Schneiderman: Bellone Asked Me To Stay

The following statement was prepared by Legis. Jay Schneiderman who decided not to seek election for East Hampton Town Supervisor, but to run instead for another county term. For the full story, click here:

March 18, 2013

Over the past few weeks I have been considering the possibility of running for East Hampton Town Supervisor, rather than seeking re-election as Suffolk County Legislator.  I am familiar with both positions, having served as East Hampton Town Supervisor for four years prior to my tenure as Suffolk County Legislator. In making this decision, I have considered many factors and talked with many individuals.  I am grateful for the overwhelming support and encouragement I have received as I have weighed how best to serve our community. After great thought and deliberation, I have chosen to seek re-election to the Suffolk County Legislature. East Hampton is a special place, and the idea of bringing our town together as Supervisor is very appealing to me. However, there is still more work I feel I need to do in the Legislature.

Suffolk County is at a critical crossroads and I believe I can make a real difference to ensure we make the right choices to move our County forward. I do not want to walk away from Suffolk County at a time when we are facing a deficit of up to $250 million and the future of many critical programs are unsettled.

County Executive Bellone has asked me to work closely with him to focus on budget mitigation that puts Suffolk County on a more sustainable path while protecting critical services.

Recently, I emerged victorious in my longstanding fight against the disproportionate and unfair placement of all the county’s homeless sex offenders on Eastern Long Island. Now that this consuming fight is behind us, I can focus on other regional concerns like improving transportation options on the East End, the future of the open space program and protecting our farming communities. I also will work closely with our Sandy recovery team to make sure we make the right choices not only to rebuild damaged communities stronger, but that we make smart decisions all along our shoreline to protect vulnerable areas like downtown Montauk.

I have been fortunate to serve for the past 9 years as County Legislator for the 2nd legislative district, which encompasses all of the South Fork and portions of Brookhaven Town. It is a job I enjoy and have been successful in achieving many things. I have built strong working relations with public officials at the County, State and Federal level.  In particular I continue to work closely with County Executive Steve Bellone, who I consider a key partner in Government.  Our area for the first time is seeing its fair share of County resources including public safety funding, dredging, road improvements, public transportation and land preservation. These strong relationships led to the recent unanimous vote to end the program to house registered sex offenders in trailers in Riverside and Westhampton, an offensive policy created by the prior County Executive.

Suffolk County is at a critical juncture. The economic downturn has lingered much longer than expected.  Our revenues from Sale Tax have not kept pace with growing levels of poverty, leaving the County struggling to provide mandated assistance to the poor. The County has greatly reduced its own workforce and eliminated many non-mandated services.  As a senior member of the Legislature with extensive knowledge of municipal finance, The County Executive has personally asked me to play a key role in developing long-term solutions to the county’s fiscal problems.

The Town of East Hampton also faces great challenges, perhaps none more urgent than the lack of a protective beach in front of the downtown Montauk area. Without a beach in downtown Montauk, many commercial properties are in peril. The beach not only provides an upland barrier, but it is critical to the success of Montauk as a world famous tourist destination.  Fortunately, help is now imminent through the efforts of Congressman Bishop to secure federal assistance from funding set up in response to Super Storm Sandy.

Another issue that compelled me to consider running for East Hampton Town Supervisor is my concern over the growing levels of poverty within the East Hampton community.  Lines at food pantries are growing and demand for other public assistance continues to rise.  The East Hampton Food pantry alone delivers food assistance to some 400 families each week.  East Hampton’s median income is below the County average while its cost of living is higher.  It is unacceptable that a community famous for its affluence should tolerate such poverty within its boundaries.  Unfortunately, other issues dominate the local political discourse.  As Supervisor, I could help focus attention on poverty within the community.  However, I have come to the conclusion that I can have more of a direct impact by responding to this crisis through my work at the County level.  As Chairman of the Legislature’s Public Works and Transportation Committee, I have already had success expanding public transportation availability, including Sunday bus service.  I am now working closely with the Health Department to expand healthcare opportunities to the poor including dental and mental health services.

In my consideration of the post of East Hampton Town Supervisor, I equally approached the Republican and Democratic Party leadership for support of my potential candidacy.  The Democratic Party has not concluded their selection process and I am thankful for their kind consideration. I would like to especially thank the East Hampton Town Republican Committee and in particular, Chairman Kurt Kappel, for putting partisan politics aside and providing unwavering support for my potential candidacy for Supervisor.

I would also like to thank Independence Party Chairwoman, Elaine Jones, for her support regardless of the outcome of my decision.

Although no individual has yet declared their official candidacy for East Hampton Town Supervisor, I am confident voters will have qualified candidates to fill the post. I am at this time officially withdrawing my name from consideration as East Hampton Town Supervisor and will focus my attention on my re-election as Suffolk County Legislator for the 2nd District.