Affordable housing, child care are top 2024 legislative priorities of Long Island executives

Increasing the number of homes and child care slots on Long Island — and making more of them affordable — is the top priority of the region’s most prominent business group as it lobbies government this year, officials said.

The Long Island Association on Friday unveiled its 2024 agenda for government action at the federal, state and local levels. The priorities, listed in an eight-page booklet, were approved last week by the group’s board of directors.

“Housing and child care speak to the existential crisis that’s facing our region, which is affordability,” said Matt Cohen, the LIA’s CEO and president. “For too many people on Long Island, the American dream of homeownership and quality child care is out of reach.”

Cohen said the LIA would work with governments to “think outside of the box and come up with innovative [housing] solutions,” such as streamlining the environmental and permitting process before shovels can be put into the ground. Nassau and Suffolk counties need more housing of all types and an expansion of assistance for first-time homebuyers, he said.

On child care, Cohen said pay for day care workers, at an average of $35,000 per year, is woefully inadequate. He also said there must be more options for employers to pay for the care of their employees’ kids, such as a proposal from Albany whereby parents, employers and the state would each pay one-third of the cost of day care.

“Working moms and dads shouldn’t have to choose between staying in their job or leaving their job because child care is inaccessible or too expensive,” said Cohen, who serves as chairman of the Child Care Council of Suffolk.

The LIA’s second priority is support for two building projects: Las Vegas Sands’ proposal for a $6 billion casino, hotel and entertainment complex on the site of Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and real estate developer JLL’s proposed $2.8 billion Midway Crossing project, which calls for connecting the Long Island Rail Road station in Ronkonkoma to Long Island MacArthur Airport and building a convention center.

Rounding out the LIA’s top three priorities is opposition to the municipalization of the Long Island Power Authority.

Last year, the LIA adopted a neutral stance on the future makeup of the region’s electric utility.

But Cohen said the business group now opposes “full municipalization” in response to what he said was a flawed consultant’s report that endorsed LIPA running the power grid by itself. The consultant was hired by the state Legislative Commission looking into how electricity should be delivered in coming years on Long Island.

“We don’t believe the consultant sufficiently examined all three options,” he said, referring to full municipalization, full privatization and the current public-private model.

The LIA’s “2024 Policy Priorities” booklet can be found at longislandassociation.org/policy-priorities. Its board has 98 members, including Newsday publisher Debby Krenek.

By James T. Madore

james.madore@newsday.comJamesTMadore

James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news including the economy, development, and the relationship between government and business. He previously served as Albany bureau chief.