Town of Hempstead Supervisor Gillen applauded New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo for listening to her concerns and restoring $3.8 million dollars of AIM (Aid and Incentives for Municipalities) funding to the town budget. Under the state’s original proposal, Hempstead town faced $3.8 million worth of cuts to state aid, the most out of any other township/village in the state. Gillen pressed state lawmakers in Albany and wrote a bipartisan letter to the governor, with neighboring Republican Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino, which called for a full restoration of funding cuts.
“I want to thank Governor Cuomo for working with the town and restoring $3.8 million dollars’ worth of vital funding for essential services that our residents rely on,” said Gillen. “Hempstead Town would have taken the biggest hit out of any other municipality in the state; therefore, restoration of this funding has been my top priority.”
The Town of Hempstead is the largest township in the United States, boasting a population bigger than six states. Last month, Gillen directed the town’s 28 departments to identify areas of discretionary spending in each of their respective budgets to be considered for cuts. Gillen set a Feb. 15 deadline for departments to report efforts on offsetting the $3.8 million worth of local municipal aid that would have been removed from the proposed state budget.
“I’d like to thank all of the town’s department heads for helping to put together revised budgets in case these cuts were not restored,” she said.
—Submitted by Town of Hempstead
