Nassau plans to fight red-light camera ticket court ruling that deemed over $400M in fees illegal, county officials say

County officials announced Monday they plan to fight a state court’s ruling that Nassau drivers were wrongfully charged more than $400 million in red-light camera ticket fees over the last 15 years.

The revelation came the same day as lawmakers voted to spend $2.5 million in taxpayer money on private law firms to fight the case, one of several tied to the program. 

"We should all be outraged at what is happening with our taxpayer money," Nassau Legis. Debra Mulé (D-Freeport) said at a news conference Monday ahead of the legislative vote. "It’s throwing good money after bad ... Instead of paying law firms, it should be paid to taxpayers who were overcharged."

A spokesman for Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman confirmed the county’s plan to appeal, but declined to answer questions on when the county will proceed to appeal.

Asked by Legis. Arnold Drucker (D-Plainview) whether it was "prudent" to spend taxpayer money fighting the unanimous court ruling that deemed these fees illegal, Brian Libert, bureau chief of legal counsel, said: "There was a review completed, and at this time the decision was to continue forward with the appeal."

The cost of a red-light camera ticket in New York is $50. But since 2009, Nassau has slammed drivers with an additional $100 in "driver responsibility" and "public safety" fees, totaling $150 per ticket. A New York State appellate division court ruled in November that these extra fees were illegal, and Nassau stopped charging them days later.

Since the court ruling, Nassau awarded $3.2 million to two private law firms to work on litigation — the latest move as the county has tripled its spending on private law firms since Blakeman took office. Greenberg Traurig, one of the firms, began work in February, months before legislators voted on Monday along party lines to approve the contract.

Nassau has also hired Rosenberg, Calica, Birney, Liebman & Ross, awarding an additional $785,000 to the firm on May 28.

The main contact listed on the contract, Joshua Liebman, a partner at the firm, donated $4,000 to Blakeman last year, $1,250 to Nassau County Legislature Presiding Officer Howard Kopel (R-Lawrence) in March and more than $35,000 to Nassau’s Republican Committee since last spring, including $22,500 after the court’s ruling in November, according to a review of campaign filings.

Nassau County generated more than $325 million from red-light camera fees between 2018 and 2022. While Suffolk has requested mediation to settle cases with drivers, Nassau has not. Suffolk also ended its red-light camera program in December after years of charging drivers $30 in illegal fees on top of the $50 fine.

After years of Nassau Democrats supporting red-light camera fees, Legis. Seth Koslow (D-Merrick) sponsored a bill last fall that would require the county to pay back drivers. Kopel, the legislature’s presiding officer, said he would not bring the bill to the floor for a vote.

"The Democrats know reimbursements of past fees would destroy the fiscal stability of the County," Kopel told Newsday at the time. "The only way to do so would be to significantly raise taxes of all Nassau County residents and reduce services. That is reckless and irresponsible."

David Raimondo, the attorney leading the yearslong fight against Nassau and Suffolk over these fees, warned that Nassau could be on the hook for 9% annual interest on money it owes drivers, totaling some $3 million a month.

"Any candidate running for public office should want to settle these cases now and exercise fiscal responsibility on behalf of taxpayers," Raimondo previously told Newsday.

 Correction: Nassau County could be charged $3 million in monthly interest from reimbursed fees if a judge were to rule against the county in the red-light camera program lawsuit. An earlier version misstated the monthly amount.