Buffalo Common Council overrides Byron Brown’s veto of changing city budget deadlines

BUFFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Buffalo Common Council voted Tuesday to override Mayor Byron Brown’s veto of the council’s proposal to change city budget deadlines. It centers around a law creating an earlier city budget deadline for the mayor and a later deadline for the council.

In a 7-2 vote, the mayor will now have to submit the spending plan for the city by April 8, which doubles the time the council has to review and amend it.

Up until now, the mayor had to submit a budget to the council by May 1. That due date now lands earlier on April 8.

For the council, its date to amend Brown’s budget is pushed back from May 22 to May 26.

Before Tuesday’s override, Brown vetoed the law on Friday, claiming it “creates an unnecessarily early and lengthy budget process.” He also reasoned that shortening the deadline would create an unreasonable workload for budget division staffers. He said it could also conflict with the state budget due date, making funding predictions difficult.

For Buffalo Common Council Members Mitch Nowakowski and Leah Halton-Pope, that wasn’t enough.

“The fact of the matter is that you’re not only just scrutinizing numbers, you’re having workshops, you’re talking about equipment, you’re talking about calling in commissioners, and there are nine elected representatives having a series of questions throughout those 22 days where we also have to hold a hearing too and hear from the public,” Nowakowski said.

“You need time to be able to have conversations with your constituents to talk about what this is and what the implications could be of this budget, how certain aspects of it will impact their direct lives and quality of life, what services will be cut or expanded,” Halton-Pope said.

Buffalo Common Council President Chris Scanlon and Council Member Joseph Golombek were the outliers, voting in the negative to keep things the way they were.

A required four-year financial plan is also included in the amended law, which would ensure that the city is spending its money responsibly.

“From what I’ve seen that I’ve been upset with when it comes down to our municipal budgeting is that we overshoot revenue streams to just balance a budget just to get it through,” Nowakowski said.

Brown said in a statement that he is disappointed in the council’s decision Tuesday.

“I’m disappointed in the Common Council’s decision to shorten the time period the mayor has to present the City budget. The NYS budget is due on April 1st but is often passed later. The May 1st deadline, which has been in place since 1964, was created to allow for the possibility of a late NY State Budget and to provide adequate time to craft a balanced budget,” Brown said. “Without knowing how much local funding is coming from New York State, it will make the budget process more difficult.”

Patrick Ryan is an award-winning reporter who has been part of the News 4 team since 2020. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter .