Suozzi & Levy to Pull County Patrol Units from State-Run Roads
In Response to Proposed Budget Cuts from Albany,
Suozzi & Levy will Put Officers Back into Neighborhoods and Let State Patrol State Roads
Melville, NY – Long Island's two County Executives today proposed to begin pulling their county Highway Patrol functions from state roads – including the Long Island Expressway (LIE) and Sunrise Highway – in the wake of continuing budget cuts from New York State.
Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi and Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy detailed their plans for incrementally redeploying one-quarter of the officers in each county's highway patrol back into precinct duty. Under the plan, by February 1, 2009, all county officers will have been removed from highway patrol and returned to precinct duty, with the patrol function on affected roads turned over to New York State.
The County Executives said that proposed cost shifts from New York State – including a two percent across the board reduction in revenue sharing to counties – are forcing Counties to find ways to increase revenue and decrease expenditures. In Suffolk, according to police officials, 61 officers are assigned to Highway Patrol. In Nassau, 8 cars are staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. 62 officers and supervisors are assigned to the Long Island and Seaford Oyster Bay Expressways in Nassau County.
Each county spends approximately $12 million annually to patrol state highways in the county, while State Troopers throughout the rest of New York perform this function. On Long Island, State Troopers patrol only the parkways and county police officers patrol the other major state roads such as the LIE and Sunrise Highway.
"For far too long, both Nassau and Suffolk County resources have been used to patrol state-run roads. We are struggling to meet the mandates Albany is forcing down on the local level and yet Long Islanders currently send $3 billion more to Albany in income taxes than we get back in state aid," said Suozzi. "Property taxes are just too high and we cannot afford to continue absorbing costs that the State should be paying for while they continue to cut funds coming to Long Island."
"We are left with no choice but to start removing county officers from state roads and make the state police perform its role," said Levy, whose request to the prior two Governors to make this change was denied. "Ironically, they tell Long Island no, but former Governor Spitzer earlier this year proposed sending 200 state troopers to upstate cities like Buffalo to patrol neighborhoods up there."
Levy, who is President of the New York State County Executives Association, sharply criticized the state government for cutting revenues to suburban and rural counties while giving major increases to cities. "It is disturbing that the state can find the money to provide a seven percent increase across the board to cities, but at the same time shifts an additional two percent of costs onto counties," Levy added. "Counties are left with little alternative but to begin to cut back further to avoid a property tax increase."
Suozzi, known for his Fix Albany and Medicaid capping reform initiatives, was appointed Chairman of the statewide Commission on Property Tax Reform. The Commission is a bi-partisan committee charged with examining and recommending the most effective approach to capping property taxes in New York State, while maintaining the quality of education provided in local school districts. The Commission is also responsible for developing a package of reforms to address unfunded mandates and other root causes of high property taxes. A report is due to the Governor in May.
