Dr. Rudy Mueller is running for Busti town supervisor.

He is serving his fourth year as Town Councilman and previously served four years as a Chautauqua County Legislator representing the residents of Lakewood and Busti. While on the County Legislature, he was elected by his peers to be the assistant majority leader in 2009 and the minority leader in 2010-2011.

Whether as a councilman or legislator, Mueller has always tried to protect taxpayers. His County legislation lowered costs including the elimination of health insurance for part-time Legislators and the reduction in the size of the legislature. The changes have saved taxpayers more than $300,000 every year since being enacted. In 2011, Mueller’s budget amendments helped deliver a county property tax under the 2% tax cap and reduced the tax levy by more than $2 million. And in his first year as a Busti Town Councilman, Mueller’s budget amendments produced a town budget with no property tax increase in 2017. He has consistently opposed any town budget that exceeded, directly or indirectly, the tax cap and offered amendments that would have reduced town taxes in 2018 and 2019.

“The time is now for lower property taxes and new leadership in Busti,” Mueller said. “Over the past seven years, the supervisor’s budgets far too often jumped over the tax cap and you, the taxpayers, have suffered the consequences. Town property taxes have climbed an average of 6% per year and in late 2017, the supervisor even tried to give himself a 50% pay raise, accepted 33% instead and then voted for another tax hike.”

Mueller said, in a news release, that he will make five promises to voters:

¯ not propose nor vote for any town budget that goes over the 2% tax cap.

¯ end the town’s habit of over-taxation and quit taxing residents on taxes already paid.

¯ eliminate the supervisor’s $4,000 per year pay hike.

¯ call for term limits, obey state open meeting laws, and deliver more transparency.

¯ produce more shared services, lower costs and respect Lakewood’s autonomy.”

Mueller and his wife, Dr. Diane Mueller, have lived in the Busti and Lakewood for more than 27 years. Their five children, Dan, Nick, Ted, Pete and Heidi, are all graduates of Southwestern Central High School. After working at Jamestown Primary Care for more than two decades, Dr. Rudy Mueller provides primary care for local veterans and serves as the medical director of the Jamestown VA Clinic. Mueller said under his care and leadership, the clinic has treated more veterans and patient satisfaction has significantly improved.