Fold treasurer’s office into comptroller’s: Weitzman

Dan Glaun

Former Nassau County Comptroller Howard Weitzman (D-North Hills), who is running in a rematch against incumbent Comptroller George Maragos, has called for folding the county treasurer’s office into the comptroller’s office.

Weitzman said in a press release the move would save the county more than $1 million annually through the elimination of redundant positions and increase the efficiency of the department.

“With the county’s debt at an all-time high, this is a common sense way to save taxpayer money and enhance government efficiency,” Weitzman said.

But the proposal drew pushback from Maragos, who said the plan would reduce oversight over the county’s finances.

“Merging the office that manages the cash with the Comptroller’s Office which oversees the use of the cash, would destroy the check-and-balance system that ensures that taxpayer money is protected and well spent,” Maragos wrote in a statement. “The Comptroller’s office has the power and the responsibility to audit the Treasurer Office to ensure that taxpayer funds are protected. The ill-conceived merger proposed by Weitzman would eliminate the independent oversight and place hundreds of millions at risk by a disreputable Comptroller. Maybe this is what Weitzman wants if he is returned to office?”

Weitzman said the change would bring Nassau County in line with how the state and New York City run their finances. 

Other counties, including Wayne and Onondaga counties, have independent finance or treasury departments. And Suffolk County, which unlike Nassau has an elected treasurer, is considering merging its comptroller’s and treasurer’s offices.

The merger would have the comptroller’s office, which audits county and municipal departments and issues reports on the county’s finances, assume the duties of the treasurer, whose responsibilities include issuing checks and managing the county’s cash, debt and grants.

Nassau County Treasurer Beaumont Jefferson said he had no comment on Weitzman’s proposal.

Weitzman projects that at least $1 million in salary costs could be cut by eliminating 10 positions that he termed redundant, without accounting for increased efficiencies in the expanded department.

Weitzman wrote that a 2012 management letter had described “serious” deficiencies in the treasury department’s internal controls, and argued that the comptroller’s office could enhance oversight.

“As the county’s chief financial watchdog, it is a failure of leadership for Mr. Maragos to sit idly by while material internal control weaknesses exist in county government,” Weitzman said in the statement.  “By bringing these important financial functions under the purview of a qualified Comptroller, these problems can be avoided.”

Maragos said his office had addressed problems missed during Weitzman’s term, and created $2 million in annual savings in the treasurer’s office.

“Weitzman was in office for eight years and did not notice, as the taxpayer watch dog, 130 unreconciled bank accounts in the Treasurer’s Office with $400 million being mismanaged,” Maragos wrote “My audit found these accounts and fixed the problem.”

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