State education department annuls Peninsula Library trustee appointments
Commissioner orders appointed trustee seats onto the May 2027 ballot after resident's appeal.
The State Education Department has sided with a Five Towns resident who challenged the Peninsula Public Library's handling of trustee vacancies. Commissioner Betty A. Rosa annulled a bylaw amendment the library board passed March 12 and directed that all trustee seats filled by appointees who are not up for election in the next annual vote be placed on the ballot in May 2027.
Vincent Squitieri appealed after the board moved President Akiva Lubin, whose term was set to expire June 30, into the seat of Reva Oliner, who had resigned. Under state law, school district public library trustees are elected by district voters, so vacancies may only be filled temporarily until the next election. Rosa rejected the library's procedural arguments, writing that the board's actions violated state law and were arbitrary and capricious. She gave the library 60 days to change its charter to conform.
Lubin told the Nassau Herald the board disagreed with the decision and would review it with legal counsel, adding that the board's priority is moving the library forward constructively. State Librarian Lauren Moore said the New York State Library agrees with the ruling. Appointed trustees may keep serving until the May 2027 election.