What is city council's role?
By
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To the editor:
What is the role of a city council?
When this country was established, one of the underlying principles is that not any one person nor group would have absolute power.
The power would be split up and there would be checks and balances.
Here, the city administration has drafted the current budget while council is charged with the responsibility to appropriate the money in the budget. Our city council cannot simply legislate and appropriate, as it is a form of those checks and balances.
If council doesn’t scrutinize and question the budget while passing the resolution, that balance of power has been surrendered to the administration. Now, without oversight, will we be doomed to repeat the failures of the past? Not enough money to pay the light bill, not enough money to buy street salt, not enough money to replace police officers...
I view the city council not only as our legislative body, but also our representatives.,They are closer to the daily activities of the city than most of the population. They have an insight, especially through closed door executive sessions, that we cannot begin to know.
But the council members have been voted into office by the people. We trust them to provide the representation and execute a vote on our behalf and the betterment of the city overall (including businesses).
To have a hands-off approach is simply a way of trying to avoid getting dirty hands and getting blamed for deals that go south.
Having an in-depth knowledge of the issue and of the opinions/desires of the citizens will mitigate the “wrong” decisions. We have a lot of issues that need immediate attention and only hard working, dirty hands are going to get things straightened out.
Lastly, we as a population of city citizens, have a responsibility of our own: To make known our opinions and desires. Not merely gossip among friends, but truly be informed of the current situations and communicate with our representatives and administration.
Do you know what city ward you live in and who is your representative?
Check out the Highland County Board of Elections’ website, highlandcountyelections.com, to find yours.
Sincerely,
Terry Mikkelsen
Hillsboro[[In-content Ad]]
What is the role of a city council?
When this country was established, one of the underlying principles is that not any one person nor group would have absolute power.
The power would be split up and there would be checks and balances.
Here, the city administration has drafted the current budget while council is charged with the responsibility to appropriate the money in the budget. Our city council cannot simply legislate and appropriate, as it is a form of those checks and balances.
If council doesn’t scrutinize and question the budget while passing the resolution, that balance of power has been surrendered to the administration. Now, without oversight, will we be doomed to repeat the failures of the past? Not enough money to pay the light bill, not enough money to buy street salt, not enough money to replace police officers...
I view the city council not only as our legislative body, but also our representatives.,They are closer to the daily activities of the city than most of the population. They have an insight, especially through closed door executive sessions, that we cannot begin to know.
But the council members have been voted into office by the people. We trust them to provide the representation and execute a vote on our behalf and the betterment of the city overall (including businesses).
To have a hands-off approach is simply a way of trying to avoid getting dirty hands and getting blamed for deals that go south.
Having an in-depth knowledge of the issue and of the opinions/desires of the citizens will mitigate the “wrong” decisions. We have a lot of issues that need immediate attention and only hard working, dirty hands are going to get things straightened out.
Lastly, we as a population of city citizens, have a responsibility of our own: To make known our opinions and desires. Not merely gossip among friends, but truly be informed of the current situations and communicate with our representatives and administration.
Do you know what city ward you live in and who is your representative?
Check out the Highland County Board of Elections’ website, highlandcountyelections.com, to find yours.
Sincerely,
Terry Mikkelsen
Hillsboro[[In-content Ad]]