NIFA in Long Island Press

Once again...the Long Island press has scooped Newsday! Today, the Press ran an extensive article detailing the NIFA report and how it impacts you, as a citizen of Nassau County. Now, what does this article mean for you?

Well, the first thing that strikes me is how nonchalantly Suozzi views the report. His Deputy CE basically says its a 'risk analysis.' I think its a realitistic analysis. Suozzi, living in the hazy fog of his ambitions and dreams, doesn't seem to get it. He boasts about how his plans have surpluses (which are mirages generated by bonding and deferrals) and how NIFA has approved each budget (only after Suozzi submits Doomsday contingency plans).

Well, Doomsday is approaching. The County's at the end of its rope; the end of the line. Gap closing -- the Press' words, not mine -- can only work for so long. Eventually the rope runs out.

Suozzi the CPA doesn't seem to get it. He hasn't done anything to fix the long term structural deficiencies in the county budget. When these stop gaps fall short, he sits down and comes up with even more 'revenues.' Translation -- more new taxes! Only to hide the true cost, he's got to be inventive. These new taxes (fast food and a levy on gaming) rely on Albany. No one who relies on Albany these days seems to get anything. Especially since the current crop of leaders in Albany with real power all come from the City, are of dubious ethics or even more dubious competence. He'd be better off buying a lottery ticket.

Suozzi, according to the Press, relies heavily on the sales tax. Doing so defies the imagination. How can Suozzi, as an educated accountant and attorney, bank on money from sales taxes when sales are plummeting? Does he even read the ledger sheets coming in from the county's accounting department that show a stunning collapse in sales tax revenues?

In a rainy day, governments rely on reserve funds. Nassau can't do that, since Suozzi has burned through 220 million in reserve funds since 2004. And those were the good times!

The results of drained reserves are two fold. One, you have no money in rainy days. Two, when you go to S&P, Fitch and Moody's to borrow money, you get dinged in your credit report. Since the rating agencies use banked reserves as a gague of the health of a county's financial situtation, when you have nothing in the bank, you pay more. Think of it like a mortgage...if you've got some savings, you're going to get a better rate. If you're broke (like Nassau is), you pay more. A lot more.

Thanks to Taxin' and Mismanagin' Tom Suozzi, Nassau is broke. And our ratings are going to get even worse. Nassau County's ratings are going to be as low as Detroit's. And it is going to cost us two arms and two legs.

Tell your friends about this article. NIFA and its dire predictions have been ignored by Suozzi (who is a master at ignoring things that don't help him) and his buddies over at Newsday. Spread the word of this website and the Press' article.

http://www.longislandpress.com/2009/08/13/nifa-roasts-suozzi/