Denenberg, Jones vie in 19th L.D.

Republican Dr. Fred Jones is challenging Nassau County Legislator Dave Denenberg, a Democrat, in the race for the 19th District seat held by Denenberg for nine years.

The 19th L.D. includes Bellmore, North Bellmore, Merrick and parts of Freeport, North Merrick and Wantagh.

"The biggest issue for me became the home-energy tax of 2.5 percent," said Jones, who lives and runs his business, Sunrise Chiropractic, in Merrick. He said that, if elected, he would seek to repeal the sales tax increase that was extended to home heating oil in Nassau County by the Democratically controlled Legislature in June.

Denenberg, an attorney who specializes in intellectual property and environmental law and also lives in Merrick, explained that the sales tax was extended to home energy to avoid an increase in the property tax when the county experienced a sales-tax shortfall as a result of the recession. He said that the county has not increased property taxes in six of the past seven years.

Denenberg added that the decision to implement the energy tax was in line with other financial choices made by the Legislature that have allowed it to keep the budget at $2.6 billion since he first took office more than nine years ago. In addition to freezing spending, Denenberg said that when he entered the Legislature, the county was running multi-million-dollar deficits under a Republican administration. Now, he said, the county has balanced its budget and increased its bond rating, which reduces the interest rate it must pay when it borrows money.

"The biggest complaint when I walk door to door is the residential roads," Denenberg said. "When you look at the county roads throughout my district, they've been done and done again. And we've done a lot of revitalizations on them, which people said couldn't be done. Merrick Avenue has been resurfaced twice since I've been legislator." The county has also improved and beautified Bellmore Road, Merrick Road, Merrick Avenue, Bedford Avenue, Babylon Turnpike, he said, and is currently working on a project on Bellmore Avenue.