Position
- Term Limits for State Auditor
- Make State Auditor Non-partisan position
- Manage performance audits the right way
Term Limits for State Auditor
Many ask why I am running for State Auditor, especially when my opponent has held the position 15-plus years. My response is simple: 15 years is long enough for anyone elected to serve the citizens of this state. You see, I am a firm believer in term limits, and especially so for Auditor. No incumbent in this post should get too comfortable, nor should the agencies he or she audits get too comfortable with him or her. This is regardless of whether the Auditor has performed the duties of office well, as the incumbent apparently has. But after so many years it is time for new ideas.
It is said that being audited is like being examined by a second set of eyes, eyes that see what staffs of businesses or government agencies may fail to see or deal with. With the incumbent in office since 1993, it’s time for a change. Let’s give the taxpayers and our government agencies the fresh second set of eyes they deserve and need.
Make State Auditor Non-partisan position
In an interview with the Olympian newspaper recently, I pledged to pursue having the Auditor position made non-partisan. As it stands, there is always the potential for doubt or suspicion when the very government agencies or programs the Auditor is examining were put in place by the Auditor’s own party. I am Chairman of the Constitution Party of Washington. We never have had a state official elected to office. Thus there is no bias, no politics, no backing by special interest groups, NOTHING!! This is further assurance that with me as Auditor, audit results and recommendations would be based on facts and data, and not skewed to fit within any bigger political picture. My opponent has been in office a Democrat all the time that Democrats have held the governor’s office and their majority in the Legislature. Help me end partisan politics and send a message that the Auditor should be an independent position.
Manage performance audits the right way
I believe strongly in performance audits as the best method, if done correctly, to bring to light poor management, including management of our tax dollars. But audits need to go far enough to make a difference. For example, would an auditor chosen in a partisan election seek to avoid recommending that an agency or program be abolished out of fear of a backlash from fellow party members in the Legislature? Secondly, I don’t believe our current Auditor has established parameters in which decisions are made for recommendations to the Legislature based on a performance audit.
I would put into place failure standards (parameters) that would be understood by the government agencies and the legislative and executive branches. If an agency was shown to be at a certain failure threshold, then a recommendation of probation or even consideration of abolishment of an entire program would be made. Facts and data are what the taxpayers expect; I consider this principle over politics.
If something is not working as it should, fix it if you can. If it is not worth fixing, get rid of it, a burden to have around. This applies to government agencies and programs just as it does to home appliances. This is my approach and I would not hesitate to apply it in final reports on performance audits.
Summing up, I am your candidate for fresh ideas and one who can be seen as truly independent. I humbly ask for your vote in the primary election August 19, 2008.
Thank you,
Glenn Freeman
Candidate for Washington State Auditor
Email: electfreeman@gmail.com
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