The Great Explorers Controversy

At the very end of Monday's 2015 budget discussion, the subject of the two Explorers came up again. We're not talking about Matthew Henson and Gonzalo Pizarro here, it's about 24-hour city-owned vehicles for the mayor and city administrator. How were these Explorers purchased, was the process wrong?

Citizens' Budget Advisory Committee member Tom Kaercher said he was looking in the budget and didn't see the money anywhere.

Council President Bridget Rivers said the purchase was in 2014.

That was part of the problem, mixing up budget years. Despite frequent reminders to stick to the current year, it was just too tempting not to drag in past history in the final weeks before the June 2 primary. Former Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs  even wanted to know what became of the two cars assigned to herself and her city administrator, or should I make the latter plural, as eight different people held that post, including the mayor herself for three short stints.

The current mayor and his department and division heads all have two budget lines, one for salary & wages and one for other expenses. Items meant for long-term use, such as cars and fire engines, come out of the capital budget.

Public Safety Director Carl Riley said on May 6 he believed the money for the vehicles was "transferred to the city administrator's office." On Monday, Rivers insisted any vehicles purchased with Public Safety funds could only be used for public safety purposes. Chief Financial Officer Al Steinberg said money for the ShotSpotter system was used and transferred back, which brings up another question, as the ShotSpotter bill was left unpaid in 2013.

Another mystery, as long as we are turning over old rocks, is why objections were not raised when at the 2014 annual reorganization vehicles were authorized for the incoming mayor and city administrator. Or one might ask why nobody seemed to notice that vehicle authorizations were left off the agenda for the 2015 reorganization.

The short answer to any or all questions may be simply that it is the pre-election season, traditionally the time to make allegations and cast aspersions, hopefully on camera for the viewing pleasure of the electorate.

This year's budget process made me recall the format that former Councilwoman Annie McWilliams set in 2010, giving all department and division heads the same 10 questions to answer regarding their budgets.

“If anyone is coming before us asking for money, they should be prepared,” she said, noting the governing body deserved more than “five or six pages that we can read on the city web site.”

McWilliams set the bar high, saying she wanted five-year data comparisons that division directors “should be able to do off the top of their heads.”

(Recently married to Uche Ndumele, Annie has also just graduated from New York University with dual MBA/MPA degrees.)

While many officials came prepared this year with rationales for their 2015 budget requests, the sessions have all too often gone off the rails with other issues. But the end, whatever it may be, is in sight, as only one more session is expected before a public hearing, possible amendments and final passage.

--Bernice