Levy faces new challenges governing

Suffolk Executive Steve Levy faces enormous difficulties in running county government now that he's decided not to seek re-election to resolve an investigation of his fundraising, politicians and experts said Friday.

After years of acrimonious battles with other county officials, Levy will likely confront an aggressive Democratic-controlled legislature ready to ignore his proposals, increase scrutiny of his appointees and try to exert more control over how money is spent, according to Democrats and Republicans alike.

However, several observers also said that any problems this may cause were preferable to a power vacuum in the Dennison County Office Building in Hauppauge. If Levy had resigned, the resulting special election this summer, followed by the November general election, would have cost millions of dollars and disrupted efforts to reduce a two-year budget deficit of $179.5 million, the experts said.

"A leaderless government for the next six months is even more scary to me," said Legis. William Lindsay (D-Holbrook), who as presiding officer has taken the brunt of Levy's verbal assaults on the legislature. "The county is in horrible, horrible fiscal straits. We're going to have to decide how to balance the budget: what services to eliminate, where to get revenue. . . . We cannot afford the distraction of a special election" in July or August.

Levy made no public appearances or statements Friday. "The county executive is taking a couple of days off to relax and reflect with his family," spokesman Mark Smith said.

But through another aide, Levy vowed to remain an activist leader. "The county executive's administrative powers have not been diminished at all," said spokesman Dan Aug. "He tends to lead the train with his ideas and the legislature tends to follow . . . the county executive's ideas will still be forthcoming."

Still, the circumstances that led Levy, 51, to not seek re-election, notably the probe by Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, could torpedo his legislative proposals and roll back past accomplishments.

For example, his backers and detractors agreed that Levy's signature development project, Legacy Village in Yaphank, is "dead." Some lawmakers are exploring how to overturn the sale of the county nursing home, which he championed.

The lifelong Democrat who last year joined the GOP to run for governor also may have lost his most prized asset: widespread support among middle-class residents who have endorsed his fiscal conservatism.

"It will be extremely difficult for him to manage county government because not only is he a lame duck, but there are underlying questions about his moral authority and political credibility," said political consultant Paul Sabatino II, who spent 31 years in Suffolk government as a legislative lawyer and Levy aide until the pair fell out.

Another consultant, Michael Dawidziak, who managed Levy's political campaigns, disagreed.

He said the county executive is widely admired for his tightfisted stewardship of tax dollars. "There's a shark feeding frenzy going on, but it will die down in three days," Dawidziak said. "Steve isn't going to lose public support; his fiscal policies are very popular."

Dawidziak and others noted Levy continues to wield considerable power, at least theoretically.

He controls all county departments, has exclusive use of reserve funds to remedy a fiscal crisis, and veto power over legislation, though he could be overridden by county lawmakers.

But Legis. Jon Cooper (D-Lloyd Harbor), the majority leader, sees it differently, saying Levy should reconsider whether to remain in office until his term ends on Dec. 31. "Every action taken by the county executive from this point forward, rightly or wrongly, can and will be viewed through lenses tainted by scandal and alleged improprieties," Cooper said.

Others contend that Levy's setback could foster bipartisanship around the legislative horseshoe table in Hauppauge. Recent events have negated his insistence that lawmakers agree with him 100 percent of the time.

"The Democrats see him as vulnerable, and the Republicans are not going to want to be close to him because he no longer wears the white hat," said Stanley B. Klein, a politics professor at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University and a GOP committeeman in Dix Hills. "So, we may see an emboldened legislature like we had before Steve Levy became county executive."

With Sid Cassese