The Nassau County Interim Finance Authority ordered Nassau County on May 1 to turn over contracts approved by Nassau County, saying the county’s failure to comply with NIFA requirements was hurting not-for-profits in their efforts to collect money.
NIFA Director George Marlin said Nassau County Attorney John Ciampoli had only turned over two contracts since the interim authority assumed control of county finances and oversight of contracts more than $50,000.
“NIFA board and staff members have received calls from various not-for-profits telling us they have not been paid by the county for many months,” Marlin said. “The question is, why so?”
Marlin said Nassau County must send NIFA every contract after it is approved by the Legislature, and fill out a form that NIFA has provided and the county agreed to fill out. NIFA then has 30 days to approve or disapprove.
Ciampoli said in a statement that NIFA has sent every contract the county Legislature receives.
“For NIFA Director George Marlin to claim that NIFA has been sent nothing is simply untrue,” Ciampoli said. “The Clerk of the Legislature sent a copy of every contract it received to NIFA.”
In a separate statement, Ciampoli said NIFA receives every county contract before approval by the Legislature.
“NIFA receives all of the information on every contract that goes to the Legislature before it is approved so that they may properly analyze a contract ahead of time,” he said.
Brian Nevin, a spokesman for Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano said in an e-mail on April 28 that NIFA received two contracts.
“Thus far, NIFA has received the Armor contract, which is 400-plus pages,” Nevin said. “They have also received a youth agency contract, which they approved and sent back to us.”
He said NIFA and Nassau County officials are finishing procedures for sending contracts to NIFA in bulk.
“However, it should be noted that the Clerk of the Legislature has indicated that he is sending NIFA the calendars and backup material for all committee and legislative sessions,” Nevin said.
Marlin said there is already a process in place for receipt of contracts. He also said Ciampoli was wrong in his assertion that the county had sent more than two contracts.
“The county executive’s own press office has confirmed that only two contracts had arrived by the time of the board meeting,” he said. “It proves that the county attorney’s comments have been disingenuous.”
Marlin said Ciampoli has “backpedaled” in his statements to the press regarding the contracts.
NIFA took control of Nassau County finances after finding the county had a $176 million deficit for the current year.
