Seneca County supervisors used their Dec. 23 committee meetings and year-end board agenda to tee up a slate of year-end actions, including moving forward on a new county website, supporting a successor labor agreement for the Seneca County Sheriff’s Employees Association, and taking up multiple contracts spanning jail food service, court security, infrastructure planning and mental-health services.
Website proposal raises more questions than answers
During the Ways and Means Committee meeting, CivicPlus account executive Victoria Emerson presented a proposal to redesign and host Seneca County’s official website, outlining what she described as limitations of the county’s current WordPress-based platform, including usability, security and accessibility concerns. Emerson cited federal web accessibility guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Justice in April 2024 and referenced upcoming compliance timelines, while also providing supervisors with an accessibility score for the county website that she compared to national averages.
The county’s current website is maintained by FingerLakes1.com, Inc.’s digital services division and has been in continuous operation for more than two decades. The site was last redesigned in 2018 at the county’s request and has operated without documented technical failures or compliance-related issues during that time. The existing service has been provided at a comparatively minimal cost.
Agenda materials and the meeting itself did not include specific reports from county staff identifying technical deficiencies, security incidents, or formal accessibility violations associated with the existing website, nor did they include written cost comparisons between the current service and the CivicPlus proposal. No county-generated assessments of the current site’s performance were included in the packet.
Seneca Falls Supervisor Mike Rhinehart told the Finger Lakes Times he had hoped that Fingerlakes1.com would have had the opportunity to present its own proposal. However, the board never provided the company that opportunity.
Supervisors did ask Emerson about optional features, including notification tools and an AI chatbot, which she said would be available at additional cost.
Despite the absence of documented staff findings regarding the current website, a resolution later placed on the year-end board agenda authorized the county to proceed with planning, procurement and implementation of a new county website, with project costs capped at $39,558 and funded through the IT Department’s 2025 budget reserve.
Labor agreement and county manager residency law
In the Human Resources and Government Operations Committee agenda materials, the board was set to support a tentative agreement with the Seneca County Sheriff’s Employees Association for a successor contract running Jan. 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2029, with the board chair authorized to sign and the finance director authorized to make needed budget transfers tied to the agreement.
The year-end board agenda also included a public hearing on Local Law 7 of 2025, which would amend Local Law 9 of 2007 to eliminate residency requirements for the county manager position. The proposed local law text in the committee agenda materials included language stating the county manager “shall reside in Seneca County or a contiguous county within the state of New York,” and the resolution said the law would take effect upon filing with the New York secretary of state.
Public works and infrastructure items
The Public Works Committee agenda included authorizing an agreement with Barton & Loguidice to perform a feasibility study for a new county highway barn at a cost not to exceed $24,000, citing a need to replace the current facility to support larger trucks and operations.
Supervisors were also set to extend an agreement with New York State Electric and Gas for continued use of the Seneca-Cayuga Canal Trail through Dec. 31, 2026.
The Economic Development, Tourism and Housing materials included a resolution tied to additional Federal Aviation Administration funding under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for drainage and construction administration/inspection services at the Finger Lakes Regional Airport. The agenda materials listed a funding breakdown of $138,070 from the FAA (95%), $3,633 from New York State DOT (2.5%), and $3,634 local (2.5%), and also referenced a task order with McFarland Johnson not to exceed $84,920 and a change order with City Hill Excavating not to exceed $60,417, contingent on grant award and county attorney approval as to form.
Public safety, court security and jail food service
The Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee agenda included awarding a bid to Trinity Services Group for food service at the county correctional facility, with a proposed three-year contract and a sliding per-meal cost listed as $8.15 in 2026, $8.56 in 2027 and $8.99 in 2028.
The same committee materials included intermunicipal agreements with the towns of Ovid and Junius for court security services to be performed by the county sheriff’s department from Jan. 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2026. The terms listed reimbursement rates of $35 per hour for a special patrol officer and $55 per hour for a deputy sheriff, depending on availability.
Health and human services contracts
The Health and Human Services Committee materials included 2026 mental health community services provider agency contracts with multiple entities, funded through pass-through state aid from the New York State Office of Mental Health and the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services. The agenda listed a total amount of $1,800,572 and stated there was “no local mandated share,” with the county manager authorized to sign the contracts.
Taxes, budget amendments and affiliate organizations
The year-end board agenda included a resolution authorizing amendments to the 2025 county budget, including adjustments within sheriff’s office lines, medical expenses in the jail budget, and an increase for assigned counsel in family court, among other entries.
Also on the agenda were actions to delegate authority to correct and refund taxes for 2026 for applications of $2,500 or less; ratify tax rolls; and adopt final 2026 tax numbers, including a listed total of $16,591,362 in “2025 county taxes” by town as part of the final-numbers packet.
The Ways and Means materials also included authorizing 2026 contracts with several affiliate organizations funded through the county general fund, including allocations listed for entities such as Seneca County Soil & Water, Cornell Cooperative Extension, county libraries and others.
Water and sewer actions
The Water & Sewer Treatment Management & Operations agenda included extending an agreement with the Town of Seneca Falls for operation and maintenance of the NYS Routes 318/414 sewer system through March 31, 2026.
It also included rescinding Resolution 261-25, which had authorized an RFP for operation and maintenance services for the Routes 318/414 county municipal sewer system. The agenda materials said the county determined it was in its best interest not to award a contract at this time and to re-evaluate water and sewer assets and related needs.
Appointments and organizational meeting date
The Human Resources and Government Operations materials included appointing Kyle Black as off-track betting director for a two-year term effective Jan. 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2027.
The year-end agenda also included setting an organizational meeting for the board’s next term, proposed for Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, at 6 p.m. in the supervisors’ meeting room (the resolution text in the materials also contains a reference to “January 5, 2025”).
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