Levy blasts bill to fill vacancies without his OK

County Executive Steve Levy Thursday criticized a proposal to permit Suffolk's five countywide elected officials to fill vacant budgeted positions without his approval as "extremely dangerous to taxpayers" because they have "no incentive to control costs."

The officials - district attorney, sheriff, comptroller, county clerk and treasurer - showed up by surprise just before the news conference held by Levy, a Republican, and later said they were offended by his remarks.

"We collectively and individually take our responsibility to the taxpayers as seriously or more seriously than Mr. Levy," said District Attorney Thomas Spota, a Democrat elected with GOP support. He said they know better than the county executive where costs can best be cut in their own agencies.

The angry clash comes in the wake of a proposed charter law that would allow the countywide officials - whose staffs compose about 8 percent of the county's 12,000-person workforce - to fill budget positions without Levy's approval. Backers say the measure has safeguards allowing the county executive to block hiring if he declares a fiscal emergency or determines there is not enough revenue to pay salaries. Jobs could be filled with a supermajority vote of 14 lawmakers.

Suffolk Legislature Presiding Officer William Lindsay (D-Holbrook) said the bill comes at the request of countywide elected officials who "are tired of begging" to fill jobs that are in the budget. "They answer directly to the taxpayers," he said. "They shouldn't have to answer to the county executive."

Levy, in his news conference, did not directly attack countywide elected officials but instead criticized lawmakers for what he called "an anti-taxpayer power grab" to diminish his power to make budget decisions.

Levy claimed when Albany County in 1995 ended the power of the executive to manage vacancies in elected officials' agencies, the number of jobs there grew 37 percent in the past 15 years. Those managed by the executive dropped 20 percent, he added.

Levy maintained his efforts to curtail hiring resulted in savings of $1.9 million in 2009 and estimated $2.5 million this year in the offices headed by the elected officials. But Spota called Levy's claims "completely distorted" and said officials themselves are responsible for the cost reductions. Sheriff Vincent DeMarco said Levy's salaries comparisons leave out overtime costs, noting that a new correction officer has an annual cost of $71,000, while filling the post on overtime costs $81,000.

Levy said he would probably go to court to force a referendum if the measure is approved.