Bellone seeks to curb OT costs to Suffolk

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone Wednesday ordered department heads to submit overtime requests to his budget office seven days in advance so that budget officials can determine whether it is essential.

"It is increasingly clear that we are not on a sustainable fiscal course and must cut back," Bellone said in a statement. "That is why I am placing stringent guidelines on overtime and informing managers that all spending needs to be both justified and scrutinized."

Administration officials say that county overtime costs have grown 21 percent since 2006 and constantly exceeded approved budgets. Had overtime remained at 2006 levels, they maintain the county would have saved $11.6 million.

Deputy County Executive Jon Schneider said the new directive, which takes effect immediately, deals with pre-scheduled overtime like night meetings or use of OT to finish routine public works jobs, not emergency situations. He could not say how much of this year's $60.9 million overtime budget involves scheduled overtime. Last year, police accounted for $30.9 million of overtime.

"No one is saying the police should not respond to a crime scene," he said. "But what we do expect is for every manager to be able to justify every minute of overtime they approve." Schneider also said budget officials will track department OT on a monthly basis. "We have a sense there has not been as strict oversight as we like to see."

However, officials in the past have said OT costs have only risen as the county has cut back on staffing, and use of overtime is considered less costly than hiring new personnel because of the cost of fringe benefits like pension and health insurance.

Legis. Edward Romaine (R-Center Moriches) said Bellone's effort is a reflection of the county's fiscal woes. "When you don't have money, everything is a problem." But he cautioned that while the new policy "may save some money, it could create other inefficiencies and result in unintended consequences."

The new policy requires personnel to file overtime pre-authorization request forms with their department heads, who in turn must forward the forms to the budget office for review and approval seven days ahead of time. In emergency situation, Schneider said that immediate supervisors will still be allowed to authorize overtime.