Thursday, June 20, 2024
Erie County Legislator Frank Todaro and members of the Erie County Legislature’s Republican Caucus are criticizing their democratic colleagues for pushing through a local law that silences the voices of hundreds of thousands of Erie County residents. The law, which was quietly put on the agenda last minute, removes the right of voters to approve the extension of sales tax at a public referendum. Instead, the measure allows for a simple majority vote of the legislature to extend the sales tax and could even lead to the legislature approving tax hikes without any public input. Currently a super majority vote of the legislature is required, which has allowed the party in the minority to negotiate with the Administration, leading to a cut in the property tax levy, borrowing less, and saving millions of dollars for taxpayers.
New York State currently requires the Erie County Legislature to authorize extending the 1% and 0.75% sales and compensating use tax every two years. There are two options available to them; a super majority vote of the legislature, or a majority vote that puts a referendum before voters. This procedure has been in place for decades. In fact, in the 1970s when Democrats had control of the Erie County Legislature, only a simple majority vote was required for the sales tax. When Republicans took control of the legislature the following year, and Republican Ned Regan was Erie County Executive, it was the Democrats who fought for a super majority vote. Republicans agreed, and supported that measure, where voters decided overwhelmingly to require a super majority vote of the legislature for sales tax.
“Our caucus represents hundreds of thousands of people. Our Democratic colleagues even bragged about the successes that came from the negotiations. They touted the tax levy cut, and the millions in savings that only came about because the Republicans in the minority fought for it in our discussions with the Administration over the sales tax extension. Silencing the voices of the people in the 33 municipalities we represent sets a dangerous precedent,” said Erie County Legislator Frank Todaro.
The measure did not appear on the agenda for the June 20 session. By quietly adding it at the last minute demonstrates they don’t want the public to know what they are up to. They intentionally waited until the start of summer, when few are paying attention, to quietly go about approving a measure that takes away voter rights. The Local Law was approved by a 7-4 vote. Voters still have the opportunity to send a message that their voices need to be heard by rejecting this referendum on the November ballot.
Legislator Frank Todaro 