Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Buffalo Chris Scanlon announced a $622 million budget proposal for the 2025-2026 fiscal year Tuesday, a less than 1% increase from last year.
Scanlon says upon taking office, his administration found a $17 million mid-year budget shortfall, and a projected $70 million structural deficit in the upcoming budget.
"My administration immediately established vacancy control measures and directed reductions to non-essential spending. As a result of these and other cost-saving measures, we are now projecting a budget surplus of $1 million for the 2024-2025 fiscal year end. To curtail shortfalls from occurring in future budget years, we made changes to past budgeting methods and revenue projection practices," stated Scanlon.
A key component of the budget is an 8% property tax levy increase, which Scanlon says is expected to generate around $13.7 million.
"I know when people hear 8% they become uneasy with it, but just for practical application on a home that's assessed at $150,000 for next year, that will be an $11 a month increase," explained Scanlon. "We've had conversations with the council about that 8%. We think that's the number it needs to be. If you start dropping that down, we've got to start looking at cutting other things. Then you start getting into some of the stuff that really impacts residents."
Scanlon says the property tax won't be enough to plug the budget hole, which is why the city has requested authorization for two new pieces of legislation that will generate more revenue.
"The first is the Buffalo Parking and Mobility Authority, which would bring an infusion of cash to the city of Buffalo, somewhere between 40 and $60 million. The sale of the four city owned parking ramps will do so. In addition to that, and I think this is an absolute key component, is the fact that we will also receive a recurring revenue on a yearly basis from that structure and that agreement that we ultimately end up on with. We will ultimately also end up with some oversight when it comes to parking rates. We also ask for the establishment of an hotel, parking hotel occupancy tax at 3% which will generate three and a half million dollars for the city above all buffalo," explained Scanlon.
Scanlon says $26 million from the parking ramp sales will go into the upcoming budget to help close the structural deficit and stabilize the city's finances. The rest will go into Buffalo's four-year plan.
"If you take a look at the four year plan that we are presenting, it lays out how we are using it is not all being used in one year, despite what some people like to say. It is being spent over the course of several years while we address the structural deficit within this budget. In addition to that influx of cash, one of the key components is the fact that we will retain a recurring revenue on a yearly basis while offloading the maintenance and capital requirements that we would we would take on and also have some oversight over rates," stated Scanlon.