NIFA approves Laura Curran's $3.075 billion budget for 2019

The Nassau Interim Finance Authority on Tuesday night approved Nassau County Executive Laura Curran's $3.075 billion budget, along with her administration's request to borrow $100 million to help eliminate a $360 million backlog of tax refund settlements.

The financial control board in October outlined $59 million in risks to Curran's proposed 2019 budget. But NIFA said the spending plan contained the lowest risk of any budget proposal since at least 2014.

"We always have concerns, but I think the concern over this budget is less severe, less concerning than prior budgets," NIFA chairman Adam Barsky said in an interview.

The Nassau County Legislature approved the financing at its Nov. 19 meeting. 

The budget and borrowing were approved in 6-0 votes.

The administration over the summer said it wanted to borrow a total of $300 million in 2018 and 2019  so it could retire most of the $360 million refund backlog as of the end of last year.

However, NIFA board members vowed Tuesday not to approve any more borrowing to pay tax certiorari related claims made after Dec. 31, 2017. NIFA also required the county to issue monthly reports showing that the county had made progress in paying back the refunds.

Barsky said the board recognized "the extraordinary nature of the backlog, and we're making it clear that we're approving only borrowing for the backlog." 

With that $100 million, Nassau plans to pay 10,000 Assessment Review Commission settlements totaling $45 million, and 8,600 County Attorney settlements worth $55 million. About 80 percent of the claims are from commercial property owners and the rest are from residential homeowners.

Curran said in a statement after the vote, "This is a critical step in my efforts to reform the assessment system, create a fair and accurate assessment roll for the first time in eight years and end the cycle of borrowing and debt that has remained the single biggest obstacle in fixing the financial mess left behind by the prior administration.”

Mark Page, deputy county executive for finance, said earlier Tuesday that Nassau is "committed to pay cert [tax certiorari] claims going forward with new resources . . . Getting rid of this overhang means we can concentrate our resources on paying what we owe going forward and not be juggling around, continuing the past practice of trying to delay payments, rack up interest costs."

Page said he was hopeful refunds could be mailed early next year.

In other business, NIFA approved a $42.9 million contract with E&A Restoration Inc. to build a 90,000-square-foot police academy on the grounds of Nassau Community College in Garden City. The project, approved by the county legislature last summer, is expected to cost $54 million and will be financed through borrowing.

Curran said in a statement, "For too long Nassau’s law enforcement professionals have had to train in a rundown, aged elementary school or dilapidated trailers at the Nassau jail. The new facility will allow us to share services, provide a new level of community engagement and deliver the advanced training for law enforcement."

By Scott Eidler

scott.eidler@newsday.com@ScottEidler

Scott Eidler is a deputy editor for the towns department at Newsday. Scott has worked at Newsday since 2012 and previously covered municipal government and education.