Let F be an algebraically closed field and let G be a semisimple F-algebraic group for which the characteristic of F is very good. If X ∈ Lie(G) = Lie(G)(F) is a nilpotent element in the Lie algebra of G, and if C is the centralizer in G of X, we show that (i) the root datum of a Levi factor of C, and (ii) the component group C/C° both depend only on the Bala-Carter label of X; i.e. both are independent of very good characteristic. The result in case (ii) depends on the known case when G is (simple and) of adjoint type.The proofs are achieved by studying the centralizer of a nilpotent section X in the Lie algebra of a suitable semisimple group scheme over a Noetherian, normal, local ring . When the centralizer of X is equidimensional on Spec(), a crucial result is that locally in the étale topology there is a smooth -subgroup scheme L of such that Lt is a Levi factor of for each t ∈ Spec ().