Clerk crisis in New Paltz risks court closure

The number of clerks handling the administrative business in the county’s second-busiest town court has been reduced to one. As a result, if the workload or other factors result in that lone employee being out on a Tuesday or Wednesday, court would likely have to be cancelled, resulting in delayed justice for potentially hundreds and delayed revenue that could be in the thousands of dollars. 

Over many years, the number of court clerks in New Paltz has gone down, to a low of two people in the office. Council members approved an additional part-time clerk in the 2025 budget, but before that position was filled, the number-two clerk went out on medical leave. 

James Bacon, the senior of the two town justices, is concerned. “We would have to close if this issue is not addressed,” Bacon said when reached for comment. “The justices have long tried to address this, and we would hope that our issues with staffing are properly answered and funded.” 

Supervisor Amanda Gotto acknowledged that the justices had raised a staffing concern, and that it had been addressed as best as possible given attempts to curtail tax increases that some residents have railed against for many years. “We heard their request for more staff, and we budgeted for it by giving them another part-time person,” Gotto said. That fell short of what the justices wanted, which was at least the equivalent of another person in the office full time. However, Gotto noted that cuts were broad and often deep in this year’s budget, which still resulted in a 6.87% increase for this year. 

“Everybody felt the pinch, and has to make due with a little bit less,” Gotto said. “Everyone has been gracious.” 

Bacon and Becky Seward, the last clerk standing, have a different perspective that stems from their being in public service for decades. Seward has worked in the court for close to 19 years, and Bacon has been involved in town government since 1994. 

As Seward recalls, there were four full-time clerks in 2006, and that the fourth position was pared down to part time as of 2013. In 2019, the part-timer retired, and one of the full-time clerks got a better-paying job in the Lloyd justice court. It appears that those open positions were eliminated since, in an effort to rein in spending. 

In contrast, a review of the personnel in the Ulster town court — the only one in the county that’s busier than New Paltz, according to Bacon — shows that each of the two town justices has a clerk assigned, and that there are four more on staff. Per that town’s budget, the justice’s clerks are full-time employees earning $23.50 hourly, two of the other clerks are also full time and earn $23.11 an hour, and the other two are part-timers earning $21.00 an hour. Justices in Ulster are paid $50,157.50 annually. 

This is not the first time the justice court has been entirely run by a single clerk. The last time it happened was in 2023, when Seward’s then-coworker Stasha Dietz took a better-paying job in the school district, which also only required daytime hours. At that time, the position was advertised with a range of $17-22 an hour, and Dietz was paid $25 hourly during a transition period. 

While Seward had begun interviewing to fill the new part-time role, having the only other clerk call out indefinitely has made that extremely difficult. In addition, the relatively low pay offered in New Paltz has not made the job particularly attractive to applicants. 

For now, no one is answering the phone at the court, and the outgoing message advises that calls may or may not be returned. The window is staffed by a doorbell, to which the lone clerk responds as soon as able. If Seward needs to take time off for any reason, the court office just has to be closed down. That has not yet happened on a night when court is held, but that would realize Justice Bacon’s greatest fear, of having to reschedule all appearances. 

State law does provide for speedy trials, but exactly how long that might take for a traffic ticket is a bit fuzzy. There’s no specific time limit set, and it seems that no one has been willing to hire an attorney to test that limit. 

For now, it could take awhile to get a court date for most matters being heard in New Paltz, which could limit how much money comes in from fines that are set and then paid. A portion of each fine under state vehicle and traffic law is reserved for the town or village in which it occurred, but even Bacon is not entirely clear on the formula used for determining that local share. 

As for Seward, the veteran clerk is pretty clear about how this all feels. “I’m tired.”