wbfo NewsRoom
    County Control Board Demands Revised Four Year Plan

    BUFFALO, NY (2006-07-27) The Erie County Fiscal Stability Authority is giving county officials 30 days to come up with a revised four-year fiscal recovery plan.

    Board members say the current plan is not meeting expectations for cutting costs. They say they want to avoid a property tax increase.

    Member Ken Kruly said the consequences will be severe if County Executive Joel Giambra fails to meet the new deadline.

    “We would have to evaluate the fact that he hasn’t followed the law,” Kruly said. “A violation of the law is a trigger for a hard control board.”

    But Giambra disputes that. He said his administration has submitted revisions to the four-year plan.

    “If he wants more paper, we can put more paper together,” Giambra said. “But that is the sum and substance of the revision. We think it’s a reasonable, rational plan that’s going to be very consistent with other counties and what they’re doing.”

    Giambra said the county’s current financial situation is not as dire as some control board members are making it out to be. But he did say he wants to continue the county’s current eight-and-three-quarters percent sales tax for the duration of the four year plan.

I love the stand the control board is finally taking. No more taxes, it is time for structural changes in the county. For years government has grown out of control and they do not want things to change. The mindset has got to change first and that will only come about by changing the faces.

We tried that last year and 7 new faces came aboard, out of those 7 only 2 Democrats, Locklear and Konst are trying to make changes, joining with the Republicans on resolutions and legislation that never makes it to the floor for debate or vote. The rest of the Democrats being controlled by Marinelli, Lenihan and Hoyt just jump at their demands and nothing is getting done except more promises for the unions. It all disgusts me.

Giambra is lost in space somewhere. About the only thing he is right on is the inability to do anything without approval from Albany.