As Governor Pawlenty prudently cuts aid to local government, these cities will in turn need to prioritize their expenditures.
I’ve got an idea. Cut lobbying expenditures.
Plymouth taking an exit from I-494 lobbying group
Unhappy that Interstate 494 has not been widened through Plymouth as it has through Minnetonka and Eden Prairie, Plymouth plans to pull out of the 494 Corridor Commission and pocket the $16,000 it would have contributed to the lobbying group next year.
Over the past 10 years, the city has paid more than $100,000 to be part of the multi-city group but without obvious benefit, Mayor Kelli Slavik said. “They don’t seem to be lobbying anything for Plymouth,” Slavik said. “If we are truly interested in getting a third lane on 494, then we need to refocus our efforts and spend that money more wisely.”
I can’t imagine $16,000 per year is a large line item for a city the size of Plymouth; that’s probably the annual fuel cost for one of their snow plows.
Some perspective:
Local governments spent a total of $7,817,620 on lobbying activities in 2007.
Sixty-five local governments (two more than in 2006) directly employed or hired contract
lobbyists in 2007Local governments paid dues of $10,024,137 in 2007 to local government associations that also represented their interests before the legislature.
Statewide, $18,000,000 per year and growing. Seems like a lot of money to hire someone else to spam the legislature with phone calls and emails.
Dopey me, I guess. I am sure there is so much more to the art of being a lobbyist.
Somehow the idea of taxpayer money being spent to lobby for taxpayer money smacks of government waste at best; corruption at worst.
Mayor Kelli Slavik is a hotty too.
http://www2.ci.plymouth.mn.us/images/council/Slavik.jpg
Interesting. Local cities and countries have lobbyists down here where I live also. We call them our local representatives who make up our legislature.
Having watched some lobbyists up close and personal, and helped out, from time to time, on various matters, yeah, I’d say that there’s a fair amount more to getting politicians’ attention and votes than spamming.
Ironically, my own experience and observation is that voters who aren’t drawing a paycheck to lobby can, by and large, if they’ve got any clue whatsoever what they’re doing, more easily get attention at the Capitol than people who are getting paid to be there can.