State Of Emergency Declared, Mayor Blames City Official

MOUNT VERNON, NY — In declaring an official state of emergency, Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard says that the refusal by the city's comptroller to release critical funds has created a clear and present threat to public safety.

"Due to the gross negligence and dereliction of duty by the comptroller, who has failed to process and pay invoices for approximately $500,000 for critical parts and maintenance of police, fire and public works vehicles," Patterson-Howard said in a statement announcing the declaration. "As a result, nearly our entire fleet of vehicles has been impacted by this crisis."

Patterson-Howard said the emergency declaration went into effect at 9 a.m. on Thursday. The mayor contends the emergency designation will allow the Mount Vernon Board of Estimate and Contracts to allocate funds under New York State law.

The move is just the latest escalation in the conflict between elected officials in the city. Yesterday, the mayor announced that some garbage pickups would be suspended because most of the city's sanitation trucks were deemed unsafe to be on the roads. Earlier this year, the comptroller was accused of failing to pay fuel bills forcing police, fire and public works vehicles to ration gas.

Fingers were also pointed at the comptroller after authorized repairs were not made to a boiler in city hall. The boiler eventually failed causing a flood and requiring the seat of city government to close its doors for several weeks.

The mayor appears to believe Thursday's emergency declaration will give her leverage to bypass the comptroller, at least temporarily. She said she would immediately call a special meeting to allocate emergency funds and indicated that anyone who stood in violation of her emergency orders could be charged criminally.

The declaration would seem to set the stage for yet another legal showdown between the comptroller and city hall:

"As Mayor of the City of Mount Vernon, New York, I Shawyn Patterson-Howard exercise the authority given me under New York State Executive Law, Article 2-B, to preserve the public health and hereby render all required and available assistance vital to the security, well-being, and health of the citizens of this municipality. Under this State of Emergency, As Mayor, and according the section 24-5 "any person who knowingly violates any local emergency order of a chief executive promulgated pursuant to this section is guilty of a class B misdemeanor." Furthermore, I hereby direct all departments and agencies of the City of Mount Vernon to take whatever steps necessary at all affected locations to protect life and property, public infrastructure and to provide other such emergency assistance as deemed necessary."

Elected officials in Mount Vernon have taken creative measures to bypass the comptroller in the past. In May, a judge ruled that the Mount Vernon elected officials exceeded their authority when they voted to bypass the comptroller and require that millions of dollars in federal American Rescue Plan money be instead received by the Mount Vernon City Clerk.

SEE ALSO:

• Gas Rationing For Police: Mayor Declares Fuel Emergency
• Out Of Gas: Judge Orders Comptroller To Pay Overdue Fuel Bills
• Mayor: It Will Take 'Act Of God' To Avoid City Shutdown
• Gas Ahead: Comptroller Obeys Court Order To Pay Fuel Bills
• Mount Vernon Votes To Bypass Comptroller on Pandemic Relief Funds
• Court Blocks Council's Attempt To Bench Embattled Comptroller
• City Suspends Some Trash Collection; Trucks Declared Unsafe