Press Releases: 02/28/08 Mills announces Additional Springville HEAP Outreach 02/28/08 Mills Announces Orchard Park HEAP Outreach 02/15/08 Mills Announces Springville HEAP Outreach 02/05/08 Bee Column 02/08 01/04/08 Mills announces HEAP outreach efforts

John J. Mills - District 13 October, 2007 During my nearly two years as your County Legislator, I have reported to you the issues facing the county and changes that have been made. I was happy to report increases in road repair funding, funding secured to improve our parks and proposals to reduce taxes and wasteful spending. I also shared with you ideas for reforms that were met with resistance by my colleagues in the legislature. However, just because the ideas were met with resistance does not mean that they were not good ideas. I will continue to pursue these plans for better government. Yesterday, I renewed my call for Erie County to renegotiate its sales tax sharing agreement. When sales tax is collected, part of the tax goes to the state and part of the tax is returned to the county. Of the county's share, the agreement shares a portion of every penny collected with Erie County's school districts, cities and towns. In particular, 10 % is divided amongst the cities of Buffalo, Lackawanna, and Tonawanda, and 26 % is split up amongst the municipalities outside of the cities. These are fixed percentages that were determined in 1977. Much has changed since 1977. The population of Erie County as a whole has declined. The decrease in population is especially evident in our cities. Despite the rapid decline in population in our cities, some towns and villages in Erie County have actually experienced population growth over the past thirty years. However, the sales tax is still being shared based on 1977 population figures. This needs to be fixed. Cities that serve less people should require less money to provide government services. Towns and villages that are growing need more money to provide services to a growing population. Therefore, the sales tax sharing agreement should be reworked to provide for Erie County residents where they live now, not where they may have used to live. The agreement should be constructed to adjust to the current population of Erie County, not how it was thirty years ago. Our towns and villages are being shortchanged. Sales tax revenues need to be distributed fairly. Renegotiating the 1977 agreement will accomplish this. The 1977 agreement is indicative of why reform is so needed in Erie County. It is an agreement that was crafted by politicians with political agendas, rather than with the best interests of all of Erie County's residents in mind. This is just one reform that the county needs to make. I continue to pursue other reform items that are necessary, such as replacing the position of Deputy County Executive with a non-political County Manager, increasing transparency and ethics in government and improving parks, roads and bridges. While these changes are not easy to make and the ideas do meet resistance, it is imperative that we make these changes in order to attract new jobs to the area and provide for a brighter future. Bloated, inefficient government has contributed to the population decline in Erie County. More efficient and more responsive government will be part of its return to prominence. I would like to hear your thoughts about what your Erie County government can do to be more efficient and more responsive. Please contact me at my District Office, located at 431 Main Street in East Aurora. My telephone number is 655-5650. You can also reach me by email at jmills13@erie.gov. To read about some of the issues that I have been addressing at the legislature, please visit my website online at www.erie.gov/legislature/district13. Back to District 13 Homepage