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Council presses administration on 25% tax increase, deputy-mayor hires and shaky revenue assumptions
Summary
At a multi-hour Buffalo City Council budget hearing, members assailed the administration’s proposed 25% property-tax increase, pressed for proof of promised foundation funding for new deputy-mayor lines and demanded documentation for speculative revenue items including $100 million in collections estimates.
Buffalo City Council members spent several hours Tuesday questioning the administration’s proposed budget, repeatedly pressing officials for evidence behind a proposed 25% property-tax increase and for details on new executive staffing costs.
Council members said the package — which administrators say leaves the reorganization “budget neutral” overall — nonetheless includes higher salaries and new positions that residents will notice amid what councilors described as a $109 million structural deficit. “We were told that there were foundation dollars,” one council member said, “and I have looked in here — where exactly is that?”
The administration defended the reorganization and said many of the apparent increases are transfers from other departments and savings from deleted or vacant positions. Deputy Mayor (speaker 6) told the council the increases “are largely reflective of the December reorganization resolution” and that a separate grant-resolution is being prepared for initial foundation drawdowns to support consultancies and other limited uses.
Why it matters: Council members said the timing and size of several revenue assumptions are material to whether taxes must rise so steeply. The budget book contains a mix of confirmed receipts and estimates, including a finance department presentation that described roughly $100 million in outstanding receivables across the last seven years and a projected $10 million from an NRAM real-estate-auction disposition. Several council members said those figures are optimistic and requested the underlying data before any final vote.
What members asked for: Councilors repeatedly requested workshop follow-ups and documentation on several points, including: which foundation or grant dollars will pay deputy-mayor salaries and when those monies will be recognized; a breakdown of “miscellaneous” revenue lines totalling about $1.2 million; and validation of parking and collections projections that administrators say will help offset the levy increase.
On staffing and transfers: Administration officials said the mayor’s office absorbed items including the mayor’s director of emergency operations and a telecom unit from public works, and added one events planner. They said some positions were eliminated (for example, a previously proposed executive director position) and that net headcount is modestly reduced due to consolidations and deletions of long-vacant lines.
On the tax increase: Multiple members described constituent anger and household strain if taxes rise by a quarter. One council member said the administration told the council in prior meetings that the first-year levy pressure would be smaller; another said she had supported the reorganization based on earlier assurances that foundation support would offset new costs.
Next steps: Administrators agreed to provide line-by-line provenance and supporting documents in upcoming budget workshops. Council members signaled they will press for possible cuts, freezes or alternative revenue plans before any final vote or public hearing.
