“It’s not about right or left, it’s about building a better Tucson” — Shaun McClusky
We can continue to talk about Tucson’s problems, or we can do something about them. As your Mayor, I will focus on:
Ensuring Accountability:
City Hall must become more responsive to the needs of our citizens, our neighborhoods and our business community. Creating and enforcing an environment of responsible accountability throughout our city government will always be my first priority. We have to be transparent. We have to be open to new ideas. We have to be accountable to you.
We also have to demand accountability from the contractors, vendors and merchants the city deals with. Over and over again, the City of Tucson has accepted bids from contractors only to see the final costs of those projects double, triple or more. As Mayor, I will initiate a comprehensive review of our bid process, using successful examples from other cities around the country, to ensure that Tucson gets what we pay for.
Balance the Budget:
The days of relying on borrowed money and tax increases are over. Our tax rate is too high already. Instead, we have to look for creative solutions to increase city revenues, stimulate our economy and create jobs. And while there are a lot of things we’d all like the city to do, until we can increase revenues it’s time to focus on doing the most important things the city can do.
For instance, almost every other city in the country sells ad space on it’s buses and in other public venues. Yet the City of Tucson does not. It might seem like a minor thing to raise an additional few hundred thousands, or even a million dollars a year with advertising when our operating deficit is many times that, but any money we can generate without harming our taxpayers is money we have to have.
We also need to look at outsourcing some city functions. How much do you pay for an oil change? Maybe $40? Right now, the City of Tucson pays nearly triple that amount to have their own mechanics do the job. And that’s not right. If a city department can save money by contracting out city functions to local businesses, then we should absolutely do it.
