revisions range from technical cleanup of outdated language to more significant changes involving contracts, appointments and the respective powers of the Legislature and County Executive.

Among the most notable changes is a proposal to revise the approval process for county contracts. Under the proposed Charter, contracts of up to $100,000 could be executed at the discretion of the County Executive, while contracts exceeding $250,000 would require approval by the full County Legislature. Contracts between $100,000 and $250,000 could be approved either by the Legislature or unanimously by a newly created three-member Contracts Committee consisting of the Legislature chairman, minority leader and Budget and Finance Committee chairman. County officials say the change is intended to speed up the contracting process while maintaining legislative oversight.

The amendments would also expand the categories of internal legislative resolutions that are not subject to a County Executive veto. Those would include certain legislative grants, professional-service contracts solely for the Legislature, nonbinding memorializing resolutions and resolutions authorizing litigation on behalf of the Legislature. The Charter would also formally authorize the Legislature to appoint its own Legislative Counsel and formally recognize the existing position of Second Vice Chairperson.

Another proposed change deals with appointments made by the County Executive that require legislative confirmation. Currently, if the Legislature fails to approve or reject an appointment within 60 days, the appointment is deemed confirmed. Under the proposed language, the appointment would instead be deemed rejected. Additionally, if the same nominee is submitted and rejected twice for the same position, that person could not be submitted again for that office during the remainder of the County Executive’s term.

Other changes would raise from $1,000 to $5,000 the threshold at which corrections of improperly assessed property taxes require additional action; clarify the appointment process for department heads and members of county boards and commissions; update the makeup and deadlines of the county’s Capital Projects Committee; and formally recognize the County Executive’s role as the county’s Tourism Promotion Agency.

The proposal also includes changes involving the County’s Human Rights Commission. The Charter would establish a Human Rights Department headed administratively by the Commissioner of Human Rights while specifically providing for a 13-member Human Rights Commission serving staggered five-year terms. Other revisions would eliminate references to the now-defunct Department of Hospitals, authorize the Sheriff to appoint additional undersheriffs when authorized through the budget, and require the County Attorney and Public Defender to have been admitted to the bar for at least 10 years.

County officials say several additional revisions are intended primarily to update definitions, remove contradictions, modernize outdated provisions and formally incorporate practices that Rockland County government already follows.

The Rockland County Board of Elections has made available a summary and rationale for the proposed changes, along with the existing Charter and the full text of the proposed amendments, ahead of the vote.

Early voting for the General Election will run from Saturday, October 24 through Sunday, November 1. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, with polls open from 6:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m.