Blakeman to earmark $265 million in COVID aid for mental health, small businesses

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman told Newsday he will spend $265 million in accumulated federal pandemic aid -- including more than $190 million that arrived last week -- on initiatives to boost mental health services and help small businesses.

In an interview, Blakeman provided only a rough roadmap for spending the huge tranche of federal money received since last year under the American Rescue Plan act of 2021.

Blakeman, a Republican, said the $265 million includes $73 million in unspent federal money from former County Executive Laura Curran's program to provide $375 payments to individual county residents.

Blakeman killed the program, for which Curran had earmarked $100 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding, saying applications had dropped off sharply.

Blakeman said he also planned to spend $192.5 million in new rescue act funding -- Nassau's second and final payment -- for various social service, small business and infrastructure projects he did not detail.

"These much needed funds will be used to bolster the county's mental health and addiction services, support struggling small businesses, improve critical infrastructure and much more," Blakeman said.

Federal guidelines limit the use of ARPA money to assistance for residents and businesses impacted by the pandemic, fiscal aid for state and local governments and investments in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure.

The Nassau County Legislature must vote on whether to accept the federal money, according to the county charter and legislative attorneys.  

Legis. Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D-Glen Cove), who sat last year on a committee formed by the Curran administration to help allocate American Rescue Plan funding, noted a Hofstra University survey that found county residents favored earmarking the money for aid to small businesses and individual households struggling from the pandemic's impact.

DeRiggi-Whitton said she hoped Blakeman would "follow the same path of the prior administration: having a committee, reaching out to the public in some type of survey and before it’s allocated in a very specific way, provide a list to the legislature."

The county executive "has a lot of say in this process and I just hope they [administration officials] will be transparent throughout ," DeRiggi-Whitton told Newsday. 

Nassau has received a total of $385 million through the American Rescue Plan Act -- the first half in May 2021 and the second disbursement on June 9.

Blakeman has until 2024 to allocate the federal funds. The money must be spent by 2026, according to federal guidelines.   

Suffolk County has received two tranches of ARPA funding totaling $287 million.

Suffolk has used the federal money to restore 2021 budget cuts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and invested in water infrastructure including the Forge River Sewer project and a sewer project in Huntington Station, said Marykate Guilfoyle, a spokeswoman for Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone.

Adam Barsky, chairman of the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, a state board that controls Nassau County finances, declined to comment. 

Curran, a Democrat, said last year that providing direct $375 payments to individuals would "put money directly in people's pockets" before the holiday shopping season.  

Blakeman, who defeated Curran in November, killed the program on May 15. Administration officials said the program was "trickling out" because U.S. Treasury Department guidelines this year lowered the eligibility ceiling to $76,050 in income.  

Of the nearly 30,000 recipients for whom the county Comptroller's office could provide income data:

• 43%, or 12,748, had annual incomes of more than $100,000.
• 16% (4,622) had incomes of $75, 001-$100,000.
• 14%, (4,140) earned $51,000 to $75,000.
• 27% (8,061) had incomes of $50,000 or less.

According to the Comptroller, the municipalities with the largest number of approved applications were:

• Hempstead Village, where the average applicant had a combined household income of $39,051.
• Levittown, $96,441.
• Massapequa, $100,830.
• East Meadow, $94,989.
• Hicks ville, $88,808.

By Candice Ferrette

candice.ferrette@newsday.comcandiceferrette

Candice Ferrette covers Nassau County government and politics on Long Island. She has been a reporter at Newsday since 2011.