Onondaga County receives $22 million sales-tax payment; still short $26 million on 2020 budget

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Onondaga County on Wednesday received a sales-tax payment of more than $22 million, leaving the sales-tax deficit in the county’s 2020 budget deficit at $26 million.

The sales-tax payment, which covers both June and July, is down $3.2 million compared to a year ago, the county said.

“As Congress debates the next coronavirus relief bill, the stakes could not be higher for state and local governments. Without direct relief from Washington, D.C., Onondaga County will be forced to take drastic and draconian measures to fill this budget hole,” Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said in a statement. “The very workforce and services that helped our community get through this pandemic are now in peril. I urge Congress to act quickly and provide the desperately needed relief directly to local governments.”

The next sales tax payment is expected the later this month, “though subject to change,” Onondaga County said.