ErieNet, the county's broadband construction project, could be running this fall Two private companies have signed contracts with the ErieNet, the county's multimillion-dollar project to bring high-speed internet service to all parts of the county.

ErieNet, the county's high-speed broadband network, should be done by year's end, and has signed contracts with two companies to make "last mile" connections, says Mark Poloncarz That announcement will be part of his State of the County address tomorrow.

How local government and others are tackling a common cents issue due to penny shortages Since the U.S. Treasury stopped minting pennies in November, any organization that handles cash transactions, like Erie County, have begun adopting policies for handling purchases and making change when pennies are unavailable.

Governments, like retailers, are struggling with the dwindling supply of pennies as they make change for people who pay with cash. Here's what to know about how Erie County, NY – and lots of other places – are dealing with it and what it means for you.

Who gets to use Erie County's luxury suite at the new Bills stadium? Erie County has its own luxury suite in the new Bills stadium, but a new policy lays out who can use it and who can't.

New rules govern who can use the Erie County, NY luxury suite in the new Buffalo Bills stadium. Story UPDATED with additional video and a copy of the full policy.

Payments suspended or slowed amid leadership overhaul at Assigned Counsel Program The Erie County Assigned Counsel Program has a new board and continues to withhold pay and cases from some lawyers as it moves forward with plans for a forensic audit.

Leadership overhauls, opinions and frustration unfold as the Assigned Counsel Program that provides lawyers to low-income criminal defendants continues to make changes. Story in The Buffalo News

Audit finds many weaknesses in Erie County Division of Purchase An audit of the Erie County Division of Purchase, responsible for millions in annual purchases, found the division lacked required documents for a variety of purchases, improperly bypassed Legislature authority and demonstrated weakened oversight.

An audit of the @ErieCountyNY division that authorizes millions of dollars in county purchases every year found problems like missing paperwork, improperly bypassing County Legislature oversight, and red flags associated with helicopter purchases.

Jefferson Avenue finally sees action on multimillion-dollar streetscape investment Tagged as the key to sparking economic development along a business corridor that has seen little visible investment, community leaders say they are relieved to see evidence of construction that will eventually bring new sidewalks, taller curbs, smoother streets, new streetlights, benches, traffic signals and trash cans.

The much anticipated renewal of Jefferson Avenue's street and sidewalks – a projected $35 million undertaking – has finally begun.

Have an opinion on how to improve Erie County? There's a survey for you "Envision Erie is a way for all residents to express what’s important to them about Erie County, whether it’s business, health, quality of life, education, infrastructure, or whatever might be on their mind," County Executive Mark Poloncarz said in a statement.

Have an opinion on how Erie County government is doing in meeting the needs of the people, and what priorities deserve resources going forward? Well, answer this 23-question survey and be heard. Mark Poloncarz announced "Envision Erie" survey Tuesday.

Seneca-Babcock Community Association submitted false IRS form to gain county grants Erie County has referred the Seneca-Babcock Community Association to the DA's Office for submitting misleading documents that indicated the association was in good standing with the IRS when it wasn't.

.The Buffalo News exclusive: Seneca-Babcock Community Association submitted a false IRS form to the county when it applied for Social Services grants that it ultimately gained. Former director said original plans to file the form with the IRS were abandoned:

Erie County law allowing 12- and 13-year-old youth to hunt deer with guns likely to pass Erie County is the last remaining county outside of the New York City area to ban 12- and 13-year- old youth from hunting deer with a firearm. But expect that to change soon.

Erie County is close to voting to allow children as young as 12 to hunt deer with firearms. Currently, Erie County is the only upstate county to ban the practice. Enough votes appear to exist to override a veto by Mark Poloncarz

Granville timeline: A case study in law enforcement secrecy This interactive timeline provides highlights in the Granville case, including links to stories and videos. If you want to get up to speed on this case study in law enforcement secrecy and accountabil...

This interactive timeline provides highlights in the D.J. Granville case, including links to stories and videos. If you want to get up to speed on this case study in law enforcement secrecy and accountability, consider starting here:
buffalonews.com/news/local/a...

What to know about the Granville case as Erie County narcotics chief retires Daniel "D.J." Granville officially retired from the Erie County Sheriff's Office. Here's what to know about the former narcotics chief's case.

.The Buffalo News has written more than 60 stories about the Granville case, but it's easy to lose track of what's happened, and why we're still writing about the case a year later. This Q&A offers a good summary.

Overhaul of Erie County Assigned Counsel Program underway Erie County's Assigned Counsel Program, which provides private defense lawyers for poor clients in criminal cases, is facing a leadership overhaul and suspending some payments while a forensic audit gets underway.

ICYMI: Many board members with the Assigned Counsel Program have stepped down, a forensic audit of the payments to lawyers is underway, and some lawyers have received notice they won't get paid until the audit is done. That The Buffalo News Sunday story:

Forensic audit, suspended payments, leadership changes: Overhaul of Assigned Counsel Program underway Erie County's Assigned Counsel Program, which provides private defense lawyers for poor clients in criminal cases, is facing a leadership overhaul and suspending some payments while a forensic audit gets underway.

The Erie County program that assigns private attorneys to represent criminal defendants who can't afford a lawyer is starting a forensic audit, overhauling its board, and possibly withholding payments. The latest on the Assigned Counsel Program:

Sheriff defends take-home vehicle policy in tense meeting with Erie County legislators Erie County Sheriff John Garcia faced questions from county legislators about his employees' use of county-owned take-home cars, agreeing at points and labeling questions as "political attacks" at other points.

Erie County Sheriff John Garcia appeared before the County Legislature Thursday to defend his office providing 183 take-home vehicles to employees, many of which are unmarked. That story:

Lax government vetting allowed Seneca-Babcock to receive millions without annual financial records The reason that the Seneca-Babcock Community Association continued to receive millions in public money, despite failing to file annual reports with the IRS and the state, is because no one was checking to make sure those reports were filed.

Neither Buffalo nor Erie County routinely check if the nonprofits they fund are up-to-date on their annual IRS and state reporting requirements. I timed myself when I looked up the information. It took less than 4 minutes. buffalonews.com/news... The Buffalo News

Sheriff's office fleet policy places few restrictions on personal use of Erie County vehicles The Erie County Sheriff's Office's new policy makes it clear that anyone assigned such a car is free to use it for personal reasons anywhere in Erie County.

New Sheriff's Office fleet policy places few restrictions on personal use of county-owned vehicles
via @sandratan.bsky.social @buffalonews.com
buffalonews.com/news/local/g...

Seneca-Babcock executive director resigns after revocation of nonprofit status The executive director of the Seneca-Babcock Community Association has resigned his position after public disclosure that the organization failed to submit any of the financial documents for the past nine years to the Internal Revenue Service.

STORY BEING UPDATED: The head of the Seneca-Babcock Community Association is resigning after the association's repeated failure to submit financial documents to the IRS over the past nine years, resulting in the loss of the association's nonprofit status.

Some private practice lawyers are making more than $300K in taxpayer money to represent low-income defendants Which local, private practice lawyers received the most public money for representing low-income defendants charged with crimes? We take a look at who, why and what's next.

Which private-practice lawyers have received the most public money for representing low-income criminal defendants in Erie County, NY? Find out here:

Drug overdose deaths in Erie County have plummeted from 2023's peak Erie County has saw it's sharpest one-year decline in drug overdose deaths last year, and it's part of a bigger picture.

Some good news: Overdose death numbers are falling sharply, and the types of drugs that are killing people is shifting. Get the full breakdown here:

Fraud fears prompt Erie County officials' calls for investigation of Assigned Council Program Concerns about overbilling, improper payments, poor oversight and even questions about fraud have resulted in multiple county officials requesting the the Erie County District Attorney consider a formal investigation into the county's Assigned Counsel Program.

This story has been updated with the full audit document. Follow-up story to come.

Fraud fears prompt Erie County officials' calls for investigation of Assigned Council Program Concerns about overbilling, improper payments, poor oversight and even questions about fraud have resulted in multiple county officials requesting the the Erie County District Attorney consider a formal investigation into the county's Assigned Counsel Program

Late breaking but complete report: Comptroller's Office finds some taxpayer-funded private lawyers representing poor criminal defendants received more than $300,000 a year in 2024 and flagged weak oversight and by the Erie County Assigned Counsel Program.

D.J. Granville to retire from Erie County Sheriff's Office later this month Daniel "D.J." Granville, the embattled chief of narcotics for the Erie County Sheriff's Office, plans to retire from his job on March 27, his attorney said.

Read it here first: Granville is retiring. Erie County narcotics chief D.J. Granville said through his lawyer last year that he loves his job and would not retire. Now, he's changed his mind. Developing story by Aaron Besecker:

Internal records show what happened, and who intervened, the night of the Granville crash Buffalo Police Department investigation records obtained by The Buffalo News helped reconstruct what went happened the night of the crash involving Erie County Sheriff's Office Narcotics Chief Daniel "D.J." Granville.

There's no more complete accounting of what transpired with Buffalo Police in the Granville case than here in The Buffalo News This is the result of hours of work by three reporters, including Aaron Besecker, Justin Sondel and myself. More coming.

Internal records show what happened, and who intervened, the night of the Granville crash Buffalo Police Department investigation records obtained by The Buffalo News helped reconstruct what went happened the night of the crash involving Erie County Sheriff's Office Narcotics Chief Daniel "D.J." Granville.

If you care about the Granville case, this is worth dropping everything for and reading right now.

Attempted suicide in the Erie County Holding Center There have been 33 suicide attempts documented since 2020 at the Erie County Holding Center.

ICYMI: Holding Center detainee found trying to use bedsheets hang himself. buffalonews.com/news/local/a...

Williamsville village trustee will challenge Kearns for Erie County clerk A business consultant who serves as a Williamsville village trustee is challenging incumbent Michael "Mickey" Kearns for the Erie County Clerk's Office in what will be one of the most-watched local ra...

Erie County Clerk Mickey Kearns has a Democratic challenger - a Williamsville trustee who came close to defeating an incumbent assemblyman at the age of 22. share.google/yMjab8R7ZiX4...

After graffiti damage to luxury suites, construction managers will 'reset' before resuming work on Bills stadium In the aftermath of graffiti vandalism to luxury suites at the new Bills stadium under construction, workers return after a four-day shutdown to more surveillance cameras and stern warnings as the investigation continues.

ICYMI: Construction on the Bills stadium resumed today, but not before dishing out a bunch of warnings to the people doing the work. Story with Mike Petro.

Several Bills stadium suites vandalized, more cameras installed before contractors return to work Several luxury suites in the new Bills stadium were vandalized. Now, the company is installing more cameras and holding a mandatory meeting with employees before they return to work Friday.

Someone apparently thought it was a great idea to take spray paint into the nearly finished luxury suites in the new stadium and deface counters and tiles. Here's the latest on the fallout, with colleague Mike Petro. More to come.

Who controls the Erie County fleet? Erie County administrators say no one person has oversight and accountability rights over the county's entire fleet of 1,400 motor vehicles. Legislators say that's wrong.

If you want to get a sense of the tension between the Erie County Legislature and administration over reforming the policy that governs who gets county cars, just watch the video at the top of this story.

Who controls the Erie County fleet? Erie County administrators say no one person has oversight and accountability rights over the county's entire fleet of 1,400 motor vehicles. Legislators say that's wrong.

.Erie County, NY government has more than 1,400 cars and light-duty trucks but how the county should keep employees from abusing the system has led some long arguments between department heads and county legislators. Here's the latest.