By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – Budget time in Erie County is still several months away. But that's not stopping Legislature Democrats from looking ahead to what could be a very difficult budget season.
They're asking County Executive Joel Giambra to release his proposed 2004 budget two weeks before the November election. Buffalo Democrat Al DeBenedetti said voters deserve to know ahead of time if there are going to be problems.
"Remember the famous budget situation back in 1985, when Ed Rutkowski had just been re-elected, and then announced afterwards a dramatic and substantial tax increase," DeBenedetti said.
DeBenedetti is also asking Giambra to release timely budget monitoring reports. He says the administration has not filed any monthly reports this year, putting legislators in the dark when it comes to any potential problems.