§ 189-e. Management of affairs of joint fire districts. Subject to the
restrictions hereinafter established, the property and affairs of joint
fire districts shall be under the management and control and in charge
of a board of not less than three and not more than seven commissioners,
appointed by the town board of the town or the town boards of the towns
and the board of trustees of the village or the boards of trustees of
the villages in joint session as hereinafter provided, or elected as
provided in article eleven of this chapter, as may be determined by
resolution adopted at the meeting for the establishment of the district
in the same manner as the resolution for the establishment of the
district is adopted; or as may be determined by a joint consolidation
agreement or elector initiated consolidation plan in accordance with
article seventeen-A of the general municipal law. In case it is
determined that the commissioners shall be selected in the manner
provided by article eleven of this chapter, the appointments as provided
for in subdivision one of section one hundred seventy-four of this
chapter shall be made by the town board, or, if the district includes
territory in more than one town, by the town board of all of the towns
at a joint session held at one location within the district and
thereafter elections shall be held as provided in article eleven of this
chapter except that the terms of the commissioners shall be as
hereinafter provided. They shall be residents of such district and in
case selection is made as provided in article eleven of this chapter
there shall be no other residential requirement, but otherwise if there
are an even number of commissioners not more than half at any time shall
be residents of such village or villages and if there are an odd number,
the number that are residents of such village or villages shall not
exceed the number that are residents of such town or towns by more than
one. First appointments hereunder shall be made in the following manner:
If there be three commissioners, the term of one shall expire one year,
of another two years and of the other three years from the then next
ensuing thirty-first day of December, and thereafter one shall be
appointed annually for a term of three years from the date of the
expiration of the term of his predecessor. If there be four
commissioners, the term of one shall expire one year, of another two
years, of another three years, and of the other four years from the then
next ensuing thirty-first day of December, and thereafter one shall be
appointed annually for a term of four years from the date of the
expiration of the term of his predecessor. If there be five
commissioners, the term of one shall expire one year, of another two
years, of another three years, of another four years, and of the other
five years from the then next ensuing thirty-first day of December, and
thereafter one shall be appointed annually for a term of five years from
the date of the expiration of a term of his predecessor. If there be six
commissioners, the term of one shall expire one year, of another two
years, of another three years, of another four years, and of the
remaining two, five years from the then next ensuing thirty-first day of
December, and thereafter appointments shall be made for a term of five
years from the date of the expiration of the term of each commissioner.
If there be seven commissioners, the term of one shall expire one year,
of another two years, of another three years, and of two of the others
four years, and of the remaining two, five years from the then next
ensuing thirty-first day of December, and thereafter appointments shall
be made for a term of five years from the date of the expiration of the
term of each commissioner. Such board of commissioners may employ
necessary labor and assistants, at a compensation approved by such
boards in joint session. Such commissioners shall receive no
compensation for their services, but they and their employees shall be
allowed and paid their necessary expenses, payable as expenses of the
district.