Open the doors on budget talks

As someone who is interested in city government and our taxes, I took it upon myself to try and get more deeply involved with the process. The recent property assessment notices provided by the county assessor list dates for budget meetings, where the public can attend and be part of the process.

If you're to be an active, involved citizen, then I recommend taking part in the process. But if you want to go beyond that, I feel that the government should be more than accommodating to your wishes. After all, I feel it's better to be involved than to just sit back and grouse about your taxes.

The only time provided for the public to submit comments on the budget for the city of Coeur d'Alene will be during the Sept. 6 City Council meeting where the budget is adopted.

That's too late, not just for making comments but for getting a grasp on the entire budget.

As long as I can remember, council has neither adjusted nor changed the budget at that final meeting as a result of feedback from the public. That tardy date ensures that any legitimate concerns by the public are presented far too late in the process to have any impact.

There is a budget workshop, tentatively scheduled for July 14. While it's a public meeting, there is traditionally no public participation. Recently, the workshop has been a mere formality, where the budget is presented, followed by little discussion from the council and no public input.

To become more involved in the process, I wrote to City Hall to ask whether I could sit in and observe the budget process at the earlier stages, when the actual meat of the budget is discussed by department heads and city officials.

I was told by City Administrator Wendy Gabriel that the staff meetings regarding the budget, were not "public meetings" and therefore as a member of the public I was not allowed to attend or observe.

The city is a public agency, as defined by Idaho Code 67- 2341 (4) (d). The city has no right to privacy. All budgetary matters, aside from contract negotiations, are subject to public records requests. So I find it puzzling my sitting in and observing the process was unwanted.

I believe that if City Hall were operating in an open, honest, and transparent manner, they would be more than happy to accommodate members of the public willing to sit in on the various budgetary meetings. Especially, as I have requested, if only to observe the process.

It's not like there are dozens of people who want to sit in and watch city bureaucrats discuss the budget. Even if there were, I would expect the city to be appreciative of that desire and be more than accommodating. To do otherwise raises suspicions as to why the public - whose money is being spent - is unwelcome.

Steve Adams is a Coeur d'Alene native who is active in local politics.