Saratoga Springs, NY, Fire Chief Returns to Helm after Two Years

Jul. 7—SARATOGA SPRINGS — City fire Chief Joseph Dolan, who spent more than two years on administrative leave after being accused of misconduct for getting paid by the city at the same time he was getting paid by the state, has been reinstated.

Dolan returned to the fire department Monday, exonerated from all the charges after a state arbitrator deemed the misconduct allegations "were found to be unsubstantiated by the New York State Police investigation and the Office of Saratoga County District Attorney, and reflected that Dolan committed no criminal activity," Arbitrator John Tesla wrote. "Therefore, the charges are dismissed."

The 57-page decision, signed on June 20, also restored 30 days of unpaid leave, wipes clean allegations in Dolan's personnel records and restores $905.84 to Dolan. That was the money he returned to the state Office of Fire Prevention and Control after records showed he was working as a state fire instructor at the same time he was paid by the city.

"The arbitrator found that the city benefited from his state instruction," Dolan's attorney Brian Culnan said. "While doing professional development classes, he was monitoring emails, taking phone calls. ... We are very happy with the decisions."

The arbitrator also found Dolan, who started as a firefighter with the city in 1998, was logged into the city's emergency access records at the same time he was teaching in Montour Falls, located in the state's Finger Lakes region.

Former Commissioner of Public Safety Jim Montagnino brought 16 internal misconduct charges against Dolan in May 2023, including violations of state Civil Service law. Montagnino alleged that between February 2020 and November 2022, Dolan falsely noted he worked a full eight-hour day for a total of 27 days when he was actually working as a state fire instructor.

The Times Union obtained Dolan's 2022 time sheets from both the city and the Office of Fire Prevention and Control. A review of the time sheets showed hours overlapped between the city and state on 11 days that year.

For example, on March 31, his time sheet showed Dolan was paid for 10 hours by the city and then for 16 hours as a state instructor at various fire stations. His city time sheet indicates he worked from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. His state time sheet shows he worked that same day as an instructor beginning at 8 a.m. for 12 hours.

The arbitrator wrote that the charges should be dismissed because the city "has failed to show that he performed 'no work of benefit' to the city while he attended that training at the New York State Fire Academy." Dolan's attorney said he did not teach during his leave, but hopes to return to teaching now that his position in the fire department has been restored.

Dolan was also accused of not disclosing he worked for the state on his city ethics form and that he was using a city vehicle, a $68,800 Chevy Tahoe, as his personal car.

The arbitrator ruled that Dolan should work with the city's human resources director to "instruct him of the required information needed to accurately complete the 'ethics form.' This meeting is not under any circumstances to be viewed as discipline and he may attend with his attorney if he so chooses."

The internal charge concerning Dolan's use of the vehicle was dropped in July 2024, before the case went to an arbitrator.

On Monday, Aaron Dyer, who has served as acting chief since Dolan was on leave, said he returns to his position as assistant chief. He didn't want to comment further, leaving it to Commissioner of Public Safety Tim Coll who said, in an email statement, that he was "pleased that the matter has been resolved and is committed to moving forward in a positive direction."

The charges against Dolan came down at the same time that the Saratoga Springs Professional Fire Fighters Association unanimously approved a "no-confidence" vote against Dolan, claiming he "repeatedly failed to act in the interest of safety."

In their letter, union leaders pointed out that they have concerns about safety and cited the early morning shootout on Broadway in November 2022 that the union said, left responding firefighters "vulnerable to harm and experienced significant trauma."

"The chief's casual actions and concern for the well-being of those under his command eroded a growing lack of confidence in his leadership," the union statement noted.

Last year, the International Association of Fire Fighters censured Dolan for "repeated failure to act in the interest of safety for the membership and community" after he agreed to place a three-member crew on fire apparatus, defying the recommended four. Their resolution, adopted unanimously at their convention in Boston, accused Dolan of "jeopardizing the safety of fire fighters, and placed the well-being of the community of Saratoga Springs at unacceptable risk."

On Monday, union leadership did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Culnan, Dolan's attorney, said the charges were frivolous and "should never have been brought."

© 2025 the Times Union (Albany, N.Y.) . Visit www.timesunion.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.