Legislature requests County Executive capitalize on $250,000 in savings

The Erie County Legislature has unanimously approved a resolution requesting that the County Executive issue a Declaration of Need for the upcoming RAN borrowing.  This will allow the county to capitalize on significant savings for the taxpayers. Historically, the Erie County Fiscal Stability Authority (ECFSA) has proven to be the fiscally responsible option. Due to its superior bond rating, the ECFSA would be able to borrow at a lower rate than the County Comptroller’s Office.

 

“The entire Legislature believes that Erie County’s approach to borrowing should be simple: respect taxpayer dollars when borrowing, and use the least costly option possible. Statements from both the Comptroller and the ECFSA indicate that the ECFSA could save approximately $250,000 if it were to conduct this round of borrowing. I believe the choice is clear. The outcome will not change regardless; funds are still borrowed to operate county government, and the only difference is choosing which option is less costly to taxpayers,” said Majority Leader Joseph Lorigo.

 

Majority Leader Lorigo reminds the County Executive that when he served in the role of Comptroller during the 2011 borrowing process, Mr. Poloncarz stated in a letter to the Legislature, “I reiterate that my goal is to ensure County taxpayers get the best deal possible regardless of whether the County of the ECFSA issues this year’s RAN.”

 

“I hope that the County Executive will heed his own request and support the option that incurs less cost. All the information provided to the Legislature indicates that once again, as has been the case for several years, the ECFSA will be the better option. If proven to be true, I would hope that the County Executive values taxpayer dollars as much as I do, and conducts the borrowing through the most cost effective method,” said Majority Leader Lorigo.