Suffolk Legislators React To Declaration Of Fiscal Emergency

HAUPPAUGE, NY (CBSNewYork) - Legislators in Suffolk County are speaking out, after yesterday's announcement from county executive Steve Bellone that, by the end of 2013, the county will have a $530 million deficit.

WCBS 880's Sophia Hall On The Story

The gap is two to three times higher than what was projected, and there were already more than 450 layoffs planned. Now workers from the Fleet Garage to police precincts are bracing for possibly hundreds more.

With the help of a budget panel, a group of legislators say they are looking for solutions to reduce the massive deficit.

"They are the legislators - both Republicans and Democrats - who put our budget together last year and we're going to say 'Let's start fresh. Let's look at all ideas. Put them on the table.'," legislator Wayne Horsely told WCBS 880 reporter Sophia Hall on Wednesday. "There's a lot of things out there from pension relief to working with health costs of our employees."

What about more people losing their jobs?

"We're going to try to remediate as best we can for the county. We don't want to put anybody's jobs at jeopardy," he said.

"If we lay off large numbers of people, it's going to be devestating to our economy," said new legislator Sarah Anker, who was just elected in November.

"We need to plan ahead and we need to be brave enough to do that even if it means a negative impact," she added.

What do you have to say about Suffolk County's fiscal emergency? Sound off in the comments section below!