Lawmakers send conflicting signals on override of Mangano tax hike

Majority Republicans in the Nassau County Legislature sent sharply conflicting signals Friday about whether they intend to override County Executive Edward Mangano's veto of changes to the 2015 budget that stripped out a 3.4 percent property tax increase.

On Thursday, Mangano, a Republican, vetoed seven amendments to his $2.98 billion budget that legislators said would offset $31 million in expected new tax revenues, along with spending of $1 million for mental health and substance abuse programs.

Mangano said the legislative initiatives amounted to "risky one-shot revenues and expense reductions that violate sound budget practices."

Friday afternoon, Presiding Officer Norma Gonsalves (R-East Meadow) said in an emailed statement that her staff was drafting documents to override Mangano's veto.

"If there exist reasonable revenue sources to use in lieu of a tax increase, then we owe it to the taxpayers to use them, so yes, we intend to override the veto," Gonsalves said.

Less than an hour later, Gonsalves issued a revised statement saying, "the majority intends to consider all of its options" on a veto override.

A Gonsalves spokeswoman declined to elaborate other than to say the possibility of an override "remains on the table." A Mangano spokesman declined to comment.

The county legislature has until Nov. 13 to override Mangano's veto. The eight-member Democratic caucus supports a veto override, which requires the votes of 13 of the 19 legislators.

Jon Kaiman, chairman of the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, the county's financial control board, has called the legislature's budget changes a "nonstarter" because they rely on speculative revenue sources and tactics prohibited by NIFA.

NIFA must pass the Mangano budget. If NIFA and the legislature fail to strike a deal, the board can unilaterally make across-the-board spending cuts, said NIFA member Chris Wright.

Wright said the board should go further to bring long-term spending into balance. “The issue is not $31 million,” he said. “The issue is that the budget deficit is no less than $150 million a year for the next four years. NIFA needs to take steps to bring the long term spending into balance.”

Mangano's proposed property tax hike would cost the average household $41 a year. Residents with combined household incomes below $500,000 would receive a credit for the tax increase through a state rebate program, he said. Households with income above that threshold and businesses cannot get the rebate.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.