[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 19]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 25684-25685]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               RECOGNITION OF HONORABLE THOMAS R. SUOZZI

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CAROLYN McCARTHY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 9, 2005

  Mrs. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, this year, Governing.com, a leading 
online publication for and about State and local governments and a 
subsidiary of Congressional Quarterly, announced their list of the 2005 
Public Officials of the Year. Only eight State, county and local 
leaders from throughout our Nation received this most noteworthy award. 
It is an honor for me to bring to the attention of my colleagues and 
this House one of those eight outstanding public officials, the 
Honorable Thomas R. Suozzi, County Executive of Nassau County, New 
York.
  Tom Suozzi is a true leader. He has led Nassau County for the past 
four years with common, practical sense; with an approach toward 
running government as a business; with a vision to the future while not 
forgetting our past; all the while making paramount the needs of the 
people of Nassau County. He has established a record as County 
Executive, and before that as mayor of his home town of Glen Cove, New 
York, that can serve as a blueprint for governments at all levels, and 
yes, even the Federal Government, to follow.
  Upon his election as County Executive, Mr. Suozzi inherited a county 
that had amassed a debt of $3 billion, had a junk bond rating and was 
ready to be taken over by State intervention. County facilities such as 
parks and public buildings were insufficient to meet the needs of the 
people. It has been said that `Nassau County was not just on the brink 
of disaster, but rather had toppled over and was nearing terminal 
velocity.'
  Today, Nassau County has not only turned the corner on its financial 
woes, it is a national leader with its innovative ideas to governing. 
Since 2001, under the guidance of Mr. Suozzi, the County has had a 
balanced budget every year; it has a $200 million surplus; it has had 
ten upgrades in its bond rating to an A+ level currently, and most 
significantly, this has all been achieved without a tax increase in the 
last three years. It is important to point out, too, that during his 
tenure as mayor, Mr. Suozzi had very similar problems and very similar 
results.
  Tom Suozzi is a visionary, looking to the future for ways to grow an 
economy and to make Nassau County and suburbs in general more 
affordable and livable for everyone, including seniors and our young 
people. But at the same time, he understands the benefits of suburbia 
and combines his vision for the future with the heritage of our past.
  Mr. Speaker, Tom Suozzi has demonstrated to all of us that 
governmental problems of our past do not need to be transferred to 
future generations. They can be resolved with logical and brave 
initiatives. On behalf of this Congress, and Nassau County, New York 
that I proudly represent, I congratulate Tom Suozzi on being named 
Public Official of the Year 2005.

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