I-900 GOES TOO FAR AND WASTES TAXPAYER’S DOLLARS
Everyone wants government to operate efficiently, and performance reviews are a tool to achieve efficiency when done wisely and with common sense. But, this initiative lacks common sense:
1. Local citizens and their locally elected officials should establish their own goals and priorities, not Olympia;
2. Local governments will have to spend scarce staff time and local taxpayer dollars to collect data for the audits;
3. One size does not fit all. There are over 2,000 units of local government, from large metropolitan cities and counties to small rural mosquito control and irrigation districts. They all have different purposes and responsibilities. Is it really appropriate to compare a unit of government of 300 to a unit of government of 300,000?
I-900 IS UNNECESSARY AND DUPLICATIVE
The 2005 legislature passed two performance audit bills, one for Department of Transportation programs and another for state agencies. Many local governments already provide accountability by conducting their own performance reviews. This initiative is an unnecessary duplication that would add another layer of government and cost tens of millions of tax dollars.
Before you vote, ask yourself – Would you really trust one partisan elected state official to tell your local government what to do?
WE HOPE YOU WILL ANSWER NO AND VOTE NO ON INITIATIVE 900.
