In the May 17, 2018, issue of the Register-Guard, the editorial board writes:
Eugene voters defeated both proposals to create a city auditor’s office — an initiative measure for an elected auditor failed by 7 percentage points, and the Eugene City Council’s measure calling for an appointed auditor was rejected by a 3-to-1 ratio. The initiative’s version was too expensive and unaccountable; the council’s proposal was seen as a maneuver to derail the competing measure.
A city auditor, however, is not a bad idea. With some refinements, and in a political atmosphere less polluted by suspicion and acrimony, a proposal for an auditor’s office might fly. In the wake of Tuesday’s doubly negative verdict by the voters, such a proposal can’t come from the City Council any time soon. Only an independent citizens’ group would be able to pick up the pieces, apply what has been learned and give Eugene the cost-saving benefits of performance auditing.