Fountain Hills Needs Roads Not Unused Exercise Equipment & Umbrellas

The words accountability and transparency are frequently used by politicians when campaigning but when it comes to governing, what do these words actually mean?

In practical terms accountability and transparency at the local level means safeguarding taxpayer money and making responsible choices. We cannot control how money is spent at the state and federal level because we can only vote for our local representatives, but at the local government level, we as voters have a direct say in who represents us on our town council.

Like many candidates before me, I ran on accountability and transparency, and I am fighting to deliver on those promises. This is why I have introduced my Roads First Budget for Fountain Hills. My Roads First Budget identifies $1,293,000 in savings and directs that money to go to roads and infrastructure improvements.

The competing budget includes money for outdoor exercise equipment, replacing healthy trees and subsidizing more homelessness. I have nothing against planting trees or exercise equipment but isn’t taxpayer money better spent on roads? What we are doing is the equivalent of buying a big screen TV instead of making the mortgage payment. We must invest in the future of our community, which means allocating more of our resources to roads.

If you, like me, want to see us fund the right priorities, then please let your voice be heard. The final budget will be enacted in June. Please join me in fighting for real transparency and accountability by enacting the Roads First Budget.