Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi returned to Albany last week, making his second plea for lawmakers' permission to establish a sewer and storm water authority. Creation of the authority could generate millions of dollars and potentially save millions more by consolidating the current, fragmented structure of 27 sewage collection districts and three sewage disposal districts into one. Already, the authority concept has won backing from the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, a state panel overseeing county finances. Those should be reasons enough for lawmakers in Albany to stop stalling and give approval as soon as possible this session.
The idea of consolidating sewer and stormwater functions is hardly new. Even former County Executive Thomas Gulotta's financial advisers, Public Financial Management, suggested such a move three years ago as a way the cash-strapped county could save money.
PFM proposed first consolidating the sewer districts, a move the county could do on its own, and then approaching Albany with a proposal for an authority that would add a variety of other water and environmentally related duties to a countywide sewer district. Suozzi, however, wants to accomplish the entire transition in one step.
Problems could surface. The transition would be complicated for county employees, who would gain a new employer, and for county residents, who would go from having small local sewer districts to one larger, authority-run one. However, if Nassau's finances are to improve these problems would have to be solved quickly.
On May 1, Suozzi will give NIFA an updated four-year financial plan that is supposed to include specifics on how balancing long-term spending and revenues in Nassau will impact services. Even with the revenue and savings generated by an authority, Suozzi's task will be difficult. Without them, Nassau could be faced with even deeper cuts.
Source: Newsday