North Merrick fire official lacks training

Three commissioners in the North Merrick Fire District say they are angry with one of their colleagues elected last year, who so far has not taken the financial training course mandated by state's town law - but they are not sure what actions to take to address the situation, they said.

According to three commissioners on the five-member board, Michael Costanza has not taken either the six-hour training or the eight-hour online course, designed to educate commissioners on laws and regulations regarding the financial operations of fire districts. The law states that training for newly elected or re-elected commissioners must be completed 270 days after taking office. Costanza was elected in December 2009 and began serving on Jan. 1, 2010.

Costanza said he has tried numerous times to take the training, but personal issues and course schedule changes have made that difficult, and he said he didn't know he could do the training online until after the 270-day time period had passed. He plans to take the course in January, he said.

"He was given every opportunity," said North Merrick Fire District chairman Enzo Lippolis. "He's supposed to be an advocate for the taxpayers, and here he is making decisions, monetary decisions, and he hasn't completed the training."

Section 176-e of the state's town law was put in place in the wake of Newsday's Fire Alarm series, which highlighted spending practices of fire districts and lack of oversight.

It is unclear whether there is any way to remove a commissioner from office for not getting the training, as there is no direct penalty attached to the law. William Young, counsel for the Association of Fire Districts of the State of New York, described the law as having "no teeth."

However, state law says that a "citizen resident" of any fire district, as well as the county district attorney, can make an application to the local state appeals court to remove an officer for "misconduct, maladministration, malfeasance or malversation in office" with appropriate notice.

The state education commissioner has ruled that school board members can be removed from office if they fail to take their mandatory financial training, a state education spokesman said.

The three North Merrick commissioners said they are worried they could get critical remarks on the district's next state audit if one of the officer has not completed the course.

"People want transparency, and they deserve it," said Commissioner Scott Rockwin. "It's a big thing with this board."

Lippolis said the full board plans to further discuss the matter with the district's attorney.

Since the law was enacted in 2006, nearly 3,000 fire commissioners have been trained on the curriculum developed by the state comptroller's office, said Young, who is one of the instructors for the course. "The training is invaluable," he said.