Statements

Closing the Accountability Gap on Tax Exemptions in Erie County

The problem:

Erie County has $23.6 billion in tax-exempt property — 17.38% of all assessed value. At the current tax rate, that represents roughly $73 million a year in revenue the county doesn’t collect.

Not all of that is actionable. Government buildings, schools, and public land make up about $10.5 billion of that total. Nobody’s proposing we tax the county courthouse.

But nearly $2 billion sits in IDA and economic development exemptions alone. Another $4.2 billion belongs to nonprofit organizations. And the county’s PILOT recovery rate — Payments in Lieu of Taxes, the mechanism that’s supposed to ensure exempt properties still contribute something — is effectively zero. Out of $4.3 million owed, the county collects $105,951. That’s a 97.5% discount.

Holding Utilities Accountable: Fighting Rising Energy Costs in Erie County

Energy costs are rising faster than wages across Western New York, and the companies providing electricity and gas are asking for more while delivering record profits to shareholders.

What’s happening right now

• NYSEG has filed for a 35% increase in electric delivery rates and nearly 40% for gas, to take effect May 2026. For a typical residential customer, that’s an extra $33/month on electricity and $34/month on gas
• National Grid already secured a three-year rate plan increasing electric delivery revenues by $167M (year 1), $297M (year 2), and $243M (year 3) — a cumulative 25%+ increase
• National Grid’s operating income rose from $231M to $295M in a single year. Net income: $198M for just nine months of 2025
• Meanwhile, 80,000+ low-to-moderate income households in Erie County are struggling to keep the lights on

What it means for District 11

• The county itself spends $38.8 million/year on energy through its Utilities Aggregation Fund — every rate increase hits the county budget directly and gets passed to taxpayers
• Homeowners in rural Southtowns communities with older housing stock, electric heat, and longer winters are hit hardest
• Farmers face rising operational costs that squeeze already thin margins
• Fixed-income seniors and disabled residents face impossible choices between heating and medication

What Erie County Is Doing Now

Credit where it’s due — the county has taken real steps:

Statement on the Death of Nurul Shah Alam

The death of Nurul Shah Alam is devastating.

Yes, there should be a full and transparent investigation. But if all we demand is an investigation, we will miss the deeper failure.

This was not a single bad decision by a single person.

It was a chain of “not my responsibility.”

A nearly blind man who spoke no English was arrested because he could not comply with commands he could not see or understand. He spent a year in jail. He was handed from one agency to another. And when he was finally released, he was dropped near an outdated address with no confirmed plan, no verified family contact, and no safe handoff.