Former Rep. Peter King has a new gig with Nassau County as a confidential adviser for Homeland Security and counterterrorism, and County Executive Bruce Blakeman instituted nearly $200,000 in contracts with King under a policy that doesn’t require legislative approval.
King, a political ally of Blakeman and a contributor to his campaign, has expertise in the areas he is now advising the county on. He previously served on the House Homeland Security Committee, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and chaired the Emergency Preparedness and Technology Subcommittee and
Blakeman defended the hiring of King, who has been criticized for bypassing the county Legislature and employing contributors to his campaign.
“Congressman King held the highest security clearances in the federal government, military, and law enforcement, and has not only a wealth of knowledge but an extensive network of intelligence professionals that he has made available to Nassau County,” the county executive said in a statement.
Nassau County Detective Lt. Scott Skrynecki said King meets regularly with the police department, including their “Terror Tuesday” meetings, and is available on a 24/7 basis. He called King’s contributions “invaluable” due to his knowledge and connections on the topic.
Projects King advised on included security planning for the Cricket World Cup at Eisenhower Park last year.
King was first hired in a November 2023 contract, which has since been extended to October 2025, but they have not received legislative approval. His contracts have amounted to $192,000, split up into $8,000 monthly payments.
A provision permits a county executive to award contracts when they concern topics of “sensitive governmental areas.”
In bypassing legislative approval to award a contract, the process excludes a competitive bidding process.
Most county contracts are approved by the legislature following a bidding process. This competitive bidding process aids the county in finding a vendor at a price point that is fair and responsible in spending taxpayer money.
Wayne Wink, a former county legislator and current Democratic candidate for Nassau County Comptroller, said he disagreed that the charter permitted the county executive to bypass the Legislature.
“It’s not an excuse to be able to hire someone with no procurement process and with no legislative oversight,” Wink said. “… [The contract is not] something that is so sensitive in nature that you can’t even know the contract exists.”
County Legislator Seth Koslow (D–Merrick), who is challenging Blakeman in the county executive race this November, held a press conference in front of Blakeman’s office Thursday, July 17, saying that the county executive was “selling” Nassau County.
“Nassau County isn’t for sale,” Koslow said. “But under Bruce Blakeman, it’s been treated like a clearance rack, and taxpayers are the ones footing the bill.”
King’s contracts come amid the county’s highest spending on external legal counsel, which has amounted to $20 million a year. In the past, these expenses have averaged about $3 milion to $6 million prior to his taking office.
It is also among about half a million dollars in other contracts approved by Blakeman only since he took office in 2022.
Koslow called the actions corrupt and asked that ethics reforms and independent oversights be conducted on the county executive’s actions.
