Fiscal Responsibility: A Common-Sense Priority List

When looking at the budget at any level of government, it is vital that representatives take inflation into consideration. Most elected officials do not appear to be doing so.

I have personally seen elected officials at both the city and state levels claim they are unable to provide raises to their employees, maintain roads, or purchase necessary equipment. The usual explanation is a “budget shortfall.” However, even with a decrease in actual revenue, the critical services provided to the community should not be affected if a governing body is planning properly.

There is a common-sense order to how public funds should be managed. My priorities for the Natrona County budget are as follows:

First Priority: Critical Services

Police, Fire, Roads, Bridges, Emergency Management

These services must always be at the top of the priority list. Without them, public safety—the government’s primary responsibility—is at risk.

• When you call 911, you should never doubt that first responders will be there to help and actually have the tools to do so. County sheriffs and fire should ALWAYS be a top priority.

• In the middle of a blizzard, you should know that snow removal is on its way.

• Whether the county road is paved or dirt/gravel, you should be able to drive down that county road knowing your vehicle won’t be damaged by neglect.

Second Priority: Employee Compensation

Fair, market-based pay for public servants.

Without fair, market-based compensation, we are essentially training employees for their next job at the expense of the taxpayer. We need to attract competent professionals who want to work in public service.

While we do not need to match the private sector dollar-for-dollar, we should strive to make compensation packages as attractive as possible. This includes building in automatic cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) indexed to inflation. We want the people who plow our roads and protect our families to be fairly compensated.

Third Priority: New Projects & Services

When the costs of goods and services rise, local governments collect more money on paper. Many elected officials mistake this for a revenue increase. While the number may look larger, the costs to run our cities and counties—building maintenance, road repair, insurance, emergency vehicle replacement, and employee compensation, to name a few—have risen just as much, if not more.

My Approach Focuses on Maximizing Efficiency, not Bureaucracy:

• Retain Talent: There should always be room in the budget to keep wages even with inflation. We must stop the cycle of using taxpayer money to train people who immediately leave for the private sector. It costs a lot to train an employee, we shouldn't be doing it for the private sector for free.

• Fiscal Discipline: We should not over-hire based on perceived revenue increases. If revenue tightens, we must scale back non-critical services first.

• Asset Stewardship: Responsible leaders should be willing to sell government property that isn’t being used for government purposes. We should not pay for the maintenance, utilities, insurance, and interest on “abandoned” facilities.

• Market Fairness: Government should not purchase property unless there is a concrete plan to use it, nor should it rent facilities out to the private sector. It is not the government’s job to compete with business.

Only after all expenses are paid, all employees are treated fairly, and all essential projects are fully funded should we look to see if the community can afford non-critical roles or new projects.

In hard economic times, we should not be funding entertainment events with taxpayer money. We can support our community by offering parks, public lands, and easier permitting processes for special events, and we can provide law enforcement and emergency services for those events.

However, the primary costs should be covered through fundraising, not by the taxpayer.

When elected, you can count on me to do everything in my power to convince the other members of the board of commissioners that this is the best path forward for a sustainable budget and a stable county government.

Cameron Savage

Candidate for Natrona County Commissioner