Nassau lawmakers approve borrowing $5.4M to replace aging police vehicles

Nassau County lawmakers have voted to approve borrowing $5.4 million to pay for new police vehicles.
The move comes after the Nassau Police Benevolent Association shared pictures during a news conference last week showing multiple police vehicles in poor shape.
PBA President James McDermott said he asked County Executive Laura Curran several times for help, but his requests for new patrol cars went unanswered.
Curran says the funding was originally included in the county's 2019 capital budget, which was proposed in October 2018 but never passed.
"Today I filed an emergency amendment, which was passed by the Legislature, that ensures the Police Department has the resources to meet their vehicle needs and the ability to keep our neighborhoods safe," Curran said Monday in a statement to News 12.
The county Legislature unanimously approved the resolution.
"No one...should be riding around in a car like that, let alone those who are supposed to protect us on a daily basis," says Republican Legislator Laura Schaefer.
Legislative Democrats say the aging vehicles represent a problem inherited from the administration of former County Executive Ed Mangano, who was recently convicted in a federal corruption retrial.
The measure will allow the police department to buy about 60 new patrol cars over the next couple of months.