Followership Won’t Fill First Hole
Public officials who make decisions by sticking a wet finger into the wind of public opinion aren’t leaders. They’re weather vanes. If all it took to run representative democracy was a weather vane, we could just put some polling organization in charge of the whole country and save a lot of money on government salaries.
Real leaders represent more than popular opinion. They represent the public interest. Real leaders guide public opinion - setting the agenda, making a case for it and then forging ahead in spite of risk and criticism.
City Manager Bill Pupo showed real leadership the other day. Roads in Spokane County, as most everyone realizes, are in terrible shape. So some of the city’s worst roads, Pupo declared, ought to be repaired, even if it means borrowing money to cover the cost.
He’d rather not borrow. But the condition of certain key arterials like Monroe and Grand is so serious that if repairs aren’t begun this summer, they’ll cost a lot more next year, after another winter’s freeze-thaw cycle.
Pupo wants action - not only on short-term repairs but also on the longer-term need to secure an adequate revenue supply for the upkeep of local roads.
He deserves, and probably has, support in this undertaking from other leaders in county as well as city government. Due to unfortunate cuts in funding by state and federal government, our city and county no longer have enough revenue to maintain local roads. So, to have passable roads, local taxpayers will have to dig into their pockets and pay the bill. In addition, city and county officials realize that they have to free up as much money as they can with budget cuts and efficiency-promoting reforms.
The alternative is to let our basic infrastructure go to hell. That would be irresponsible. Sure, we all hate taxes. But if we’re going to keep this county habitable for future generations and make it attractive for new business, we have to maintain it.
So what are the options? There are two: Impose a countywide gas tax of 2.3 cents a gallon. Add $15 a year to motor vehicle license fees. Both qualify as user fees, which makes them fairer than the property tax defeated last fall. All the revenue would be retained in the community and all of it could be dedicated to roads.
The revenue these taxes would generate is not sufficient to cover current or future road needs, from basic maintenance to the arterial expansions urgently needed for heavy traffic from the Spokane Valley mall. But, it would help.
Right now, officials in city and county government are discussing what to do. It will be up to county commissioners to place these solutions on the ballot so the public can consider them. City and county officials need to work together for the larger community they both serve, and they need to muster the kind of leadership that works for the public interest in adequate roads.
, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = John Webster/For the editorial board