In the March 15, 2018, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

News on the Eugene city auditor front. Bonny McCornack of ElectedAuditor4CityAccountability and a chief petitioner for Measure 20-283 tells us that on Monday, March 12, Circuit Court Judge Rasmussen struck the word “independent” from the title of the city’s competing appointed auditor ballot measure. …

In the February 1, 2018, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

The Eugene City Council is looking to refer a competing city auditor measure to the May ballot, but it will be drafted by the anti-auditor city manager and city attorney, so expect it to have an inadequate budget at best, and correspondingly little impact. Citizens for Sensible Oversight, who kick-started this effort, complain that Measure 20-283 already on the ballot is too expensive and would cost taxpayers “nearly $700,000 every year,” but Eugene Police Auditor Mark Gissiner notes in a recent Register-Guard op-ed that his budget is $530,000 “or less than 1 cent per capita per day.” The Measure 20-283 auditor and his or her staff would have vastly more responsibility and impact than the police auditor. Eugene is becoming a real city and we need well-funded and substantial independent auditing of all city departments. Police auditors cost money; city auditors with the right resources can save taxpayers millions. City Accountability has a fundraiser, Blues for Ballot Measure 20-283, planned for 7 pm Friday, Feb. 2, at Tsunami Books.

In the January 18, 2018, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

Backers of the city auditor Measure 20-283 always anticipated a fight from the city manager, city attorney and conservatives on the Eugene City Council. The established political structure in Eugene has rarely supported transparency and accountability. They fear independent auditing as a threat to their credibility, even if it saves taxpayers millions. But it turns out that some citizens have come late to this debate, and their push for an alternative, watered-down auditor by Citizens for Sensible Oversight (CSO) is divisive and confusing. This effort may end up killing the most solid and best-researched citizen proposal Eugene has seen in decades. CSO is advocating for a vague, competing measure of undetermined budget. As the RG called it in a recent editorial, it’s “auditor lite.” The competing measure is in the city’s hands now, and you can bet the administration is busy writing the devilish details that will take most of the teeth out of it. The CSO measure will become the city’s measure. The City Council has until Feb. 12 to decide whether to put the administration’s competing measure on the ballot. It’s a bad idea, and we urge the council to reject it.

In the October 19, 2017, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

It looks like creating an elected, independent city auditor will be on the spring ballot in Eugene, thanks to volunteers who last week submitted nearly 13,000 signatures — far more than the required 8,090. Also last week, the mayor’s Auditor Study Group wrapped up its research into other cities and counties that have performance auditors. The group compared how a dozen governments hire, fire, supervise and fund auditors, how audit topics are chosen, etc. The group will report to the Eugene City Council in mid-November, without recommendations.

In the October 5, 2017, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

It’s time to sign! The deadline for collecting 7,000 valid signatures on a Eugene initiative petition to create an independent elected city auditor is Oct. 12. “We know auditing saves agencies money,” says Gary Blackmer, recently retired director of the Oregon Secretary of State Audits Division. “We calculated it all different ways at the Oregon Secretary of State Office, and looking at three-year averages we return about $5 for every $1 spent.” Sounds like a good deal to us. See details of the independent auditor proposal at CityAccountability.org.

In the September 7, 2017, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

Eugene Mayor Lucy Vinis’ study group on performance auditors will hold its sixth public meeting at 5:30 pm Monday, Sept. 11, at 990 W. Seventh Avenue. Members are contacting cities and counties around the country that have performance auditors, asking a rather lengthy list of questions. Results of the queries will be presented this fall to a City Council work session. The study group’s formation has raised eyebrows since a separate initiative petition to establish an independent elected performance auditor is already collecting signatures and is likely headed for the ballot in May. Will the mayor’s study group enlighten, or will it just confuse the public when it comes time to vote? Meeting notices and rough minutes are available online at EugenePerformanceAuditor.org.

In the August 10, 2017, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

Mayor Lucy Vinis convened her first Auditor Study Committee meeting Aug. 2 at the Eugene Public Library. Norma Greer and Marty Wilde were elected co-chairs, and the group will look at various cities that have independent city auditors to see what might work best for Eugene and wrap up its research with a report in two months or so. The problem is that an initiative petition to create an independent elected performance auditor is already in circulation with a measure expected to go on the ballot next spring. …

In the July 27, 2017, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

A poll on an independent performance auditor initiative intended for the May 2018 ballot shows 69 percent in favor of the measure, 27 percent opposed and only 4 percent undecided. “Adding an elected independent auditor in Eugene is supported by a wide margin,” says the Lindholm Research blog, which conducted the survey. “However, it does not hit the crucial 70 percent level. Ideas that sound good tend to get a large amount of initial support. Campaigns tend to reduce that support.” The poll, conducted in April, was based on the city attorney’s original ballot title, which was altered by a Circuit Court judge to be more inclusive and less biased. Meanwhile, we hear the signature gathering is going well, but more help is needed. Visit CityAccountability.org or call 541-520-9572.

In the July 13, 2017, issue of the Eugene Weekly, staff write:

Good to see the petition to create an independent performance auditor for Eugene got approval from the city recorder’s office in time for petitioners to work the crowds outside the Oregon Country Fair last week. This initiative is important to the democratic process in Eugene. It would not change our form of government, but it would add a vital level of transparency and accountability, and likely save taxpayers many times the cost. Opponents are trying to confuse the issue with talk of compromises and alternatives, but it’s clear the best results come from elected, not appointed auditors. It will take a big group effort to gather the signatures to get this measure on the ballot next May, and the petitioners only have 100 days. For more information or to contact the chief petitioners, go to CityAccountability.org or call 541-520-9572.