Audit of Buffalo's lights could be boon

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Street lights that are out in Buffalo could be costing taxpayers a bundle.

The Common Council is asking the city comptroller to approve an audit of the city's street light system. Lawmakers say hundreds of lights are down or need repair and an audit would help stop future billing errors by National Grid. Council President Richard Fontana says these problem lights are taking money out of your pocket.

"But I think there's money out there, and I think that money is owed to the city. This is not adversarial; this is just let's get it straight and let's see what's owed to the city taxpayers," Fontana said.

National Grid has not responded to News 4's request for comment. A similar audit was done over 10 years ago and the city ended up getting back more than one million dollars.