Mineola, N.Y. - Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi announced today that Wall Street bond rating agency Fitch Ratings has improved the County's rating outlook from Stable to Positive. This is the first sign that the County's credit rating may improve.

In a press release issued earlier today, the rating agency said that "The change in Rating Outlook reflects clear improvement in the quality of financial management, the enactment of nearly all legislative changes necessary for implementation of the financial plan, and demonstrated progress towards achieving plan initiatives in the areas of workforce reduction, assessment reform and revenue enhancements." They added, "The plan also includes conservative revenue and expenditure assumptions in the major areas."

The upgrade comes on the heels of the presentation of the County Executive's proposed 2003 budget and the 2003-2006 Multi-Year Financial Plan. "This another step forward for Nassau County," said the County Executive. A change in the County's outlook is an indication of the direction the County's rating is likely to move over a one to two year period.

Prior to this most recent upgrade, Standard & Poor's had already taken the County off of Credit Watch on the strength of County's Four-Year Recovery Plan issued back in April.

"It's gratifying that all of the hard work we have done to turn the County around is being acknowledged," stated County Executive Suozzi. "Fitch has recognized our efforts to eliminate waste, duplicative services and reduce the County's workforce by over 15%."

The release from Fitch can be accessed at their website, www.fitchratings.com.