Reading the NYS Comptroller Mosquito Letters

by Cindy Goldstein -

In an unusual move, the NYS Comptroller’s Office sent letters to Village Attorney Steven Pambianchi and a resident dated on the same day regarding the ability of the Village to treat mosquitoes on private property.  The Comptroller’s Office is, among other things, a resource for municipalities that request technical assistance.  These letters have received a lot of scrutiny and dissection by residents.  That’s not surprising because a reference to NYS law is cited differently in each one.

Catalyst for the Request

On April 6th, Pambianchi wrote to the Comptroller’s Office for guidance and requested an informal opinion about the use of public funds to combat mosquitoes on private property.  See HERE. After the letter was released, Pambianchi came under heavy public criticism for how he drafted the letter, some believing it would sway the Comptroller’s Office to opine that the mosquito control could not be implemented by the Village. 

Instead, the Comptroller’s Office declined to opine at all on the matter yet still provided general guidelines to consider that caused confusion due to inconsistent language between the two letters.  In a subsequent letter, the Comptroller’s Office insisted the Village remove wording on the Village website that stated Pambianchi’s understanding of the verbal conversation that a written opinion was coming.

Words Matter

Both letters acknowledge that the controlling law here is Public Health Law Article 15, Title 1 (Municipal Insect Control).  But the letter to the resident (see HERE) accurately refers to the law that “details the authority of municipal board of health and the factors they are to consider…”

The letter to Pambianchi (see HERE) inaccurately refers to the law, stating “when a municipality must determine whether to direct public funds to the problem of municipal insect control,” omitting the important words “municipal board of health.”  The language “municipal board of health” is a key omission. See Public Health Law HERE.

Who Is the Village’s Board of Health?

If the Board of Trustees of the Village also served as the local board of health, the difference in the language wouldn’t matter.  But since 1929, all town and village boards of health were abolished and the Westchester County Board of Health stepped into that role.

(see HERE).

Inconsistent Language

Reading the two letters alongside the language of Public Health Law Article 15 may leave the reader unsure which letter accurately summarizes the law regarding who has the authority for mosquito treatments.  The law clearly outlines that only a municipal board of health may act, and for the Village of Mamaroneck, that role has been filled by the Westchester County Board of Health, making that board the only one that may legally act.