The Real Deficits of Nassau County

Nassau is among the nation's wealthiest counties—and the richest in New York—as measured by per capita income. It has 1.3 million residents and a median household income of nearly $95,000. There are 37 private golf courses. It's the kind of place where a home might be listed for $25 million and described as "inspired by Marie Antoinette's Le Petit Trianon." Even the Garden City Water Works is housed in an elegant, medieval-looking brick building from the 1870s.

It is a generous place, too, and the salaries of its town and county workers reflect its good fortune. Two school superintendents are the best paid in the state, earning about $380,000 each. Starting salaries for public librarians are as high as $63,000. A county policeman with eight years of service earns a base salary of $108,000. The 2011 budget for the Hempstead animal shelter includes $3.25 million in salaries for 38 employees.