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TROY, N.Y. — The Troy City Council unanimously passed a local law limiting emergency declaration powers for the executive branch, even as Mayor Carmella Mantello warned it sets a “dangerous” precedent.
District 2 Councilmember Shikole Struber, a Democrat, introduced the legislation, which amends the City Charter “by repealing and replacing Section C-40 — Public Emergency Declarations — to align with state of New York Executive Law Article 2-B regarding emergency declarations.”
“I did want to put states of emergency into perspective to shed some light on the importance of outlining the proper procedures per state law. Troy’s current mayor has been in office since January of 2024 and has declared eight emergencies,” Struber said during Thursday night’s finance committee meeting, citing emergency declaration statistics from Albany, Kingston, Syracuse, and Binghamton to compare with Troy’s numbers.
Mantello, a Republican, strongly defended her emergency usage and criticized the council’s legislative action.
“There’s a reason the charter gives the duly elected mayor these emergency powers, and I think it’s dangerous to not only strip me of these powers but future (also) mayors,” Mantello said in a statement provided to The Record. “I stand by my decision, and I take my duty to protect our residents’ safety seriously.
“We’ve tried time and time again to work with the council on numerous issues, and they continue to try making political power plays while wasting taxpayer dollars in a courtroom.”
Since taking office in 2024, the mayor has issued emergency declarations for things such as repairs at the pump station on Eddy Lane, a landslide, a road salt shortage, and weather-related orders.
However, the issue that prompted the council to amend the City Charter occurred in April, when Mantello issued an emergency declaration after the council directed the city auditor “to pause payments to Flock Safety until outstanding public concerns were resolved.”
The council subsequently filed a lawsuit against the mayor and, on Thursday night, unanimously passed the resolution limiting future mayoral emergency powers.
Mantello has maintained she was authorized to act under Charter §C-40, which states that “in the case of any public emergency such as conflagration, riot, storm, earthquake, or other unusual peril to the lives or properties or both of the citizens of Troy, it shall be the duty of the Mayor to declare such public emergency and to summon all the forces of the City for the purpose of taking all possible protective measures.”
Struber argued that aligning the city charter with state standards provides essential clarity and oversight.
“Outlining the same requirements that exist in New York State Executive Law in Troy’s own charter allows for much simpler access for reference,” she said during the meeting. “And if defining a process causes an executive to assume that their power is being curtailed, that is a good indication that they may have been misusing the spirit and intent of that statute.
“In order to protect the city, its finances, and its residents, I am recommending the proposed changes under Local Law No. 4 to bring Troy in line with existing New York State law.”
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