Thursday, October 1, 2026
The Nassau County Interim Finance Authority, a corporate governmental agency established by New York state to monitor the County’s finances, and, if necessary, impose a control period, has released a report on the county’s updated multi-year financial plan. It warnns of significant fiscal challenges through Fiscal Year 2028.
The analysis shows that the operating results for Fiscal Year 2025 alone could result in a potential deficit under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles of $204.7 million. After the County’s planned use of $108.2 million of its reserves to pay operating costs, that figure would drop to $96.5 million.
“Our analysis of the County's updated multi-year financial plan yielded some troubling discoveries, which are largely due to the County's tendency to use funding from reserves to pay operating costs,” said Richard Kessel, NIFA Chairman . “Reserve funding is meant to be used in times of financial stress or emergency, which is not currently the case in Nassau County, and this administration is living outside its means. The County's financial future looks concerning to us at NIFA, and while there is still time to turn that around, it will take a great deal of change in fiscal management.”
According to NIFA, deficits are projected to reach $273.9 million in Fiscal Year 2028, or $231.9 million after the planned use of $42 million of reserves to pay operating costs. This projected risk is more than six times the one percent deficit threshold that would require a control period. Contributing factors include uncertainty over future federal aid following a one-time transfer of $247.4 million from the American Rescue Plan Act in Fiscal Year 2024, higher-than-assumed overtime costs, lower-than-assumed sales tax and fine revenues, and higher-than-assumed spending on early intervention, preschool special education, and other social services programs, even when offset by State and Federal aid reimbursement. The expiration of certain labor contracts in July 2026 also adds to the uncertainty.
NIFA cited concerns about significant liabilities, including approximately $909.4 million in long-term obligations for tax certiorari refunds, non-certiorari litigation, and workers’ compensation claims, along with $77.2 million in contingent liability tied to the Nassau Health Care Corporation’s finances.
County Executive Bruce Blakeman rejected the findings.
“NIFA is a bloated Democrat patronage mill that has predicted deficits for the last three years,” Blakeman wrote to the Herald. “When in fact the County ran large surpluses.”
