Long Island contractors group goes negative on Nassau

Daily Point

LICA advises members to make no campaign donations to Nassau candidates for now

The Long Island Contractors’ Association is telling its members — the region’s contractors, subcontractors, suppliers and more — to consider Nassau County a "high-risk business partner" in light of the county’s failure to adopt a capital plan and enact planned efforts to streamline its procurement process.

It’s also recommending that its members make no campaign contributions to Nassau candidates in this year’s county executive and legislative races until funding for public works projects is finalized.

In a resolution that LICA adopted Wednesday, the regionwide business group said its members should consult with their attorneys, bondholders, insurers and other advisers before bidding on any Nassau County work, "to assess the negative impact on their overall business portfolio and opportunities with more reliable agencies."

That same resolution also said contractors and others should "withhold favorable responses to political contribution solicitations from candidates seeking elected office in Nassau County" until the county’s procurement system and capital planning is reformed.

"The greatest frustration has been in the delay of processing the awards of contracts because of the process and procedures in the county," LICA executive director Marc Herbst told The Point. "Further compounding that frustration is the political inability to pass a capital program."

Herbst noted that the current county capital program includes plans to streamline procurement.

All of this comes as the county legislature has failed to pass Republican County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s capital plan, which includes funding for roads, bridges, parks, building improvements and other infrastructure like police equipment. Democrats in the legislature have said they won’t support the larger capital plan until their individual districts get the discretionary spending they need — funding Blakeman has so far stalled, they say.

And when The Point sought comment from both sides, both pointed at the other, rather than directly addressing Herbst’s concerns.

"This wasn’t a criticism of the Blakeman administration but rather a criticism of the Democrat legislators who are being petulant children holding up hundreds of millions of dollars of public works, public safety, and road projects for $4 million in pet projects which would have probably been done in the near future but for their amateurish behavior," Blakeman spokesman Chris Boyle told The Point.

Said Mike Fricchione, a spokesman for the county legislature’s minority: "Bruce Blakeman was clapping like a trained seal at the White House while Trump tanked the economy — and now he’s too busy playing political lapdog to sit down with legislators and fund our first responders."

But Herbst said he’s frustrated with both Democrats and Republicans.

"We did not single out anyone," Herbst said, saying "all" are to blame for the capital plan’s failure. "Suffolk County is now a pleasure to deal with ... You want to run the government? Act like Ed Romaine," Herbst said, referring to the Suffolk County executive.

Herbst said LICA and its members have been approached by both Blakeman and Seth Koslow, the Democratic candidate for county executive, to participate in fundraisers or to contribute to their political campaigns. But for now, at least, Herbst and the organization won’t support any Nassau candidates — and are encouraging other members to follow suit.

"We support various races as long as they show support for our industry," Herbst said. "Right now, no one is demonstrating support." 

— Randi F. Marshall randi.marshall@newsday.com

Pencil Point

The expert crisis

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Final Point

Long Island could take a $163.3 million hit from NIH funding cuts

Long Island could lose as much as $163.3 million in research grants if the National Institutes of Health’s plan to cap scientific funding is upheld in federal court.

A recent analysis of federal grants data by a group of U.S. researchers through the Science & Community Impacts Mapping project revealed that, outside of New York City, Nassau would likely be the New York county hit hardest by possible cuts. The estimated economic loss for Nassau alone could be $96 million and around 420 jobs would be affected. Suffolk County, home to Stony Brook University and Brookhaven National Laboratory, could potentially face $67 million in economic losses through federal cuts to scientific research, putting at risk more than 280 jobs.

The group’s interactive map looks at the reduction in funding from a 15% cap on "indirect costs" of research, such as staffing, equipment and infrastructure, and calculates the economic loss by county and state. Research organizations argue that limiting reimbursement for the costs associated with the actual research will make it nearly impossible for them to undertake the work.

According to the data, New York trails only California among most-affected states with an estimated loss of $1.8 billion. More than 7,600 jobs in the state could be at risk.

Stony Brook and other SUNY universities could lose up to $79 million combined. Research at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research would also be hit, Newsday previously reported.

The NIH, responsible for funding crucial biomedical research, has been under the lens of the Department of Health and Human Services to slash nearly $2.6 billion from its budget. Last week, a federal judge permanently blocked the NIH from capping funds to research centers and universities, but the Trump administration is expected to appeal.

— Karthika Namboothiri karthika.namboothiri@newsday.com

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