Lockport Mayor Anne McCaffrey addresses the issue of city finances in a press conference held at City Hall this afternoon. (PHOTOS BY HEATHER N. GRIMMER / ENP PHOTOGRAPHER)

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news@eastniagarapost.com

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Lockport Mayor Anne McCaffrey said this afternoon in a 2:20 p.m. press conference that the city is working diligently to right its financial ship while complying with orders from the state comptroller's office.

To a large degree, McCaffrey inherited the problem of the city's coffers being empty when she inherited the mayor's seat in March following the resignation of former Mayor Mike Tucker. Since she's taken office, she said she's "made many necessary and difficult decisions and I will continue to make tough choices on behalf of Lockport taxpayers."

One of the things that McCaffrey is looking into is the restructuring of the city treasurer's office.

"We recently brought in an accounting consultant to assist in correcting our financial statements and provide us with a more accurate accounting of the city's finances," she said.

The accounting in the treasurer's office has been called into question by the state comptroller's office. In fact, the report released this morning — the reason for the press conference this afternoon — said, "Auditors found the city’s treasurer failed to maintain accurate accounting records or prepare an adequate cash-flow analysis. The city’s audited financial statements for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2012 included account balances that were materially misstated, leaving the city council and the mayor’s office without reliable financial information that would have alerted them to the impending financial crisis."

McCaffrey refused to answer questions from the press concerning City Treasurer Mike White's performance, but did state that he has informed her that he is contemplating not seeking election next year. She said that she had neither asked for nor had he offered his resignation, however.

"As I indicated in my response to the comptrollers last month, I am working on restructuring the treasurer's office to ensure that accurate and timely accounting records will be maintained going forward," she said. "The Common Council and I will be finalizing that plan in the coming weeks."

White, in a prepared statement of his own, accepted responsibility for the operations of his office for the past several years. However, he indicated that the issue of city insolvency is not one that only goes back a few years.

"It didn't happen overnight and it won't be solved overnight," White said following the mayor's press conference. "This goes back probably 10, 15, 20 years."

White said that communication issues with the Tucker administration hindered his office as well. "Each and every time we asked for the help we needed, it fell on deaf ears."

Staff cutbacks over the years made it difficult — if not impossible — for his office to perform their duties, he said. "You could have the greatest accountant in the world here but if they don't have the tools to get the job done, it's not going to happen."

In the end, however, he said the problem with city finances comes down to improper budgeting. "If you're overestimating the revenues and underestimating the expenses, you have an issue," he said.

Barring an influx of funds, the city is expected to have no money within the next month, according to the state auditor's report: "A cash-flow analysis prepared by DiNapoli’s auditors found not only that Lockport will soon run out of cash, but that the city’s cash-flow deficiency will grow to nearly $4.6 million by Dec. 31."

McCaffrey said that the city is hoping to obtain that influx soon, as the state legislature has approved the city's borrowing of up to $5.35 million to help eliminate that immediate burden and allow the city to pay it back over a longer period of time — 10 years. The governor's office has not yet signed that bill.

White concurred with McCaffrey that the city has done its due diligence to fixing financial matters — especially since she took office. In fact, he referred to her as "a godsend to this community."

"In closing," White said in his press release, "communication in the administration has moved light years ahead and we are implementing a comprehensive plan to move this city forward in conjunction with the state comptroller's office."

Another avenue McCaffrey mentioned in the plight to save money is the elimination of the city's ambulance service by the Lockport Fire Department and restructuring of that department to reduce the minimum manning levels per shift. While the city's ambulance service brings in about $600,000 per year, she estimated that it costs the city about $1 million per year, meaning eliminating it would save about $400,000 per year. McCaffrey said the switch to a private provider should be finished by Sept. 15.

Also, McCaffrey said, the city is looking into selling off some surplus items and will, in fact, be doing so tonight at the Common Council meeting at 6 p.m.

"I am confident that the city's best days lie ahead," McCaffrey said.

RELATED: 

• Mayor Anne McCaffrey's statement
• City Treasurer Mike White's statement
• State Comptroller Tom DiNaploli's statement
• The state audit report

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