$2.01 Billion proposed General Fund Budget Includes Reduction in Property Tax Rate to $3.09 per Thousand, by Far the Lowest Property Tax Rate Among Eight WNY Counties
ERIE COUNTY, NY— Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz was joined today by Director of the Erie County Office of Budget and Management Mark Cornell to unveil the 2026 Proposed Erie County Budget (“the Budget”). Balanced and fiscally prudent, the 2026 Proposed Budget is $2.081 billion for all General Fund accounts. While the county’s Property Tax Levy has grown by 1.35% or $4.2 million, the county’s Property Tax Rate will reduce from the current $3.29 per thousand dollars of assessed value to $3.09, a reduction of $0.20, which stays under the NYS Tax Cap. The Poloncarz administration has decreased the county’s Property Tax Rate by 39%, or $1.94 per thousand, since 2013.
“Once again, my administration has crafted a balanced and fiscally prudent Proposed Budget that meets the needs of our constituents, while also holding the line on taxes. However, while we were able to accomplish those important goals, it was not easy to do so based on the internal and external pressures facing county government, pressures which will only grow in 2027 and beyond,” said Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz. “The intentional chaos surrounding future federal funding is casting a long shadow over future budgets, and the ‘Big Shift’ being pushed by the majority in Washington will result in an estimated $1 trillion in essential service costs being forced on state and local governments by a federal government that has abdicated its responsibilities to its citizens. Deep federal spending cuts, increased administrative burdens, and new mandates will put future county budgets under immense strain starting in 2027, all to fund GOP tax cuts for billionaires.”
Fully 85% of the Erie County Budget is composed of spending mandated by New York State and the federal government for programs in social services and related areas. Despite the ongoing critical need for assistance, many of these programs are targeted for reduction or elimination by the regime in Washington, including huge new administrative burdens and reimbursement reductions to Medicaid, which is expected to cost the county tens of millions more than currently spent.
Eviscerating changes are also coming for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) under the Big Shift, with increased ABAWD compliance forcing seniors to continue to work until age 64 to maintain eligibility, removing exemptions for working families by reducing dependent child age from under 18 to under 7, and eliminating the Standard Utility Allowance for working households, reducing SNAP benefits. Erie County will be forced to manage compliance with these rules at an estimated cost of $3.2 million in new staff costs.
“We are limiting spending to the implementation of existing initiatives and holding steady for now, but 2026 will be spent planning for the Big Shift and devising ways to ameliorate the damage done by the regime in Washington,” said Poloncarz. “I look forward to having conversations with the members of the Legislature about this Proposed Budget and why we need to begin preparing now for the significant negative changes that will be coming in 2027 and beyond.”
The Proposed Budget is now in the hands of the Erie County Legislature, who will vote on it in early December.
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