Candidate Profile Arnold Drucker, Nassau County Legislature District 16

The Island Now

Biograhy

A lifelong resident of Plainview, Nassau County Legislator Drucker and his wife, Franny, have raised two children and are grandparents of two. He and his wife enjoy traveling when their schedules permit, and walking with their Goldendoodle, Louie.

Legislator Drucker is proud to have served the communities of Plainview, Old Bethpage, Jericho, Syosset, Woodbury, Hicksville, Old Westbury, and Roslyn Heights since 2016.

Currently, Legislator Drucker serves on the Finance, Public Works, and Health & Social Services committees, and is the ranking member on the committees for Planning, Development, & the Environment and Government Services & Operations. Drucker is also a practicing attorney.

Throughout his tenure as a Nassau County Legislator, Drucker has consistently and tirelessly fought to protect residents’ health, safety, and quality of life by passing legislation to install cameras on school bus stop-arms, raising the age to purchase tobacco and related products to 21, restricting the sale of flavored vaping products, and fighting against antisemitism and anti-Asian discrimination.

Legislator Drucker has long been at the forefront of important social issues, advocating for reproductive healthcare access, passing legislation to mandate sexual harassment training at the County, and is a staunch ally of the LGBTQ+ community.

A former trustee of Nassau Community College, Drucker remains a champion for equitable access to quality higher education.

As the COVID-19 pandemic progressed, Drucker provided direct assistance to hundreds of newly unemployed and under-employed residents and those affected by Hurricane Isaias and scheduled hundreds of COVID-19 vaccine appointments for senior citizens and immunocompromised residents.

Drucker established Neighbors Helping Neighbors to coordinate volunteers to shop for isolated senior citizens and immunocompromised community members, organized food drives, recognized our police, frontline heroes, and essential workers, and created the first virtual internship program for high school students in need of a sense of community.

When information was scarce, Drucker enlisted experts to provide numerous virtual community updates on health, business, reopening, and more.

Drucker’s plan for moving forward includes upgrading county services to increase digital access for all residents, working with local experts to form a crucial plan for our dwindling groundwater supply, improving infrastructure by beginning with the repair of county sidewalks, and working to implement green initiatives.

These include replacing the County’s fleet of vehicles with energy-efficient electric and/or hybrid models and reducing environmental impact by eliminating paper checks for employees. These measures will, in turn, allow taxpayer dollars to be spent more effectively.

Issues

Economic Recovery

Small and local businesses are the backbone of our Nassau County economy. Boost Nassau ensured the efficient delivery and deployment of American Rescue Plan funds to supercharge our regional recovery from COVID-19. As additional funding is received, long-term solutions must be implemented.

We must work with our local IDAs to carefully evaluate opportunities for economic growth and development without overlooking small and local businesses. These opportunities need to bring good-paying jobs to our communities and support our independent, family-owned businesses while balancing environmental impact.

We must encourage the smart development of our local downtowns to support the expansion of our sales tax base and ensure that Nassau County continues to hold the line on property taxes.

Infrastructure

From sidewalks to roads to public transportation, Nassau County must continue moving forward in order to strengthen and best position our local economy not only for recovery but for residents, families, and businesses to thrive. Local businesses and downtowns depend upon safe roads, structurally sound sidewalks, and expanded access to transportation and options for walkability.

We must implement lessons from the pandemic and therefore expand access to technology and transportation for all while ensuring that infrastructure improvements help to create a more accessible Nassau for all residents.

Community Health and Wellness

As we begin to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, the comprehensive health and well-being of Nassau County residents must remain our top priority. This includes a greater focus not only on physical health but on mental health.

Almost immediately at the onset of the pandemic, instances of domestic violence and reports of opioid overdoses increased dramatically. We must expand programming and support services for survivors of abuse, those suffering from substance abuse and addiction, and for residents coping with mental health issues.

We must work harder towards achieving equity for all Nassau County residents, and we must work towards eradicating antisemitism and discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders here in Nassau County.

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