The nearly $90 million budget took a lot of extra hours of work on council's part to pass including cutting an additional $1.1 million Tuesday. Council members say a lack of state funding and revenue has forced their hands.

The bottom line? A tax increase of .6 mills which means an extra $55 a year on a $100,000 home. The budget also contained an over $3 million shortfall. Part of council's remedy for that is cutting 20 jobs from various departments. That lack of state funding left council to have to pay $8 million between its retirement account and the Office of Children and Youth services. The budget passed 6 votes to 1 with the lone nay coming from Councilman Kyle Foust. He says he simply would not go back to his constituents with a tax increase, although several other council members were reluctant to vote yes.

"What's the alternative?", I asked him. "There's really not a lot of good alternatives...I voted for cuts, we have a fund balance we could've used, we could've had more cuts, there wasn't a lot of consensus on those things so there isn't a lot of options."

Council Chair Whitey Cleaver then added "Our legislators have to get on the move here...they keep on demanding that we provide certain services as Erie County and they don't give you a dime to do it. I think one of the other Councilmen hit the nail on the head- the hell with them, we're not going to do it anymore."
 
The budget will now go to County Executive Mark DiVecchio for signing...which he has till December 1st to do.