Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman touts success, blasts critics in State of the County address
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, in his third State of the County address, touted success and lashed out at critics on issues including the development of a multibillion-dollar casino resort, transgender restrictions and Nassau University Medical Center's financial woes.
Blakeman, a Republican in his third year in office, covered those and other topics in a speech at the Theodore Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building in Mineola on Wednesday.
He said his administration has made progress on local issues such as crime, taxes and tourism. His "aggressive marketing efforts" to raise the county’s profile have led to hosting the International Cricket World Cup in June and the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage State Park, he said. County finances remain on solid footing, with upgrades from two Wall Street credit ratings agencies, a healthy budget surplus and no tax increases, he added.
Blakeman also leaned heavily on issues that have captured attention in election years and spurred criticism that he focuses more on politics than policy.
National, state issues
Blakeman took aim at state and New York City officials for their handling of the influx of migrants that has strained resources in states including New York. He mentioned state bail reform laws that Republicans have characterized as anti-police.
Blakeman doubled down on his executive order last month that bars transgender girls from participating in girls' sports at county parks and facilities. Earlier Wednesday, he announced the county is suing state Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat who ordered him to rescind the restrictions because they violate state anti-discrimination laws.
"I will not!" Blakeman told his audience.
Local issues
Blakeman blamed Hofstra University and its president, Susan Poser, for a legal battle that has stalled a proposed Las Vegas Sands casino resort at Nassau Coliseum. Hofstra sued in April over alleged open meetings violations in the legislative approval process.
“They should be ashamed of their NIMBY-ism,” he said of Hofstra officials, using a critical term for opponents of nearby development.
Last month a state Supreme Court judge ruled again that Sands lacks a valid lease to operate the site. Nassau is appealing that and another ruling that orders the county to start the process over, properly notify the public of meetings and conduct an environmental review.
Blakeman said the state is responsible for NUMC budget cuts, calling them "dangerous and inhumane."
NUMC risks running out of money by late April, according to a consultant's report. On Tuesday, NUMC board chairman Matthew Bruderman, appointed by Blakeman in 2022, rejected the state's demands for the hospital to overhaul its leadership and reduce its budget deficits in order to receive $83 million in emergency funding.
Blakeman defended his handling of Nassau's property assessment system and said the process is "more fair, accurate, transparent and resident-friendly." He froze the tax rolls for the 2025-26 tax year. But the continued freeze, now in its fourth year, expands inequities in assessments and erodes the accuracy of the rolls, experts say.
Critics' response
Nassau Legis. Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D-Glen Cove), the legislature’s minority leader, said Blakeman has not delivered on a campaign promise of fixing the assessment system.
Democrats criticized him for being slow to distribute funds from the state's legal settlement with opioid companies, but quick to allocate $10 million in federal COVID-19 funding for events celebrating the county's 125th anniversary.
“This never-ending pattern of political self-promotion over meaningful government action is unacceptable,” DeRiggi-Whitton said in a statement.
Christopher Malone, associate provost and political science professor at Farmingdale State College, said Blakeman and other politicians' focus on cultural issues has seen success at the ballot box. Malone noted how Blakeman at a January event told Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, to “stay out of Long Island.”
“When you focus on the politics and not the policy, you risk being seen as a show horse, not a workhorse,” he said. “I think people like work horses. But then again, there's a mix of the electorate right now that wants fighters.”
Vera Chinese joined Newsday in 2017 after working as an editor for the East End lifestyle publication northforker and a general assignment reporter for the New York Daily News.
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