Nassau comptroller warns of $53M deficit

Nassau will face about a $53-million deficit at the end of the year if the county executive's projected savings do not materialize, Comptroller George Maragos warned in the first official review of the county's finances since a state takeover.

At a news conference in Mineola yesterday, Maragos said he needs more information on a projected $52.7 million in savings from employee layoffs, furloughs, departmental cuts and consolidations included in Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano's spending plan.

"In the absence of these details, we cannot include them in our projections," he said.

In response, Mangano spokeswoman Katie Grilli-Robles said, "We appreciate Comptroller Maragos' analysis as we move forward to meet Nassau County's fiscal challenges without raising taxes."

The Nassau Interim Finance Authority took control of the county's books in January, citing a $176 million deficit. Mangano has made cuts since then and NIFA froze wage hikes. While NIFA sources said the watchdog has not made any new estimate of the deficit, they said NIFA now sees about $126 million in questionable revenues and savings.

Both Mangano and Maragos insisted before the takeover that the $2.6-billion budget was balanced -- though Maragos noted Wednesday that he had identified $258 million in budget risks even then.

Maragos said Nassau would end this year with a $7.6-million surplus if not for NIFA's restriction against the longtime practice of borrowing to pay tax refunds, forcing the county to pay the $70 -million bill from operating expenses. "Without the NIFA takeover, we would have had a surplus," Maragos said.

NIFA board member Leonard Steinman responded, "NIFA is not causing a deficit by requiring the county to live within its means."

Over the past several weeks, Maragos had told Newsday that his budget projections would be "quite favorable." That changed, he said Wednesday, because "the administration was not able to quantify to our satisfaction" some of the cost-saving initiatives.

Maragos found it reasonable to believe that the county this year could raise $36 million from selling the rent from leases of county property in Mitchel Field and another $32 million from the sale of other property. NIFA, though, said selling the rent can't be counted in a single year under standard accounting principles. Maragos said lawyers are examining the issue.

Mangano told NIFA in March he would close the 2011 budget gap through a series of steps, including 213 layoffs by July 1, reorganization of the police department and 13-day furloughs for all workers.

But Jerry Laricchiuta, head of Nassau's Civil Service Employee Association, contends Mangano will have to remove 700 to 900 of his members from the payroll to get the $30 million in predicted personnel savings. "I don't see where he gets anywhere near the number he's looking for," Laricchiuta said.

Mangano spokesman Brian Nevin said, "The county executive will achieve the savings needed to keep our budget in balance. It requires shared sacrifice by all. If voluntary concessions are not met, layoffs will occur on July 1st. In addition, the county executive has worked to achieve savings through retirement and other cost-saving actions."