Hotel occupancy tax, parking ramp authority in proposed NYS budget
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) -- The proposed New York State budget will include each of Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon's proposals to help balance the City of Buffalo's budget -- a 3% hotel occupancy tax and a new Parking and Mobility Authority to sell city-owned parking ramps, New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie told reporters Monday.
Scanlon has been pushing for both proposals -- which needed authorization from the New York State Legislature -- in order to help balance Buffalo's budget deficit. Last month, Scanlon said that the city had a budget deficit of around $60 million.
Scanlon believes that the city could bring in $40 million in revenue by selling city-owned parking ramps.
“The City of Buffalo owns four parking ramps, and I don’t think the City of Buffalo should be in the parking business,” Scanlon said last month. “The state these ramps are in and the amount of investment they’re going to require moving forward and capital improvements, it’s something that I don’t think we should take on.”
The 3% hotel occupancy tax would be paid by visitors to Buffalo hotels.
Opinions have been mixed on both proposals, with Buffalo Niagara President and CEO Patrick Kaler telling WIVB News 4 that visitors were "already paying their fair share" upon coming to Buffalo. State Senator April Baskin said that the proposals "raise several red flags." Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes supported both proposals.
The developments came after Gov. Kathy Hochul announced a general budget agreement on April 28. The budget still has to be passed by the legislature and signed into law.
“As a native of Buffalo, Governor Hochul understands that the success of the Western New York region is directly tied to the success of the City of Buffalo," a spokesperson for Gov. Hochul said in a statement to News 4. "That is why she worked closely with Majority Leader Peoples-Stokes and the Legislature to deliver a budget that gives the City of Buffalo the tools they need to succeed as they focus on improving their financial outlook.”
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Mark Ludwiczak joined the News 4 team in 2024. He is a veteran journalist with two decades of experience in Buffalo. You can follow him online at @marklud12.