(MINEOLA, N.Y.) – On Wednesday, April 23, the Nassau County Legislature voted to authorize borrowing for the Fiscal Year 2025 capital infrastructure plan - marking a major victory for the members of the Legislature’s Democratic Minority Caucus.
In doing so, Democratic lawmakers successfully leveraged bond authorization – which requires a 13-vote supermajority to pass - to break Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s more than yearlong freeze on $1.3 million in grants for 14 first responder agencies and other crucial community projects for districts represented by Democratic legislators.
Wednesday’s vote additionally secured tens of millions of dollars in new resources for critical capital infrastructure projects in districts served by Democratic lawmakers.
“Passing the FY 2025 capital infrastructure plan - which includes nearly $43 million for projects in Democratic districts and $1.3 million in Democratic first responder grants that County Executive Blakeman held up for more than a year - is a major victory for the communities we serve and the principle of fair and equitable governance,” Nassau County Legislature Minority Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D – Glen Cove) said after the vote.
“I have served in the Legislature with both Democratic and Republican County Executives. County Executive Blakeman’s unprecedented blockade of our grants, which reached a staggering 32-to-zero disparity, was outrageous - especially when you consider many of these grants are for people who rush toward danger on a daily basis,” Minority Leader DeRiggi-Whitton added. “I am tremendously proud of my caucus for demonstrating an unwavering commitment to our first responders and sending a clear message that we will not back down when the time comes to fight for our constituents.”