Nassau Legislature approves ban on felons holding office

Noah Manskar
The Nassau County Executive and Legislative Building as seen in Garden City. (Photo by Noah Manskar)

Certain convicted felons must likely quash their aspirations of holding public office in Nassau County.

The county Legislature unanimously passed a law Monday that lawmakers say closes a loophole in the state’s prohibition on felons holding office. The bill now goes to County Executive Edward Mangano, who has said he will sign it.

It bars from anyone convicted of felony bribery, embezzlement of public money, extortion, theft, perjury, fraud, tax evasion or conspiracy to commit any of those crimes from ever seeking or holding an elected office or serving on county boards or commissions.

Felons are currently prohibited from holding office under state law, but can seek a waiver from a judge to run after serving their sentences.

The law is Republican lawmakers’ latest attempt to clamp down on corruption in an election year after recent scandals, including the October arrest of Mangano, a Republican, on federal charges stemming from an alleged bribe and kickback scheme.

Republicans and Democrats sparred Monday, as they did two weeks ago, over whether the bill did enough to prevent corruption before it happens.

“While we all respect the fact that the majority has seen fit to close a loophole, I think it begs the question also of this being an opportunity to reinvigorate to reinsure that we are protecting Nassau County taxpayers from public corruption,” Minority Leader Kevan Abrahams (D-Hempstead) said at Monday’s Legislature meeting.

The seven Democrats on the 19-member Legislature introduced a bill Monday that would reform the county’s five-member Board of Ethics by spreading appointment powers between the county comptroller, county executive and legislative leaders.

Presiding Officer Norma Gonsalves (R-East Meadow) said Republicans were evaluating the bill.

But Legislator Steven Rhoads (R-Bellmore) said the law passed Monday proactively protects taxpayers by keeping out of office anyone convicted of wrongdoing outside of government.

“It’s also addressing it prospectively in the sense that anyone who has been proven to be dishonest by the conviction of a felony involving dishonesty would be ineligible for running for office in the future,” Rhoads said.

The new law passed Monday in a five-hour meeting full of partisan sniping over issues from road repair projects to the controversial tax breaks for the Green Acres Mall in Valley Stream.

In a debate over appointments to county boards, Gonsalves asked Legislator Siela Bynoe (D-Westbury), “You take nasty pills or what today?”

Meta J. Mereday, the founder of a Garden City-based nonprofit who attends most Legislature meetings, said Monday’s resembled a “school yard in an elementary school.”

“You should all be ashamed,” Mereday said.

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