13. Kevin Law

It is a rarity in the world of public service today. It’s not every day that the managing partner of one of the most highly regarded law firms on Long Island, with high-powered connections throughout the state, chooses to take a steep pay cut to serve the public good. That’s exactly what happened when Kevin Law resigned as the head of Nixon Peabody to serve under the then-newly elected County Executive Steve Levy. When friend and political ally Eliot Spitzer ascended to the governor’s mansion, many thought Law was sure to follow upstate. Instead, Long Islanders were fortunate enough to retain the multi-faceted Law as the chairman of the Long Island Power Authority to manage the nonprofit entity’s $3.7 billion budget, more than half of which pays for fuel and purchased power in a market where oil prices break records daily. Replacing the larger-than-life Richard Kessel is a challenge unto itself, but Law has approached the job with a businesslike diligence and a determination to eliminate superfluous spending that may otherwise cost LI ratepayers unnecessary dollars. Long Islanders pay the third highest energy rates in the nation; needless to say, we’re rooting for him.