The Nassau County Legislature's Public Works Committee advanced a proposed $439.1 million capital budget for 2027, the first year of a four-year capital plan, but three members abstained, saying they had just received new project details and had not had time to review them.
The minority leader said her caucus wanted to meet with staff before a public hearing on the plan scheduled for Nov. 23 and once new legislators are seated. "We just got more information on Friday, which we have not had a chance to really review," she said.
The committee advanced the budget and an accompanying four-year capital plan by votes of 4-0-3, with Christian Sick of the Department of Public Works telling legislators the budget includes $310.2 million in general capital spending and $128.9 million for sewer and stormwater work.
In the Rules Committee, legislators approved a five-year contract with Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield to continue health benefits for county employees, including a high-deductible plan. Director of Human Resources Marissa Howard said the county pays 85% of the New York State Health Insurance Program premium rate for roughly 1,900 enrolled employees, and that the total premium cost over five years is estimated at about $300 million.
The Rules Committee also approved a three-year extension of the county's outside auditing contract with CBIZ CPAs, adding $1,071,000, after the minority leader questioned a roughly 30% cost increase. Comptroller's office representative Charlie Castellaro attributed the increase to expanded reporting requirements under governmental accounting standards. "The GASB rules have increased and expanded the scope of the work that the auditing firms are required to do for the county," he said.
Legislators also advanced a new on-call architectural and engineering services contract with H2M Architects and Engineers, worth up to $3 million, as one of several on-call contractors for county building design work. The minority leader pressed Deputy Commissioner Douglas Tooman on the total potential exposure across all the on-call contracts, which she estimated at roughly $10 million, and asked for a breakdown of how much each contractor has actually been paid.
The Public Safety Committee approved a $562,500 federal port security grant, plus a $187,500 county match, for airborne surveillance camera equipment to be mounted on the police department's helicopters.
The same committee pressed emergency management staff after learning that a FEMA-backed flood mitigation grant program for homeowners with repeated water damage has not been publicized. One legislator said she lives in a waterfront community hit by past storms. "It's imperative that homeowners know that these funds are available," she said. Staff agreed to look into ways to publicize the $247,500 program and report back to legislators.
The Planning, Development and Environment Committee approved selling a roughly third-of-an-acre vacant parcel in Old Bethpage to CARP Associates Incorporated for $380,000, with a 10-year deed restriction requiring the land be used for truck turnaround access and giving the county the right to repurchase it if it is not.