Streetvoice: Financially Flummoxed	by Peter Koch

Following Erie County’s fiscal meltdown last fall, Albany created a “soft” advisory control board to fix our finances. Since August, the seven financial experts of the Erie County Fiscal Stability Authority have urged the Legislature to cut costs and pare down county government. It was set to become a “hard” control board on Oct. 1, pending the Legislature’s ability to pass a four-year financial plan. The Legislature, although unable to agree on which taxes to increase, narrowly passed a plan that increases the sales tax by half a cent and property taxes by 16 percent. While that move staved off a hard control board (capable of rejecting labor contracts, freezing wage increases, setting spending levels and forcing other economizing measures), it didn’t solve the problem of over-spending, nor did it rectify the fact that the Legislature will need two more votes for the same plan to pass come budget time. Is the Erie County Legislature finally taking control of its own destiny, or is this just more of the “same old, same old?”

(photo: Peter Koch)

Name: Carl Matthews

Occupation: Building Maintenance

Residence: Buffalo

If given a choice between an increase in property tax or sales tax, which would you rather see? Or would you prefer a combination of both? Some sort of combination. You have to shop, that’s inevitable. So you don’t want too much tax on that, because money’s just too scarce. Property taxes, well, you have to live, and they’re high enough as it is. If you could sort of split them, so it isn’t so high on either end, it would probably be better.

Would you rather have a state-appointed control board in charge of county finances, or do you think the Legislature deserves another chance to get things right? State control… (laughs) immediately, right away, yesterday.

How do you propose Erie County cut its spending? State control. I really don’t know how they are allocating their spending now, so I can’t put my finger on one specific thing. But it seems like money’s always being misappropriated, because we’re always out of it, somehow, somewhere. Maybe if we had less government…

(photo: Peter Koch)

Name: Frank Lopez

Occupation: Store manager

Residence: Buffalo

If given a choice between an increase in property tax or sales tax, which would you rather see? Or would you prefer a combination of both? It seems like maybe both are needed, but I was always thinking a sales tax would be better, because it’s more even with everybody. Rather than the property tax, where there could be more confusion with assessments and that sort of thing.

Would you rather have a state-appointed control board in charge of county finances, or do you think the Legislature deserves another chance to get things right? Definitely the state-appointed control board. I don’t think the Legislature has done a very good job at all. That seems to be proven by the mess we’re in now. I still think it’s a mess, and I don’t know if it will be correctable.

How do you propose Erie County cut its spending? We kind of put our trust in the elected officials to be looking over things to see if they can or can’t cut. I, personally, am not sure where they could cut. I’d like to be able to put my trust in the elected officials, but I’m not sure I can with the mess we’re in.

(photo: Peter Koch)

Name: Pinkey Bender

Occupation: Housewife

Residence: Buffalo

If given a choice between an increase in property tax or sales tax, which would you rather see? Or would you prefer a combination of both? A combination. For senior citizens and the ones who are less fortunate, a sales tax is too hard. But it shouldn’t all fall on property owners.

Would you rather have a state-appointed control board in charge of county finances, or do you think the Legislature deserves another chance to get things right? State-appointed control board. I believe that’s what we really need, considering our financial problems.

How do you propose Erie County cut its spending? Maybe we could get rid of some of the government officials, but we shouldn’t cut back on services.