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Citizens interested in Huber Heights City Council |
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Succeeding in Huber Heights |
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Huber Heights Courier Submission |
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Why are you running for office?
I’m running for this office because earning the reputation as an outstanding city council member will help me achieve my ultimate goal of getting elected to the US House of Representatives. In support of this goal, working as a city representative will help me; hone the skills required to hold effective discussions on community issues, develop the grass roots relationships needed to bring people into public service, and improve my legislative vocabulary while achieving a mastery of the concepts they describe.
Considering why I chose to run for the position on city council; I have an intellectual curiosity to know how our tax dollars are being spent. I’ve been going to or watching the City Council meetings for awhile and have been disappointed in the quality of the information about city business that is presented. I’d like to be able to make informed judgments about the quality of the decisions being made. For the average working person, the way council is set up now doesn’t give us the opportunity to construct an educated evaluation. So I’ve decided to try and get more information as in insider.
Why should the voters choose you to represent them?
My agenda is clear and declared. Voters can be assured of my dedication to establish an outstanding reputation as the public’s representative because I need that reputation to achieve a successful run for congress. Achieving this reputation is possible because my commitment is backed up with management and technical skills along with sound judgment.
My father earned a working middle class salary while I was growing up. My parents bought a house on the outskirts of an affluent community. I benefited from these experiences gaining both my father’s work ethic and the professional expectations of the community where I was raised. Now I hope to use my influence and experiences to help others succeed in Huber Heights.
I aspire to be a positive influence on the career goals of the city’s school age residents. I also believe if city residents show they value a strong professional class then more professionals will locate within the city. This will help shore up the tax base allowing lower tax rates. I believe having someone with my background as a retired military officer and scientist on city council will help attract other professionals to the city.
What two important issues will you tackle if elected and why?
I intend to ensure residents can easily determine if they agree with the way tax dollars are being spent. As a tax payer I desire value for my tax dollars. One of my greatest frustrations is the lack of effort our government puts into detailing how our money is spent. My frustration spans all levels of government federal down to local. It is amazing how little information can be found at our current congressman’s website. All our federal representatives fail my expectation of seeing the details behind the decision process. City council does a much better job than our federal officials. Still it is impossible for a normal constituent to look at the council’s website or go to a council meeting and get enough details to understand the reasons behind the decisions being made. This effectively eliminates any positive contribution a person with normal work and family obligations can make. For most people it also eliminates the desire to participate in government while promoting a deep rooted cynicism. With the internet and standard office software it is relatively easy to document and convey background information and meeting notes. Providing this information and combining it with a couple of minor structure changes to the way council meetings are held will significantly lower the time investment an interested residence will need to spend to get educated on council business. If the council learns to communicate more fully they will receive more useful inputs from the community. This will lead to better council decisions. It will also give the residence the information they need to judge the value they are getting for their tax dollars.
The second issue still concerns money. In this economy and political environment the amount of money received via taxes and from the state will not be representative of any other period within the current city council’s experience. Unique times require at least some representation from a fresh perspective. Otherwise, the gray beards tend to rely too heavily on the standard problem solving solutions which when applied in inappropriate situations often leads to inefficiency.
Addressing the political environment, the Republicans in Columbus state an objective of lowering taxes. The expectation is this will force local governments to self fund projects and salaries. In theory, this should produce a net gain in disposable income for individuals that live in affluent communities. If the legislative majority actually has the discipline to act the way they talk then self funding will probably be close to a revenue neutral proposal for Huber Heights residents. There are many natural inefficiencies in a self funding system but I like the idea, at least temporarily, because it will drive out the prevalent philosophy that drives management to waste. With localities getting so much funding from centralized sources localities are “forced” to spend what they get or “the other guy will get it”. . If the state goes to a system where municipalities raise and spend local dollars this will foster an attitude where council ensures value for tax dollars. Remember this can be achieved only if Republicans act the way they talk. Looking at the way the governor decided to pay his staff this will be a big if.
When I originally wrote the paragraph above I was thinking the “other guys” we were trying to keep money from were municipalities like Toledo. Tuesday April 12th I attended the City’s Planning Commissioning meeting. During that meeting the proponents for the Aquatic Center gave a brief to the board. The first bullet sentence explaining why the City needed to spend the TIF revenues before they are even collected was “Use it or Lose it”. The briefer went on to explain that in these economic times the other government bodies that normally receive tax revenues for these properties will be trying to figure out how they could get more of a share. His strong recommendation was for City Council to borrow against these funds now in order to show it would be a hardship for the city if the “other guy” got the money instead. In this case though, the “other guy” isn’t Toledo. The other guy is the Huber Heights city schools
Given the political environment and the present economy, I see my role as one where I make inputs to ensure local funding and spending is done efficiently and also make sure State Representatives know they cannot reduce support to our community unless they also reduce the amount they take out of Huber Heights by at least an equal amount.
Thank you for considering me for Huber Heights City Council. You can find more about me and my candidacy at www.huberresidents.com/citizens |
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Tom and Marylin McMasters |
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The Courier asked for submissions for a profile. I provided the information below |
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Date: 20 Apr 2011 |
