SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Mayor Stephanie A. Miner issued the following statement today following the release of the final report of the Consensus Commission on Local Government Modernization.
“Despite the Commission’s good intentions, the Consensus Commission’s Final Report is, unfortunately, an enormous disappointment. It is rife with ambiguities and omissions. Its section on governance is fatally flawed since it assumes the existence of legal authority to abolish the City, which simply does not exist. City Staff actively participated in the process with the understanding the recommendations would meaningfully address issues of inequity and a better delivery of services. Instead, sadly, we are presented with a document that abolishes the City, strips the City of its assets (p. 80-91) and saddles the City residents with enormous financial obligations without any means to raise revenues to satisfy them. It resembles more a plan for the worst form of corporate looting than a progressive document designed to meet the needs of Central New York residents. While not addressing the issue of School District consolidation, the implementation of the report’s recommendations would cripple the ability of the School District to fulfill its mandate to educate future generations. In short, it would doom Syracuse to eternal poverty. Its proposed new government structure would dilute and disenfranchise people of color and other underrepresented groups at a time when greater participation in our civic process must be encouraged rather than diminished.
“The voters of Syracuse entrusted me with a sacred obligation to serve them by exercising my best judgment. As such, to endorse this proposal would be a dereliction of duty on my part. For these and other reasons, I will be urging my fellow citizens to actively oppose any initiative to adopt its recommendations.”