Yates County lawmakers will consider setting a public hearing on a proposed animal abuser registry, approving an artificial intelligence platform for the Sheriff’s Office and restructuring the county’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council when the Legislature meets Monday.
The Sept. 14 meeting is scheduled for 1 p.m. in the Legislative Chambers at 417 Liberty St. in Penn Yan. The official agenda contains more than 30 resolutions covering public safety, county staffing, youth programs, highway projects, landfill operations and health funding. (Yates County)
The meeting will also include a presentation from Suzamie Farnsworth and Brian Cunningham of the Yates Community Center before legislators move into committee reports and resolutions.
Animal abuser registry could move to public hearing
One of the most substantive proposals would establish an online registry of Yates County residents convicted of specified animal abuse crimes.
Legislators are not scheduled to adopt the law Monday. Instead, Resolution 351-26 would set an Oct. 13 public hearing on the proposed local law.
Under the proposal, the Sheriff’s Office would maintain the registry on its county webpage. It would generally apply to adults convicted of covered animal abuse offenses after the law takes effect.
Those covered would include people convicted of crimes involving animal fighting, aggravated cruelty, abandonment, poisoning animals, harming service or police animals and several other offenses identified in state law.
People on the registry would generally remain listed for seven years after release from incarceration or conviction if they were not jailed. A second covered conviction would result in lifetime registration.
Registrants would have to provide their name, aliases, residence township, date of birth and a photograph. They would also have to appear annually at the Sheriff’s Office to confirm or update their information and would pay a one-time $125 registration fee unless the sheriff approved a waiver based on inability to pay.
The proposed law would also prohibit registered offenders from owning, possessing, living with or intentionally having physical contact with companion animals or pets.
Animal shelters, pet dealers and others transferring ownership of companion animals in Yates County would be required to check the registry before completing a transfer. Farm animals used by farmers and service animals for people with disabilities would be exempt from those provisions.
Failure to register could carry up to 364 days in jail and a fine of as much as $2,000. Violating the prohibition on possessing a companion animal could carry up to 364 days in jail and a fine of as much as $5,000.
Sheriff seeks AI platform and Dundee school officer agreement
The Sheriff’s Office has several other items before legislators.
One would authorize a contract with Blue Voice Inc., described in the resolution as a criminal justice information services-compliant artificial intelligence platform designed to give officers access to legal, policy and community information.
The county says the software is intended to help officers avoid mistakes, de-escalate situations, complete paperwork and obtain information more quickly. The proposed agreement would run through Dec. 31, 2028, with payments totaling $30,000 over the contract period.
Another resolution would authorize a memorandum of understanding with Dundee Central School District for a full-time school resource officer during the 2026-27 school year.
The school district would reimburse Yates County $78,479.35 for wages, fringe benefits and insurance connected to the assignment.
A related personnel resolution would authorize the sheriff to fill the Deputy Sheriff Youth Officer position assigned to Dundee.
The position has been vacant since 2023 following a promotion and was temporarily covered by a retired deputy working part time as a special patrol officer. That arrangement ended after the 2025-26 school year, and a current deputy has since expressed interest in taking the full-time assignment.
The estimated additional annual county cost is $3,055.
Legislators will also consider a $121,542 annual agreement for radio tower and microwave repair and maintenance services and authorization for the sheriff to dispose of surplus file cabinets no longer needed following digitization of records.
Criminal Justice Coordinating Council would be restructured
The Legislature will also consider replacing bylaws adopted in 2019 for the Yates County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.
The newly reconstituted council is intended to study the county’s criminal justice system, identify deficiencies and advise lawmakers on possible improvements.
Its proposed responsibilities include reviewing jail needs, examining alternatives to incarceration and pretrial programs, evaluating mental health and substance-use programs in the jail, improving access to courts and examining technology used throughout the criminal justice system.
The new structure calls for 16 voting members representing county legislators, the Sheriff’s Office, County Court, District Attorney’s Office, Public Defender’s Office, Probation, Community Services, jail ministry, Penn Yan police and four citizens-at-large, among others.
The council would be required to meet at least six times per year.
Youth programs slated for county funding
Legislators will consider a package of Youth Bureau contracts supported by state Youth Development, Youth Team Sports and Youth Sports and Education funding.
The proposed awards include funding for libraries in Branchport, Dundee and Rushville; Safe Harbors of the Finger Lakes; Our Town Rocks; The Living Well Mission; Pennsylvania Yankee Theatre Co.; Catholic Charities Steuben/Yates; summer recreation programs in Dundee, Jerusalem and Penn Yan; the Yates Community Center; Saunders Finger Lakes Museum; and youth basketball, baseball, softball and lacrosse programs.
Individual awards range from $1,600 for youth services at Dundee Library to $7,000 for Our Town Rocks youth programming.
The Yates Community Center would receive $5,000 for Elevate Youth Recreation, while Penn Yan Youth Baseball & Softball would receive $6,581 and Penn Yan Youth Lacrosse $5,081.
Highway and landfill contracts could increase
Several public works projects are also scheduled for action.
A proposed extension of the county’s leachate hauling and disposal contract for the Torrey Landfill would raise the rate by 3.4%, from $149.21 to $154.28 per thousand gallons, and extend the agreement through Aug. 31, 2027.
The Legislature will also consider another $10,500 for construction inspection services on the County Road 15 bridge replacement over Kashong Creek in Benton after inspection costs exceeded the amount previously authorized.
Another amendment would add $10,610.08 to the City Hill Excavating contract for drainage work on Pre-Emption Road in Bellona after crews encountered a roadway depression requiring additional excavation, investigation, repairs and backfill.
That would bring the revised contract total to $1,298,610.08.
County could back farmland conservation easement
Legislators are also being asked to support a conservation easement on a farm owned and operated by Bruce and Jason Henderson in the towns of Milo and Torrey.
The Finger Lakes Land Trust requested the county’s support for the proposal, which is intended to permanently protect agricultural land from future non-agricultural development.
If approved, the county Planning Department would send a letter of support to the state Department of Agriculture and Markets.
Staffing changes and additional aid on agenda
The Legislature will consider authorizing the District Attorney’s Office to fill an assistant district attorney position expected to become vacant Sept. 25. The estimated annual cost, including fringe benefits and health insurance, is capped at $146,055.
The Finance Department is seeking a temporary part-time senior account clerk typist following the retirement of the deputy finance director. Another resolution would increase the hourly rate for that temporary title from $22.70 to $32.32.
Building and Grounds is also seeking authorization to fill an anticipated full-time cleaner vacancy.
Budget actions include adding $34,539.90 in opioid settlement funding to the Community Services budget, $3,000 from a University of Rochester grant for office supplies and $4,957 in additional Public Health grant funding.
The Legislature is scheduled to take public comment at both the beginning and end of Monday’s meeting.
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