By Joyce Kryszak
Buffalo, NY – The clock is ticking on Buffalo's financial plan. The Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority met Wednesday to review details of the mayor's proposed budget for 2004-2005. By law, the Control Board must vote to approve - or reject - that plan next Wednesday.
A lot needs to happen by next Wednesday. Although the board described the mayor's plan as a "yeoman's effort," they also called several components "high risk." Topping that list is roughly $5 million in savings from a proposed city-county parks merger. City officials say an agreement is near, with details to be finalized on Monday. Control Board member Richard Tobe says time's running out.
"I would suggest that meeting on Monday isn't enough. This is where you meet around the clock, through the weekend, and you work until you get it done," said Tobe. "Because I don't really relish sitting up here in a week, having to come to the conclusion that something that may be happening in the future hasn't yet happened, and we have to vote based on that."
But getting the merger buttoned up by next week is highly unlikely, even with full agreement from city and county unions. Common Council approval and state legislation are still needed to complete the deal. Another element of the city budget labeled as "high risk" is the proposed health care initiative. The plan for a single payor insurance system could save the city between $7 million and $11 million next year. City unions have resisted agreeing to the plan. But Len Matarese, the Commissioner of Human Resources, says that may no longer matter. He says one insurance provider notified the city that competing rates may force it to pull out.
"The choices are simply this - that everybody goes into Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and is covered with them and we get the experience rate from Blue Cross and Blue Shield - or Blue Cross walks and everybody goes into Independent health and we get the experience rate from Independent Health," said Matarese. "So, in a kind of perverse way, Blue Cross has done us a favor by forcing the issue on us."
However, the Control Board says there are still several other gap closing measures considered "high risk." Savings from some proposed job cuts, a greater share of the sales tax and property tax projections all were questioned. Control Board members say there is no more room for borrowing should any of the pieces fail to come together. And little time left to bring them together.