Medina trustees go to Albany seeking more state aid

Provided photos: Medina trustees Diana Baker, left, and Jess Marciano met with State Sen. Rob Ortt in Albany on Wednesday.

ALBANY – Two Village of Medina trustees traveled to the State Capital in Albany last week to seek more state funding for the village.

Jess Marciano and Diana Baker joined about 50 other municipal officials from around the state in Albany for a lobbying day. The event was organized by NYCOM (New York Conference of Mayors and Municipal Officials) and the Association of Towns of the State of New York.

Marciano and Baker met with other officials from the state and then went to see the local state legislators, State Sen. Rob Ortt and Assemblyman Steve Hawley.

The village trustees had a list for the two state legislators. The trustees noted the village government has about 50 full-time employees serving a community with a high-poverty rate.

The employees are in the fire department (21 staff), police department (13 employees), Department of Public Works (12 workers), Clerk’s Office (4 staff) and one code enforcement officer.

The Medina trustees pressed the legislators to push for a sizable increase in AIM (Aid and Incentives to Municipalities) for Medina.

Marciano and Baker presented a chart showing Medina’s meager AIM amount of $45,523 for a village of 6,047 – for $7.53 a person. Smaller cities get more than $100 a person and this is unrestricted aid, to be spent at the discretion of the municipality. (The city of Salamanca, which is similar in size to both the villages of Medina and Albion, collects $928,131 in AIM funding or $156 per person for its 5,929 residents.)

NYCOM also is making more AIM a legislative focus, saying the $715 million total for cities, towns and villages hasn’t been increased in 15 years. NYCOM is seeking a 43 percent increase or another $309 million in AIM.

Jess Marciano, left, and Diana Baker met with Assemblyman Steve Hawley.

Marciano and Baker also said Medina needs more state funding for water and sewer upgrades, and for road maintenance.

“We’re about to go into another incredibly difficult budget year,” Marciano said. “We have to figure out a way to get more money in the village.”

Marciano said Medina isn’t just looking for a state handout. The village has been trying to convince the County Legislature to share more of the local sales tax. The Legislature hasn’t increased the sales tax to towns and village since 2001. It’s been stuck at $1,366,671 for 10 towns and four villages. Medina gets $160,160 of that total.

The local sales tax for the county totalled $23.1 million in 2023. Medina gets less than 1 percent of the total.

The village also is trying to rein in expenses without putting off long overdue projects such as a ladder truck replacement and need to expand the fire hall.

Baker said the discussions with Hawley and Ortt were “very enlightening” as they shared about so many factions in a diverse state, all pushing their own agendas. The smaller towns in rural communities often are overwhelmed by the larger cities and their needs.

Ortt was asked specifically to push legislation that would help the village. Medina has tried for years to have state legislation pass that would allow for a 2 percent occupancy tax for room rentals in the village.

Medina first tried to have the tax imposed in 2018 but it has stalled in the State Legislature.

Hawley has agreed to introduce legislation in the Assembly. Ortt has sponsored the legislation before in the State Senate but now said he is reluctant to back bills that result in a tax increase.

He told Marciano and Baker the “the circumstances have to be right” for him to push the bill in the Senate. He would have to give up something to make a deal with the Democratic Party majority. Right now, he said the Medina legislation benefits so few. But he told Marciano and Baker he isn’t giving up on the legislation.

Baker and Marciano appreciated that both Hawley and Ortt met with the Medina representatives without an appointment. Baker and Marciano said they will schedule more appointments next year so they present Medina’s challenges to more state officials.

“We had very good luck that both were available,” Marciano said about Hawley and Ortt.