Category: Letter

City writing its own auditor rules

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the January 13, 2018, issue of the Register-Guard, Eugene resident (and former Eugene City Councilor and Measure 20-283 chief petitioner) Bonny Bettman McCornack writes in a letter:

In the Jan. 11 article “Rival auditor plan advances,” Bonny Bettman was quoted as characterizing the group Citizens for Sensible Oversight as “city government insiders” Essentially the city of Eugene is writing its own rules for its own auditor. Pretending that the proposed draft ballot measure presented to the City Council Monday night is a “citizens’ measure” is a charade that will not pass the smell test. …

Read More

Bettman, others fighting an old war

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the January 13, 2018, issue of the Register-Guard, Eugene resident Richard Young writes in a letter:

In the Jan. 11 article “Rival auditor plan advances,” Bonny Bettman was quoted as characterizing the group Citizens for Sensible Oversight as “city government insiders” (clearly a bad thing) who are proposing “that the fox should guard the henhouse.”

Bettman sees the city government, including the councilors and the mayor, as foxes and the city manager as the main fox. Clearly, she wants an “independent” auditor to be a prosecutor of our city government rather than an enabler. …

Read More

Alternative mocks ‘independent’

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the January 13, 2018, issue of the Register-Guard, former Eugene city councilor and Eugene resident David Kelly writes in a letter:

I know, and respect, some of the members of the group that pitched an alternative city auditor proposal to the Eugene City Council this week. However, what part of “independent” don’t they understand? Their proposed appointment of an auditor by the council and overseen by a review board also appointed by the council makes a mockery of the word “independent.” …

Read More

Fiscal Accountability

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the January 11, 2018, issue of the Eugene Weekly, Eugene resident Ronald Bevirt writes in a letter:

In EW Letters Dec. 28, 2017, Ben Torres joins the well-connected defenders of the city status quo by mimicking their favorite talking point, which complains that the estimated (can go up or down) $153,000 salary of the proposed elected independent city auditor would be “the highest paid elected official in Oregon” — which is not true, and a matter of public record. …

Read More

Elected Auditor = Red Herring

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the January 11, 2018, issue of the Eugene Weekly, Eugene resident Robin Bloomgarden writes in a letter:

Some City Council members worry that Eugene’s “elected independent auditor will be the highest-paid elected official” in Oregon. So what! Topnotch candidates need a competitive salary — otherwise you lose them — and that’s why Eugene pays department heads and managers more than any elected official. There are issues with that too, but we want the best-qualified candidates to apply, right? Most elected officials don’t need a high school diploma, but the elected auditor must meet tough professional qualifications in order to even be considered. …

Read More

Audit the Auditor

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the December 28, 2017, issue of the Eugene Weekly, Eugene resident Ben Torres writes in a letter:

If Eugene voters are looking to eliminate waste in city government, they should start by slashing the bloated salary of the proposed city auditor. According to the ballot description, the “Auditor [would be] paid at least 70 percent of averaged salaries of Eugene and Salem City Managers and EWEB General Manger (approximately $153,000 in 2017), plus same benefit package as Eugene City Manager.” …

Read More

Auditor pay issue is a red herring

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the December 13, 2017, issue of the Register-Guard, Eugene resident Robin Bloomgarden writes in a letter:

Some members of the City Council worry that Eugene’s elected independent auditor will be the highest-paid “elected” official in Oregon. So what? Top-notch candidates need a competitive salary—otherwise you lose them—and that’s why Eugene pays department heads and managers lots more than any elected official. We want the best qualified candidates to apply, right? Most elected officials don’t even need a high school diploma to run, but the elected auditor will have to meet tough professional qualifications in order to file as a candidate. …

Read More

Council dragged feet on auditor

Posted on by admin Posted in Letter Tagged ,

In the December 12, 2017, issue of the Register-Guard, Portland resident and former auditor for Multnomah County and Portland Gary Blackmer writes in a letter:

I was an auditor for Multnomah County and Portland for 23 years before I became director of state audits. While with the Association of Local Government Auditors, I advised governments on starting an audit office. …

Read More