Health & Fitness
Will the real fiscally conservative candidate please stand up?
Brookhaven needs a Mayor and City Council who understand and embrace the new city model in which public services are competitively bid upon by private providers in an open and transparent manner.
As I visit with voters at their door, at meetings or in forums I find that most people in Brookhaven consider themselves to be fiscally conservative. I have always had this brand of fiscal responsibility as part of my philosophy but what does it actually mean?
My take on this way of thinking means three things;
Find out what's happening in Brookhavenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
-A belief that government should never spend more than it has.
-A belief that the money the government does take in should be spent with an eye towards efficiency and true accountability - not to grow more government.
Find out what's happening in Brookhavenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
-A belief that the people know better how to spend their own money better than government can.
I believe Brookhaven will be best served now and in the future by electing candidates for public office who understand and embrace this philosophy. The problem is some candidates running for Mayor and City Council claim this mantle because they know most voters won't support someone who says "I prefer the DeKalb County model for budgeting, finance and taxation." Yet the DeKalb model is what some of these candidates were actively supporting and promoting just a few weeks ago. They preferred the status quo and did not want Brookhaven to form, much less adopt a new and better way of operating.
During the campaign for city hood and now for Brookhaven’s first Mayor, I have met and spoken with thousands of voters. Of course some of these voters did not favor incorporation. However, what I am finding is that most voters previously opposed to incorporation do not hold the same views as many of the former activists (now candidates) of the no city political machine. Sandy Murray, in particular, was paid money by No City Brookhaven and, as part of her job, argued that DeKalb county governance was good enough. In contrast, very few voters tell me their opposition was based on a satisfaction with the DeKalb County model of governance.
One of the real differences between how I want to see Brookhaven operate and how DeKalb County functions is how we will be providing services to our taxpayers, both homeowners and businesses. The open and transparent bidding process that is being organized by the Governor’s Commission and will hopefully be adopted by the new City Council, will keep costs to the taxpayers down and increase the quality of services we will all receive.
Many voters main concerns about incorporation were that there wouldn’t be enough revenue to run a city or that city government would be another layer of bad government. Addressing these concerns and building a solid foundation for our city is why I am running to be Brookhaven's first Mayor.
As your Mayor, I will address those concerns by ensuring that we have a small, lean, government which takes less of your hard earned money and spends your tax dollars with prudence and restraint. This is what I believe, and for what I will always stand. Please take a careful look before you vote on November 6th. We are all now one Brookhaven and we need to get this city started right. If you want Brookhaven built with fiscal responsibility and efficiency, then please support me and other candidates who truly believe that it is government's job to serve the taxpayer, not vice versa.
