Accountability

Bob has always been a voice for accountability.  As a federal employee, Bob served as an agency Freedom of Information Act officer and was responsible for responding to requests for disclosure of public records.

As an attorney, Bob fully appreciates that ours is a government of laws, not people.  Government officials must respect the rights of the people to . . .

1. have full access to open meetings,
2. have full access to public records,
3. have honest and complete disclosure all of non-sensitive information (and in local government almost nothing is truly sensitive), including information about how public money is spent,
4. be respected by city employees, elected officials and the institutional procedures of government.

More on accountability . . .

The Mayor of Norwich has no legal authority over the day-to-day operations of the city government.  The City Manager, not the Mayor, is responsible for administering local government programs.  The city’s employees report to, and are accountable to, the City Manager, not the Mayor.  However, the under Chapter V, Section 2 of the City Charter, the Mayor serves as “the general advocate for public policy of the City of Norwich.”  As the city’s general policy advocate, the Mayor is responsible for monitoring the conduct of city business and proposing changes in the way business is done.

Our city council members are part-time legislators.  They don’t have offices in City Hall, they are paid less than $100 a month after taxes, they receive no project funding, and they really don’t have the resources to watch what’s going on from day to day.  The Mayor, on the other hand, has an office in City Hall, a secretary and an office budget.  The Mayor’s position is one from which good, solid public policies can be developed.  The Mayor can and should communicate daily with the city manager.  The Mayor should understand the principles and laws of government administration so as to be able to make inquiries, suggestions and policy proposals to promote transparency, honesty, efficiency and effectiveness.