Logan Weiss is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the Germantown Town Board's August decision to abolish the town's police department was ratified by voters in a public referendum, November 6. Town officials adopted Local Law No. 2 of 2018 on August 7, and the measure appeared on the ballot as Proposition 1. It received 490 “yes” votes, and 372 "no" votes, to keep the police department. “I believe that this is democracy in action,” Germantown Town Supervisor Rob Beaury said. “The people fulfilled their right to carry a petition and to hold a vote. The majority voted to abolish the police department.” Following the vote, a copy of the local law was forwarded to the state secretary of state to finalize the process. The Germantown Town Board released a letter in advance of the election, laying out the reasons behind the board's decision to scrap the department. “We are saving money and avoiding a very high risk of liability when it comes to owning a police agency,” Beaury said. Germantown falls within the regular patrol areas of both the New York State Police Troop K, Livingston Barracks, and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff's deputies and state troopers will continue to patrol Germantown. “The police coverage of Germantown is adequately provided by state police and sheriff’s office and always has been,” Beaury said. By abolishing the police department, the town board expects to save at least $30,000 in salaries, insurance and equipment fees. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.