Posted on 03/04/2002 2:55:59 PM PST by vannrox
ARDEN CITY, N.Y., Nov. 26 — Facing a Wednesday deadline to balance Nassau County's budget or risk a state fiscal takeover, the County Legislature's Democratic majority agreed tonight on a package of spending cuts and a 15 percent increase in the county property tax. The increase would cost homeowners about $150 a year.
But the budget for 2002 faces two more major hurdles: approvals by County Executive Thomas S. Gulotta and by the special state monitoring agency that oversees Nassau's finances.
A spokesman for Mr. Gulotta, a Republican who is retiring at the end of the year, said, "The county executive will review every aspect of the County Legislature's tax increase budget with the goal of cutting spending before consideration of additional tax increase."
The size of the increase heightened the chance that he would veto it, as he did a 15.4 percent increase last fall. If he does, the Democrats do not have enough votes to override him, and such a stalemate could trigger a state takeover.
Democrats say they hope to persuade Mr. Gulotta to support the tax increase to avoid what they say would be an even worse end to his career: giving control of the county to the state fiscal agency.
For years Mr. Gulotta has resisted tax increases. That practice, coupled with his reluctance to curb spending, helped plunge Nassau into large deficits. The deficits in turn forced the county to seek a state bailout and accept the imposition of the state oversight agency, the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority, known as NIFA.
Mr. Gulotta and the legislators had already agreed to a 5 percent increase in the county portion of the property tax — equal to about $1 a week for the average homeowner — for each of the next three years.
But the next county executive, Thomas R. Suozzi, a Democrat, has lobbied behind the scenes to accelerate the three annual tax increases into the first year. That was the same ploy he used in rectifying a deficit in the small city of Glen Cove when he took over as mayor there in 1994.
"So this is the Suozzi plan!" the legislature's Republican minority leader, Peter Schmitt, said. "You're imposing a larger tax increase than NIFA would require. This is ridiculous."
But the presiding officer, Judith A. Jacobs, a Democrat, said the plan would give the county "a stronger foundation" so that it "would not be on the verge of bankruptcy every time we turn around."
The state oversight agency, which set the Wednesday deadline, is planning its own meeting around Dec. 7. When Mr. Gulotta proposed his $2.2 billion budget for 2002, the state monitors found it out of balance by $55 million. The legislature then made revisions, but the monitors said the changes still fell short by about $45 million.
The Democrats say they believe their latest plan will win the agency's approval. Although they outlined the plan at a public meeting tonight, the formal paperwork was not ready for a vote until after midnight.
The new plan cuts sales tax estimates by $10 million because of the shaky economy, lowers estimated savings from job attrition by $8 million and reduces police spending by $7 million, mostly by eliminating a class of recruits. The plan also adds $1 million to pay county workers called up in the reserves and $1.2 million to give volunteer firefighters a partial tax break.
Mr. Suozzi issued a statement saying, "Nassau County is in the worst financial crisis of its history."
Furthermore, he said, "There is a looming recession and we still don't know the full impact on the economy of the September terrorist attacks.
"It's imperative that the legislature approves a solidly balanced budget that meets NIFA's scrutiny and is passed by the current county executive."
A spokesman for Mr. Gulotta, John Zaher, issued a comment on the budget that concluded, "Due to the fact the county executive will review the budget with the fiscal integrity of the county and the interest of the taxpayers foremost in mind, he cannot comment until he has received the final budget adopted by the legislature."
The property taxes are way out of control around here. Many people leave because they can't afford the taxes. Last I heard there was some talk about an income tax as well. Just what I need - another party in my financial business. I hope to move some day.
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