It could be that Stark County's elected officials are "finally" getting the message.
Two-year Commissioner Pete Ferguson appears to have gotten it. At the commissioners September 15th meeting he described for fellow commissioners Bosley and Meeks an effort he was spearheading to attain more efficiency in getting the county and Canton's building departments "under one roof."
Stark Countians in their rejection of the retention of the commissioners-imposed sales tax (0.50 of one percent) in November, 2009 were sending a message to county office holders: "do more with less!"
One of the ways the Stark's politicos can do more with less is to mesh repeated local government functions into centralized operations and finding ways to be more efficient internally.
The SCPR believes that Prosecutor John Ferrero hasn't gotten the message. He was in recently to see the commissioners and was asking for $288,000 to get his office through the end of 2010, while admitting he knew the shortfall was in the offing months ago. He apparently was hoping for a miracle. Well, the miracle did not materialize. One has to believe that he can be more efficient with his multi-million dollar annual county general fund budget - at least enough to save a mere $288,000.
It seems as if Stark County Auditor Kim Perez hasn't gotten it either. Laurie Hoffman of the Alliance Review (Stark County Auditor Kim Perez responds to Cuyahoga auditor's performance evaluation, September 30, 2010) lays out some revealing data about how Perez manages his office, to wit:
Perez says that the comparison is like comparing apples to oranges.
Hmm?
Before the fact of showing his inefficiencies, the SCPR has learned Perez could have opted out of the comparison study.
So it only after the study puts his office in a bad light that it becomes like comparing apples to oranges.
Hmm?
Another glaring offender on the efficiency front are the Nimishillen Township trustees. They could merge their CenCom emergency center dispatch into the new countywide system and save Nimishillen Township taxpayers money while providing "state of the art" emergency services dispatching to them; however, they have chosen to let their fire chief Rich Peterson be "the tail wagging the dog" for his own empire- building purposes.
While the SCPR applauds Ferguson for pushing his initiative, he is being far too diplomatic about it.
He should not be talking merely about getting the two departments under one roof. It should be an outright consolidation and if the bureaucrats and their supporting politicians won't abide a merger, then taxpayers need to send repeated messages that there will be no new money.
On other fronts, local government officials across Stark County should be doing some head banging, too!
There was a day that school, police and fire levies passed at the drop of a hat.
That day is long gone for school levies, accelerating for police levies and fire levies will be next.
Naming names and taking rank, name and serial number of the offenders, it is the likes of Ferrero, Perez and the Nimishillen trustees who are actual enablers of inefficiencies.
Public officials love to hide under the anonymity of phrases like "government inefficiency," the glittering generality that it is.
Not with the SCPR. The Report will be stepping out front and center with the particulars about specific folks who are inefficient as office holders.
Other Stark County media have been protecting them far too long!
Here is a video of Commissioner Pete Ferguson explaining his project.
No comments:
Post a Comment