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Listless lawmakers take comfort in low bar

OBSERVER file photo Pierre Chagnon, County Legislature chairman, seems content with the status quo despite a decreasing population.

Newcomer Jamie Gustafson said all the right things while introducing herself last month to the Chautauqua County Legislature. A resident of Lakewood, the 32-year M&T Bank employee talked about her credentials and ambitions in taking the District 10 seat.

“I feel that both my strong financial background from the bank as well as dealing with businesses and the vulnerable population, that this appointment will provide me the opportunity to help the citizens of Chautauqua County,” she said.

Let’s hope she can make an impression. Ken Lawton, her predecessor who resigned after moving out of the district, was nearly invisible except for his many “yes” votes.

He, like so many other lawmakers who currently serve, took the path of least resistance by voting with an entrenched majority who have shown no fortitude to make a tough decision while earning nearly $10,000 annually in the position. These are the ones who are often habitually re-elected by their constituents.

More than seven months into the year, legislators continue moving aimlessly while failing to set a course for Chautauqua County’s future.

There is no vision or agenda in terms of what this government body is attempting to accomplish as it gets ready to prepare a budget that will likely exceed $265 million for 2023, which is close to what the New York Yankees’ payroll is for this season, without the exceptional results of baseball’s best team.

Considering the dominance of the Republicans who hold the office of executive as well as 15 of the 19 seats, it is incredibly frustrating to see the lack of initiative and effort that is being put forth. It is a vastly different attitude compared to how things were done last time there was a real shake-up.

Twelve years ago, it was a different generation of legislators who seemed to work as though they had something to prove almost every meeting. At that time, there were 25 seats in the chamber that served a population of 135,000 residents.

There also were serious calls, especially from those newly elected who included current state Sen. George Borrello and long-tenured Legislator Bob Scudder, to reduce that inflated number of representatives to as low as possibly 17. In the end — with some pushing by the county’s Conservative Party — there was an agreement on 19.

Taking into consideration on how things played out during the last meeting, it is obvious the current exclusive club wants no part in having the public consider another reduction. Deciding along party lines, the Republicans shut out voter participation and maintained the 19-member comfort zone for a population that has decreased to 127,000 this year.

For them, it was an easy decision. Fewer legislators would have meant more work for those who remained in the job.

“We need to be more efficient and cost effective as a county government,” said Mary Croxton with the Chautauqua County League of Women Voters. “Maintaining the same number of legislative districts with all of the technical and economic challenges that we have taken place and are expected to take place over the coming decade is not efficient or cost effective. Chautauqua County residents and taxpayers cannot afford the status quo.”

But who said this group of lawmakers was looking to be fiscally responsible? Throughout this year, there have been some head-shaking decisions over being wise with the pennies but foolish with the big bucks.

Consider:

¯ At the start of this year, leaders were proud to announce they had partnerships in place that would find savings and efficiencies of $500,000 countywide. In the big picture, that’s less than a drop in the bucket — or 0.1% of the county’s total budget of more than $262 million. There’s absolutely no impact on savings in these efforts.

¯ In May, legislators decided to change the way it administers its self-funded workers’ compensation plan. While the town of Chautauqua benefited greatly, the major population centers of Jamestown and Dunkirk were penalized by having to pay an increase of $330,400 and $115,000 respectively. Dunkirk backed out of the plan a month later, finding savings through another provider. In the meantime, John Hemmer, a Westfield legislator, has been so blinded by the Republican mantra that he also backed the plan even though the burden was a $14,000 increase to the village he represents.

¯ Legislators also last month approved a new public relations position that will pay between $54,000 and $82,000. For the record, the county already has three people doing this job — including two assistants to County Executive PJ Wendel — that already cost taxpayers a combined $185,000. Fourteen Republican lawmakers who approved the position, however, had no problem padding the payroll despite extending the contract with the CSEA for only one year due to future financial concerns.

Buoyed by funding from the American Rescue Plan Act put in place to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic — by both political parties nationally– money was flowing to Mayville at a fast and furious pace in the last two years. Those funds enabled lawmakers to put forth a budget that included a property tax decrease for this year.

They will not be as fortunate in 2023. Inflation is hitting residents hard. It also impacts government spending and local elected leaders often easily accept passing on those costs to those they represent with the excuse that they also cannot keep up with rising costs.

In recent years, county legislators have prided themselves on working together in a bipartisan spirit. That may have been the case eight years ago.

Today, however, the numbers are a reality. Republicans have the ability to call all the shots. They own the ship.

It may not be sinking, but it has still yet to sail.

John D’Agostino is the editor of the OBSERVER, The Post-Journal and Times Observer in Warren, Pa. Send comments to jdagostino@observertoday.com or call 716-366-3000, ext. 253.

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