Administration and Council obviously require full fiscal transparency to manifest optimum usage of county resources.
The path to transparency starts with council ensuring county financials are produced and submitted online quarterly. These reports would include a year to date income statement, balance sheet, detailed fund balance and a comparison of the current budget accounts’ figures to their total budgeted amount for the year.
Clearly, council would be much more productive and accountable knowing the county’s current financial status BEFORE blindly passing spending ordinances and/or BEFORE not spending on desperate needs when the money is actually available.
Did you know the current budget as of July 19, has not been published yet?
That is why the council finance committee should be held accountable for ensuring that all financial reports are completed on time. Plus, council’s meeting agendas should include a monthly financial update by the finance committee. Any missing reports or fuzzy math would be the ultimate transparency red flags.
Yes, fiscal transparency would even facilitate completing state required audits on time.
In the end, fiscal transparency always manifests greater government accountability and effective use of taxpayer monies.
Can, will council leadership strive for fiscal transparency or will it stay grounded in a fiscal fog?
Randy Bright
Blythewood