Suffolk Notebook: Bellone Retains Fundraising Advantage

Posting their final campaign reports before the Nov. 8 election, Board of Election reports show Democratic candidate for county executive Steve Bellone holding more than three times the amount of money in his war chest than his Republican opponent County Treasurer Angie Carpenter heading into the home stretch.

Reports show Bellone spending nearly half a million dollars in the past three weeks and taking in roughly $160,000 in donations, with a balance of $509,000.

Carpenter, between two campaign funds - the Friends of Angie Carpenter and Carpenter for the County - holds about $157,000 after spending roughly $238,000 since the last campaign report, filed on Oct. 7.

Carpenter's largest donors include the Suffolk County Association of Municipal Employees, which donated $9,500, and the Suffolk County Correction Officers  Association, donating $4,250.

Bellone's largest donors came in the form of $15,000 courtesy of 1199 Service Employees International Union — a New York City-based health care workers' union — and a $12,000 donation from the Suffolk Superior Officers' Association.

On Wednesday, the two faced off in a live debate featured on News 12.

County Exec Vetoes Holding Onto Foley Nursing Home — Again

The back-and-forth between the Suffolk County Legislature and County Executive Steve Levy over a decision to retain or sell the John J. Foley Skilled Nursing Home continued this week when Levy vetoed a resolution amending the 2011 budget to restore over 225 positions at the facility.

The resolution originally passed at the legislature's Oct. 11 meeting with a 15-1 vote. Legis. Tom Barraga, R-West Islip, voted in dissent.

Levy's 2012 budget — which has been called "precipitously balanced on inflated revenue" by the director of the Office of Legislative Budget Review — calls for the sale of Foley. The 2011 budget forecasted a drawing down of all positions at Foley by April 2011.

The county executive , citing a running $8 million deficit at Foley and a proposal of his to get county employees to contribute to their health care costs.

In a veto message on Tuesday, Levy wrote in capital letters that "IT CANNOT BE EMPHASIZED ENOUGH THAT AN OVERRIDE OF THIS VETO WILL RESULT IN THE CREATION OF A $23 MILLION HOLE IN THE OPERATING BUDGET. THIS IS SO IMPORTANT, IT NEEDS REPEATING." The note goes on to repeat the message, in bold text.

Proponents of holding onto Foley say that should the county facility close, private entities would not accept many individuals Foley takes in. Others have stated that the county portion of taxpayers' bills isn't enough to warrant the move.