BUFFALO – Today, March 14, 2025, New York State Senator Sean Ryan, the endorsed Democrat for Mayor of Buffalo, announced his mayoral fiscal policy priorities. Speaking outside of the Lincoln Community Center in Buffalo, which is suffering from serious neglect from the City of Buffalo, Ryan outlined his priorities for addressing Buffalo’s fiscal crisis and getting city finances back on track, which will spur investment in community centers and other city assets.

Senator Sean Ryan said “Buffalo faces a fiscal crisis that has been brewing for nearly 20 years. Years of irresponsible budgets and kicking the can down the road have brought us to where we are today. What does the Buffalo fiscal crisis mean for city residents? Vital city services and programs are facing cuts, and homeowners are facing rising taxes. It doesn’t have to be this way, but we can’t fight this fight in the rearview mirror. We are dealing with a fiscal crisis and need to fix it. I want to stabilize city finances, rebuild our reserves, and improve vital city services.”

Buffalo needs a mayor who knows how to get out of a fiscal crisis. Sean Ryan was part of the team that came in to fix Erie County’s finances following the infamous Red/Green budget. As Chief of Staff of the Erie County Legislature, he worked with city and county leaders to put together a budget that stabilized the county. Sean’s work helped Erie County go from being the laughingstock of New York to having a balanced and stabilized budget.
As Chair of the New York State Senate Committee on Commerce, Economic Development, and Small Business, Sean oversees spending five times larger than the entire budget of the City of Buffalo. As committee chair, Sean takes a hard look at the way we’ve always done things and finds ways to spend money more effectively. That means prioritizing initiatives that create good-paying jobs, support New York's workers, and bring investment into our neighborhoods. Buffalo deserves a mayor who will do the same for the city budget.

Sean’s Plan To Get Our Fiscal House In Order

Understand the Scope of the Problem: Sean is calling upon the New York State Comptroller to conduct a full financial audit of Buffalo. On day one as Mayor, Sean will ask the Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority to issue a report on available funds and anticipated expenses. Sean will also request that the Governor fill the four current vacancies on the Authority’s board. Additionally, Sean will evaluate money that is being left on the table for important capital projects and community investment by the City of Buffalo failing to apply for state and federal grant funding.

Work with our Partners in Government: Buffalo must work hand-in-hand with Erie County and New York State to improve our financial situation. In last year’s state budget, Sean successfully pushed through the first increase in AIM funding for Buffalo since 2012 and secured $12 million in anti-poverty funding. As Mayor, Sean will build upon his existing partnerships with the county and the state to improve efficiency, bring in more revenue, and end wasteful spending. He will work with New York State to seek state legislation to borrow funds for the purpose of using bond proceeds to pay operating expenses and will partner with New York State to invest in more housing to add to the city’s tax base. Sean knows how Albany works and has the relationships to deliver real results for Buffalo. Sean will also work with the Common Council to explore the resumption of a participatory budgeting process.

End Wasteful Spending; Crack Down on Duplication, Cronyism and Nepotism: Sean will review expenditure and revenue reports from every city department to uncover and cut every ounce of waste. For example, eliminating duplicative services, cracking down on cronyism and nepotism, more oversight of grant subrecipients, and a detailed reporting of the use of state and federal funds. Additionally, Sean will work to modernize the way City Hall does business and the delivery of services to ensure modern best practices are being utilized. In the state legislature, Sean has worked to reform our Industrial Development Agencies that all too often hand out wasteful tax subsidies. Sean will lead a top-to-bottom review of real property, sales, and mortgage recording tax exemptions, and put forward recommendations to eliminate waste wherever possible to ensure that Buffalo is prioritizing delivery of services over political patronage and spending taxpayer dollars efficiently and transparently.

Relieve Tax Burden for Low-Income Homeowners: With the current administration discussing continued property tax increases, Sean Ryan is pursuing the creation of a “circuit breaker” in state law which would insulate low-income property owners from the impacts of any property tax increase. He will also work to make it easier for owner-occupants to pay by installments to lower the upfront burden on homeowners.

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