Town Supervisor

     Duties of the Supervisor can be viewed as narrowly as that defined by Town Law or as broadly as the public's expectation. Regardless of which perspective is used, the old Harry Truman adage is as relevant today as it was 65 years ago: "The buck stops here."

     In the broader sense, the Town Supervisor is the Chief Executive Officer having general overall administration and supervision duties of the Town and its special districts.  Additionally, in order for the Town to function between meetings, the Town Supervisor is delegated by Town Board resolution certain powers and duties of administration and supervision of the Town.

     Under Section 29 of NYS Town Law, the primary duty of the supervisor is to receive, disburse and account for all moneys belonging to the Town.  This is first and foremost followed by the need to address public concerns. Those expectations range from emergency management during a disaster to Master of Ceremonies on a special occasion. Unlike many other elected officials, the duties of Town Supervisor are only limited by the public's imagination.

     Residents may feel free to call the Town Supervisor's Office the next time he/she wants to know if a camp roof has too much snow on it or if the fish are biting. The Town Supervisor is here to serve.

• As Town Budget Officer the Town Supervisor develops and presents an Annual Town Budget for Town Board consideration; he also pays the salaries of all Town employees and devises an overall financial strategy for the Town.

• Prepares a monthy financial report for submission to the Town Board.

• Prepares a detailed annual financial report (Annual Update Document or AUD) and submits same to the state Comptrollers Office.

• Unique to the Town of Wells, the Town Supervisor has the direct responsibility of supervising the operation of the Lake Algonquin Dam and Hydroelectric Plant. As a federally regulated facility, operation of the dam and hydroplant requires 24-hour a day supervision and a significant amount of time dedicated to conducting studies, meeting Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and state Department of Environmental Conservation requirements and monitoring stream flow conditions.

• In Hamilton County, the Town Supervisor holds a seat on the County Board of Supervisors. This body meets regularly in both a committee format several times a week and twice a month for formal meetings to act on resolutions and approve county bills.

     Current assignments of the Town Supervisor include, but are not limited to, representation on regional boards such as the Inter-County Legislative Committee, Region 5 Open Space Committee and the Board and Executive Committee of the Adirondack Association of Towns and Villages.