Aside from representing the residents of the 14th District, Kevin McCaffrey has another role in county government: he’s also the legislature's Presiding Officer.
“Under my leadership, Suffolk’s legislators are working every day to maintain a balance between providing residents an affordable tax rate while concurrently offering superior municipal services and protecting our environment– especially the surface waters and drinking waters,” McCaffrey said of his priorities.
According to the Presiding Officer, who’s held the position since 2022 when the Republicans won the majority, “Suffolk residents aren’t leaving for places like South Carolina and Texas because they don’t like our parks, beaches, and waterways. Rather, most who do so are leaving because Suffolk County, and New York in general, have become too expensive.”
McCaffrey and his Republican majority took heat last fall for declining to stage a public vote on raising the sales tax to generate money for new sewers and improvements to private cesspools. They rejected a 75-25 funding split favoring cesspools that was put forth by former county Executive Steve Bellone and instead put the spending level at 50-50, a measure they’re looking to put on the November ballot pending state authorization.
The Presiding Officer sees the long-overdue expansion of the county’s sewer system as a way to protect the island’s natural resources while also spurring economic growth, two of his key legislative priorities. The plan, which also includes the creation of a countywide sewer district, is expected to generate billions in funding by raising the sales tax an eighth of a cent. Currently, Suffolk’s sales tax is 8.63%, with 4.25% going to the county, while 4% goes to the state, and .38% to the Suffolk Transit District.
It was in McCaffrey’s district where the body parts of a man and woman were recently found, reigniting the debate over the state’s cashless bail system as four suspects in the case were released without bail. “One-party rule in Albany has made even this horrific crime not a bailable offense,” McCaffrey noted. “The law, as it is currently written, allows suspects with this propensity for evil to walk free without even posting bail. It defies all logic and, in the end, makes us all victims in these terrible crimes.”
With a crime wave sweeping across the state—Gov. Kathy Hochul has ordered National Guard Troops to protect the subways—McCaffrey remains firm in his support of the police. “While national movements have sought to demonize the Law Enforcement profession, under my leadership, this legislature will continue to stand with the men and women of law enforcement and public safety,” he promised.
McCaffrey was also the face of the legislature when it drew the wrath of New York Mayor Eric Adams and national Democrats for retaining an attorney to advise them on the illegal immigration issue. Adams, who stated that the invasion of migrants “will destroy New York City,” was looking to relocate them to Suffolk. The issue has settled down as Adams backed off on his relocation efforts and dropped his lawsuit against Suffolk for considering measures to stop him. “The migrants are not coming to Suffolk by the busload,” McCaffrey pointed out. “They’re coming in vans.”
The legislator took exception to the governor’s effort to reduce school aid funding. “We really need to stem the tide of unfunded mandates that put tremendous strain on the school districts,” McCaffrey said. “To not have that financial support, to have to hire teachers to handle the influx of children who have English as a second language, who have learning disabilities—that’s a problem.” He pointed to Amityville, Riverhead, and other school districts that are letting teachers go for lack of funding. “But at the same time, they're held to the standards that the state puts on them as far as offering services,” he said.
In the 14th District, which includes Part of Babylon Town, Lindenhurst, and Copiague, McCaffrey said he is focused on open space preservation and is pushing for a new park on Bergen Avenue in West Babylon. The site of a former nursery, the area along Montauk Highway used to feature a windmill that served as a gateway to the area, a landmark McCaffrey would like to see restored as part of the park.
In his sixth and final term, the Presiding Officer began his career in government in 1990 when he was elected to serve as Trustee and Deputy Mayor of Lindenhurst, the largest village in Suffolk. In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, McCaffrey worked to get his hometown back on its feet. He also helped develop and maintain some of the best village-owned ball fields and parks in the county and served as a coach for the Lindenhurst Little League and CYO Basketball.
McCaffrey was elected to the Teamsters Local 707 Executive Board in 1995 and then President in 2000, a position he still holds today. He’s been married to his wife Julie, a former Registered Nurse, for over 35 years, and are the proud parents of two children. Their son, Mike, serves as a Detective in the New York City Police Department, and their daughter, Katie, serves as Assistant to the Mayor in the Village of Lindenhurst.