Buffalo Mayor Violated Law in HR Hire?

Buffalo, New York Mayor Byron W. Brown has been accused of cronyism in 2008 hire of the city’s Human Resources Commissioner Karla L. Thomas. The HR commissioner is supposed to be selected by an impartial committee, but Brown reportedly packed the committee with his political allies. What should have been a nation-wide search was then apparently conducted only in the upstate New York area, resulting in only five candidates being interviewed.

Thomas was ultimately hired and now stands accused of incompetence after an audit earlier this year revealed several irregularities, including the payment of $2 million in health insurance premiums for 152 deceased city workers.