mangano's state of county 2010

8/9/2019 Mangano's State of County 2010

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NASSAU COUNTY EXECUTIVE EDWARD P.MANGANO

STATE OF THE COUNTY ADDRESS

MARCH 15,2010

Good evening.

Ladies and gentlemen, Presiding Officer Peter Schmitt, Minority Leader Diane Yatauro,members of the Nassau County Legislature, Comptroller George Maragos, DistrictAttorney Kathleen Rice, County Clerk Maureen O'Connell, members of the NassauLegislature, members of my administration, county employees, friends and family.

Thank you all for being here tonight at my first State of the County address. It is fittingthat we gather here tonight in the new Morelly Homeland Security Center, which wasdedicated just ten days ago. It is the perfect setting for my first State of the County

address - a place that exemplifies all things great about our past, present and future.

During World War II, aircraft were manufactured here to defend democracy. Jobs werecreated and cutting edge technology developed on this site. Over 40 years ago,government and the private sector again came together in this building to put a man onthe moon and return him safely to Earth.

However, during the last 15 years this property fell victim to defense industry downsizingresulting, in the loss of over 20,000 jobs locally and 100,000 jobs regionally. To addressthis latest challenge, Supervisor John Venditto and I, working along with every level ofgovernment, the private sector, and community fostered a mixed-use redevelopment thatcreated more than 15,000 jobs here.

Today, we gather in a facility that is the result of a public-private partnership. I want tothank Senator Dean Skelos and Congressman Peter King for securing the fundingnecessary to build this facility, LIFT for designing and operating it, and R&D companieslike Balfour Technologies and Northrop Grumman that are developing tomorrow'stechnology today as they work with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.

This week, I am sending a lease for approval to the Nassau County Legislature to locatethe Nassau County Office of Emergency Management right here. The cost of that leasewill be fully funded by a federal grant.

Fostering cooperation between all levels of government, the private sector and listeningto residents will be a hallmark of my administration. Listening to the concerns ofresidents is a hallmark of democracy.


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I listened as a candidate and now act as a County Executive. Our residents said clearlythat they could not afford a tax on the electric, gas, oil, propane and firewood they used toheat their homes.

I listened, Peter Schmitt listened, my Republican colleagues in the legislature listened

and some of my Democrat colleagues recently became believers and together we repealedthe regressive home energy tax.

The election is over and now is the time to put our differences behind us and worktogether to solve the problems our county is facing.

It will take the collective efforts of not only my colleagues on the Legislature but all ourpartners in government to achieve the success our residents and our county deserve.

It doesn't matter what side of the aisle you are on as long as you are part of the solution.

Abraham Lincoln once said, "I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, theycan be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them thereal facts."

President Lincoln was right and tonight we bring you the real facts.

Tonight, I am here to tell you: The state of our county is deeply troubled.

Let's begin with the budget I inherited.

Upon taking office just 75 days ago it became apparent that Nassau's 2010 budgetcontained unrealistic assumptions with respect to passage in Albany of a cigarette taxprojected to yield $16 million. In addition, the 2010 budget contained overly optimisticsales tax revenues to the tune of $12.7 million. The bottom line was a $48.5 milliondollar 2010 deficit.

To address this alarming fiscal surprise, my administration developed a $49 milliondollar Taxpayer Savings Plan. The plan largely rests on slashing appointed managerialand support staff positions. To lead by example, I reduced the cost of the CountyExecutive Staff by nearly $2 million.

To date, I have cut Government staffing by $22 million dollars. This is only thebeginning. When we finish reviewing all of Nassau's 47 departments we will haveMORE cuts, lots more.

Our overburdened taxpayers are demanding strict controls on government spending andsmaller government. I intend to deliver just that.

The prior administration negotiated collective bargaining contracts that require thetaxpayers to pay $43 million in raises and back pay over the next few years with no plan


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There is simply no other choice. Nassau County cannot afford to continue down the pathof borrowing over a billion dollars with no benefit NONE to our taxpayers.

Working together we can and must reform Nassau County's broken Property TaxAssessment System. It's essential for our present fiscal survival and we owe it to our

children.

On Day One, I formed the Assessment Reform Team, which includes residential andcommercial property owners and counsel to both and is working aggressively to constructand execute a plan that will finally reform this oppressive, error-ridden system throughbetter management, county action and an achievable state legislative agenda. I thank theART volunteers for their service.

We look forward to continuing to work with Senators Dean Skelos and Craig Johnsonand Deputy Speaker Earlene Hooper on State legislative amendments to the assessmentsystem.

Most important, Assessment Reform will begin Nassau's fiscal recovery.

The fact of the matter is that the four-year plan we inherited is one we simply can'tafford.

You should know that my predecessor's plan called for a total of $120 million in newproperty tax increases.

I know you can't afford those tax increases.

This plan fails to fix the assessment system. That's unacceptable too.

So, that is why we are working now to develop a new and responsible multi-year planthat is based on our taxpayer's limited resources to fund government. Nassau Countytaxpayers have no more left to give. We are working to right - size government!

We will aggressively manage every dollar of County spending and will leave no stoneunturned.

We continue to brief the agencies that rate our bonds on our progress and to work withNIFA to stabilize our finances. Our master plan includes a National Taxpayer SavingsInitiative, a Regional Taxpayer Savings Initiative and a County Taxpayer SavingsInitiative.

On a national basis, for instance, we will work with Senator Schumer and CongressmenKing and Israel on programs to create Green Energy Jobs in Nassau County. We applaudSenator Schumer's work in extending FMAP Federal Medicaid Assistance Program - toour county in the Jobs Bill that passed the Senate last week.


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On a regional basis, we are exploring shared purchasing and shared facilities initiativeswith our friends in Suffolk County. We are working with County Executive Steve Levyto discuss the possibilities of a shared juvenile detention center that would serve both ourcounties and save money for all taxpayers.

There is much more our counties can and should do together.

Closer to home, a county taxpayer initiative has begun with a program to review everyactivity our county government performs. In the future, the reality is that countygovernment will do less because the taxpayers can't afford the government we have.

We are reviewing all county-owned and leased real estate.

Today, the county leases expensive space while county-owned buildings sit vacant.

Thats ridiculous and just doesnt make any sense.

What also makes no sense to me is the fact that taxpayers were left a crumblinginfrastructure. The front lobby of One West Street, located at the heart of the county'soperations in Mineola, is attractive. But to either side, visitors and employees are metwith broken walls, dimly lit hallways and filth and grime. Entire floors remain gutted.

The taxpayers were left a sewage treatment system that will cost millions to repair. TheCedar Creek Sewage Treatment Facility is woefully understaffed and a victim ofmismanagement.

A vacant and looted social services building sits in the heart of the County Seat. Why?

That makes no sense either!

County residents and employees deal with outdated IT resources and inaccurate timekeeping systems each and every day. That is despite the expenditure of $11 milliondollars over the last two years. Those taxpayers who deal with the county assessor'soffice see Wang equipment last manufactured in the 1990's which should be exhibited inthe Smithsonian and not running assessment data in the year 2010.

The county Veteran's office at the VA clinic is an embarrassing shambles and an insult tothe men and women who have bravely served this country. Ceilings are caved in. Waterruns across its floors. It is an absolute travesty.

I will not allow veterans to be treated like this.

Furthermore, no veteran who has served our nation should be homeless. The CountyDepartments of Housing and Homeless Services and Veterans Services will be workingtogether with the private sector to build units of affordable housing to ensure that every


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veteran in this county has a safe and affordable home

Later this year, the county will be acquiring twelve two - family units from the U.S. Navyat Mitchel Field and will use VA funding designated for new projects specifically forfemale veterans and those with dependent children.

In fact in Nassau County, eighteen homeless returning female veterans with children havealready been identified. We need to do more to care for the people who keep us safe.

Tens of thousands of our residents are still assessing damage from Saturday night'spowerful storm, which overwhelmed the county's 9-1-1 emergency call system. Callsfrom Nassau's residents were transferred to Suffolk and Albany.

Last year, the county returned to the state over half a million dollars of emergencymanagement grant money that was never spent. Another $700,000 is at risk as well.

That is JUST NOT acceptable.

Those funds should have been used to update our 9-1-1 call center. And make no bonesabout it - that is exactly what we will do.

I have also moved to cancel an ill-conceived and financially irresponsible plan weinherited from the prior administration to build a new First Precinct house.

The lease would have cost Nassau taxpayers over $30 million, and in the end the countywould NOT have owned the building.

We will make sure that our police force gets a new facility, one the community can beproud of and the taxpayers will own. The First Precinct deal was wrong. Our county can'tafford that kind of waste at any time but especially not in this economy.

As I said, the State of the County is deeply troubled. But we have already begun to fixNassau County. This administration's approach is real-time reform because residents andbusinesses struggling to live and work here just dont have any more time to waste.

And we have wasted no time, and we have made real strides in these first 75-plus days.

On day one, I repealed the Home Energy Tax that was imposed last year. That tax cutwill save our taxpayers over $39 million each year.

That's real time reform.

I formed the Assessment Reform Team, and have begun to aggressively manage theassessment system and to resolve the backlog of cases that goes back to 2002.

That's real-time reform.


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I have slashed nearly $2 million from the County Executive's staff, have assigned fewervehicles and streamlined the management of this county.

My administration has identified $49 million in savings, reduced the size of the

workforce and saved $22 million.

No more bloated management structures at the top.

Instead, our departments will be staffed with knowledgeable, experienced professionalswho share the same goal of delivering to the taxpayers the services they deserve.


We need to create jobs and opportunities in Nassau County. We are establishing anOffice of Local Opportunity that will provide the support and service to taxpayers and

small businesses that need a leg up or guidance through the system.


We need to tighten our belts and save every dollar we can.

I am proud to say that in just the past two months, as a result of a deal with Long IslandBus, we have generated cash and savings of over $550,000. In the past, the countyallowed buses that were taken out of service to sit idle for long periods.

Weather and vandals, as well as the cost of securing these buses, made that a costlyexercise. Together with Long Island Bus, we have shortened the time old buses sit in thejunkyard.

By handling taxpayer money much like the way you would handle your own, we havesaved over half a million dollars in just over two months and will continue this programwith the MTA.


In addition to better managing taxpayer dollars, we will work hard to help localbusinesses. We will lay out a plan for recovery. For this county's businesses to grow onceagain, this must be a smaller government so we will see some departments merged andsome services consolidated to begin to bring relief to taxpayers who simply have no moreto give.


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One way we're looking to save money is by sharing the cost of services with schooldistricts, villages and towns - information technology, legal and phone services;transportation, auditing and buying energy in bulk, to name a few of the areas we'reexploring.


We're already partnering with Suffolk County to explore ways that we can cooperate tosave millions of dollars for taxpayers of both counties.

We need help from Albany and Washington. Long Island subsidizes Albany to the tuneof more than $4 billion each year in excess of what we receive from Albany. Half of thatsubsidy is from us. We will continue to work with our representatives in Albany andWashington to reduce the financial burden of that unsustainable subsidy on ourshoulders.

It has become impossible for us to subsidize Albany any longer. We need help now.

At the Federal level, I know that Long Island and the state in general would benefit ifNew York's primary votes for president meant something.

Accordingly, I am proposing that the New York State Republican and Democraticprimaries be held immediately after the New Hampshire primary. County governmentcan't make that change but I intend to use my influence to make the case that focusingnational attention on Nassau County's economy and issues will benefit our taxpayers.

And the big question...

How do we develop our economy, and move forward?

Today, in this economic climate, retaining Nassau's jobs and businesses is job one. Tothat end, we will be working with local businesses, chambers of commerce, the ABLI,LIA and ExecuLeaders and all relevant county departments to retain jobs.

Our new Office of Local Opportunity will aggressively reach out to county businessesand groups to get the word out about county and state programs to retain and grow jobshere in Nassau County.

Before we do that, with the support of our colleagues in Albany and Washington, we willseek to protect and increase the state and federal aid Nassau receives.

And as we stand our ground, my administration is working to find every penny availableto us through grants and other aid programs.


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We will fight for the continuation of established state programs like Empire Zones, whichwhile imperfect have provided local businesses with the opportunity to grow but isscheduled to phase out this June.

Nassau County is a place of small businesses. Most of our residents are employed bysmall businesses and our future prosperity is dependent on businesses which employfewer than 100 employees.

We urge the state legislature to extend the Empire Zone program because right now ourlocal businesses need certainty. Let's give them that certainty by extending the program.

The commercial real estate industry is critical to Nassau County and far too much spacehas been left empty by the poor economy. The industry pays hundreds of millions ofdollars million in property taxes each year.

The commercial sector is under extreme pressure in these tough times, and myadministration is committed to doing everything it can to help local businesses reversethe downward trend they have faced recently.

Businesses in Nassau County were further burdened last year by the MTA payroll tax thataffects every business, school, not for profit and the county itself. It hurts because itmakes it more expensive to hire people.

Tonight, I am requesting Governor Paterson and the legislature to at a minimum amendthe MTA payroll tax to exempt new hires who have been unemployed for more than 90days. Repealing the MTA payroll tax for new hires will help put people to work inNassau now.

While we know the state faces its own severe challenges, we need state legislative helpon many fronts. In addition to assessment reform, state legislation will be required toimplement reforms that can help our economy grow.

We look forward to continuing to work with our senate and assembly delegations onreforms that will create jobs but won't cost the state a dime.

First, I feel strongly that reform of state tax increment financing law will allow localgovernments, including the county, to finance required infrastructure needed to supportdevelopment at the county owned property in Bethpage, at the Nassau Coliseum, in GlenCove and elsewhere in the county.

TIF uses projected future increased property tax revenue generated in a designated area tofinance public improvements--like roads--required for new development.

Current TIF legislation makes that impossible.


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We will also seek sensible regulatory reforms to the state environmental quality reviewact, or SEQRA. We believe the law can be amended to protect the environment but toprovide developers greater certainty when they propose developments.

Yet, how do we create jobs for our children?

I believe that the engines of future job growth will be our great Long Island researchinstitutions like the one we're in tonight, like the Feinstein Institute at North Shore LIJ,Cold Spring Harbor Lab, Brookhaven National Lab, Stony Brook University and the newHofstra Medical School.

Our job is to ensure that when companies are spun off to explore cutting edge researchthat the resulting jobs and investment stay here on Long Island. Too often in the past,Long Island researchers have advanced science but the spun-off companies have left

Long Island for other locations.

That can't and won't continue.

Tonight, I am announcing the creation of a business advisory council chaired byentrepreneurs Mark Fasciano and Mike Puntillo, which will meet with me regularly sothat the county can address issues standing in the way of investment on Long Island.

And working with our U.S. Senators Schumer and Gillibrand and representativesAckerman, Israel, King and McCarthy, we will maximize the amount of federal aidNassau County receives.

We can do better with our County's many parks.

From the sands of Nickerson Beach to the cliffs of Sands Point, Nassau County has someof the most beautiful parks in New York State. But our parks have too often been used toserve private interests rather than those of the taxpayers.

That time is over.

Tonight, I am announcing that we are taking our parks back.

This year, the county will run pilot Summer Recreation Programs in several of our countyparks. We will have a robust program of activities for children of all ages. This programwill create jobs.

These are your parks. They are back in your hands.

And while New York State struggles to find a way to fund its vast parks system, we wantto welcome visitors with our new Be Our Guest program, designed to accommodate those


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who may lose access to State parks due to the States fiscal crisis.

This is a good deal for county taxpayers since rates for non-residents have been increasedto assist in the upkeep of our parks

It is no secret that open space is limited in Nassau County.

Last month, I completed a transaction to purchase the former site of Grossmanns farm inthe Village of Malverne. We must preserve more whenever we can.

I ask Governor Paterson to continue EPF funding, which has provided $60 million inNassau County over the last decade to close landfills, preserve open space and protect ourdrinking water.

And while we preserve we must never lose sight of conserving what we have. Myadministration is creating green jobs and providing incentives that will give homeowners

and businesses reason to Go Green and stimulate the new economy.

One West Street, the Nassau County Correctional Facility, the 9-1-1 Center and ourfacility on Cantiague Rock Road in Hicksville will utilize green energy.

My administration has also secured a $3.9 million grant to convert several countybuildings to solar energy. Vacant Brownfield areas in Nassau must be remediated andredeveloped. With private sector help, we will turn them into clean land capable ofhosting businesses focused on developing emerging green technologies.

We will apply to the state for Brownfields opportunity funding together with SustainableLong Island and will focus on corridors with empty auto dealers on main thoroughfares.

Most exciting, my administration will develop an educational resource center that willpush the growth of green energy to the next level.

The critical not-for-profit sector merits attention.

In the past couple of years, as the national economy continued its devastating decline, thenot-for-profit organizations that provide crucial services to tens of thousands of peopleacross Nassau County have suffered greatly.

But we cannot let them falter, and Nassau County will do whatever it can to support ournot-for-profit sector which accounts for about 16% of jobs throughout the county.

It certainly is true that there is strength in number and that is why it is so important to joinforces on regional issues and work from a position of unity and strength.

To that end, I have called the first meeting of the County Executives of Suffolk,Westchester and Nassau Counties in Mineola.


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We intend to meet regularly, since County Executives Steve Levy, Rob Astorino and Irepresent 20 percent of the state's population and about $170 billion of total economicoutput.

We believe working together will advance the collective interests of our counties inAlbany and Washington. In light of capital constraints on the county budget, we willexplore - where appropriate - seeking private capital to lessen the burden on the countytaxpayer.

Soon, Nassau County and Long Island will resume growing. We all know that time can'tcome soon enough. When it does, we must be ready to accommodate that growth in asustainable way.

We look forward to redeveloping the 100 acres the county owns in Bethpage and tomaking it an even greater job creator than it is today.

I am pleased that my colleague, Kate Murray, the Hempstead Town Supervisor, hasjump-started the planning process for the Nassau Coliseum site. We look forward toworking closely with the town and the private sector to develop that site and create jobs.

We will be supportive of sustainable transit-oriented development such as is proposedaround the Mineola train station and others that satisfy community needs and the goals ofsustainable development.

As we work on these long-term projects we are mindful that we not use governmentsubsidies to increase available office and retail space at a time the market cannot absorbthem and thereby injure today's owners who have long invested in this county and paidmillions of dollars in taxes.

We need bold, creative solutions to our transportation issues.

The proposed cross sound tunnel is worthy of serious consideration especially because itdoes not require taxpayer funding.

Think about this for a moment

The MTA shut down the Whitestone Bridge for a time last month and a lane on theThrogs Neck Bridge in 2009. At what point do we realize we are an island with bridgesbeing the sole structures that control our transportation destiny?

This tunnel concept, privately funded, should be carefully scrutinized, analyzed anddebated but it needs to be part of our deliberations that chart our future.


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Yet, members of our minority communities are feeling the brunt of the present Recession.

My administration has breathed new life into minority affairs. In just the last two months,the number of minority community clients served by CASA has doubled. I want to thank

the staff of CASA and its director, Eldia Gonzalez.

The work they do is more important than ever.

It has been said that volunteers are seldom paid; not because they are worthless, butbecause they are priceless!

Our volunteers are critical to life in Nassau County in many ways. I want to highlight ourMedical Reserve Corps program. Under the leadership of our Commissioner of Health,Dr. Maria Carney, the County Medical Reserve Corps has grown to the largest in thestate with over 600 qualified health care volunteers able to respond quickly to health

emergencies and initiatives at very little cost to the taxpayers.

The value of those volunteer hours can be measured in the millions of dollars.

I recognize Jim Callahan and Bob Beckman for supporting the successful CitizensEmergency Response Team. These citizen volunteers assist our brave first responderslike our volunteer firefighters and police officers.

And speaking of Nassau's Finest, I want to take a moment to commend Police OfficerMichael Frank, who is with us tonight and ask him to please stand.

About one week ago, Officer Frank responded to a call in North Valley Stream andrescued a homeowner who was unconscious from carbon monoxide poisoning, caused byan in-house generator.

After saving the mother, Officer Frank rushed upstairs and saved her young son.

Officer Frank's modest words are worth noting.

He said: "I have children. I did what anybody in my position would have done."

For service above and beyond the call of duty, please join me in thanking Officer Frankfor his heroism.

Our County Attorney's office also has a new direction and new leadership.

Over the past several years there have been far too many court decisions and jury verdictsfinding that the county improperly terminated employees without due process. They havecome at too high a cost with the county paying out millions of dollars in damages.


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In order to prevent this from occurring in the future, we will be starting new employeetraining programs in the areas of employee relations, ethics and equal employmentopportunity. Prevention will yield significant savings.

That's a simple matter of good management.

Feeling secure in our homes and in our communities is a fundamental right.

Nassau County is the safest large county in America and it is my intention to make thesafest county in America even safer!

This spring every patrol vehicle will have an in-car computer connected to our Real-TimeIntel center. The cop on the street - your street - will have access to more real-time crimeinformation than any other police agency in the country.

This year, Nassau County conducted a gun buyback program and with the assistance ofthe Police Department and District Attorney Kathleen Rice, we removed 173 illegalhandguns from our streets.

Our investments in crime fighting, including personnel resources, technology and gunbuyback programs are paying dividends.

For the first 2-months of my administration, violent crime is down more than 6% andfirearm-related crimes are down a whopping 23%. This trend supports our initiativesdirected at getting guns off the street. The safest county is getting safer.

Even as we recognize our accomplishments, we have a major new challenge to face.

The resurgence of heroin use in Nassau County is a very real problem. Heroin users todayinclude many of our brightest students and athletes.

The drug is a threat to our future and to our families.

In recent weeks, I launched a three-prong attack on heroin:

Enforcement, Parental Awareness and Education.

I designated additional detectives and dedicated additional resources to form OperationH.A.L.T. - Heroin Abuse Location Targeting.

This initiative seeks to secure Nassau's borders from users returning from outside theCounty with surplus drugs that they sell.

Funded with money seized from criminals, the nationally-proven Too Good for Drugscurriculum is being implemented in grades K through 12.


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The age-appropriate curriculum begins by teaching children about good decision-makingand instilling self-confidence and progresses in the upper grades with specific lessons ondrugs, alcohol, and tobacco abuse.

I want to thank LICAD, our school districts, our PTA groups and non-profits for theirhelp and support in combating this difficult problem as we can only succeed if we joinforces and attack it at every level.

Of course, none of these plans work without the daily efforts of county employees whoprovide service above and beyond the call of duty. This has been a long, snowy winterand the staff in the Department of Public Works has worked long and hard to keepCounty roads passable.

I thank Commissioner Shila Shah and our dedicated, hardworking employees for theirtireless service.

These are tough times. I don't need to tell anyone in this county that.

These are especially tough times for Nassau Countywhich was not prepared for today'seconomic conditions and for those that may lie ahead.

Nassau County's residents have been overtaxed and abused too long. Working together asthe employees of Grumman did on so many occasions-during World War II, to put a manon the moon and to Rebuild Bethpage - we can and will fix Nassau County.

Our journey began just 75 days ago and since then we have brought tax relief to ourresidents by repealing the home energy tax.

We have begun to cut wasteful spending, reduce the size of government and are workingto finally fix a broken tax assessment system.

We have begun to create jobs and opportunities and are giving Nassau County employeesthe respect they have earned and deserve.

Yet, there is much more to do.

However, we know that as this journey continues, the road ahead will be filled with anymore challenges, inevitable detours and expected bumps along the way.

However, if we travel this road together, steadfast in our determination to do what is rightfor the residents of this wonderful county, we will be able to navigate through any roadblock and any obstacle that we may encounter.

Abraham Lincoln once said, "Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then standfirm."


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Well, my feet are certainly planted in the right place - right here in Nassau County, and Ivow to stay firm in my commitment to return Nassau County to greatness and mostimportantly to proudly serve its residents.

Thank you for affording me that opportunity and for placing your trust in me. We willsucceed together.

Thank you all for being here this evening. God Bless you all, Bless our County and GodBless the United States of America.

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mangano's state of county 2010

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