Kevin Gaughan
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Kevin P. Gaughan (born March 17, 1954) is an attorney and an advocate of government reform, in particular for the establishment of
regional government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...
and regional consciousness within the Buffalo-Niagara region, which encompasses the cities of
Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...
and
Niagara Falls, New York Niagara Falls is a City (New York), city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a total population of 48,671. It is adjacent to the Niagara River, across from the city of Niagar ...
, their suburbs and surrounding rural areas. Gaughan became a nationally recognized advocate of regionalism largely because of a series of regionalism conferences at the
Chautauqua Institution The Chautauqua Institution ( ) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit education center and summer resort for adults and youth located on in Chautauqua, New York, northwest of Jamestown, New York, Jamestown in the western southern tier of New York (state), N ...
in which he organized in 1997. In 1998 he was named a citizen of the year by the ''
Buffalo News ''The Buffalo News'' is the daily newspaper of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It was for decades the only paper fully owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway. On January 29, 2020, the ...
''. In 2001 he became the youngest recipient of the Red Jacket Medal, awarded by the
Buffalo History Museum The Buffalo History Museum (founded as the Buffalo Historical Society, and later named the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society) is located at 1 Museum Court (formerly 25 Nottingham Court) in Buffalo, New York, just east of Elmwood Avenue an ...
for civic leadership. He graduated from
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
before he studied law at
Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...
and
international relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...
at the
London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...
.


Politics

In 1990 he ran unsuccessfully against former Congressman
Bill Paxon Leon William Paxon (born April 29, 1954) is an American lobbyist and former member of the United States House of Representatives from New York. From 1989 to 1999, he served five terms in Congress. Early life Paxon was born in Akron, New Yo ...
for the 31st Congressional District. After serving for a few years as a legislative aide in the Erie County Legislature he opened a law office in the Buffalo suburb of
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
. He ran again in the 1994 contest and lost in the primary. In 2001 he sought the Republican endorsement to run for the mayoralty of Buffalo and withdrew from the race once it was given to
Anthony Masiello Anthony M. Masiello (born April 28, 1947) is an American politician and former basketball player who served as Mayor of Buffalo, New York from 1994 to 2005. Prior to being mayor, he served as a member of the New York State Senate. He is currentl ...
. He again tried to run for the office of mayor for the City of Buffalo in 2005 losing the Democratic
primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...
to
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and eventual mayor
Byron Brown Byron William Brown II (born September 24, 1958) is an American politician who served as the 62nd mayor of Buffalo, New York from 2006 until his resignation in 2024. He was the city's first African-American mayor and the longest-serving mayo ...
. As a result of this failed bid for mayor Gaughan was sued by the Hyatt Hotel over a $10,000 debt. In early 2006 he launched an abortive campaign for the senate seat vacated by Brown, but dropped out at the urging of local Democratic Party leaders, who backed another candidate. In 2007 he lobbied Erie County Democratic Chairman Len Lenihan for appointment a
Erie County Clerk
that was going to be vacant due to the departure of
David Swarts David J. Swarts (born March 13, 1947) was the commissioner of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, in the Cabinet of Governor David Paterson. He was appointed to this position by former Governor Eliot Spitzer on December 21, 2006 and ...
to become Commissioner of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. Gaughan announced his entry into a primary election against
New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...
man Sean Ryan in June 2012; Gaughan lost. He also ran for the office of Erie County Comptroller in 2013 but lost to Stefan Mychajliw.


Writings and activism

Gaughan wrote ''At First Light: Strengthening Buffalo Niagara in the New Century'' which was published by the
Canisius College Canisius University is a private Jesuit university in Buffalo, New York. It was founded in 1870 by Jesuits from Germany and is named after St. Peter Canisius. Canisius offers more than 100 undergraduate majors and minors, and around 34 ma ...
Press in 2003. The book is a collection of speeches and short essays by Gaughan on such subjects as regionalism, government reform, race relations, US and local history, and patriotism. In late 2006, he released the results of a study entitled ''The Cost'' which detailed the amount paid to elected and appointed officials at various levels of government in the Buffalo-Niagara region. He compared this to other regions and found that Buffalo-Niagara had significantly more paid elected officials than other regions in both absolute and
per capita ''Per capita'' is a Latin phrase literally meaning "by heads" or "for each head", and idiomatically used to mean "per person". Social statistics The term is used in a wide variety of social science, social sciences and statistical research conte ...
measures. Additionally, a high number of small towns replicating services- such as police, highway maintenance and parks departments lead to a higher number of civil-service government employees. Gaughan used these numbers to support his thesis that entire layers of government should be done away with in Buffalo-Niagara.


Downsizing movement

Gaughan has been a proponent of "downsizing" town and village boards, generally from five members to three. He sees this as a cost-saving measure. On June 3, 2009, the towns of
West Seneca West Seneca is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 45,500 at the 2020 census. West Seneca is a centrally located interior town of the county, and a suburb of Buffalo. West Seneca, Orchard Park and Hamburg form th ...
and
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both passed the measures by large margins. On September 23, 2009, the town of Orchard Park passed a measure cutting its Town Board by two members by nearly a two-to-one margin. On September 29, 2009, the town of
Alden Alden may refer to: Places United States *Alden, California, a former settlement * Alden, Illinois *Alden, Iowa * Alden, Kansas * Alden, Michigan * Alden, Minnesota * Alden, Oklahoma * Alden, Pennsylvania * Alden, New York ** Alden (village), New ...
voted 1,052 to 1,020 in favor of reducing the size of its town council. While Gaughan is the most visible proponent of downsizing in Western New York, there have been various groups in each of the towns which have aligned themselves with or distanced themselves from Gaughan to various degrees. In 2010, Gaughan campaigned to dissolve the villages of Sloan and Williamsville. The villages held dissolution referendums on August 17, 2010, and both failed overwhelmingly with "no" votes exceeding 80%. On September 23, 2010,
Grand Island, New York Grand Island is an island town in Erie County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town's population was 21,389 representing an increase of 5.00% from the 2010 census figure. The town's name is derived from the French name '' ...
became the first town to successfully resist the Gaughan downsizing and consolidation plan by voting down the referendum 2,155 NO votes to 1,805 YES votes. The decision was made by a 350-vote margin; and the turnout, for what was a special election, superseded the primary election some 2 weeks earlier by roughly 500 votes. Grand Island Republican Party Committeeman Mark William Webb, took a visible stand against what they felt was an intrusion into their government from external forces. Webb argued, ''"It's much harder to corrupt four men in a room than two"'', adding, ''" 're a very strong community. We're a proud community. We love this town."'' The village of
Farnham, New York Farnham is a village in the town of Brant, New York, United States. The population of Farnham was 381 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The village is named after Leroy Farnham, a local landowner and ...
had a dissolution vote September 28, 2010. Farnham Mayor Terry L. Caber Sr. said he believes that village government is most efficient. ''"The bottom line is, I just want to make sure the residents really understand the full picture, the full impact, and let them make the decision"''. Voters rejected the Farnham dissolution referendum. The towns of
West Seneca West Seneca is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 45,500 at the 2020 census. West Seneca is a centrally located interior town of the county, and a suburb of Buffalo. West Seneca, Orchard Park and Hamburg form th ...
and
Alden Alden may refer to: Places United States *Alden, California, a former settlement * Alden, Illinois *Alden, Iowa * Alden, Kansas * Alden, Michigan * Alden, Minnesota * Alden, Oklahoma * Alden, Pennsylvania * Alden, New York ** Alden (village), New ...
revisited the downsizing and voted to keep their downsized boards in 2012. In 2015 the town of
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
voted to return to a 5 member Town Board. The voters of the town of
West Seneca West Seneca is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 45,500 at the 2020 census. West Seneca is a centrally located interior town of the county, and a suburb of Buffalo. West Seneca, Orchard Park and Hamburg form th ...
will determine whether or not to return to a 5 member town board in the 2018 general election after a petition was filed calling for the vote by the Committee to Restore Representation in West Seneca. In 2019 an Orchard Park group headed by Nan Ackerman petitioned to have the board upsized to five members. Voters approved the referendum and on January 1, 2022 Orchard Park returned to a five member board.


The Gaughan Plan

Gaughan presented his "Gaughan Plan" on regionalism to the Erie County Legislature Government Affairs Committee on April 27, 2005.. Erie County website. April 27, 2005 The plan is as follows:


See also

*
Unigov Unigov is the colloquial name adopted by the city of Indianapolis, Indiana, to describe its consolidated city–county government. By an act of the Indiana General Assembly, Indianapolis consolidated with the government of Marion County, India ...
*
Council of Governments A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nation ...


References


Sources

* Gaughan, Kevin P. ''At First Light: Strengthening Buffalo Niagara in the New Century''. Buffalo, New York: Canisius College Press, 2003.


External links


Gaughan's Personal website"The Cost" study websiteClip of Gaughan speaking on the history of Buffalo-NiagaraCanisius College Press "At First Light" pageBuffalo News Editorial Discussing ''The Cost''Article about "The Cost"Concerned Citizens for Responsible Growth in West Seneca's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaughan, Kevin 1954 births Lawyers from Buffalo, New York People from Erie County, New York American urban planners Harvard University alumni Georgetown University Law Center alumni Alumni of the London School of Economics Living people Activists from New York (state)