Flat budgets are a good start, but that is not good enough. Smaller budgets are the goal. Performance and Needs audits to cut the budget further are needed. Smaller budgets means greater efficiency and lower taxes.
For a list of initial cuts click here.
I believe that government will be accountable to the degree its actions are visible to the public. I support county ordinances requiring cabinet meetings at the executive & legislative branches of county government to be open to the public. Likewise, private entities that are the benefactors of county taxpayer funds, Hogle Zoo, UTA as an example, should be held to the same standard.
We must look for opportunities to increase open space to enhance the quality of life for present and future generations. I support initiatives such as the Jordan River Resolution that encourages wise use of property along the river with the purpose of keeping it open for recreational use.
Federal and State law requires that government employees be legally able to work in the United States. In conjunction with the US Immigration & Customs Enforcement, the Federal Government has set up a program called E-Verify to enable government entities, including Salt Lake County, to verify a persons legal status in the United States when hiring employees. Salt Lake County uses E-Verify in its hiring practices.
For the past 25 years, a majority of cities and counties in America have been controlled by Democrats. Their liberal policies have driven most of these once thriving cities and counties to near financial ruin. Oppressive taxes and fiscal mismanagement are generally the rule, and not the exception. As residents of the great county of Salt Lake, we could be the next to suffer this same fate. Could Salt Lake County be shackled by the liberal tax and spend policies which have plighted our country, and could negatively impact your family's future? This November is our opportunity, as concerned citizens, to bring a stop to this troubling and crippling trend.
As you know, it is bad economic policy to raise taxes during a critical recession period. Many families in Salt Lake County are maxed out and tax/fee increases stifle our economic growth, personal incentives, and private investments.
You may find this hard to believe, but it's true!! Democrat Councilman Randy Horiuchi, has proposed building - at a cost of up to $300 million - a county government owned hotel which would sit across from the Salt Palace. This proposal is in hopes of stimulating additional convention business to Salt Lake County. It is not a wise use of taxpayer funds to entertain this proposal. Managers of Salt Lake City's surrounding hotels are appalled at this far fetched idea. Government is not in the business to compete in the private sector. If this is such a great idea, you can be sure that private developers will seize this opportunity.
With Democrats in control, will Salt Lake County drift to the liberal policies of many other great cities and counties throughout America? Will the obsession with tax and spend be the order of the day? Will our children and grandchildren be raised with a lower quality of life than we enjoy? This November election is the critical time to stop this malaise and the advancement of flawed liberal policies. As your candidate for Salt Lake County Mayor, I am the strongest candidate to win in November. I ask for your vote.
I look forward to serving as your County Mayor.