Portland, Ore., Sunnyvale, Calif. and Baltimore, Md. may not seem like areas with much in common, but according to a recently released report from the Office of the City Controller, they are all cities Philadelphia should look to emulate -- at least when planning its budget.
Philadelphia City Controller Jonathan Saidel presented a report entitled "Budgeting for a Preferred Place: Improving Service, Accountability, and Efficiency with New Budgeting Tools" Tuesday afternoon at the Fels Institute of Government.
Drawing on the examples of other cities -- including those of Portland, Baltimore and Sunnyvale, among others -- Saidel outlined several goals for producing and maintaining a balanced budget in Philadelphia.
Saidel illustrated the dilemma city officials face when budgeting -- allotting money for one department or program means that another must go without.
Saidel noted that politicians often feel pressured to vote in favor of funding various projects without analyzing the full impact it may have on other departments.
"Every department has to be held accountable... and based upon its mission, you can quantify that accountability and its relationship to helping other departments fill their responsibilities," he said, adding that, "No department stands alone."
Saidel stressed the importance of making the public understand those trade-offs to allow for informed budgeting decisions.
"You have to understand what the trade-offs are," he said, adding that,"the public needs to be involved in the process."
Additionally, Saidel called upon the city to create a "Rainy-Day Fund" in the event of hard fiscal times.
"The Rainy-Day Fund is another way of forcing government to be accountable for the money it has leftover, because government has a tendency... that if it has a dollar, it's not just going to spend 90 cents," he said.
He also advocated restructuring government to create a performance-based budget that would link the funding of agencies with the results they produce.
Saidel stressed that while he is in favor of some changes such as reducing taxes, the proposals he presented are not politically to the left or right.
"I don't believe there's a Republican way of running the city or a Democratic way," he said, noting that the reform process requires support from both parties.
Whether or not his proposals will be implemented remains to be seen, but Saidel expressed optimism that they could be put into place -- and encouraged use of the democratic process to put pressure on lawmakers to effect responsible changes.
"These things are being done in other jurisdictions and they are successful. Why can't they be done in the city where our nation began?" he asked.
