East Hampton Town voters will see two ballot propositions when they vote on Election Day, which is Tuesday, or during the early voting period, which concludes on Sunday.
Proposal 2 is pertinent to Suffolk County voters. It concerns the Term Limit Preservation Act, a local law passed by the Suffolk Legislature that changes the term for county legislators from two to four years. The law is intended to protect the county's 12-year term limit law from being undermined by New York State's even-year elections law, which Gov. Kathy Hochul signed in 2023. That was struck down by a lower court in 2024 before being overturned by an appeals court earlier this year and finally upheld by the State Court of Appeals on Oct. 16.
The state law moves the vast majority of county and town elections to even years. By extending legislators' term length to four years, the Term Limit Preservation Act would prevent potential loopholes in the state's new law that could have shortened the terms of many legislators, forced them to resign midterm, and required taxpayer-funded special elections.
A yes vote would amend legislators' terms from two to four years, ensuring compliance with the state's even year election law without the need for three elections in four years because of the accelerated timeline.
The other proposal is a statewide constitutional amendment relating to an Olympic sports complex on state forest preserve land in Essex County, home of Lake Placid and Whiteface Mountain. It would authorize the construction of new ski and biathlon trails within a portion of the forest preserve.
The proposal affects 1,039 acres of protected forest preserve land. New trails would be limited to 323 acres. As compensation for the use of the preserve land, the state would be required to acquire at least 2,500 new acres of forest land and add them to the forest preserve in Adirondack Park.
A yes vote authorizes new ski trails and related facilities in the Adirondack forest preserve. A no vote does not authorize that use.
