Erie County Can Borrow on Its Own; Overseer Goes Into Advisory Status

Erie County, N.Y., can borrow on its own for the first time since 2006 after its fiscal monitor yesterday went into advisory status.

The Erie County Fiscal Stability Authority went into a control status about a year after it was created by the New York Legislature four years ago, which gave it the ability to approve or prevent any borrowing by the county. The authority yesterday approved the county's modified four-year financial plan which took it out of control status.

For the past two years, county officials and the authority have fought to acrimonious stalemates and seen compromises fall apart as both sought to borrow for capital needs but were blocked by the other.

Last month the authority sold $103 million of bond anticipation notes, under an agreement that will allow the county to take out the notes through a long- or short-term borrowing, provided the authority is in advisory status.

"I am very pleased that a year and a half into my administration, my team was capable of demonstrating to the control board our firm understanding and proper management of county finances," said County Executive Chris Collins in a press release.

"ECFSA's action reaffirms what I have been saying for three years - that Erie County's fiscal situation is stable and based on current data there is no need for ECFSA to be in a control period," county Comptroller Mark Poloncarz said in a statement.

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