Nassau's longtime MTA Board rep David Mack out as NYS Senate rejects reappointment

Developer David Mack will be leaving his longtime post as the Nassau County representative on the MTA Board, state officials and Mack confirmed.

State government officials said Mack's exit comes after his nomination failed to make it to a vote in the State Senate. Although Senate Republicans suggested Democratic leaders could have been behind Mack's nomination being nixed, the Kings Point developer and philanthropist told Newsday he pulled his name for consideration Thursday because he had an important appointment to attend and couldn't wait around for his Albany confirmation hearing.

Mack's departure from a post he's held for much of the last three decades could leave Nassau County — the base of the Long Island Rail Road’s daily ridership — without a voting member on the MTA Board until 2027, when the Senate reconvenes. 

Mike Murphy, spokesman for the Democratic Senate majority, said Mack withdrew his nomination after it became clear that he "did not have the votes" to be confirmed.

"We look forward to reviewing the next name submitted whenever that happens," Murphy said.

Sen. Jack Martins (R-Mineola) and Sen. Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick (R-Malverne) both said Mack's name was on a list on MTA Board nominations submitted by Hochul, but came off that list before the Senate could vote on it. Gordon Tepper, spokesman for Hochul, confirmed that Mack "withdrew from consideration without saying why." Tepper said Mack "served with distinction for decades."

Mack, 84, was recommended by Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, a Republican running for governor against Hochul.

Mack, in a phone interview Friday, said his exodus from the MTA Board is "only temporary," and the result of his decision not to attend scheduled confirmation hearings Thursday. Mack said, after waiting six hours in Albany, he opted to pull his name from consideration because he had a "more important" meeting to attend in Manhattan Thursday evening, having to do with his business with Northwell Health. "They serve more people throughout all the counties and the cities than the MTA," Mack said.

"This is not a big deal. I'm not worried. I'll come back," said Mack, who predicted he could return to the MTA Board by the fall, but added that he hadn't yet decide whether he wants to continue to serve. He said he plans to attend the board's next meeting later this month.

As Mack's term has expired and he is no longer being considered for re-confirmation, MTA officials said he is no longer a board member.

In a statement, Blakeman suggested Mack's departure could be permanent. 

"His separation from the MTA board will result in a tremendous loss of knowledge and experience," Blakeman said. "Nassau County residents as well as the whole metropolitan area owe a debt of gratitude to Commissioner Mack for his advocacy on behalf of the traveling public."

Controversies

Mack's long and checkered tenure on the MTA Board began in 1993. A prolific political donor to both Democratic and Republican candidates, Mack has been recommended for the MTA Board post by every Nassau County executive since Thomas Gulotta. The politically connected real estate developer has also boasted of having close ties to President Donald Trump, who grew up in the same Jamaica Estates neighborhood as Mack.

Over his years on the board, Mack — a police enthusiast who has held several honorary positions in police departments — has pushed for increased law enforcement throughout the MTA. As chairman of the MTA Board’s Bridges and Tunnels Committee, Mack has historically prioritized motorists over transit riders, even telling reporters in 2008, "Why should I ride [the LIRR] and inconvenience myself when I can ride in a car?"

While infrequently weighing in on board matters, or attending MTA events on Long Island in recent years, Mack has been embroiled in several controversies during his time with the MTA.

He’s made headlines for his parking habits, including when, according to witnesses, he was involved in a heated verbal altercation with MTA Chairman Janno Lieber over Lieber’s decision to no longer offer MTA Board members agency-issued parking placards. In 2024, disability rights advocates called for him to resign from the board after he was caught parking in a spot designated for paratransit vehicles while attending an MTA Board meeting.

Mack’s tenure on the MTA Board includes a 10-year gap. He resigned from the board under pressure in 2009 after then-Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo accused him of failing to cooperate in an investigation into the state police. A decade later, Cuomo reappointed him to the post, under the recommendation of then-County Executive Laura Curran, a Democrat.

Despite typically keeping a low profile on the board, and occasionally appearing to fall asleep during meetings, Mack scored points among several Long Island residents and elected officials when he cast the lone vote in 2024 in opposition of the MTA’s congestion pricing program, which charges vehicles $9 for driving below 61st Street in Manhattan.

Martins called Mack "a very important figure on Long Island, a businessman, a philanthropist and a friend" and praised him for still being interested in serving the public on the MTA Board. He called it "improper" for Democratic Senate leaders to not consider a recommendation from the Nassau County executive for the county’s representative on the MTA Board.

"The idea that they would just try to silence our voice on the MTA Board, frankly, is unacceptable, and they should explain it," Martins said.

Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick said Mack's departure could leave Nassau County "without a voice" on the MTA Board for nearly a year.

"If the person is qualified to do the position, they're supposed to confirm it. It's not up to them to decide to move on," Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick said of Senate Democrats. "To me, it's a little bit arrogant that they feel that their substituted judgment is appropriate over the county executive."

The 23-member MTA Board oversees the largest public transportation system in the United States, with $1.5 trillion in assets, including the LIRR and city buses, subways, bridges and tunnels. The board is set to weigh several important decisions in the coming months, including the ratification of a new contract for five LIRR unions that went on strike last month, and an expected fare and toll increase next year.

The board still has a Suffolk representative, Marc Herbst, and Hochul appointee Sammy Chu, of Lindenhurst, as well as non-voting members representing LIRR riders and labor.

Herbst said that although Mack "had run-ins with several people" during his time on the board, he always found him to be cordial, respectful and helpful.

"I have no complaints about my working relationship with him. He's been a true gentleman to me," Herbst said.

Gerard Bringmann, a non-voting MTA Board member and chairman of the LIRR Commuter Council, said, despite past controversies, Mack "should be commended for his years of service. But maybe it's time to pass the baton to a younger, more energetic person."

Sen. John Liu (D-Flushing) agreed a generational shift was needed.

"The MTA is far different from what it was when Mr. Mack first joined the board," he said. "It's never a bad thing to have a change."

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.