Hempstead, Oyster Bay supervisors seek return of $5.5M in state aid

Hempstead Town Supervisor Laura Gillen and Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph Saladino sent a joint letter to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Tuesday seeking the return of $5.5 million in combined state assistance.

The proposed state budget slashed $19 million in Aid Incentives for Municipalities, or AIM, funding on Long Island, including $3.8 million allocated for Hempstead and $1.7 million in Oyster Bay.

Town officials said that local Long Island governments depend on the money for community services, including road repairs, senior enrichment, youth programs and economic development.

“Our 2019 budgets have already been adopted without anticipating these severe cuts,” the joint letter said. “We respectfully submit that cutting aid to towns but not cities appears arbitrary or unfair in view of the fact that each of our townships are larger in population than every other city in the state of New York, with the exception of New York City.”

Gillen and Saladino said the cuts will reverse bipartisan work on bipartisan bills and shared service agreements, including upgrades to transit and infrastructure.

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.