County Clerk Maureen Reynolds today (Friday) announced the appointment of Legislator Shawna Black (D) as Chair of the Tompkins County Legislature.
As stipulated in the Tompkins County Charter, the Clerk is charged with appointing the Legislature Chair after a 30-day vacancy. The position became vacant at the January 7th organizational meeting when Legislator Mike Sigler (R) of Lansing was elected Temporary Chair to oversee the selection of a new Chair. Legislators were then unable to reach consensus between Mike Lane of Dryden and Anna Kelles of Ithaca, both Democrats.
Per the County Charter, the appointment of Black will remain in effect until which time a new Chair is elected by a majority of the 14-member Legislature, an act requiring eight votes.
Ms. Black joined the Legislature in November 2017, and served as Vice Chair in 2019, as well as Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee for the past two years. She represents District 11 (Town of Ithaca) on the Legislature.
“I would like to thank County Clerk Maureen Reynolds for her confidence in my ability to lead our Legislature,” said Black. “I look forward to serving as Chair,’ adding that “over the past week situations have changed and I look forward to a resolution at our February 18th meeting.”