(Buffalo) – Erie County Comptroller Stefan I. Mychajliw has released most recent financial data showing Erie County saved almost $5 million this year by borrowing through the Erie County Fiscal Stability Authority (ECFSA, commonly referred to as the Control Board).
The most recent borrowing by the Control Board on behalf of Erie County dealt with the Ralph Wilson Stadium bond of $36 million and a Revenue Anticipation Note (RAN) of $109 million. Erie County saved $1.6 million when the Office of Comptroller utilized the Control Board’s lower interest rate for these two items.
Earlier in the year Erie County saved $3.2 million when maximizing the Control Board’s lower interest rate for the 2013 Capital Program and Refunding issues. The total year to date savings through Control Board borrowing on behalf of Erie County is $4.8 million.
“My position of using the Control Board to borrow has been consistent. We must respect taxpayers by valuing their hard earned money and saving as much as possible through the Control Board. I am happy the administration finally ‘saw the light’ and realized their past practice of having the county borrow needlessly wasted taxpayer dollars. Taxpayers should not be punished by forcing them to unnecessarily pay higher interest rates,” said Comptroller Mychajliw.
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Wall Street Rating Agency |
Control Board |
Erie County |
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Moody's |
Aa1 (towards top of rating scale) |
A2 (towards bottom of rating scale) |
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Fitch |
AA+ (towards top of rating scale) |
A (exact middle of rating scale) |
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Standard & Poor's |
A- (near bottom of rating scale) |
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The Office of Erie County Comptroller is Charter mandated to report to the Erie County Legislature when bonds are officially closed, and have done so as it pertains to the Buffalo Bills lease deal bond and the RAN. An official letter stating both was sent to the Legislature on September 4th , 2013.
“I am proud to be a part of the process that saved Erie County taxpayers millions of dollars. I will continue to fight for the people I serve by saving money through Control Board borrowing. Every penny counts in the budget. These savings are significant. It is a great day in Erie County when taxpayer dollars are respected, valued, and saved,” added Comptroller Mychajliw.