Just as State Senator Dean Skelos and State Assembly Member Thomas DiNapoli announced that they had secured enough state funding to stave off any Long Island Bus service cuts this year, Gulotta declared he was cutting another $3 million from the county's contribution to the bus system operating budget.

Today, Newsday denounced the shell game in an editorial: "No sooner do legislators bail out LI Bus than Gulotta tries to grab the money - again."  See the editorial.

The County Executive threw the bus budget into chaos when he withdrew $7 million in county operating support in December. LI Bus, with over 100,000 weekday passengers, announced it would impose severe service cuts unless the money was restored. Gulotta's latest move still leaves the system $3 million short.

On Monday, the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, ACORN and Sustainable Long Island staged a mock game of three-card monte at the county legislative building. In the game, bus riders and state legislators were hustled by the County Executive. Cable TV and radio reporters attended the festivities.