Politics & Government

Orangetown Board Approves 5-Year Deal With Police [VIDEO]

The Orangetown Council voted 3-2 in favor of a five-year contract with the Orangetown Police Tuesday

The Orangetown Council voted to approve a settlement with Orangetown Police Tuesday night.

The five-year contract had been on the table for weeks. As expected, the resolution passed by a 3-2 vote. Councilmen Tom Diviny, Denis Troy and Paul Valentine were in favor. Supervisor Andy Stewart and Tom Morr opposed it.

The  with the Rockland County Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA) retroactively implements 2.25 percent raises for 2011. Orangetown police will receive a 2.25 percent raise for 2012, 2.35 percent raise for 2013, 2.45 percent raise for 2014 and 2.50 percent raise for 2015. The Orangetown Police had been operating under the terms of their 2010 contract.

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The town was likely facing a two-year contract imposed by binding arbitration if a settlement was not reached. Troy, Valentine and Diviny all argued that the raises received by Orangetown Police would have been even higher if it went to arbitration.

Morr argued that it was possible that the town could do better in arbitration.

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"I want to see it go through arbitration," Morr said. "Yes, there a chance the rates could have come out higher. But I think because of the situation we're in my opinion, there is a better chance of it going lower. The economy is worse than it has been in a long time. We have the Pfizer settlement we started paying. Pension costs are through the roof and we have the two percent tax cap."

Raises given to police officers in neighboring towns such as Ramapo and Clarkstown would be taken into account by the arbitrator, which would have worked against the town. In May, the Clarkstown Police approved an agreement with the Rockland County PBA on a five-year contract that calls for 2.5% salary increases every year.

"This would be the lowest set of raises in Rockland County for a police department," Valentine said. "

"I don't agree by any stretch of the imagination that we would do better in arbitration. I'm not willing to roll the dice on a two-year deal when we lose money right now on past budgets. I think this was the best-negotiated deal we could get. I think we negotiated a deal that is fair to the PBA and fair to the taxpayers. It is s fair as can be within the guidelines of the Taylor Law."

"I've been doing this for 13 years on the town board," Troy said. "I've done it when we've gone with negotiations and I've done it with arbitration. Because I've done arbitration in the past, I'm not doing arbitration this time. I think Ramapo and Clarkstown put us between a rock and a hard place in this county. The way arbitration works, we are compared with Ramapo and Clarkstown. As long as that continues, I think this is the best deal we can do and I appreciate that the PBA is agreeing to this deal."

Stewart and Morr praised the work of the Orangetown Police Department, focusing on their obligation to negotiate the best possible deal for the town.

"I want to start by saying, looking at our police officers over there, you have a sacred duty and you perform it exceptionally," Stewart said. "Our lives are essentially in your hands and that is so appreciated. It can't be said enough. But we are in a business negotiation when it comes to money."

Morr said he was concerned that the town is losing the ability to negotiate for three years.

"I am opposed to this contract," Stewart said. "In my view, it would be better to continue to negotiate or go to arbitration. I do not support a five-year deal under these conditions. I believe we can do better."

Stewart agreed, going back to a point he had made previously. He argued that the higher salaries might keep the town from hiring as many police officers as it should.

"I think at the end of the day, you want to be able to afford to have not just 82 police officers or 86, but 90 or 100, but there is no way we are going to get there with costs being what they are," Stewart said.

Valentine said as a taxpayer it is "killing" him to approve the raises, but he felt it was necessary.

"Sometimes you have to make business decisions that are not the decisions your heart would make, but they are the best your mind is telling you is available," Valentine said.


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