Event coincides with release of final chapter on Cost Savers, which highlights up to $308.9 in efficiencies that can be saved.
MINEOLA, NY – Coinciding with the release of the third and final installment from the three-part Local Economic Acceleration Plan (LEAP) series, Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman welcomed a panel of experts for a roundtable discussion focused on innovative ideas that will drive our economy forward as we rebuild post-COVID. The roundtable discussion was streamed on Facebook Live.
The roundtable included:
- New York State Assemblywoman Taylor Darling
- Sammy Chu, CEO of Edgewise Energy
- David Orwasher, Chief Development Officer of Breslin Realty
- Todd Poole, Managing Principal of 4ward Planning Inc.
- David G. Schieren, CEO of EmPower Solar
- Kyle Strober, Executive Director of the Association for a Better Long Island
The third chapter of the series features actions that could help cut costs for local government and increase the efficiency of taxpayer money. This release follows up the first and second installments in the series, which featured the first eight opportunities for New York State and local governments to help accelerate economic growth in our communities and focus on opportunities to generate revenue.
“As we complete our LEAP trilogy, I am appreciative of innovative local leaders for joining with us to share our focus on growing the local economy, generating new revenue streams for the County, and saving taxpayer dollars. We all recognize the critical need to look to innovative and proven solutions that can help reinforce Nassau County as a place with opportunity for all residents and
better align the County for the demands of the post-COVID economy,” said Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman. “The process of putting together these reports was in-depth. In addition to being research driven, we talked to experts and stakeholders all over Long Island for months. We did deep engagement focusing on solutions and background research on best practices. We focused on what they saw as opportunities and priorities to highlight in our post-COVID economic recovery. I am proud of this report and am hopeful that policymakers will seize the opportunity and pursue the several avenues we highlighted that will allow Nassau County to continue to make good on ‘The Deal’ to our residents.”
LEAP: Cost Savers highlights specific actions:
- Renter’s Choice Housing – Renter's Choice Housing allows renters the option to purchase an insurance policy with a monthly premium in lieu of paying an upfront security deposit, which is typically one month of rent. In 2019, the Census identified 86,803 residential rental dwellings in Nassau County with a median monthly rent of $1,772. If adopted, Renter's Choice Housing would save Nassau renters nearly $144.6 million annually.
- Eliminate Improper Tax Exemptions –The Nassau County Comptroller's audit of property tax exemptions found that about $33 million of property taxes in 2016 was associated with questionable exemptions. The audit estimated that the resulting tax shifts cost Nassau County homeowners an average of $267 per household over the three-year audit period.
- Shared Service Agreements and Facility Enhancement / Reduce Reliability on PaperBased Processes – Full implementation of the 2019-20 and 2020-21 Shared Services Plan could generate savings up to $6.1 million in taxpayer dollars. The proposals include joint efforts to digitize Nassau; shared information technology services; enhanced energy efficiency programs; and joint purchase of a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) systems.
- Green Downtown Investments – Green downtown investments, such as green roofs would provide job opportunities and annual savings to municipalities, businesses, and residents. The solar community estimates Long Island potential for 19.5mW of solar energy for net savings of $126.1 million over 8 years.
The full report is available at https://opennassau.nassaucountyny.gov/partthree.
The full LEAP series is available at https://opennassau.nassaucountyny.gov.
The full roundtable event is available at https://www.facebook.com/NCComptroller/videos/299773445100576.