August 13, 2025
Buffalo, NY — Christine Czarnik, candidate for Erie County Comptroller, today unveiled her plan to launch a Taxpayer Transparency Tool—an online public database where residents can easily search and see exactly where their county tax dollars are being spent.
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The proposed tool would allow taxpayers to search by vendor, department, amount, date, or project to see all county expenditures. This would include payments to businesses, contractors, nonprofits, and other entities—bringing a new level of accountability to Erie County government.
Czarnik said her proposal draws inspiration from other government transparency models that are already working for the public.
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“The New York State Comptroller’s Office has a user-friendly system that lets people follow the money. Nassau County has one too—simple, searchable, and open for anyone to use,” Czarnik said. “If Albany and Nassau County can do it, there’s no excuse for Erie County not to. Taxpayers deserve to know how their hard-earned dollars are spent—without having to file a FOIL request or dig through complicated reports.”
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Currently, Erie County residents who want to see detailed spending must file formal Freedom of Information Law requests or sift through cumbersome outdated PDF files. Czarnik’s plan would make this data available in a modern and user-friendly platform, something she says is long overdue.
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“Transparency isn’t just about posting reports,” Czarnik added. “It’s about making information accessible, understandable, and searchable so residents can hold their government accountable. It is unfortunate that after nearly four years in office our current comptroller has done nothing to modernize and open our books to the public.”
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The Taxpayer Transparency Tool would be updated regularly, ensuring the public can monitor spending as it happens. Similar tools have been credited in other counties with improving trust in government, deterring wasteful spending, and even helping local businesses identify contracting opportunities.
