Chautauqua County seeks $2 million budget amendment for social services safety-net costs

County finance and social services officials asked the Audit & Control Committee for a $2,000,000 increase to contractual accounts within the Mental Hygiene and Social Services 2024 budget to cover higher safety-net costs. Blake Urig, director of administrative services, and Diana Songer, deputy director of finance for human services, presented the amendment and explained the county planned to use $1,200,000 of fund balance to offset the increase (SEG 1621–1625).

Officials described the adjustment as part of ongoing efforts to respond to volatile demand for safety-net services. Committee members pushed for clarity on current and expected expenditures; Urig attempted to describe the amended total but the spoken figure was unclear in the record. He said the amendment reflects a significant increase versus the original budget and emphasized the role of fund balance in smoothing the county’s fiscal exposure.

Legislators discussed the tradeoffs of using fund balance rather than raising property taxes or increasing the tax levy, and asked whether longer-term structural changes or program shifts could reduce future safety-net spending. Committee members said the county addressed part of the issue in the 2025 budget but expressed concern that actual demand could exceed projections.

Because the committee was operating in a discussion-only mode, members did not take a formal vote on the amendment during the meeting; the item will move through normal budget processes for final action.

Next steps: finance and human services will continue monitoring safety-net spending and will present further budget actions as needed in the legislature’s formal process.