In his State of the County address Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano proclaimed that the county “is now on the road to recovery because of the tough decisions made to take on the status quo.” He added that “Recovery cannot occur overnight – but it will happen.”
We wish we shared his optimism. Mangano claimed that the county is ending the financial year with a $17.2 million dollar surplus. What he neglected to mention is the fact that the county is facing a $176 million deficit for the 2011-2012 financial year. In his address he also did not talk about the fact that the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority has taken over control of the county’s finances.
Although Mangano is moving in the right direction, he has only begun to make the “tough decisions” that will be needed to put the county on sound fiscal footing. The county remains locked into what he rightly calls “lavish spending” and has structural problems that must be addressed.
The irony in all of this is that Nassau County is among the wealthiest counties in the nation. The median household income is $95,000. It has the second highest property tax in the nation, second only to Westchester County with an average near $9,000.
In part the problem rests in the salaries and pensions paid to town, county and school workers. After eight years on the job a county police officer earns a base salary of $108,000. Add to that a 12 percent night differential and a generous health care and retirement package.
It gets worse. In its April 18 issue Bloomberg Businessweek reports that two school superintendents are making $380,000 each. And the report notes, “The 2011 budget for the Hempstead animal shelter includes $3.25 million in salaries for 38 employees.”
This kind of generosity is not sustainable. Where else in Long Island can a person without at least a B.A. hope to make $108,000?
Added to problem, the county is facing more than $100 million in property tax refunds. Each year one-third of the homeowners and nearly every business challenge their tax bill. Some of the issues adding to the growing debt will be far more difficult to address. Nassau County has more government than any community needs. In addition to the county executive, there are two cities, three towns, 62 unincorporated villages, 56 school districts and dozens of special districts. And all of these have their own officials and budgets.
Although Mangano said he wants to “put the county on a diet, there is reason to believe that he still doesn’t grasp the enormity of the problem. “I shouldn’t have been so cooperative [with NIFA],” he told a reporter last week. “It’s a power grab intended to discredit and embarrass the administration, the Tea Party, and the Republican Party.”
Nassau County has not yet started down the road to recovery. Mangano did not create the problems that the county is facing but it his responsibility to address them. The leaders of the police unions and Nassau’s Civil Service Employees Association must work with Mangano and NIFA to get labor costs under control or run the risk of massive layoffs and possible bankruptcy.
Mangano needs to stop pumping air up the county skirt.
All sides must be willing to form a coalition that will enable Nassau County continue to be a great place to raise a family for decades to come.
A Blank Slate Editorial
