75 cent compromise?

Apparently, Giambra is trying to rehabilitate himself and compromise (SHOCK! HORROR!) with DiBenedetti and Kennedy. A 75 cent increase in the sales tax would still lead to layoffs, but the benefit would be some sort of reform of the whole budget process, hopefully preventing any such shenanigans from ever happening again. Basically, Giambra will agree to the creation of a commission to prevent him from pulling this kind of bullshit ever again.

"Erie County Executive Joel A. Giambra on Saturday proposed a compromise needed to raise the county sales tax and avoid drastic government cuts. Giambra said he wants to form an independent panel of financial experts offered by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership to recommend ways to pull the county out of deficit spending. 'I'm trying to be helpful, to get this thing behind us,' he said of the continuing budget quagmire, which he again blamed on rising mandated state Medicaid and pension costs.

Giambra - it's never him.