Photo Credit: Office of Governor Kathy Hochul
Suffolk County’s reliance on natural waterways cannot be overstated. A significant amount of Long Island’s revenue stems from aquaculture, agriculture, tourism, and local recreation that all depend on sharpened water quality priorities.
Additionally, the path forward for Suffolk in terms of long-term economic sustainability, infrastructure developments, and quality of life also depend on heightened water quality initiatives.
The both parties in the Suffolk County Legislature and County Executive Ed Romaine (R-Center Moriches) have made water quality initiatives major parts of their platforms, individually and collaboratively. The summer season going into the 2023 campaigns generated some controversy as the Legislature tabled a ballot measure that would have allowed residents to approve or reject a referendum in November to add an eighth-cent sales tax increase on the existing quarter-percent sales tax that funds sewer projects around the county.
The Legislature voted to table it as some Legislators on the horseshoe were not comfortable with the projected ratios for sewers and Innovative Alternative Wastewater (I/A) Systems.
The Legislature worked with State and local stakeholders to rework the legislation to allow funding to stem equally to both wastewater systems.
While protecting Suffolk’s sole-source aquifer and mitigating chemicals that pollute the groundwater and nitrogen that threatens coastal waterways are components of this legislation, enhanced water quality infrastructure, namely in the form of sewers, allows for significant downtown revitalizations. Businesses are able to operate at much higher capacities and standards, while also meeting local and environmental building codes depending on their proximities to groundwater. Sewers have long been heralded as the key to economic sustainability, as downtown revitalizations allow for classical trickle-down economics that convince small business owners and life-long residents to stay in Suffolk County.
The legislation requires a signature from the Governor to put a referendum on the ballot that would amend the tax laws.
After much crafting and deliberation, Governor Kathy Hochul (D) herself signed the legislation at Captree State Park on Thursday.
The bill was sponsored in the Senate by Senator Monica Martinez (D-Brentwood). Suffolk co-sponsors included Senators Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk), Mario Mattera (R-St. James), and Dean Murray (R-East Patchogue).
The Assembly version of the bill was sponsored by Assemblyman Fred Thiele (D-Sag Harbor). Suffolk co-sponsors included Assemblymembers Jodi Giglio (R-Baiting Hollow), Joe DeStefano (R-Medford), Jarett Gandolfo (R-Sayville), Michael Durso (R-Massapequa Park), and Keith Brown (R-Northport).
The bill passed 57-1 with four absences in the Senate and 147-0 with three absences in the Assembly.
At the bill signing in Captree, Hochul called Martinez and Thiele “life-long environmentalists from the very beginning,” and thanked them and all involved parties and County Executive Romaine for “championing” the bill to passage.
“This took almost a decade to accomplish,” said Hochul. “But the work begins today. This is just the beginning,” she said, referencing the task of the Suffolk County Legislature to put the referendum on the November ballot by August 5, and the responsibility of the public to vote on it.
“I believe this will have strong support [from the public], but people need to know the urgency of this [water quality],” said Hochul.
Hochul also referenced State funding disparities between Suffolk County and other parts of New York, something local leaders have described as Long Island being “shortchanged” in terms of what the region pays to Albany in taxes.
“Parts of this county that are denied what other parts of our state have readily available. Long Island has needed clean water and infrastructure upgrades for decades,” said Hochul. “We are seeing the deterioration of our environment. If we don’t manage our water here on Long Island and keep it clean and accessible, future generations will ask ‘why were they so negligent?’ 75% of Suffolk homeowners who go without sewers are going to be delighted by this.”
Hochul says that Suffolk has “leadership that cares and that it’s a “basic responsibility of government to safeguard water.”
“This is a bipartisan issue and we’re always happy when we can find those,” Hochul said. “I spent fourteen years in local government.
I believe in local government, I believe in listening to what communities want.”
Hochul was joined by County Executive Romaine, Senator Martinez, Assemblyman Thiele, Suffolk County Legislator and Majority Leader Nick Caracappa (C-Selden), Legislator and Minority Leader Jason Richberg (D-West Babylon), Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer (D-North Babylon), and County Legislators Catherine Stark (R-Riverhead), Ann Welker (D-Southampton), Steve Englebright (D-Setauket), Dominick Thorne (R-Patchogue), Sam Gonzalez (D-Brentwood), Rebecca Sanin (D-Huntington Station), and Tom Donnelly (D-Deer Park).
Photo credit: Matt Meduri
Attendees also included Julie Tighe, President of the New York League of Conservation Voters; Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director of the Citizens Campaign for the Environment; and Matt Aracich, President of the Nassau Suffolk Building and Construction Trades Council.
“With Governor Hochul’s signing of the water quality bill, it will now permit Suffolk County the opportunity to generate the funding necessary to proceed with many planned and future sewer and I/A septic projects county-wide,” said Legislator Nick Caracappa, the Chair of the Public Works Committee. “Those funds will make us eligible for both ‘matching State and federal funding’ that is out there for water quality projects.”
Caracappa says that matching dollars are typically 80% to 20% ratios with the County being obligated to raise the 20%.
“Sewers in our coastal communities will be an immediate fix to nitrogen issues currently affecting our waterways such as algae blooms, brown tides, fish and eel grass die-offs which is devastating our beaches and causing closures, which also affects our tourism industry. They’re critical sources of revenue for the County,” says Caracappa.
Caracappa also says that sewers will contribute to significant economic growth in Suffolk’s downtowns.
“Sewer projects in our downtowns will not only spur economic development, it will attract more businesses, generate jobs, create housing opportunities, and much more,” says Caracappa. “The best part is, we would be protecting our aquifer, which is also our sole-source of drinking water on Long Island.”
Caracappa also addressed concerns of over-development that some believe will come hand-in-hand with the legislation.
“I understand some of the concerns when it comes to sewers and development. No one wants over-development, but what we need is drastic improvements in our environmental awareness and the ability to make improvements necessary to protect and preserve what we have,” says Caracappa. “Being proactive is where we need to be to ensure the future of our Island and our County remain the beautiful places that they are to work, live, and play, surrounded by pristine waterways and clean drinking water.”
Legislator Catherine Stark, who serves as Vice Chair of the Public Works, Transportation, and Energy Committee, told The Messenger that she is optimistic on this referendum’s future.
“This is the start of a multi-pronged process, which we in the Legislature will take up, and I have full faith in the residents of Suffolk County to make their own well-informed decisions when voting on this referendum,” said Stark.
The Legislature now has until August 5 to put the referendum on the November 5 ballot. If approved by voters, the added 0.125% sales tax – or 12.5 cents per $100 – would fund sewer expansion projects and installations of I/A systems from Babylon
to Montauk.
