Kearns concerned over Buffalo tax hike proposal

Buffalo, NY (WBEN) Erie County Clerk Mickey Kearns says he's concerned about property tax hikes in Buffalo that could affect the ability of residents to cover county property tax bills.

Kearns says there are nearly 6,000 city residents who are behind on their county property taxes. "It's nearly $10 million and Erie County does not have a payment plan. So if you get behind on your taxes, you do not get a payment plan until you go into foreclosure. And once you go into foreclosure, for many people, that's going to be difficult,": says Kearns. He says most residents don't get a notice about how far behind they are until the debt reaches $3,500. "When you get behind, you're paying that 18% interest rate. What concerns me is that you have a 25% increase. And I've met with some of the Buffalo Common Council members, and I did express this to them that it's very concerning that that number is growing exponentially, but 18% when you're behind on your taxes. Now with that 25% city property tax increase, we could be facing a catastrophic foreclosures on many people, especially in our African American communities, many of our Hispanic communities, any really community where they can lose generational wealth."

Kearns is asking for two things. " I filed a resolution with the Erie County Legislature back in 2025 to say let's look at this. Let's talk about lowering it down going to Albany. Let's not have the highest interest rate when you get behind on your taxes. Let's amend the Erie county tax act, and let's, let's have a payment plan for people. But you know, no one could have anticipated this additional 25% so when we're talking about these numbers and we're talking about the budget," says Kearns.

Kearns says Erie County is owed nearly over $50 million in back taxes.