Judge Blocks Suffolk Merger of Treasurer, Comptroller

A New York State Supreme Court judge on Monday struck down Suffolk County's plan to merge the comptroller and treasurer's office, citing too many changes made to the proposal before it passed.

According to Newsday, Justice Carol MacKenzie in a six-page ruling said public notices should have been published after the the county toned down financial projections of the bill – the county had claimed the merger would yield $1 million in savings, but changed that to "streamlining and improving government efficiency" by the time of the July 22 budget hearing in the legislature.

County Treasurer Angie Carpenter, who lost to Bellone for the county executive job in 2011, filed the suit to block the law. The county was planning to put the referendum up for vote in November.

According to Newsday, the county plans to appeal, saying they allowed the mandatory seven days for the bill to age before the vote. The county will also seek a stay on Monday's ruling, since they need to get military ballots printed by Oct. 7 if they are going to make the November vote.

If the measure passes, Carpenter would be out of a job, with oversight over the county's finances going to the comptroller's office.