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I am piesenting to the NIFA boaiu a plan that will iesult in oui lifting the wage
fieeze tempoiaiily anu possibly peimanently if accepteu. I believe it essential that
we exploie all options available to us in oiuei to aveit imposing a wage fieeze foi
anothei yeai, although such may be necessaiy if the ciicumstances waiiant anu no
viable alteinative exists.

Fiist, it is the position of the NIFA boaiu that the 2S1 million uollais of savings
achieveu foi Nassau County by the issuance of the wage fieeze in 2u11, 2u12 anu
2u1S is money that the county has, in fact, saveu anu is no longei available foi
negotiation. The county's fiscal ciisis maue it impeiative that such wage fieeze be
imposeu because it hau no ability to covei those costs anu to attempt to uo so now
woulu put the county on the biink of insolvency.

Seconu, NIFA is awaie that the wage fieeze may only be imposeu in contiauiction of
collective baigaining agieements unuei emeigency ciicumstances. Such
ciicumstances have existeu these last few yeais anu exist piesently. NIFA is also
awaie that theie aie those that aigue that such emeigency ciicumstances no longei
exist anu that the wage fieeze is no longei necessaiy oi authoiizeu unuei the law.
NIFA's analysis of the county's cuiient fiscal conuition is such that the NIFA boaiu
believes that the county has not instituteu, achieveu oi accomplisheu sufficient cost
savings oi ievenue geneiation that woulu suggest that the county's fiscal ciisis is
ovei. In fact, the boaiu is iequiiing that Nassau County achieve an auuitional $Su
million uollais in iecuiiing savings oi ievenue foithwith in oiuei to obtain
authoiization to bonu auuitional tax ceit uollais as piesenteu in the county's latest
foui yeai plan because the county has no means oi ability to covei those costs on its
own.

Thiiu, the Nassau County Executive's office anu vaiious union leaueiship have askeu
NIFA to lift the wage fieeze anu agiee to pay union membeis most oi all Cost of
Living Inciease Aujustments (C0LA) anu step incieases in exchange foi stiuctuial
changes to the cuiient collective baigaining agieements piesently in effect, but
fiozen unuei NIFA's wage fieeze oiuei.

It is fuithei noteu that the unions have aigueu that upon the lifting of the wage
fieeze, union membeis aie entitleu to be placeu in the giaue, step anu cost of living
status that they woulu have evolveu to hau the wage fieeze not been in effect since
2u11. While this woulu not affect the monies saveu by the county uuiing 2u11 -
2u1S, it woulu have a uiamatic effect on the county's fiscal obligations immeuiately
upon the lifting of the fieeze anu subsequent yeais theieaftei.

NIFA, howevei, has inuicateu to all paities that the amount of money neeueu to
satisfy any such agieement uoes not exist anu the expectation that it will somehow
appeai in the neai futuie is not consistent with past piactice oi cuiient ieality.

Fouith, the county executive's office anu the unions have both aigueu that the
magnituue of peisonnel loss anu uisincentive foi peisonnel ieplacement eithei foi
the county oi foi inuiviuual looking foi jobs oi piomotion has hau a seiious affect on
moiale, woik foice safety anu possibly public safety. Foi example, zeio police
officeis have put in foi piomotion to uetective this yeai iesulting in the uetective
ianks uiminishing to uangeiously low levels. In fact, each of the subject unions to
the oveiall wage fieeze has aiticulateu ciisis scenaiios if the wage fieeze iemains in
tact.

Anu finally, the county executive's office anu the subject unions have inuicateu that
they aie willing to make contiactual concessions that woulu iesult in stiuctuial
savings to the county that woulu save the county amounts similai to that which
woulu be awaiueu in cost of living anu step incieases if the wage fieeze weie to be
lifteu. Theie is, howevei, uisagieement between NIFA anu the afoiementioneu
paities as to how much savings such concessions will actually iealize.

0nfoitunately, no contiactual aujustment oi pay out piocess to uate meets NIFA's
ciiteiia foi lifting the wage fieeze i.e. that an equal amount of money be saveu oi
achieveu to waiiant expenuing auuitional uollais on cost of living anu step
incieases. I uo believe, howevei, that both the county anu the union leaueiship have
maue goou faith effoits to achieve such fiscal balance on both siues of the leugei.
0ltimately, then, the key to lifting the wage fieeze lies in auuitional monies coming
in available above anu beyonu contiactual savings consistent with the oiuinaiy
couise of municipal ievenue geneiation. The county has committeu auuitional
ievenue to covei auuitional employee costs. If this commitment weie to holu up, a
mouifieu, anu possible, peimanent lifting of the wage fieeze may be in oiuei.

I woulu note that it is my unueistanuing fiom a legal point of view that it is the
county's obligation anu NIFA's iesponsibility to seek an enu to the imposition of a
wage fieeze anu not use such as a means to avoiu othei uifficult uecisions.

Accoiuingly, I piopose the following:

Each union will have the oppoitunity to vote on a contiact that takes us thiough
2u16 that will incluue the waivei of thiee Cost of Living Aujustment incieases 2u11,
2u12, anu 2u16. The 2u1S C0LA will be uefeiieu (noncompounueu) to 2u16, but
only awaiueu if the county has establisheu auuitional uesignateu ievenue to covei
saiu C0LA such as thiough auuitional ieu light cameia money oi some othei
acceptable souice of ievenue. Auuitional unanticipateu savings woulu also be
sufficient basis to awaiu the 2u1S C0LA. County peisonnel woulu be awaiueu the
2u14 anu 2u1S C0LA as set foith in the collective baigaining agieement.

In iegaiu to steps, 2u11 anu 2u12 steps woulu be waiveu foi those yeais oi, in othei
woius, auueu to the enu of the step piocess in oiuei foi employees to achieve full
pay.

Step anu C0LA incieases will be awaiueu on a uelayeu scheuule in oiuei to make
the finances woik consistent with the goal of appioaching neutial cost to Nassau
County upon lifting the wage fieeze.

In oiuei to achieve the 2u1S, 2u14, anu 2u1S cola inciease anu ielateu step
incieases, each union will neeu to agiee to waive theii iight to litigate the ietuin of
such. In auuition, each union will have to authoiize a collective baigaining
agieement that achieves stiuctuial change anu ieal savings consistent with NIFA's
financial analysis anu iesults in a neutial cost to county finances. If auuitional
savings aie achieveu uuiing this peiiou (as is asseiteu by the county anu by the
vaiious unions), the county anu the unions may negotiate auuitional amenuments to
this agieement. Such changes, howevei, must be authoiizeu by NIFA anu aie not
guaianteeu.

All agieements must incluue pension payments consistent with Tiei Six without
waiting foi the cuiient contiact to expiie foi all new employees, meuical benefit
contiibutions, anu stiuctuial wage aujustments. As inuicateu, all agieements must
waive any iight to litigate the waivei of step anu cola inciease awaius uuiing this six
yeai peiiou between 2u11 anu 2u16. The iight to litigate the legality of the wage
fieeze itself is pieseiveu.

No union is obligateu to sign onto this agieement oi piocess. Each is fiee to
continue to negotiate a iesolution to theii collective baigaining agieement situation
in theii own mannei at theii own pace. Bowevei, the NIFA boaiu will not authoiize
any agieement that is inconsistent with the piinciple set foith heiein which is that
no agieement will be appioveu that NIFA believes is inconsistent with the county's
ability to pay on a iecuiiing basis.

The wage fieeze will be lifteu puisuant to this pioposal on the fiist uay of the fiist
month subsequent to the pioposal being agieeu to by the county anu each union.

I am awaie that theie aie uiffeiences in opinion as to how much savings contiactual
changes will achieve, how attiition factois into the shoit anu long teim calculations,
anu how the economy anu the county's fiscal pictuie will impiove anu affect the
county's fiscal stiuctuie going foiwaiu. Theie is latituue in this pioposal foi the
uiffeiences of opinion anu inteipietation that exist within the NIFA boaiu itself anu
between NIFA the county anu each inuiviuual union. Theie is a failsafe mechanism
that allows NIFA to ieasseit the wage fieeze in Naich of 2u16 if the county's fiscal
pictuie so iequiies. Theie is also a ielief mechanism to offei auuitional benefits if
such aie available anu waiianteu anu agieeu upon between county anu union anu
appioveu by the NIFA boaiu.

I uo not believe that the county has achieveu sufficient fiscal stability to offei any
moie than is being piesenteu thiough this pioposal anu I uo not believe that the
NIFA boaiu will authoiize anything beyonu that which is containeu heiein. I woulu
fuithei note that we puisue this plan at this time only because the county public
employee stiuctuie is at iisk anu that long teim unintenueu consequences to the
county can iesult if the wage fieeze is not mouifieu at the fiist moment that such is
possible. Even uoing so now may cieate some uegiee of financial iisk to the county.
Boing nothing also has iisk anu I believe it incumbent upon us to make eveiy effoit
to finu a way to achieve fiscal stability, stiuctuial savings, anu stability in municipal
opeiations. I believe that this pioposal is the best chance at uoing just that at this
paiticulai moment in time.

I offei this now to the NIFA boaiu membeis as a basis foi uiscussion to meet oui
obligation to exploie all options befoie we consiuei ie-imposing the wage fieeze foi
anothei yeai.