EMS Council Chair Larry Barter addresses Chautauqua County Legislature (April 26, 2023)

A local law that gives volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers a break on property taxes has been approved by the Chautauqua County Legislature.

The local law provides a 10% exemption on real property taxes for volunteers who have been in the service for at least two years. For volunteers who are active and have 20 years of service, it provides a lifetime 10% exemption. A second local law approved allows the spouses of volunteers killed in the line of duty to retain that tax exemption as long as they don’t remarry.

Legislator Terry Niebel, one of the sponsors of the bill, spoke in support of the local law, “Without their services, we could easily be spending millions of dollars. Like most counties in New York State, Chautauqua County is experiencing a serious shortage of volunteers. With the two local laws on the agenda this evening, we’re offering the best benefit package allowed by the state.”
Niebel also urged other taxing districts in the county to consider offering the exemption.

The legislature also approved using $50,000 in American Rescue Plan funds toward a market study for the Jamestown Airport. The Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency had approved $25,000 in funding toward the $75,000 project in January.

County Executive PJ Wendel said the study is a necessary part of the Essential Air Service (EAS) application to the U.S. Department of Transportation. He said EAS provides subsidies to airlines to reduce the ticket prices, thus making it more affordable for flyers, “Once this (study) comes back, we are ready if we need to pivot and focus from a commercial airport to a general aviation airport. Shannon (Barnhart) has the tools and the skills. We’ve already got some plans and things we’ve talked about in chatter on what we can do as far as increasing smaller what they call T-hangers, increasing the operability of the airport.”

Wendel said with the Legislature’s approval the county will now do a request for proposals (RFP) to contract with someone for the study.

Legislator Terry Niebel and County Attorney Pat Slagle present to the Administrative Services Committee (April 17, 2023)

The Chautauqua County Legislature is considering a property tax exemption for volunteer fire fighters and ambulance workers.

Legislator Terry Niebel and County Attorney Pat Slagle presented the proposal to the Administrative Services Committee to adopt a local law to give enrolled members of an incorporated volunteer fire company, fire department or incorporated voluntary ambulance service a 10% exemption on their assessed value of their property taxes.

Niebel said he is recommending legislators adopt the 10% exemption, “Now, the actual law, which was enacted on December 9, 2022, provided for an exemption of five to ten percent. Okay? But, I’ve talked to fire chiefs, I’ve talked to fire advisory board, emergency services council, our own emergency services department, past chiefs association.. everybody that I talked to seem to think that 10% would be better than the 5%.”

Niebel pointed out that the village of Mayville recently adopted a similar property tax exemption in the amount of 10%.

The local law requires that members have at least two years of service before they can claim the exemption. It also provides a lifetime exemption for any active volunteer who has 20 years of active service.

Neibel said there are an estimated 1,600 volunteers in Chautauqua County, which based on a sample comes out to be $85 per volunteer, “Not all 1,600 people will be entitled to this because this is on your residence and some people rent, some people have their residences in their spouse’s name. So, again, in talking to some of the folks in the fire service, we figure probably the effective number is 1,200. So, 1,200 times $85 is roughly $102,000.”

Niebel added he hopes the exemption will help attract and retain volunteer firefighters.

The entire Administrative Services Committee requested to be added as sponsors to the local law. There will be a public hearing on the local law at the Legislature’s voting session on Wednesday, April 26.

First Assistant County Attorney Pat Slagle explained to legislative committees last week that the contract is being extended following the recent resignation of the former Human Resources Director and hiring of the new one in order to allow both sides to get everything together.

Legislator Terry Niebel said he reviewed the extension and thinks it’s fair to the taxpayers and county employees, “It calls for a one-time payment of $750 and a 3% increase in salary for about 900 employees. The cost of this extension is about $2.3 million. I think the county negotiating team, the union, and the county executive did a very good job.”

Finance Director Kitty Crow said in committees that the extension amount is included in 2023 budget that’s being put together right now.

Negotiations on the next contract with CSEA will begin in February 2023.

The County Legislature also voted to rescind local law 6-22 which established a public relations officer position. County Executive PJ Wendel said he recommended the law be rescinded, citing the incident on August 12 where author Salman Rushdie was attacked at Chautauqua Institution.

He said his office and the District Attorney’s Office received calls from all over the world and showed a need more for a Public Information Officer, “So upon further review, it’s better to make sure we have a position that is rightly fitted, and rightly described, and a job description is fitting for what for what we’re looking for is Public Information Officer that is able to disseminate the information, make sure that social media is taken care of and the messages are consistent and professional in coming out.”

Wendel added that he was advised by his legal team to ask the Legislature to rescind the law.

Chautauqua County Legislature

While a motion in support of best practices to overcome COVID-19 failed to receive enough signatures to come to the floor, it garnered an hour’s worth of public comment at Wednesday’s Chautauqua County Legislature meeting.

The motion proposed by Fredonia Democrat Susan Parker included language supporting the County Health Department in their efforts to get residents vaccinated and encouraging residents to wear masks. It needed 10 signatures to come to the floor to be voted on and only received four.

Of those who spoke at the first privilege of the floor, ten residents spoke in favor of the motion while eight spoke against it.

Barbara Colt, speaking on behalf of the Chautauqua Cattaraugus Women and Men’s Action Group (CCWAG), said they support the County Department of Health and State Department of Health, “Our Department of Health and Human Services has fought relentlessly for more than two years to reduce the overwhelming effects of COVID. A disease that continues to damage, debilitate, and extinguish the lives of our county residents. CCWAG requests that the County Legislature supports these public health measures and policies.”

Seth Viticus of Jamestown encouraged the Legislature to withdraw the motion, saying it offered nothing new in combating COVID-19, “I propose to talk with County Health Department to instead encourage more healthy lifestyle choices, so when people do get the COVID virus their body is better suited to fight it. I’m not here to debate the vaccine or the masks, but if we’re going to waste resources and manpower, then let’s use it for something more productive.”

Legislator Terry Niebel said he while he supported parts of the measure, there were other items that led to him not signing the motion, “Where it talks about residents age five and older, we’re encouraging those people to be vaccinated – our residents five and older are children. That should be a decision between the children, their parents, and their doctors.”

Legislator Parker commented at the second privilege of the floor, saying the motion was presented for a simple reason, “That the Chautauqua County Legislature endorses and supports our County Health Department’s every day efforts for over two years and continuing to protect Chautauqua County residents from the most deadly and debilitating pandemic in more than a century.”

Parker said Legislators missed an opportunity to endorse the legitimacy of the Health Department’s work in the community, “We missed an opportunity to show support for our medical community bearing the brunt of treating the sick and dying residents. We missed an opportunity to show support for our schools, businesses, and organizations that are all working to stay open and continue serving our community.”

The County Legislature approved a number of resolutions including the approval for the Public Defender’s office to lease 4,147 square feet of space on the third floor of the Jamestown Municipal Building. The five year lease starts at $4,479 this year and increases each year to $5,374 in 2026. Public Defender Ned Barone expressed his thanks to the Legislature for their support.

County Legislature Honors Outgoing Legislator Chuck Nazzaro

The Chautauqua County Legislature has approved a local law increasing salaries for the Undersheriff, Captain, Warden and Corrections Lieutenant.

Legislator Terry Niebel said when the local law was introduced he asked the County Sheriff and Human Resources to research salary information in other counties for comparison, “They ended up looking at 32 other counties. The salary range before us now puts us somewhere in the middle of those 32 counties. We are looking at an increase of two or three ranges for each position. But given today’s situation with law enforcement, I believe these increases are warranted.”

The local law passed unanimously.

A resolution to increase landfill and transfer station fees also passed by a vote of 16 to 2. Legislators Bill Ward and John Penhollow were the two votes against. The new fees go into effect January 1st.

Legislators approved by block vote a host of resolutions that included several resolutions that adjusted American Rescue Plan funding toward emergency services department projects. Legislator Chuck Nazzaro said while the resolutions were being handled quickly by the full legislature, that they were discussed thoroughly in committee, “As you know, we received $24.6 million in ARPA funding, the American Rescue Plan. And to date, now with what we have before us tonight we will have approved just under $10.2 million in projects. So each year we receive $12.3 million for 2021 and $12.3 million for 2022 and we’ve spent or awarded $10.2 million today.”

Legislature Chairman Pierre Chagnon presented outgoing Legislators Christine Starks, Chuck Nazzaro, Bob Whitney, and Bill Ward with commendations for their time and service on the Legislature.
Memorials also were read for former County Legislators who died this past year including Ron Szot, Vickye James, Mac Crowe, Bob Duff, and Tom Harte.

The next County Legislature meeting will be its organizational meeting at 4pm, Monday, January 3, 2022.

Chautauqua County Legislature

The Chautauqua County Legislature unanimously passed the 2022 budget with a property tax and tax levy decrease.

The new property tax rate will be $8.10 per $1,000 assessed value, which is 40-cents lower than the current rate. The real property tax levy will be $66,912,293, which is $271,102 dollars lower than the current levy.

Audit and Control Chair Legislator Chuck Nazzaro thanked everyone involved in the budget process, saying County Executive PJ Wendel had presented a structurally sound budget back in September, “This budget provides property tax relief, there’s no use of undesignated fund balance, it creates a contingency account for those unexpected expenses, and meets our five-year plan.”

Legislator Terry Niebel said he supports the budget but urged some caution, “We did create 42 new positions this year. And I realize that many of these positions are 100% funded either by the state or federal government, but look, two or three years from now we’re going to have to decide how we’re going to fund these positions or if we’re going to fund these positions at all.”

The Legislature also approved via block vote 13 resolutions related to spending American Rescue Plan funds. A resolution on a new handgun project was pulled. Projects that were approved for funding included the $4.68 million to purchase a crane, two dump/plow trucks, a snow blower, and long-arm excavator. The use of $1.4 million to purchase property to turn them into shovel-ready sites as approved. The Frank W. Bratt Ag Building will receive $1.1 million for building upgrades. And over $2 million dollars will go toward economic development initiatives such as bolstering the bed tax fund, providing marketing assistance, workforce development initiatives, and funding the Chautauqua County Partnership for Economic Growth.

A resolution to spend $72,000 in ARP fund to do a study of the Jamestown Airport on bringing back Essential Air Service failed by a vote of 4 to 15.

Legislator Elisabeth Rankin voted no, saying so much work has already been done on the airport, “I am totally in favor of any infrastructure investment that will help the county. And I’ve been the beneficiary of years of flying in and out of Jamestown Airport. However, I do believe we’ve given it its chance and I think its time has come and gone. And I’m not in favor of a study, of spending money on a study that I don’t think is going to get us anywhere.”

Legislators Chuck Nazzaro, Jay Gould, and Bill Ward also voiced their opposition to spending money on another study of the airport.

Legislators did unanimously approve a contract with the the County Sheriff’s Supervisor’s Association. The contract agreement runs from January 1st, 2022 through December 31st, 2025. It includes modifications to longevity, employer and employee cost share of the health plan, the retiree cash-out benefit, the addition of a cell phone stipend of $50 per month, an increase to the clothing allowance, and a change from a three to a four step salary schedule.

Chautauqua County Legislature

Following public comments over the last several months over concern about governmental overreach, the Chautauqua County Legislature passed a motion last night that calls on elected officials to act within the boundaries of the U.S. Constitution.

Legislator Bill Ward asked to table the motion due to wanting more clarity on what “kind of teeth” the motion has, but the tabling request did not receive a second to move forward.

Legislator John Davis, who was one of the sponsors of the motion along with Legislator Dan Pavlock and County Executive PJ Wendel, said each legislator has been sworn to uphold the Constitution, “It has become clear, in my opinion, especially during this Pandemic, that there are some elected officials at the state and federal levels who have used mandates to push the limits of their constitutional authority as they seek to achieve their own policy objectives. This motion serves as a reminder to all elected officials of their oath to uphold the Constitution.”

The motion passed 13 to 6.

A second motion asking New York State to consider alternative preventive procedures against COVID-19 transmission and infection for those healthcare workers who decline to get vaccinated also passed.

Legislator Bill Ward said if daily testing can be done for healthcare workers, that’s a step forward versus the current mandate, but he emphasized he endorses the vaccine for everyone who is eligible. He also expressed worry about the intent of the Legislature’s motion given that many constituents have said they want an ordinance versus a motion, “If this is a step towards moving us toward a county that disobeys the law, it’s not gonna happen. That has to happen in court. If you want to change a law you have to go to court. We can’t do this in this body we can’t do it certainly with a motion.”

Legislators Chuck Nazzaro, Terry Niebel, Christine Starks and Elisabeth Rankin also voiced that they support the COVID-19 vaccine but don’t want to see the healthcare industry unnecessarily burdened by requiring workers be vaccinated. The motion passed 17 to 2.

It includes a 3% wage increase in 2022 and 2023. A 2.5%wage increase in 2024, and a 2-and-one-half percent wage increase in 2025.

Legislator Bob Bankowski commended Human Resources, Finance Director Kitty Crow, and Sheriff’s Deputies for coming to an agreement, “I think it’s a very give-take contract. Obviously they’re going to get some raises but in the long term we’re going to save money on our insurance and I just want to commend them for really stepping up to get this done before budget time came around.”

Sheriff Jim Quattrone thanked the County Legislature for their support, “I think that’s huge for all law enforcement to see that kind of support we got from the Legislature. I’d also to thank the professional nature of the negotiating team – Kitty, Jean, Allison, Ken Westphal was part of that, and then the union was part of that. They were great to work with and I think we all had the same common goal.”

The legislature also voted to accept a settlement of $996,000 from Johnson & Johnson. The State Attorney General’s Office approved the settlement with Johnson & Johnson as part of the litigation regarding the opioid addiction crisis.
The county will receive the settlement over a 10 year period, the same period of time that Johnson & Johnson will agree to cease the manufacture, sale, and promotion of opioids and opioid products in New York State.

The settlement restricts 79% of the funds received. Legislator Terry Niebel commented on the resolution, “21% of the money of this settlement, which may be up to almost $1 million, is unrestricted funds which can be used for anything. Just so there are no surprises later on, I’ll be pushing to use the unrestricted funds to reduce the tax level whenever it is that we receive these funds.”

The Legislature also voted to appoint Jonathan Penhollow to the vacant District 7 seat. Penhollow replaces Mark Odell, who resigned at the end of July. District 7 includes the towns of Stockton, Portland and a portion of the town of Chautauqua. Penhollow introduced himself after the appointment, “Born and raised here. I went to Edinboro College with my lovely wife. I have three kids who are currently in college. My wife is involved with Dunkirk School Administration and I’ve been serving on the County Planning Board for 10 plus years.”

And County Executive PJ Wendel and Legislature Chairman Pierre Chagnon recognized CARTS driver James Krzyanowicz with a commendation for his actions in assisting with a house fire in Dunkirk back on July 28th. Krzyanowicz saw the smoke from the fire while driving his route and called it into 9-1-1 before stopping to help people get out of the house.

During Wednesday night’s legislature meeting, lawmakers voted 15-4 on an amended spending plan that raised the county tax levy to $64.2 million – a $2.3 million increase over the current year.

Voting against the budget was County Legislators David Wilfong (R-Jamestown), Elisabeth Rankin (R-Jamestown), Terry Niebel (R-Sheridan), and Martin Proctor (R-Clymer).

The budget proposal was an amended version of the one presented by County Executive George Borrello at the end of September. In that initial spending plan, Borrello called for a 2.7% tax levy increase but also proposed no increase in the tax rate. Instead, he wanted to rely on using some of the county’s fund balance to close any spending gaps without increasing the tax rate.

But earlier this month the spending plan was reviewed by the county’s audit and control committee, which cautioned against using too much of the fund balance to close a spending gap. Instead, the majority of the committee members felt the more prudent thing to do was to slightly bump up the tax levy and – as a result – putting an increase on the tax rate.

Prior to the vote Wednesday night, Audit and Control chairman Pierre Chagnon (R-Bemus Point) reiterated the concerns the committee had with using the fund balance.

“The $1 million use of fund balance in the Tentative Budget would have caused the general unobligated fund balance to drop below 5% of revenues. Our Financial Chautauqua County Legislature Management Policy requires the unobligated fund balance to remain between 5% and 15% of general fund revenues. The County continues to face challenges in 2019 that will make it difficult to meet the 2019 budget. Consequently, an unplanned use of fund balance may be needed to balance the 2019 financial results,” Chagnon explained.

Despite the concerns regarding using too much of the county fund balance, some lawmakers said they simply could not support any budget that included a tax rate increase. Elisabeth Rankin of Jamestown said property owners in her district are already over-taxed.

“In my district I have people in Jamestown who are- many of them are at the high end of property taxes and paid more over twenty years in taxes than they paid for their house originally and then I’ve got at the other end of my district people who struggle to make ends meet and can’t afford anymore property taxes. So, in spite of all that they’re doing and it’s very compelling and I’ve really been on the fence, I’ve promised to fight against any tax increases and I’d like to wait another year and so I can’t support this right now,” Rankin said.

Jamestown Lawmaker Chuck Nazzaro – who also serves as the ranking Democrat on the Audit and Control Committee – explained that although no one wants to raise taxes, the legislature still needs to be mindful of challenges in the coming the years.

“We have to look at projections and eventually, it’s not if it’s when we will go again into a recession. It’s an 8-10 year cycle. It’s an economic fact of life. So, we have to prepare ourselves for when there is a down turn in the economy. We have to maintain our fund balance at a reasonable level, which is 5% minimum of revenue and we need a plan for the future. If next year, for those that are here, are working on the 2021 budget things change, we have an increase in revenue, we can adjust that tax rate again up or down,” Nazzaro said.

As a result of the tax rate increase, the new county property tax rate for 2020 will be $8.46 per $1,000 of assessed value.

• AUDIO ALSO AVAILABLE AT WRFA SOUNDCLOUD

The Chautauqua County Legislature voted 10 to 8 in favor of a motion supporting a state legislature proposal calling for a statewide ban on the sale of flavored e-liquids for use in e-cigarettes. However, the motioned required a super majority vote, so it did not receive the minimum number of votes needed to pass.

The vote came after Jamestown resident and Yeti Vape Vice President Brian Ellis spoke to lawmakers regarding his concerns for the ban as written while also offering alternative ideas and solutions to address the concerns brought forward by public health officials at both the local and statewide levels.

At least one lawmaker based their vote on Ellis’s comments. Legislator Terry Niebel (R-District 5) said he had planned to vote in support of the motion but changed his mind after listening to Ellis.

Ellis also told WRFA following the meeting that a group of vape businesses that sell e-liquids is suing New York State due to the governors ban on flavored e-liquids and e-cigarettes, declaring the ban necessary as a public health measure. He said an injunction has been requested and a state court will have to rule on a temporary injunction request in the next two days.

Brian Ellis, Jamestown resident and vice president of Yeti Vape, spoke to the Chautauqua County Legislature on Sept. 25, 2019.