By Mark Wozniak
Buffalo, NY – The city of Buffalo is reporting a $39.2 million budget surplus for the 2004-2005 fiscal year.
An outside auditor's report was scheduled to be released Friday. It shows that the surplus could have been more than $77 million, but that the city is setting aside the difference to cover anticipated expenses.
City officials says they are happy with the report, but caution that there are still many challenging financial problems, such as rising insurance costs and pending lawsuits by unions regarding suspended pay raises.