Voter Guide 2010: The Proposition to Extend Term Lengths

Glen Cove residents will have the option to vote for or against the Proposition, an option to extend term lengths for the Mayor and City Council, on their Election Day ballots.

The City Council unanimously passed a resolution that authorized the placement of a referendum on the Nov. 2 election ballot to extend the term of mayor and City Council from two to four years.

The current two year terms don't allow for a proactive government, according to Mayor Ralph Suozzi.

"The four year term is a good government initiative and a smart choice for Glen Cove and its future," Suozzi said. "Today Newsday endorsed the Glen Cove Proposition to change the length of the mayor and council terms from two years to four years beginning with those officials elected in 2011."

Suozzi said that a recent report from Moody's, a third party company that rates municipalities' financial standings, confirmed his understanding that a two year term is problematic.

"Previously, Moody's stated in a report that the city's financial condition is in part attributable to the city's two-year mayoral and council terms which are an obstacle to straightening out the city's finances."

In a Glen Cove City Report Draft from May 2010, Moody said the following: "The city has recorded combined operating fund (General Fund, Debt Service Fund, Recreation Fund, Water Fund, and Sewer Fund) deficits in each of the past eight years, resulting from aggressive budgeting of both revenues and expenditures and prior management's unwillingness to increase property taxes, in part attributable to the city's two-year mayoral and council terms which create political obstacles to tax increases."

While Suozzi and council members are confident that extending the term lengths will result in an efficiently functioning city, several residents are not convinced. 

Although Martin Carmody, a city resident, currently appointed by the mayor to the Glen Cove Industrial Development Agency, agrees that extending the Mayor's terms may be beneficial to the community, he doesn't think that council members require a four year term.

"Extending the term of mayor has merit. The position of mayor is a full-time position with the responsibility of managing all of the city departments. The mayor might need an extended term," said Carmody. "The city council gathers just monthly to review and vote on the mayor's agenda. But, even if the legislation for the extension of term for the mayor is good, it is unfortunately coupled to the increased terms for the city council. The city council does not need a four year term."

Carmody said that a two year term would force representatives to be responsible to the citizens that elect them—citing the Founding Fathers as examples of successful cases of term limits.

"The current two year terms for city council members allow us, the citizens, to adjust and influence the course of our city's direction," he said. "In a four year term, we would dramatically lose the ability to influence the city's path. City council members could vote with immunity, no fear of removal for four years. The city council would lose accountability and we citizens would be without the ability to give effective guidance to the mayor through the election of city council members." 

Suozzi, however, attributes the success of the city to the community leaders—a belief that the mayor and council members work together to make necessary decisions.

"This proposition has broad community support for its potential to greatly reduce political influences on governing and the challenges of election year politics which encourage short-term, reactive, decision making instead of long-term, thought out solutions for legacy, every day and long term issues," Suozzi said.  "By giving the next elected administration a four year term, the voters would give our government the opportunity to build relationships with federal, state and county governments, their agencies and staffs so that we can plan responsibly for the future of Glen Cove. A four-year term will allow our community and its leaders to unite behind common goals that affect us all instead of the divisive, political nature of the existing two-year election cycle which only preserves the political establishments and the use of Glen Cove as a political battleground every two years."