LOCKPORT — Niagara County’s 2024 budget was adopted on a 10-3 vote Tuesday night with members of the Democratic minority caucus voting against the spending plan.
North Tonawanda-based Legislator Jesse Gooch was absent from the meeting.
The $432.5 million budget projects a year-over-year spending increase of $23.7 million. New line items in the budget include personnel and operational expenses related to the new Niagara County ambulance service.
Two resolutions over sales tax were proposed to the legislature. The first, brought by Minority Caucus Leader Chris Robins, proposed that the sales tax expectation be raised an additional $2.19 million over the proposed $91.35 million to cover the increase in the real property tax levy. The resolution was defeated with Robins and the minority caucus, Legislators Jeffrey Elder and Mark Grozio, in the minority of a 10-3 vote.
“With the amount of raises, I can’t justify asking the taxpayer for more,” said Robins in explaining the resolution.
Majority Caucus Leader Randy Brandt proposed another sales tax resolution that raised the 2024 expected sales tax revenue by $500,000. There was no opposition to the resolution.
Raises within the budget included elected officials, as well as top management positions. County Manager Rick Updegrove’s salary in 2024 will increase by $17,549 to a total of $161,500 per year.
Among other administrators receiving pay increases, Human Resources Director Peter Lopes will get a $12,383 raise and Niagara County Department of Social Services Commissioner Meghan Lutz will see a $23,000 increase over her current salary. Assistant county attorney Katherine Alexander is set to receive a pay increase of 30,790.
Legislators will also be seeing their wages go up by $5,000 next year and will be paid $24,075 in 2024.
The property tax rate for the county is $5.05 per $1,000 assessed property value, a 53-cent decrease from 2023, with different municipalities seeing varying tax rate increases and decreases based on the equalization rates found there.
Tax rates include the following:
• City of Lockport: $5.05 per $1,000 assessed property value from $5.59 in 2023
• City of Niagara Falls: $9.36 per $1,000 assessed property value from $9.02 in 2023
• City of North Tonawanda: $9.73 per $1,000 assessed property value from $10.18 in 2023
• Cambria: $5.05 per $1,000 assessed property value from $7.98 in 2023
• Hartland: $8.14 per $1,000 assessed property value from $7.65 in 2023
• Lewiston: $10.98 per $1,000 assessed property value from $10.54 in 2023
• Town of Lockport: $5.05 per $1,000 assessed property value from $5.59 in 2023
• Newfane: $9.71 per $1,000 assessed property value from $9.97 in 2023
• Town of Niagara: $13.67 per $1,000 assessed property value from $13.32 in 2023
• Pendleton: $9.52 per $1,000 assessed property value from $9.01 in 2023
• Porter: $9.71 per $1,000 assessed property value from $9.16 in 2023
• Royalton: $8.14 per $1,000 assessed property value from $7.65 in 2023
• Somerset: $9.54 per $1,000 assessed property value from $9.02 in 2023
• Wheatfield: $12.63 per $1,000 assessed property value from $12.15 in 2023
• Wilson: $9.35 per $1,000 assessed property value from $9.01 in 2023