Dear Resident,
I, along with my colleagues in the Legislative Majority, am supporting a bill we introduced this week that will provide up to 5 additional days of paid leave annually for combat veterans employed by Nassau County. The time can be used for medical appointments, physical therapy or psychological or stress-related treatment.
The legislation is authorized by New York State Military Law §242, which went into effect November 11, 2019, and specifically applies to Nassau County officers or employees that are combat theater veterans and combat zone of operations veterans.
The proposed bill, which will come before legislative committees on Monday, June 14th, coincides with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Awareness this month. Combat veterans are especially susceptible to PTSD due to the rigor of their service and traumatic experiences. It is crucial that our veterans receive the respect, support and care that they deserve and that they do not have to worry about missing paid days at work in order to do so. This legislation aims to accomplish that by giving veterans additional assistance in their efforts to address PTSD and other combat- related issues.
Earlier this week, the entire Legislative Majority penned a letter to the majority leaders of the New York State Senate and Assembly expressing our strong opposition to the Police Accountability Act, which would amend New York’s law that justifies police use of force and create a standard for prosecuting police officers who have improperly used deadly or excessive force. This bill is intended to limit a police officer’s use of force to a standard of “absolute last resort” which will only further compromise our officers from effectively performing their duties during the most critical moments they are facing on the job. It will not only further endanger the public but will likely lead to more police injuries and deaths.
After receiving numerous calls from constituents about the deteriorating conditions found in a number of Nassau County parks and after conducting our own investigation, the Legislative Majority sent a letter to County Executive Curran to bring this matter to her attention. We included photos of broken benches, dirty, standing water, litter and other unpleasant conditions.
Given the high taxes that residents pay to live in Nassau County and with the summer season upon us where people want to be outside enjoying our parks, it is unacceptable for our residents to have to endure the poor conditions that currently exist. I urge the County Executive to dedicate the resources necessary to clean, maintain and upgrade our parks as soon as possible and the Legislative Majority stands by ready to provide additional assistance, if needed, to accomplish this task.
As always, please feel free to contact me with any thoughts and ideas you may have with respect to the County or on any particular issue that you think I may be able to assist you with. You may contact me at (516) 571-6214 or by email at LSchaefer@NassauCountyNY.gov .
Sincerely,
Laura M. Schaefer
Legislator, District 14