Peter J. Schmitt (R.-Massapequa), the minority leader of the Nassau County Legislature, recently paid a visit to the editors at Anton Community Newspapers, mainly to weigh in on the ongoing Sewer & Storm Water Authority debate.

The Authority has been proposed by the administration of County Executive Thomas Suozzi. In his State of the County address, Suozzi called on the state government in Albany to pass legislation creating such an Authority. The new department, Suozzi said, would ease pressure on the county's general fund while achieving savings of $25 million a year.

Schmitt has long declared his opposition to the Authority. Other proponents of the Authority, including Legislator Craig Johnson, have claimed that it would repeal the sewer tax currently being shouldered by some county residents for services they don't receive.

The minority leader agreed that the creation of such an Authority would result in a $25 million "windfall" for Nassau County. The Authority, he added, may indeed allow the sewer tax to be repealed, but in the long run, it would give the county executive's office $25 million "to play with it." The Authority, Schmitt said, would also mean engineers, attorneys and other personnel working for the county without any legislative oversight. The sewer tax repeal, Schmitt claimed, can be done with or without the Authority.

The Authority, Schmitt continued, would refinance existing sewer district debt at a lower rate. That means lower payments for taxpayers, but also a debt extension for future generations to bear, the minority leader claimed. The Authority, he said, would also lease or buy the county sewer lines and treatment plants. That would result in a sewage service fee, one that Schmitt said is not tax deductible, while also creating a new tax on county residents.

Finally, Schmitt said the Authority would mean only a reorganization of county employees, with 136 employees being transferred from the county payroll to the Authority itself. County taxpayers, he added, would continue to pay their salaries, plus whatever other costs that bureaucrats incur.

In all, the Authority, for Schmitt, amounts to a short term fix for long-term problems, the creation of a system "fraught with [the] possibility of abuse."

Local opponents of the sewer tax have long advocated redrawing the county's sewer lines, something that Schmitt also endorsed. Currently, State Senator Michael Balboni has introduced legislation in Albany that would offer a tax abatement for the identical amount of the sewer bill that the aggrieved property owners now pay.

Local residents who pay the tax are part of a sewer district that runs from the south shore of Nassau County to villages in the north shore. Residents in Roslyn, Oyster Bay and Long Beach are paying for services that don't include their households.

Moving away from the Sewer & Storm Water Authority issue, Schmitt said "tough choices" were needed to combat the county's ongoing fiscal troubles. He especially championed the idea of transferring county services to local villages. He said that letting Nassau County villages handle their own roads would gain the county "millions" in savings.

The minority leader also supported selling certain parks, such as Cantiague Park in Hicksville from the county to that particular village. However, he added that only the county executive could take the lead in "spinning-off" services from the county to the village.

In all, the legislature, Schmitt said, needs to commence with a "top to bottom" restructuring of county government. Although he gave no specifics, Schmitt said that certain services should be done away with, while numerous departments should be merged and consolidated. During the interview, Schmitt noted that the former county executive, Thomas Gulotta, opposed such a thorough restructuring. This is why, he added, many Nassau Republicans didn't want Gulotta to run for re-election in 2001. Finally, on the matter of police negotiations, Schmitt said that members of the Police Benevolent Association (PBA), plus leading Democrats and Republicans should be brought together in the same room to hammer out a proposal.

Among the minority leader's other criticisms was the ongoing county assessment. Nassau County legislators, he said, had caved into "political correctness" by voting for the assessment. Schmitt admitted that the current system was "profoundly broken" but said it was not racist, as a lawsuit claimed it was.

One problem with the assessment has to do with its timetable, Schmitt said. The process, he claimed, would be far more accurate if it were completed over a four or five-year period, rather than the three-year one now in motion. He maintained that with a longer time schedule, the assessment would allow for data on homes to be cross-checked, for assessors to hold more meetings with local residents, and for assessments on waterfront homes, among other properties, to be more precise.

When asked to define his role as minority leader of the legislature, Schmitt said it was mostly "to criticize." But he also acknowledged, without being specific, that the GOP should also offer alternatives to policies they oppose.

After reiterating the usual criticism of tax and spending increases, Schmitt also attacked the county's new smoking ban in bars and restaurants as being harmful to small businesses. "The smoking ban is wrong," he said. "It puts Nassau County at a disadvantage." He cited examples of Nassau residents who simply travel and take their dollars to Suffolk County establishments where smoking is legal.

However, he admitted that, in general, Democrats and Republicans cannot agree on how to take the county where it needs to go. Since Democrats are the legislative majority, that leaves the GOP in the role of critics, he said.