Nassau dickers with NIFA over police contract plan

Nassau County continued to dicker with its financial control board Thursday over how and when the county will provide a proposed police contract and related documents.

The Nassau Interim Finance Authority, a state board in control of the county's finances, on Monday directed County Executive Edward Mangano to turn over the pact he negotiated with the Police Benevolent Association, along with work papers explaining its costs.

Mangano last weekend announced a broad outline of the deal he said would lift an existing pay freeze and save the county $320 million. But NIFA said the terms appeared flawed and possibly illegal. Jeremy Wise, NIFA general counsel, said late Thursday, "Notwithstanding a second request from me on behalf of the NIFA directors, we have not received any of the information that was requested."

County Attorney John Ciampoli said Thursday he had not received an official request from NIFA, only an email from Wise that "doesn't say who directed it" or show a vote of the NIFA board. He said he would meet with Mangano to decide how to proceed with providing documents while complying with NIFA guidelines that require contracts' approval by county legislature before going to NIFA.

In a letter to NIFA Monday, Ciampoli suggested its statements this week on the proposed pact could be considered "inflammatory and prejudicial." Asked how Mangano could comment on the agreement, Ciampoli said, "NIFA was offering a statement on a document they hadn't seen and making pronouncements . . . incongruous with the whole idea of negotiating a labor agreement." In his letter, Ciampoli offered to meet with Stack and his staff to provide the documents and a briefing. But he said NIFA did not want a briefing.

PBA president James Carver said, "In the best interest of explaining the agreement and making sure there is no question left unanswered, it is my belief that all three parties should sit down, be reasonable and answer any questions NIFA may have on this."