Suffolk also struggling to make budget work

The ongoing drama of Nassau County's 2012 budget maneuverings got most of the attention last week. But Suffolk County's 2012 budget machinations merit a look, too.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy's proposal to cut his way to a balanced budget took a beating last week during two legislative hearings. And that came after the county's independent Office of Budget Review's assertion that Levy overestimated revenue so much that Suffolk could run out of cash next year.

Lawmakers have suggested, among other ideas, selling off and leasing back the Dennison Building in Hauppauge to make ends meet. But it shouldn't come to that option because Suffolk has advantages Nassau doesn't.

Seven of eight contracts with county labor unions are open, for example, which means Suffolk, unlike Nassau, has no need to get unions to agree to reopen existing agreements.

Labor negotiations stalled, observers said, after Levy announced that he would not seek a third term. The job of negotiation with unions for savings will now fall to either Republican Angie Carpenter or Democrat Steve Bellone, both running for Levy's job.

Meanwhile, even as officials work to squeeze spending and find revenue, Suffolk has the advantage of being able to borrow at lower interest rates than Nassau does. A bond offering last week had interest rates of 3.5 percent, officials said, compared to the average 4.7 percent Nassau drew the last time it went to market.

One of Suffolk's biggest advantages is that the county has no debt tied to assessment. In Nassau -- where the cost of paying back successful assessment challenges helped put the county in debt -- the county does the job of setting assessment rates for residential and commercial properties; in Suffolk, the task rests with towns.

Despite its relative advantages, however, Suffolk is facing harsh times.

"This is without a doubt the worst I've ever seen," said William Lindsay, presiding officer of the Suffolk Legislature. "We are struggling to make the budget work."

Suffolk -- like Nassau -- has been hit hard by the increasing cost of the state pension system. And fluctuating sales tax revenue. And services mandated but not financed by New York State.

Levy, whose office declined repeated requests for comment, remains popular to this day in part for his refusal to raise general-fund property taxes over two four-year terms. He's raised taxes in other funds, such as police, over the years. And critics say he's managed to tightly control expenses by surgically gutting services and personnel.

His proposed budget for next year includes only one increase, in the sewer tax fund, which keeps Suffolk -- like Nassau -- overly reliant on fluctuating sales tax revenue.

During two days of budget hearings, department heads told lawmakers that 710 layoffs proposed by Levy would hurt county services.

Lindsay said that lawmakers -- who must pass a budget next month -- are working on trying to mitigate layoffs. He said it won't be easy, especially because Suffolk's had three challenging budget cycles in a row.

"With pension increases and all of the state mandates it gets harder and harder to make ends meet," he said. "We need all the help we can get."

He said county officials -- Democrats, Republicans and Working Families members -- are working together to find solutions. "Another good thing about Suffolk is that we don't have hard partisanship in the legislature," he said. "We don't place blame; we go for solutions."