Buffalo City Comptroller Mark Schroeder says he will be doing an audit of the street lighting program, at the request of the Common Council.The last time there was an audit of the street lights in the late 1990s, then-Niagara Mohawk paid more than $1 million in a refund.
Schroeder says his audit plan for this year was to help the city's struggling finances by focusing auditors on revenues and expenditures like lighting. The city doesn't have to pay the usual fee for lights if now-National Grid is notified the light is out.
Council members say there needs to be a system to find which lights are out. Schroeder says working lights are a security issue as well as a cost issue.
"The Council has suggested that there have been audits done before and these audits have come up with some remedies and also recommendations that can save the city money," Schroeder said.
Schroeder says with city revenues sliding and expenses rising, looking at costs is a good idea.
