Mangano reports 2010 surplus, blasts critics

Richard Jacques

Slamming critics who fail to recognize the big picture, Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano reported a year-end budget surplus of $17.2 million at a press conference in Mineola Thursday.

Mangano credited his administration and the Nassau County Legislature with some “darn good work” during some of the most challenging economic times.

“This is the first administration that has put forth a plan that ends borrowing in its entirety,” said Mangano, citing his long-term policy geared towards ending borrowing for all tax certioraris in 2013. “It is a plan that gets us through the two years before our policies can come into effect.”

By slashing departmental costs, controlling expenses and imposing a hiring freeze the Mangano administration was able to deliver a budget surplus and a 48 percent reduction in the structural deficit, according to Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos, who called the press conference to announce the release of the unaudited fiscal results.

“This is a remarkable achievement by our county executive who at the beginning of 2010 inherited a deficit of $133 million and turned the county around on solid footing and delivered a $17.2 million surplus,” said Maragos.

Even by the most conservative accounting standards, Mangano said a budget surplus could be verified.

“It’s a plan that gets us to end borrowing in Nassau County in it’s entirety,” Mangano said.

According to Mangano, the year-end surplus will help increase the county fund balance from $64.2 million to $81.4 million – the first increase since 2006.

At the same time, expenses during 2010 were lower by $60.2 million than budgeted, excluding real property refunds, from two main areas – reduced payroll and fringe benefit costs, and reduced contractual, equipment and general expenses.

“We will continue to manage the challenges presented to this government without increasing real property taxes,” Mangano said.

The Mangano administration was also successful in reducing the structural deficit from $251.6 million in 2009 to $131.6 million in 2010 – a 48 percent improvement from the prior year and the first reduction in the structural deficit in the past five years, according to Maragos.

“I think that is testimony to what can be done with everybody working together,” said Nassau County Legislative Presiding Officer Peter Schmitt, at the press conference.

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