Spending the Taxpayer's Dollars Wisely

By Michael C. "Mike" Gardner

It is the duty of the City Council to be good stewards of the public's money. The Council must do a better job of spending our money in a manner that provides the best service for the least cost.

Historically, the council has tended to overutilize consultants. We have a warehouse full of unused and unread consultant reports. We should divert much of the money we spend on consultants to providing better city services.

Council has also become enamored of high technology and state of the art programs and equipment. We need to ensure we are buying the right equipment and service for the job. Recently, the City purchased a video taping system for police cars. With the included equipment for downloading and storing video images, the cameras cost $40,000 each. It simply does not make sense to put a $40,000 camera in a $32,000 police car.

I will ensure that Council at least thinks about its decision making when it comes to spending the taxpayer's money.