Donald MusgnugTown Board members, in a rare sign of unanimity, appointed Donald Musgnug to the position of Smithtown Town Comptroller on Tuesday, February 10. The position has been vacant since former comptroller Louis Necroto left at the end of January. Mr.Musgnug’s appointment became effective on February 10 (pending a medical exam and drug test) and ends on December 31, 2015. He will receive a $100,000 salary.
The new comptroller is a certified public accountant with a background that includes auditing the Town of Smithtown. He has a long history in government having served as a councilman in the Town of Huntington from 1994- 1997. Prior to serving as councilman he was the chief financial officer for the Suffolk County Regional Off-Track Betting Corporation from 1984- 1990. He started his career in Manhattan before taking a position at Ernst & Young, had a solo practice in Pt. Jefferson for ten years before merging with Peare & Heller Financial Services. He eventually took a position with the Hauppauge based Fuoco Group.
According to the NYS Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s guide for local officials, “… a comptroller takes over certain duties that otherwise would be the responsibility of the town board and town clerk. These duties include auditing, allowing or rejecting claims; preparing abstracts; and filing claims and other related functions. The duties of a town comptroller also include auditing the books and records of town officers and employees who received or disbursed moneys during the fiscal year (Town Law, Section 34). The town board may also take action to confer certain other duties upon the town comptroller, such as being the accounting officer for the town.”
Supervisor Vecchio was not at the Tuesday meeting to cast his vote; however, Mr. Musgnug told Smithtown Matters that he had a phone conversation with the Supervisor prior to the Tuesday meeting. The new comptroller was invited by Councilman McCarthy to speak to board members prior to the vote on his appointment. Mr.Musgnug used the opportunity to thank the board for their support “..I look forward to being a steady hand at the helm and working with each and every board member and the Cheif Financial Officer the Supervisor. If their is anything I can do as we go along do not hesitate to ask.”
Asked by Councilwoman Nowick to talk about his vision. Mr. Musgnug said, “My vision , I have significant things to learn. I will meet with the deputy comptroller and other members of the department and other department heads, keep the momentum going that the previous comptroller Louis Necroto started, strengthening internal controls and keeping an eye on expenditures….”
Town Councilman Ed Wehrheim questioned Mr. Musgnug about his familiarity with the work Louis Necroto was doing before he left. “I think Lou Necroto was a good thinker and an honest man and I think he provided very professional judgement for the town. I did speak with him about several of the issues and I am supportive of the initiiatives he has enumerated to me.” said Donald Musgnug.
Councilmembers offered the new comptroller support and encouragement. A smiling Mr. Musgnug went to work.