Rockland County Exec Implements Austerity Measures to Counter $4M Deficit

New City, NY — Facing a $4 million budget deficit for 2016, Rockland County Executive Ed Day announced Friday a series of austerity measures that will be put into effect immediately.

The reason for the austerity measures, Day said, was the Legislature’s failure to accept a $4.51 million offer from a buyer for the Sain Building.

“The people of Rockland elected me with a very clear mandate: Fix county finances,” Day said in a prepared statement.

“End the games of smoke and mirrors that put Rockland in the shameful position of being named the most fiscally stressed municipality in the state,” he said.

Legislature Chairman Alden H. Wolfe has said June that the financial situation in the county isn’t as dire as Day is making it sound and that the county executive is trying to put pressure on the legislators to give the OK for the sale of the building.

To counter the failure of the Legislature to act on the sale offer, the following will be put into effect immediately for the remainder of 2016:

• Hiring freeze, except for critical positions approved by the County Executive.
• No more overtime for county employees unless approved by the County Executive's office.
• All discretionary fund accounts have been secured. requests to release any funds will be submitted by department head/commissioner to the finance department and the County Executive's office for approval.
• Ban on all non-critical training and related expenses (i.e., seminars, conferences, travel, etc.)
• Existing car policy has been updated to make sure that all county-owned vehicles are parked at county facilities at the end of shifts.
• 20 percent of county-owned cars have to be turned in.
• Vendors will be paid later. In some cases, that delay could be measured in months.
• The cessation of all mass mailings, including any from the County Executive's office except, and out of respect for the other branch of government, the county Legislature. Day expects the Legislature will respect both taxpayers and our organization by voluntarily complying with this cost savings measure.
• Department heads are charged with immediately renegotiating existing contracts to achieve a minimum 10 percent cost savings. Results are due to the County Executive's office in 15 days.
• The county will consider a partial closure of all county parks effective Sept. 15th

Day said he expects the county to save about $3.3 million as a result of the cuts.

He added that the plan doesn’t affect services involving public health, transportation or safety.

“But there will be impacts,” Day said, such as longer waiting times on calls or in county offices and less frequent grass mowing and garbage pickup.

Day said the $4 million deficit is the equivalet of a 4 percent tax increase, and if the sale of the building can be expected by the end of the year, the austerity measures can be reversed.