Written on Monday, December 1st, 2008 at 3:50pm by Alan Bedenko | 12 Comments

Almost 90% of the Budget is State Mandates

The Erie County Legislature today approved an amended 2009 budget eliminating Collins’ proposed property tax increase. Approximately $9.5 million was cut, enabling a restoration of $1 million in funding for culturals and other spending that Collins had eliminated, such as:

- Restored cultural-tourism funding by $279,405 to provide parity to all organizations and maintain the quality of these services for county residents.

- Restored the Cornell Cooperative Extension Service appropriation amount at $280,250, which the County Executive recommended zero funding for in 2009. This allows for Cornell Cooperative to accept New York State grant funding.

- Restored the Erie County Soil and Water Conservation appropriation at $161,500, which the County Executive also recommended zero funding for in 2009.

- Operation Prime Time funding in the Youth Bureau had its funding increased by $100,000, which will allow the youth program to accept New York State grant funding.

- Created a matching grant for the Olmsted Parks with $360,000, allowing foundations and other funding sources to match upon the County park commissioner’s plan.

Other action taken includes:

- Continued budget monitoring and oversight through the Budget Accountability Act. Each organization must provide the Legislature a budget that includes measurable goals and objectives. A close out report to the Legislature is due at the end of the year.

- The Legislature returned language to continue to conduct its mid-year budget hearings as part of its fiscal oversight duties.

- Added prior legislative approval to several categories, including prohibiting the County Executive from giving variable minimum salaries without prior legislature approval and authorizing the Budget Director to adjust certain grant appropriations and revenues subject to legislature approval.

- Recognized the Erie County Medical Center Corporation’s liability at $5.33 million for 2009 and directed the County Executive to negotiate and propose a plan.

- Instructed the Erie County Board of Elections to stay within budget while recognizing the implementation of HAVA, and provides increases for inspectors’ stipends from $132 to $145.

The lone Democratic dissenting vote came from Tom Loughran, who was not pleased that the budget did not contain money that the county owes to ECMC, but which Collins hopes to negotiate away.

It is predicted that Collins will blast the Legislature for not presenting a balanced budget, replete with accusatory language about their career-politicianness. The problem is, they used the same numbers as Collins did. If their budget is unbalanced, so was his.

The dramatic hamster awaits further nickel and diming.

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12 Comments

  1. Russell says:
    December 1, 2008 at 4:11 pm

    Someone asked it earlier on the other thread dealing with this, but it also fits as a follow up to your statement here as well. If Collins included a tax hike and the Leg did not, then how are they dealing with the same numbers? If they did have essentially the same numbers, then wouldn’t including Collins’ tax increase come a lot closer to balanced than the Leg’s budget without that revenue?

  2. Chris Smith says:
    December 1, 2008 at 4:17 pm

    Abolish county government. This annual parade of nonsense is tedious.

  3. Ward says:
    December 1, 2008 at 4:23 pm

    Shorter Pundit — I read it so you don’t have to.

    Collins = R = Bad.
    Keane = D = Would have been better.
    Whatever.

  4. Starbuck says:
    December 1, 2008 at 6:13 pm

    Maybe “they used the same numbers” means both the CE and Leg wrote up their budgets using the digits 0 to 9.

    I agree with Chris but county abolition seems very unlikely in NYS. County govts are too convenient to the state pols to force spending without having to collect taxes for it, and too popular with party bosses for local patronage, power to choose candidates, etc.

  5. Mike In WNY says:
    December 1, 2008 at 6:42 pm

    The Dems were criticized on the Channel 4 news by both Collins and Polancarz for relying on overly optimistic revenue assumptions.

    Unfortunately, it looks like it will be up to the Control Board to hold the children accountable.

  6. indabuff says:
    December 1, 2008 at 6:43 pm

    Did someone say adult supervision?

  7. Starbuck says:
    December 1, 2008 at 7:21 pm

    Russell, I later noticed Mark had replied to my number question in that previous thread. He explained part of what I didn’t understand, but not quite all. I asked a follow up there.

  8. Prodigal-Son says:
    December 1, 2008 at 10:12 pm

    This is all political posturing, right?

    The CE can veto funding increases, but not cuts. So the Leg cuts Collin’s pet projects, adds their own, and plays hero with keeping out the tax increase.

    But once the budget is passed, its up to Collins to actually balance the budget throughout the year. So the Leg can assume whatever they want for revenue projections, and when Collins still has to raise taxes in the middle of the year, he takes the blame. Classic.

  9. Timothy Domst says:
    December 2, 2008 at 1:20 am

    I don’t care how much the “insiders” use it, cultural is not a noun.

  10. Timothy Domst says:
    December 2, 2008 at 1:25 am

    Why doesn’t the legislature do what the city does with the unions, just raise taxes to give ECMC all the money they want, then claim that they are “saving” money by avoiding a costly lawsuit?

  11. mike hudson says:
    December 2, 2008 at 1:29 am

    at least they have great architecture.

  12. hank says:
    December 2, 2008 at 5:27 pm

    Restored cultural-tourism funding by $279,405 to provide parity to all organizations and maintain the quality of these services for county residents.

    What do county residents gain from cultural-tourism funding?

    Restored the Cornell Cooperative Extension Service appropriation amount at $280,250, which the County Executive recommended zero funding for in 2009. This allows for Cornell Cooperative to accept New York State grant funding.

    Is this the County co-op extension? Or is it part of Cornell University?

    If it’s part of the University, when did Cornell become broke? Why do they need funding from the State OR the county?

 

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