Filed under: Uncategorized
As most of you probably already know; I am seeking the City Council position from Ward One in Springfield in the upcoming election. You should also know, I would prefer to loose on principle than win on purely political expediency. With that in mind, I strongly support the appointment of Chief Financial Advisory Officer in Springfield, with some concerns for the future.
This position is strongly needed within City government. Any organization with a budget of about half a BILLION dollars, must have a trained, knowledgeable officer responsable for scrutinizing the budget and offering professional opinions on the fiscal soundness and economic ramifications of any major expenditure. As I understand it; this position will be appointed by the mayor. The Mayor’s appointment must be approved by the Commonwealth. The Chief Financial Advisory Officer (CFOA) will have no inherent authority to expend money or change budget allotments. The only function is advisory to both the council and, chiefly, the Mayor. If this is how this office is both instituted and maintained, this a great addtion to our government, however, I have concerns.
In all major organizations; of which I am aware, the limitations and extent of the authority of the new position is defined by the strength of the individual and the adminstration. This position must never exceed the original intent. The City Council and the electorate must remain vigilant concerning any expansion of the power and authority of this position; and, neither the City Council nor the electorate has a strong positive history in vigilance.
On the part of the Council; they have made many decison based solely on political expediency. With a City Coucnil elected to only a two (2) term, in the second year of their term, their focus is frequently split between what is best for Springfield, and what is best for their intended re-election. The City Councilors, with an adminstration with a CFAO, (appointment by the Mayor) must be courageous enough to challenge any attempt to expnad the autority of the CFOA, depsite what that challenge may do to their campaign. We have a Plan A governmeent, with a “strong Mayor.” If the C.F.A.O. were to expnad their authority of the budget and circumvent the autority of the City Council, it would neutralize the influence of the City Council (an elected position) and neutralize the influence of the electorate. The Mayor would become the ONLY influencial elected official in the city; and, with the four year term proposal of the Mayor, the electorate would become almost infectual in influencing the mayor.
The electorate has an even less recent admirable record in vigilance, with a less the 25% voter turn-out in the last two city-wide elections, people have not spoken strongly enough about their government. If we are to bring this City back to greatness, that can no longer be the case.
All that being said; I strongly support the appointment of a C.F.A.O.; but, I even more strongly support a courageous City Council and an electorate with increased participation. Ultimately, this is YOUR/OUR government, not the government of the elected.
