Legislator Chuck Nazzaro, right, receives a commendation from Chairman Pierre Chagnon. Nazzaro retired from the legislature after 14 years. Photo by Gregory Bacon

After seven terms, which equal 14 years, longtime Jamestown legislator Chuck Nazzaro’s time has come to an end.

As of today, Jan. 1, Nazzaro, a Democrat, is no longer representing District 9 in the Chautauqua County Legislature. When he was first elected in 2008, there were 25 legislators, and he was elected for District 16, taking over for former legislator Joseph Trusso, who served for more than 30 years. Before that, Nazzaro was a member of the Jamestown City Council in the 1990s.

When Nazzaro took office, the Democrats held the majority of the legislature and he was appointed chairman of the legislature’s Audit and Control Committee. It was an important position, as the Audit and Control Committee generally has the final say on all matters regarding finances, but a logical one due to Nazzaro’s experience at the chief financial officer at WCA Hospital.

Nazzaro noted the political tension was much higher between the Democrats and Republicans than today. “When I first got on, there were 12 Republicans, 12 Democrats and one Independent. There were very ‘spirited conversations’ … there was a lot of grandstanding on the floor,” he said.

Two years later the Republicans took over the majority of the legislature and Nazzaro has been part of the minority ever since. In 2014, the legislature reduced its size from 25 to 19 members and Nazzaro’s district changed from the southern part of Jamestown and part of the town of Ellicott to entirely the southern part of Jamestown.

Once his party was in the minority, Nazzaro no longer served as the chair of Audit and Control, but did continue to serve on that committee. Pierre Chagnon, R-Bemus Point, was later elected and was appointed chairman of the Audit and Control Committee. Like Nazzaro, Chagnon has a background in finance. He quickly grew to respect Nazzaro’s knowledge.

“It didn’t take me very long to see how highly skilled a professional he was, especially in terms of his financial acumen and how the two of us thought alike. He and I think and have thought so much alike on a whole host of issues,” Chagnon said.

Due to his respect for Nazzaro, Chagnon asked him to serve as the vice chairman of the Audit and Control Committee.

In January 2020, PJ Wendel was appointed county executive after George Borrello was elected as state senator. Chagnon was then selected to be chairman of the full legislature. Chagnon, in turn, asked Nazzaro to serve as the chairman of the Audit and Control Committee. That appointment itself was highly unusual due to Nazzaro’s political affiliation.

“I had people asking me questions about that. It is not customary for members of the minority party to have committee chair positions,” Chagnon said.

But he did it because he felt Nazzaro was the best person for the job. That appointment also helped party relations. “I got a lot of appreciation and recognition from the minority party,” Chagnon said.

BUDGET CHALLENGES

During Nazzaro’s time in the legislature, he’s worked on 14 different county budgets with four different county executives. The early days were especially tough financially.

“Our fund balance was not at a level that we were comfortable with,” he said. “When I was first on there, we had to scale back the workforce and have layoffs. That was a very emotional time for employees, because we had to find ways to trim costs.”

The property tax rate continued to go up as well. In 2008, the property tax rate was $8.72 per $1,000 assessed valuation. In 2012, it hit a high of $9.22. For 2022, the property tax rate is $8.10 per $1,000 assessed valuation, lower than any point during Nazzaro’s tenure.

“To get our financial house in order, that took a series of years to do it,” he said.

But as the property tax dropped, the sales tax rate has gone up. In 2010, Chautauqua County’s sales tax was 7 1/2%. Starting in 2015, the rate went up to 8%, which Nazzaro supported.

“In the sales tax, everyone pays that who comes into the county, when they go to our restaurants, hotels, whatever,” he said, adding that the county does not charge sales tax on clothing under $110.

CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES

Politics always has its disagreements, and county government is no exception. One of the biggest issues during Nazzaro’s tenure was the sale of the County Home. In early 2010s, legislators debated if the county should own the Dunkirk senior living facility or if it should be privatized.

“That was a very emotional issue. It actually divided the legislature. We had more than one vote on the issue,” he said.

Nazzaro, who supported the home’s sale, noted that selling it was not approved until 2014, when the legislature dropped from 25 to 19 members. “To this day, I do think (selling) that was the right decision because not only was it a significant local share of the county, but a private entity can operate it differently than the county could,” he said.

Today, the facility is still in use and is known as the Chautauqua Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

Another controversial issue was getting rid of health insurance for legislators.

“That was a very political, a very emotional issue,” he said. “That was voted on several times. Every time I did vote to eliminate the health insurance. I felt that as part-time elected officials, we went in to serve, not for the small stipend we get, not for the benefits, but to represent the people.”

HIGHLIGHTS

Nazzaro notes that although he is a Democrat, he has worked with both parties to bring the tax rate down.

“I’m proud that I’ve been able to work with both sides of the aisle — both Democrats and Republicans — putting together a strong financial plan. I didn’t do this myself, but I feel that I’ve had a lot of input on that,” he said.

Another highlight is how the legislature has worked to improve the county lakes and waterways, doing things like banning detergents with phosphates. They’ve also worked with local municipalities to address abandoned properties.

“We’re trying to get these zombie properties cleaned up,” he said.

Nazzaro also believes the legislature and county executive did an excellent job managing its way through the pandemic, especially when it first hit.

“Everyone just worked together to avoid catastrophic issues in the government,” he said. “We put together a financial plan. We offered volunteer layoffs that was taken by over a hundred people and they got the federal benefits. We immediately stopped unnecessary contracts, unnecessary equipment purchases.”

CHALLENGES/DISAPPOINTMENTS

Even though the legislature has been able to lower the tax rate and has a stronger fund balance, there have been frustrations that they were unable to address. Nazzaro said he’s concerned about the population loss. He desires for more economic development. He also believes additional job training is needed for high school graduates.

“I’m not blaming anyone, it’s just frustrating,” he said.

State and federal mandates can be frustrating as well.

“So much of our budget is state mandates, especially the social programs,” he said. “I’m not saying those programs are bad; they’re needed. We’re a poor county. … Sometimes they put in a new program but they won’t tell us how to implement those programs or give us the resources we need at the county level to carry out those programs.”

DEMOCRATIC PARTY STRUGGLES

During Nazzaro’s tenure, the county Democratic Party has continued to dwindle. In 2008, the Democrats controlled the legislature and there was a Democratic sheriff. Today the sheriff, county executive, district attorney, and county clerk are all Republicans. In the legislature, the Republican Party has grown to supermajority. In fact in 2022, only four of the 19 legislators are Democrats.

While both cities have Democratic mayors, Republicans are in the majority of both councils. This year, Dunkirk will have three Republicans and two Democrats, while Jamestown’s council will have seven Republicans and only two Democrats.

“The Democratic Party needs to be rebuilt and retooled,” Nazzaro said. “I think it needs new leadership. I think it needs somebody that can come in and bring everyone together.”

Nazzaro is thankful that on the county level everyone has worked well together, but he wants to see his party improve. “I’ve seen a lot of people leave the committee,” he said.

But even though Nazzaro is stepping down from elected office, he isn’t interested in taking a stronger role in the party. “If anyone asks me my opinion or assistance on a matter, I will certainly do that, but will I take a leadership role? No. I think sometimes new blood is good and some new vision,” he said.

Instead, Nazzaro is looking forward to retirement, spending part of his time in his Florida home with his wife. “Now when I want to go to Florida, be with family or travel … we can do it,” he said.