BUFFALO, N.Y. — Some financial relief is coming for three Western New York cities where Seneca Nation casinos operate.
Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Salamanca have not received funding connected to Seneca revenue sharing with the state since December when the gaming compact between the two sides expired. They agreed to extend the terms of that compact quarterly while continuing to negotiate a new deal.
However, the Senecas have been depositing the 25% “net slot drop” in an escrow account rather than paying it directly to New York. Friday, Spectrum News 1 asked Gov. Kathy Hochul if she would still send money to the cities as the Cuomo administration did during a previous disagreement with the Nation.
“My understanding was that it was going out to the municipalities. If it is not, I will run that down and it is something we will absolutely look at as we have done before,” she said.
Her staff later clarified the cities will receive the money by the end of the month. It is not clear yet how much each city will get, but the office said it will be based on what the estimated payments would be from Dec. 10, 2023, to the end of July, roughly two quarters.
The funding comes at a vital time for the city of Buffalo, facing a $10 million to $15 million structural budget deficit this year. The casino money will not lower that deficit, but if it was not delivered in a timely fashion, it could have exacerbated the current financial struggles.
“I’m concerned about the finances and we have been very generous in supporting the city of Buffalo to get through their crisis,” Hochul said.
The governor said the state has been doing its part to assist her hometown city, including delivering more than $2 billion in funding during her tenure as governor.
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