An ongoing dispute between Buffalo Common Councilmembers and the City Comptroller is now back in court. On Thursday, the office of Comptroller Barbara Miller-Williams confirmed she has filed an appeal to the New York State Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, in a bid to block a previous ruling which orders her to borrow $110 million for city capital projects.
“As City Comptroller, I have a responsibility to safeguard the financial wellbeing of the Citizens and Taxpayers of Buffalo,” Miller-Williams said in a prepared statement. “As such, the outcome of this case will have lasting implications for repayment of the existing principal and accumulating interest on the acquired debt, which may result in increased property taxes, paid for by City of Buffalo taxpayers.”
The Common Council had approved $110 million in capital borrowing but Miller-Williams has refused to issue bonds, arguing the city has significant unspent capital funds that should be used first before the city takes on more debt.
Her appeal is in response to a late April ruling by the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division Fourth Judicial Department, which upheld a previous ruling that Buffalo’s Common Council has the power, under the City Charter, to authorize the borrowing of funds.
“The Comptroller’s refusal to meet her charter mandated responsibility and bond out for these critical infrastructure projects will cost the City of Buffalo tens of millions of dollars in additional costs, and the effects of these delays will be felt for a number of years to come,” said Councilmember Christopher Scanlon in April. He was one of two lawmakers who sued to force the Comptroller to act.
