BUFFALO, N.Y. — Ever since our partners at Investigative Post revealed that a Buffalo Fire Department clerk had been on paid leave since 2016, the city Comptroller has been investigating the matter.
According to records exposed by Investigative Post, the clerk received $572,067 in earnings during the paid leave.
The Comptroller, according to a letter sent to Mayor Brown on September 28, sought additional information about the employee.
The Buffalo Common Council passed a resolution asking for an update by November 14.
"I haven't heard anything," said Fillmore District Councilmember Mitch Nowakowski. "It's been three weeks, and there's been nothing filed and there's been nothing sent to our offices."
On November 22, Nowakowski sent a letter to city Comptroller Barbara Miller Williams asking for an update. According to Nowakowski, the Comptroller will be sending a staff member to provide an update during the civil service committee meeting on Tuesday morning.
"The committee really needs to see that they're starting to get findings and some form of a conclusion," Nowakowski said. "We understand that investigations take time you have to go through multiple departments to gain you know, proper information and to make a conclusion."
The Comptroller previously revealed, as of September 28, that seven employees were suspended with pay and sought additional information about the circumstances of their leave.
"This is taxpayer dollars, and we're entrusted with people's tax dollars," Nowakowski said. "City Hall, has the privilege and the honor to have the public trust. So any dollar that's misused or not accounted for, when it comes to this is wrong."
The civil service committee of the Common Council meets at 9:45 a.m. on Tuesday, December 5.