Garbarino tours Suffolk police and Coast Guard sites on Long Island

Suffolk County’s marine patrols and Coast Guard presence took center stage as Congressman Andrew Garbarino toured local public-safety sites on Long Island, underscoring how much of the county’s security depends on waterborne response as well as land-based policing.

Garbarino said his team was there to better understand the agencies’ daily work. “This week, my team was grateful for the opportunity to tour both the Suffolk County Police Department and the U.S. Coast Guard facilities here on Long Island to learn more about the critical work they do every day to keep our communities safe,” he said.

The stakes are unusually high in Suffolk. The county spans about 900 square miles and sits only about 20 miles from New York City, putting it in the path of many of the same law-enforcement pressures facing a major metro area. That burden is especially heavy for the Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau, which patrols 500 square miles of navigable waterways, barrier beaches, Fire Island and the Great South Bay.

The Marine Bureau is staffed by 83 sworn officers and civilian personnel, with eight additional officers assigned in summer. Its mission is not just about patrols and rescues. The bureau says Suffolk County routinely leads New York State in boating-while-intoxicated arrests, a reminder that boating safety remains a year-round public-safety issue for families, seasonal visitors and mariners alike.

The Coast Guard side of the tour carried its own local significance. Sector Long Island Sound was established on May 31, 2005, and its area of responsibility covers about 23,600 square miles and 450 miles of coastline. The sector has more than 500 active-duty members, 200 reservists, 16 civilians and more than 1,300 auxiliary members, making it a major part of the region’s maritime safety net.

Garbarino, who chairs the House Committee on Homeland Security, has been emphasizing cooperation between federal and local agencies on Long Island. His visit came as he has also been focused on homeland-security funding in Washington, including a committee hearing on the effects of a DHS shutdown and the House-passed FY2026 DHS appropriations bill.

The tour also lined up with Garbarino’s FY26 community project funding list, which includes a $2.1 million Suffolk County Police Department Emergency Service Equipment Project. For Suffolk officials, that kind of investment is more than a line item. It is a direct test of whether Washington can keep pace with the equipment, staffing and maritime response demands that come with policing one of the state’s most complex counties.