Dear Nassau COBA Members,

I'm writing to you regarding the status of our Bill (A7360), which provides a thirty year retirement benefit for certain members in Nassau county along with a retirement allowance equal to 60 percent of a member's final average salary.

This Bill has been one of our top legislative priorities since taking office two years ago.

Along with our legislative team and lobbyists, Dennis Maurus and I personally made countless trips to Albany knocking on doors and meeting with legislative leaders in both the Senate and the Assembly to get this Bill passed through their chambers in hopes of being signed into law.

We also had secured a "home rule message" from Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, signaling the County's support for this legislation, which would also be 100% funded by the County not the State.

Despite our relentless efforts, including our success in getting the Bill passed overwhelmingly in the Senate and the House, I just received word that Governor Hochul vetoed our Bill in addition to 15 other Unions pension related Bills with a similar home rule message from their respective Counties.

This is deeply frustrating to all of us and somewhat surprising, given the broad support we had generated from both Democratic and Republican elected officials.

In the weeks ahead, I will be meeting with our lobbyists and legislative team to determine our next steps. Although we might have lost this round, I promise you that your COBA Executive Board will continue the fight to enhance retirement benefits at the State level for all COBA members

As always, I will continue to keep you updated with any relevant developments.

Sincerely,

Pete Lilli

President