Council pair welcomes call for ratepayers association
A champion of outside audits of city operations says he will welcome talks with two former council candidates who want a “ratepayers association” to scrutinize expenses, but adds a lot of work has been done already.
Coun. Phil Turnbull lauded the city’s efforts in the 2010 to 2013 council term to launch value for money audits. He again campaigned last fall on the process that hires outside agencies to evaluate performance and suggest changes.
“There’s no organization — private sector, non-profit, or government — that can exist without examining how they operate,” said Turnbull. “Even in business, it’s very easy to let costs get out of control.”
On Tuesday, two other municipal candidates said they hope to form a citizens group to examine budgets, compare tax and debt levels and lobby city hall.
Coun. Robert Dumanowski, the corporate services committee chair, told the News he said thorough work has been done over recent years to arrest costs. Savings from audits, benchmarking and a new budget strategy have been substantial, he said, but the public’s perception of wasteful government still exists.
“We’ve uncovered lots of opportunities for cost savings — the idea of more-with-less has been played out in every decision,” said Dumanowski.
“I’m not threatened by the idea (of a ratepayers association). Let’s look for more opportunities, and let’s communicate that better.”
Dumanowski says cost cuts are most often tied with changes to programs of service levels, and that often splits opinion among residents, and council members then have to weigh the options.
This week, Myles Mulholland and Michael Klassen told the News they hope to gather support for creating the group they hope to formally found next fall.
The two men finished in the bottom half of candidates during the October municipal election but say people they spoke to then and since have raised concerns about city operations.
“We’re not here to take an axe to anyone’s tree,” Klassen told the News on Monday, stating the public is calling for a competitive advantage when it comes to taxation and programming. Turnbull said city councillors and senior administrators meet quarterly with the Chamber of Commerce to discuss issues, including city operations.
He felt that if the new group provides useful, constructive information, they should be afforded the same sort of platform.
The effort comes at a time when administrators say they are restricting program growth, cutting costs as well as raising revenue to fill a budget gap created by a monumental fall in natural gas and power profits over the past two years.
Tax increases of between 4 and 5 per cent have been standard annually since 2015, while reserve money has made up the difference.
According to the city’s 2017 annual report, most departments underspent budgets, though some budget totals were increased from 2016. Leaving jobs vacant when workers retire, a wage freeze and chopping projects, especially in petroleum exploration, have been cited as positives.
Budgeters suggested $1.4 million in operational budget cuts for 2017, but wound up with a $780,000 savings.
That’s after the Medicine Hat Arena and Heald Pool were closed, while council reversed a plan to alter transit that would have saved an additional $650,000.
Elsewhere, a 2012 study on fleet operations found excess vehicles, ordered by Dumanowski when he chaired the audit committee, suggested millions in savings.
Similar studies have been done on building maintenance and how the city applies for grants.
Administration also took part in a multi-city study to compare operational results and costs. A review of snow removal and road maintenance went to a city committee last week, though it appears most other cities won’t extend the study into the future.
Turnbull said the financial reality of falling gas profits forced a change in attitude at city hall.
“If they can find the money when they absolutely have to, without affecting service levels for the public, then they should have been doing it all along,” he said.