Griffo and Picente: AIM arrangement in state budget is unacceptable

State Sen. Joseph Griffo, R-I-C-Rome, and Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente Jr. expressed their concerns today that the state budget negotiated by Democrats in Albany will change the way Aid and Incentives for Municipalities (AIM) is distributed and will force counties to cover the cost.

For many years, New York State was responsible for distributing AIM to municipalities, which rely on the funding to provide essential and needed services to residents. In his proposed 2019-20 Executive Budget earlier this year, the Governor called for the elimination of $59 million AIM funding. Now, as a result of the state budget passed earlier this week, counties will have to pick up the cost of AIM and pay for it by splitting $160 million in revenue from a new internet sales tax.

This is another example of additional burdens being added onto counties as a result of the recently passed state budget. For instance, despite many assurances by the Governor and Democrats in the Legislature, the budget failed to reject various unfunded mandates and excluded adequate funding needed to implement the state’s early voting mandate. The New York State Board of Elections estimates that early voting will cost counties outside of New York City more than $70 million, a number far greater than the $25 million local governments will receive from the state. Counties will have to cover the costs of this and other election reforms in addition to the countless unfunded mandates Albany has imposed on local governments.

Sen. Griffo, who voted against the state budget, said that the new AIM arrangement was unacceptable and that there was too much uncertainty regarding if the funding predicted in the budget would actually be available to communities.

“For the sake of their budgets, upstate towns and villages want and deserve predictability when it comes to what they can expect in aid from the state,” Sen. Griffo said. “This agreement is nothing more than a handshake deal where municipalities have to trust the state when it says that the revenue will be there. We’ve seen projections of all types made by Albany politicians fall woefully short of the mark, so you will have to forgive me if I don’t believe it when the Governor and Democrats in the legislature say, ‘Trust me. I’m from the government.’”

“It is completely disingenuous for Albany to claim AIM funding has been restored for towns and villages,” Picente said. “Instead, what has taken place is Albany is robbing Peter to pay Paul, forcing counties to pick up the state's tab. In addition to fiscal shell games, the budget totally eliminates long term funding for the redevelopment and defense of Griffiss and Rome Labs.  Loaded with outrageous new cost shifts, fiscal gimmicks and wholesale cuts that cripple our flexibility and impede our ability to move our communities forward, this budget fails to address upstate priorities.”

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Below is a breakdown of the Aim funding provided to Oneida County localities in 2019:

Oneida

Town of Annsville: $12,695

Town of Ava: $4,244

Town of Boonville: $25,606

Town of Bridgewater: $21,080

Town of Camden: $38,523

Town of Deerfield: $28,211

Town of Florence: $4,319

Town of Floyd: $37,070

Town of Forestport: $12,695

Town of Lee: $4,244

Town of Marcy: $31,358

Town of Marshall: $14,317

Town of New Hartford: $118,103

Town of Paris: $35,015

Town of Remsen: $7,141

Town of Sangerfield: $11,307

Town of Steuben: $5,556

Town of Trenton: $30,478

Town of Vernon: $32,319

Town of Verona: $73,880

Town of Vienna: $39,089

Town of Western: $15,721

Town of Westmoreland: $52,700

Town of Whitestown: $124,975

Village of Boonville: $36,352

Village of Camden: $19,134

Village of Clayville: $4,219

Village of Holland Patent: $3,937

Village of New Hartford: $17,021

Village of New York Mills: $28,737

Village of Oneida Castle: $10,415

Village of Oriskany: $13,010

Village of Oriskany Falls: $6,067

Village of Remsen: $8,736

Village of Sylvan Beach: $9,943

Village of Vernon: $9,705

Village of Waterville: $11,856

Village of Whitesboro: $73,012

Village of Yorkville: $47,994

Total: $1,080,784