Recent legislation authorizing the merger of the justice courts in the Town of Harmony and the Town of North Harmony was strongly supported by Andrew Molitor, the Republican-Conservative candidate for New York State Assembly.

“As the First Assistant District Attorney and former President of the Northern Bar Association, I know first-hand the importance of these local Justice Courts. In addition to handling all traffic infractions and misdemeanor cases, these courts handle many evictions and small claim actions,” noted Molitor.

Consolidating these Justice Courts will make it much easier and more cost-effective for both the District Attorney’s office and defense attorneys by eliminating potential scheduling conflicts and multiple court appearances. It also enables these towns to elect a single Town Justice, thereby saving taxpayer money. At the same time, the court will continue to provide full service to local residents.

“I applaud the efforts of Harmony and North Harmony to improve the efficiency of their Justice Courts while reducing costs to the taxpayers,” said Molitor. “I am very pleased that this legislation passed both the State Senate and State Assembly with overwhelming bi-partisan support.”

The State legislation was co-sponsored by Senator George Borrello and Assemblyman Andrew Goodell at the request of Harmony and North Harmony town boards.

The recent legislation follows the lead of Sherman, Mina, French Creek and Clymer, which received State approval in 2021 to elect a single town justice to serve all four towns.

“We need to continuously seek ways to reduce the cost of government,” said Molitor. “As a State Assemblyman, I will work tirelessly to help local governments improve efficiency and cut costs to taxpayers.”