Nassau legislative leaders give up pay raises

Nassau Presiding Officer Peter Schmitt reversed course Monday as lawmakers rescinded salary increases for him and other legislative leaders after Democrats and community groups expressed outrage.

During a legislative meeting, Schmitt (R-Massapequa) said a worsening economy and sales tax revenue were the main reasons he reversed himself, but admitted that the criticism was a factor in the decision.

"We don't want to direct any more misattention to this issue," Schmitt said as he pushed the measure to a vote.

The change comes after Schmitt got the newly elected Republican majority to approve on Jan. 25 an increase in his annual stipend, boosting his total annual compensation to $99,500 from $67,500. The base pay for all legislators, who are part time, is $39,500.

He also bumped the compensation of Deputy Presiding Officer John Ciotti (R-North Valley Stream) to $84,500 from $62,500, and the stipend of Minority Leader Diane Yatauro (D-Glen Cove) to $90,500 from $63,500.

All 11 Republicans voted for the increases, and all eight Democrats voted against. The repeal Monday was unanimous.

An Elmont activist, Patrick Nicolosi, scolded the legislators just before the vote for passing the increases in the first place.

"You reneged on it. You changed because of pressure from people," Nicolosi, president of the Elmont East Civic Association, said.

After the meeting, Yatauro said, "We are glad it's been rescinded."

Democrats, who lost control of the legislature at the beginning of the year, had jumped on the increases as a political weapon, saying privately that Schmitt might have given them a method to regain power in the 2012 elections. Republicans, who took back control of the legislature and county executive seat, pounded Democrats during the campaign last year about spending and taxes.

Legis. David Denenberg (D-Merrick) unsuccessfully tried to introduce an amendment that would have required that future increases in the stipends of the leadership be subject to the same public notice requirements as salary increases, in legislation known as an ordinance.

Schmitt got both his original measure and the reversal passed as procedural resolutions, a mechanism that does not require public notice and cannot be vetoed by the county executive.

In other action Monday, the legislature approved eight nominations by County Executive Edward Mangano to the 13-member Human Rights Commission, and three members to the five-member board of the Industrial Development Agency.