Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said he would veto a bill that sought to establish term limits for his position, then he erroneously signed it hours later
NEED TO KNOW
- Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon accidentally signed a term limits bill into law after saying he planned to veto it just hours earlier
- County legislators insist his mistake is legally binding under New York law and that the measure will be put on the ballot in November
- County Attorney Robert Durr, who took responsibility for the error, said the matter is likely to be brought before the courts as Democrats and Republicans spar over what happens now
A local politician in Central New York accidentally signed a bill into law — one he actually meant to veto.
On the morning of Wednesday, July 15, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon expressed his intent to veto a bill that would seek term limits for certain government roles, including his own, per local outlets CNY Central and Syracuse.com. The bill, proposed by Democrats in the county’s legislative body, would limit the number of terms the county’s comptroller and executive could hold.
But hours later, McMahon, a Republican, erroneously signed the wrong document and sent it to the county legislature. Nineteen minutes after the first communication, another followed, dictating that the bill be vetoed, according to legislative chairwoman Nicole Watts.
“Whatever we received first by electronic commission transmission in New York State is considered to be legally binding,” Watts told the outlet, citing section 210 of the county’s charter. She added, “That is our responsibility.”…