Biography the Nassau County government website.
Laura Schaefer was first elected to the Nassau County Legislature in 2013 and was re-elected by wide margins in 2015, 2017 and again in 2019 to represent Legislative District 14 which includes Garden City, Garden City South, Carle Place and portions of Westbury, Jericho, Hicksville, Bethpage, Plainview, West Hempstead, Hempstead and Franklin Square. Laura grew up in Westbury and graduated from Adelphi University with a B.A. in Communications.
She was later admitted to practice law in New York State, receiving her Juris Doctor from Hofstra University School of Law.
Prior to entering the legal field, Laura worked for the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Manhattan, where she excelled in hospitality management overseeing large departments that were crucial to expediting guest services in order to provide customers with an exceptional stay.
As an elected Legislator in the County of Nassau, Laura’s advocacy is not only limited to her representation of clients as she also represents over 71,000 constituents. She has assumed several committee leadership roles in the areas of capital planning and budgeting, intergovernmental relations, governmental operations, public health and social services.
As a result, Laura has gained extensive experience in funding for community revitalization projects and approved the appointment of qualified and experienced individuals to serve on various management and oversight boards in Nassau County.
Laura is Chairwoman of the Planning, Development & the Environment Committee, Vice Chair of the Towns, Villages & Cities Committee, and serves as a Member of the Rules Committee, the Public Works Committee and the Health & Social Services Committee.
Laura currently practices at Walsh Markus McDougal & DeBellis, LLP, in Garden City, in the firm’s Real Estate, Land Use and Litigation practice groups.
She resides in Westbury, New York.
The three most important issues in my campaign are taxes and the reassessment, public safety and delivering results to my constituents.
Since taking office I have fought to maintain the quality of life that our residents expect by fighting to lower taxes and cut fees. Most recently, myself and my colleagues Republican Majority submitted amendments to the county executive’s budget that would cut $120 million in property taxes and $100 million in county fees.
I will continue to look for ways to increase revenue in the county, improve our downtowns and provide guidance for our residents regarding the County’s reassessment process which has resulted in significant property tax increases for many.
As for public safety, I am opposed to defunding our police and always try to provide our police department with the resources they need. People want to maintain the quality of life they live on Long Island for and that includes feeling safe inside and outside of their homes. A strong and well-qualified police department supports that way of life.
Delivering results to my constituents includes being responsive to their needs by communicating with them one on one or at community meetings, returning phone calls, and emails and getting them answers to their questions.
With regard to our infrastructure, delivering results means my office has to stay on top of the many projects in my district that including making our streets safer and revitalizing our downtowns. I have developed great relationships with members of our Department of Public Works which enables me to move those projects forward and see them through to fruition.
I am the most qualified candidate for this position because I have 8 years of knowledge and experience as a legislator and 11+ years as an attorney. I have experience and in-depth knowledge of the county budget and have developed relationships throughout the district that enable me to address the issues of my constituents.
Whether it has to do with taxes, public safety, water quality or infrastructure, I have the years of experience necessary to address these issues myself, draft ideas for new legislation or bring the necessary parties together who can work on a resolution for the specific matter at hand.
I am also proud of my record of cutting taxes, helping our residents during the pandemic and promoting small businesses during the pandemic and helping those businesses to navigate the funding and assistance opportunities available to them since the pandemic began
