POUGHKEEPSIE – The appointment of Rachel Kashimer as Dutchess County’s Commissioner of Human Resources continued to spark partisan debate at Monday’s meeting of the county legislature. County Executive Sue Serino made personnel changes in her administration and sought to move Kashimer from the position of Deputy County Executive to HR Commissioner, but the Democrats sought to block it based on an unfounded ethics complaint against the longtime county employee.
Following the debate, 15 Republicans voted in favor of the appointment while the nine Democrats in attendance voted against Kashimer taking the HR position, saying they had questions about the complaints against her. One Democratic lawmaker was absent from the meeting.
The questions posed by the Democrats go back to earlier this year when it was learned that Kashimer, who was Deputy County Executive at the time, had used her county email address to send more than 100 emails to individuals to solicit donations for the annual , a non-profit where Kashimer serves as a member of the board. The questions came as Serino was preparing to move Kashimer to Human Resources.
When the emails were brought to light through anonymous FOIL requests, Serino referred the matter to the Dutchess County Ethics Committee, which held a hearing on the matter in September. A source told Mid-Hudson News that another individual had filed a complaint with the ethics committee over Kashimer’s emails.
The ethics committee dismissed the anonymous complaint, indicating there was no evidence of any violations.
Following the legislature’s confirmation on Monday night, Serino took a few minutes to address the anonymous FOIL requests. “This person or people do not have the chutzpa to put their name behind these things,” she said, noting that it pulled her staffers away from more pressing work. “I’m really aggravated, as you can tell. This is a total waste of time. If you really want to know something, give us your name, come here, and talk to us. We’ll give you the answers.”
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