Published: September 27, 2007 08:46 pm            

HAMILTON: Commissioners right to demand funding requests

Elected officials must be accountable for spending of tax dollars

The media has highlighted my concerns regarding elected officials turning over the responsibility for spending tax dollars to an unelected group. In fact, I said, “I don’t think it is appropriate for a government entity to take taxpayer dollars from an elected group to an unelected group to decide how to spend the money.”

On Sept. 19, the Kokomo Tribune wrote an editorial in which they talked about my concerns regarding this lack of accountability. They went on to say that they believed the Howard County Commissioners solved the accountability question with their Resolution No. 2007, where they agreed to continue supporting the groups as in the past. Any new funding would have to come before the commissioners and be approved by the commissioners. Specifically, what Resolution 2007 says regarding accountability is, “Whereas the Board believes that it is neither lawful nor appropriate for it to abdicate its ultimate responsibility and accountability for the use of EDIT revenues to any non-governmental group which is not accountable to the taxpayers of Howard County.” The last sentence of the editorial asked, “Mr. Hamilton, what do you think?”

What do I think? I think it is the right position for the commissioners to take, and I commend them for coming out publicly and saying they will be accountable. This appears to be the same position that I have always held. In fact, on Aug. 16, after a public meeting regarding the plan for the possible merger of economic groups, I was asked for some comments from the media. I took the opportunity at that time to talk about the merger plan calling for the city to give them $3.5 million and the county to give them $2.4 million of economic development income tax funds over a three-year period. I believe I am the first person to talk about this publicly. I want you to know that I intentionally brought this issue to the public. I believe there are those in elected positions or those who are seeking higher office who do not want to talk about the dollars involved until after the election. I think this type of old-style politics is wrong and I believe that the taxpayers deserve to know what we are going to do before we are elected. Elected officials and those who seek elected positions need to be held accountable.

On Aug. 20, I then wrote a guest editorial in which I indicated I was pleased that so many people and organizations are talking about economic development, because economic development in Kokomo will be one of the cornerstones of my administration. In this same article, I specifically told the community how I will handle funding. I wrote that I would continue to support funding some of the operational expenses of the groups. The money for these operational expenses would have to be appropriated annually by the Kokomo Common Council and would come out of EDIT funds. Beyond this, any new project that any of the groups think tax dollars should be spent on will be evaluated on the basis of how it fits into the overall needs of the community. If any of the projects are appropriate, the funding will go through the normal appropriation process. I believe these statements are consistent with the resolution that was later passed by the Howard County Commissioners. While I look forward to working with all groups and listening to their suggestions, there will not be a pot of taxpayer gold that any unelected group will be given to spend. In my administration, those spending decisions will be made by me as the elected mayor and by the elected city council. As elected officials, this is our fiduciary responsibility. We are talking about your tax dollars and what I believe is a tax crisis in Kokomo. The public deserves to know which mayoral candidates will be accountable for their tax dollars. I have answered this question. As mayor, the city council and I, not a non-governmental group, will be responsible and accountable for how tax dollars are spent.

As mayor, I will cut taxes and reduce spending in Kokomo. We are in a tax crisis in this community, and I am determined to lower our dependence on property taxes. One of the ways I will do this is by using some EDIT funds for capital expenditures. The mayor needs to be accountable for how all tax dollars are or are not spent. I will not shirk my responsibilities by outsourcing this responsibility. There are many unknowns in the Kokomo economy, and I believe there has never been a more important time for us to cut spending and be prepared for the future. With responsible leadership, we can and will make Kokomo a more vibrant community, one where Kokomo is a prosperous city to work and a wonderful place to raise our families.

Rick Hamilton is the Republican Party’s nominee for mayor of Kokomo.

        

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