October Update

The County Legislature’s primary duty is to control the purse strings for Onondaga County. During the annual budget process, Legislators come together to hear from departments to learn their fiscal needs and set the spending for the year to come. This year’s Ways & Means Report showed the priorities of the Republican Caucus and was accepted with bipartisan support of committee members. One of the primary focuses in the 2022 budget is funding public safety and our police. Legislators funded the STOP DWI program, which holds panel discussions with victims of DWI and advocates for safe rides home rather than driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Also included in the Ways & Means Report was funding to recruit and hire more Sheriff’s Deputies in the coming year. Public Safety has never been more important, and our Sheriff’s Department will be well-funded going into 2022.

A hot-button topic of discussion during this budget process has been the capital projects proposed, namely the Sports Complex and the Inner Harbor Aquarium. Legislators heard from community members and agreed that these projects have strong merits and deserve ample consideration and public comment. In order to give residents the best chance to voice their opinions, Legislators slow-rolled the projects, putting them into a contingency fund that cannot be released without further Legislative action and open discussion.

A hot-button topic of discussion during this budget process has been the capital projects proposed, namely the Sports Complex and the Inner Harbor Aquarium. Legislators heard from community members and agreed that these projects have strong merits and deserve ample consideration and public comment. In order to give residents the best chance to voice their opinions, Legislators slow-rolled the projects, putting them into a contingency fund that cannot be released without further Legislative action and open discussion.