MAYILLE – For the second year in a row, the Chautauqua County Legislature approved its budget with only Republican support after a request to use some of the county’s fund balance to further lower taxes was rejected.

During the legislature meeting, county lawmakers voted 14-5 to approve the 2025 budget. The $301.9 million budget has a $73,256,471 levy. The levy is the amount collected by county taxes. The 2025 tax rate will be $6.70 per thousand dollars of assessed valuation, 21 cents lower than the current year.

During Wednesday’s legislature meeting, Legislator Bob Bankoski, D-Dunkirk, proposed taking $2 million from the county’s reserves and applying it to the levy, reducing the property tax rate.

Last year the county had $37 million in reserves. This year Bankoski said the county will have $40 million in reserves.

“This would give some substantial tax relief in the coming year,” he said.

Bankoski also noted that a number of municipalities are looking at property tax increases and further lowering the county tax rate would help residents.

Legislator Lisa Vanstrom, R-West Ellicott, said she supports the current budget which is giving a 21-cent per $,000 of assessed valuation reduction in the tax rate.

Legislator Fred Larson, D-Jamestown, noted that Erie County has a property tax rate of $3.38 per thousand assessed valuation.

“We were 100 percent higher than our neighbor,” he said.

He added that if the county uses $2 million of its fund balance to lower property taxes, the county will still have over 10% in their reserves.

Larson challenged five Republicans to join the five Democrats to give the $2 million back.

One Republican did say he supported such a move. Legislator Fred Johnson, R-Westfield, said, “I will vote in favor of the $2 million going back to the taxpayers. I’m doing it to signal that the money we get from the taxpayers fundamentally belongs to them.”

Legislator Terry Niebel, R-Sheridan, said it’s unfair to compare Erie and Chautauqua counties, in terms of their tax rate.

“With Erie County, and all their businesses, it’s only logical they can have a lower tax rate,” he said.

When the time came to vote on the amendment to apply $2 million of reserves to the tax levy, it failed with only six yes votes and 13 no votes. Johnson was the only Republican to join the five Democratic legislators, Bankoski, Larson, Susan Parker of Fredonia, Tom Nelson of Jamestown and Marcus Buchanan of Dunkirk.

After the meeting, Legislature Chairman Pierre Chagnon was asked about the Democrats’ statement that there is going to be $40 million in reserves. In an email, he wrote, “The unobligated fund balance at the end of 2023 (audited) was $46,358,471 which is 16.3% of appropriations. The 2025 tentative budget projected the unobligated fund balance at the end of 2024 will be $37,914,365, 13.3% of appropriations. The 2025 tentative budget projected the unobligated fund balance at the end of 2025 will be $36,504,216, 12.1% of appropriations.”

Earlier this year, the legislature approved a policy of having a goal of 12.5% in reserves. That policy was approved in a party-line vote.