Tulsa County District 3 GOP Candidates eDebate 2010
DEBATE TEAM: Candidates for the GOP Tulsa County Commission District 3 seat debated at the NSU-Broken Arrow campus on July 12. From left are moderator Joe Cook of the B.A. Chamber, Drew Rees, Michael Masters and Incumbent Fred Perry.
eLIZ HOLLIS for GTR Newspapers
The Broken Arrow Chamber of Commerce held a Republican Candidate Primary Forum July 12 on the campus of Northeastern State University-Broken Arrow. Candidates for County Commissioner from District 1 in Wagoner County and District 3 in Tulsa County were involved.
On July 27 (Primary Election Day), Democrats and Republicans will decide who is to represent their parties in the General Election Nov. 2. In today’s challenging economy, the races for Congress, State Legislature, Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, State Schools Superintendent and other statewide contests are critically important for our future.
Voters are encouraged to go the polls.
An extensive question and answer session has been posted below for the three Tulsa County District 3 Commissioner candidates, Michael Masters, Fred Perry and Drew Rees.
EDITOR’S : News has placed the answers in this article exactly as received from the candidates. No alterations or edits have been made. The order of candidates answers is mostly random. The first was alphabetical, then randomly rotated for the rest of the article.
The Tulsa County Dist. 3 Candidates eDebate 2010
1. What in your background has prepared you for the county commissioner position?
Michael Masters: Through teaching I have experience serving the public and putting the needs of others as my top priority. My classroom management of over 100 students, in addition to parents and colleagues has made me comfortable guiding others. In addition my extensive knowledge of historical government makes me confident with the ins and outs of the position.
Fred Perry: (1) College Degree (2) 30 years business experience, including management, in IT and office automation as v.p., branch mgr., sales mgr. & sales rep prior to running for office; plus working as real estate associate while a state representative (when the legislature wasn’t in session). (3) Served as a state representative for 12 years (4) 3.5 years as Tulsa County Commissioner, District 3 with a record of accomplishment. (see www.reelectfredperry.com and “Accomplishments” tab)
Drew Rees: I grew up in the Tulsa area and have seen all of its cities grow to what they are today, which gives me a historical understanding of the relationships and issues of the different cities. I also have 18 years of local government experience, and for the last 8 years, I have been the attorney for the Tulsa City Council. I have seen virtually every issue (good and bad) which can confront a local government and have the ability to view each issue from multiple angles to help provide solutions which meet everyone’s needs.
2. What do you feel are the county’s main issues?
Fred Perry: (1) Keeping county government from growing (2) Reduction of costs (3) Improving relations with Tulsa City Council (they are excellent with the Tulsa Mayor and his administration and with the other 2 communities in the District, Broken Arrow & Bixby) (4) Continue to attract quality events at the fair grounds which will help build on the $145 million positive economic impact Expo Square has for the Tulsa metro area. (5) Determine what should be done with the property at 15th and Yale (Old Driller stadium. Professional packages have gone out to development firms and other possibly interested parties. nationally and locally in order to generate interest.) (6) Working towards a better juvenile justice centerto replace the old one which is too small, out of date and in flood plane by finding foundation and/or federal money to replace it.
Drew Rees: The County must rebuild its relationship with its cities. Our cities are meeting difficult economic times, either through reduction in sales tax or our surrounding cities are growing faster than their revenues. The cities must be able to trust the County and the County must be willing to help them meet their challenges, including roads and economic development.
Michael Masters: I’d say for the county we need to review fixed millage rates to save the constituents money on their property taxes. For District 3, in particular, we need to work to be more transparent with all dealings related to the county, more specifically being open to better relationships with the surrounding municipalities of the county, Broken Arrow being one of them. That being said, we also need to retain and work to grow the residential population of the county municipalities, Broken in particular, and not lose them to Wagoner county.
3. What do you see as the upcoming term’s primary objectives of county government?
Drew Rees: This next term will be vital in positioning the County to be able to help our cities move into the future. It must modernize and impose strict financial accountability on its departments, and building its relationship with all cities in the county, so they can find ways to work together to reduce our expenses in these hard economic times.
Michael Masters: To constantly seek ways to lower them. I’m a Republican who believes in small government and keeping as much of the money in the taxpayers’ pocket as possible. There needs to be legitimate, accountable spending of the taxpayers’ dollars.
Fred Perry: (1) Reduce costs of utilities and energy. I started the process towards this by initiating an energy audit of all county properties by a 3rd party outside, private nationally known and respected firm (2) Continue to run a good operation at Expo Square (see #2) (3) Now that I have a good grasp of the job after one term, I plan to work to help retain and bring jobs to the county. (see #2)
4. To increase effectiveness of county government, what changes do you see are needed?
Drew Rees: Increasing the effectiveness of county government means being able to do more with less. Stricter financial controls will tell us how we are spending your money and where. For the long term, an independent audit should be conducted to tell us what we are doing right and wrong, and help us provide necessary services while reducing red-tape.
Fred Perry: Reduce costs of utilities and energy. I started the process towards this by initiating an energy audit of all county properties by a 3rd party outside, private nationally known and respected firm. We will be implementing many of the recommendations of this firm but not all of them. Some do not have a fast enough payoff.
Michael Masters: The flow of communication among elected officials, and communication between those officials and the constituents is necessary for good government. For me, transparency is what seems to be what the county residents are looking for. The taxpayers want to be informed on things such as jobs that are up for bid and who exactly it is bidding on them. They want this information to be easily accessible through the county Web site, mail-outs or by simply making a call. This is something I plan to make a priority.
5. What is your understanding regarding county commissioners having independent chief deputies?
Fred Perry: We have 2 deputies to serve the 3 commissioners. This is all that is needed. When one of two commissioner is out of town, the deputy assigned to the appropriate commissioner can vote for them. The third commissioner has has a designated “assistant” which is provided for in the statutes and that person can vote for the 3rd commissioner. We believe that we should set the example for our district directors and the other elected officials by having a lean staff and no more people than needed. Our Board of County Commissioner Staff is one-half the size of Oklahoma County’s.
Michael Masters: This is an extremely important issue to me, and I could talk about this at great lengths, but to keep it simple: I feel that it is absolutely necessary for each district to have equal representation. This means not only a district county commissioner but also a deputy commissioner for each district as well. In addition, I think it would be beneficial to the people of the district if these deputy commissioners had satellite locations within the district so that they are more conveniently accessible and responsive to the people and their needs.
Drew Rees: Each Commissioner is required by law to have a first Deputy to act as commissioner in their absence. This individual can also assist them with the day to day operations to see that the constituents’ needs are met. Some suggest sharing an assistant on the day to day issues is possible. However, this presents some difficult situations, if that person becomes “acting commissioner.” Since the law prohibits two Commissioners from discussing any county business except in a posted Open Meeting, it becomes difficult for one elected Commissioner to ensure his assistant is completing their tasks, if the assistant is an “acting commissioner” for a different district.
6. Do you support renewing 4-to-fix-the-county, now that Vision 2025 has been so successful?
Drew Rees: No. The citizens were told 4-to-fix was a one time tax. 4-to-fix was voted on and in place BEFORE vision 2025 and it has more than covered the original projects. If another project or projects need to be done, then they should stand on their own merit. 4-to fix as we know it should not be renewed.
Michael Masters: I understand that some areas in the district have felt slighted on the projects, so I would ultimately try to leave that decision up to them. If that is something they express they want, I will definitely work to give them the opportunity to vote to renew it.
Fred Perry: Not at this time. The fairgrounds has been the primary beneficiary of 4-to-fix as well as road projects. The fairgrounds is now one of the top 5 in the country. Our citizens are taxed enough in this slow economy. Should the economy improve and the citizens demand improvements in infrastructure that can’t be financed otherwise, than the commissioners can take a look at it at that time.
7. What are your alternate plans for revenue generation at the former Drillers’ field and other areas of the grounds at Expo Square?
Fred Perry: The stadium is presently for rent/lease “as is”. Long term, I headed up a committee that studied the issue and reported to the entire Fair Board. As a result, we have sent a very professional package to many development firms and local firms to generate interest and them to come back to us and tell us they are interested and how they would develop the 5.5 acres there. In other words, let the experts do the demographic studies and tell us how it should be developed as long as it meets our objective of revenue for the fairgrounds (probably through ground leases), something that would not be objectionable to the neighbors and would be attractive to both Tulsa Countians and the 3.5 million visitors to Expo Square annually.
Michael Masters: If we can find revenue-generating methods, such as the open wheel racing they’re currently testing, to use the current facilities that would be ideal. If we can’t, then we need to look at potentially selling the property so that we can create revenue which will bring money into the county budget.
Drew Rees: The Fairgrounds now have some of the best facilities for livestock shows in the Country, and have attracted millions of dollars to the economy because of it. I would look to see what is necessary to maintain that position or improve it. I would also entertain other improvements which meet the Fairgrounds overall mission statement.
8. What needs to be done to resolve the issues between city and county government?
Michael Masters: There should ideally be a unity formed between the two. A good way of setting this up would be for each district to have committees that work with each city municipality.
Drew Rees: The City and County officials must begin to trust each other. First, we must meet our obligations and not try to sneak out of them. For example, the Fairgrounds should pay all of its bills on time. (i.e. its water bill just like every other customer in the City and bills to local vendors.) Then we can start re-building the trust which has been lost over the past 4-5 years.
Fred Perry: Communication, communication, communication. There are not significant issues with Broken Arrow and Bixby. Where the City of Tulsa is concerned, I thought city councilor G.T. Bynum’s resolution involving a joint task force that would meet to look at how services of the city and county might be structured to eliminate duplication of efforts was a good idea. This could also have been a group that could discuss ways to resolve issues. Unfortunately, while all the county commissioners were for it, a vote of 5 to 4 by the council killed the initiative.
9. Our library system and health department are identified as City-County cooperative efforts. A recent review of Tulsa City Parks 2010 Master Plan’s Goal #8 highlights examining a means to combine city parks/recreation services with River Parks Authority and Tulsa County Parks, what advantages or disadvantages do you see with this idea?
Fred Perry: Advantages: Possible cost reduction. Disadvantages: It must be done in a manner that doesn’t dilute park services in the parks outside those in the city of Tulsa . We must keep in mind that there are 13 other communities in the county besides the City of Tulsa and be sensitive to the other communities. Nevertheless, we may be able to strike a balance and a city/county park department may work if properly structured. 8: CONSIDER COMBINING EXISTING PARKS RECREATION DEPARTMENT RIVER PARKS AUTHORITY TULSA COUNTY PARKS DEPARTMENT. Strategy 8.1: Begin dialogue with the Mayor, City Council, Park Board, Park Director, River Parks Authority Board of Trustees and Executive Director, the Tulsa County Commissioners, Tulsa County Park Board, and the Director of the County Parks to determine potential desirability, feasibility, and benefits of combining the three entities into a single entity, department, or district. Strategic Step: 8.1.1 Identify a task force to examine potential and issue a report by the end of 2010.
Drew Rees: There are huge advantages to combining the parks system. It will limit government by limiting duplication of services, and let the taxpayers’ dollars go further. It will help the City of Tulsa and any other city which wishes to join by reducing some of their expenses. And it will provide for better and more consistent parks throughout the County. The down side is the reluctance many people may have with changing a “city park” to a “county park”. Although I think this can be easily addressed through the different agreements and increased opportunities.
Michael Masters: I’m on board to cooperatively work together with those particular groups. That illustrates the transparency that I’m trying to bring to the county. It’s a necessity that the advantages are clear, working together is going to benefit the taxpayer while working separately will not. 8: CONSIDER COMBINING EXISTING PARKS RECREATION DEPARTMENT RIVER PARKS AUTHORITY TULSA COUNTY PARKS DEPARTMENT. Strategy 8.1: Begin dialogue with the Mayor, City Council, Park Board, Park Director, River Parks Authority Board of Trustees and Executive Director, the Tulsa County Commissioners, Tulsa County Park Board, and the Director of the County Parks to determine potential desirability, feasibility, and benefits of combining the three entities into a single entity, department, or district. Strategic Step: 8.1.1 Identify a task force to examine potential and issue a report by the end of 2010.
10. BONUS QUESTION: Where do you see opportunities in the county for cost reduction?
Fred Perry: (1)Reduce costs of utilities and energy. I started the process towards this by initiating an energy audit of all county properties by a 3rd party outside, private nationally known and respected firm. We should implement those that we can afford to fund as soon as we can do so practically. (2) Along with our at the fairgrounds, I led an effort to analyze manpower to determine if we had the proper number of employees. We reduced the number of full time employees by 20% while maintaining high level of service. I thinking staffing in the rest of the county is about right and we certainly couldn’t reduce it by 20% without impacting service to the constituents but we need to do an analysis, department by department and the elected offices. (3) We had a performance audit team of volunteer executives in 2007. If funds allow, I would like to have a professional firm come in and do an analysis when revenues improve. (4) Continue to automate and take advantages of IT at both the fairgrounds and the county at large. (I led an effort to get our professional, award winning IT department involved more at Expo Square . This is helping to reduce costs there.
Michael Masters: In every government and every business there is most likely room for cost reductions. In our current economic position the citizens are being forced to find ways to cut back and we’re no different. The key is to make the most appropriate cuts with the least negative effects.
Drew Rees: There are several avenues for cost reduction in the County. Stricter financial controls are essential for the County to understand what funds it is receiving and expending. The elimination of duplicative services, such as multiple Parks systems, and joining with area cities to reduce costs for bulk items or specialty services will provide immediate cost savings for everyone. Ultimately, a thorough performance audit of each division is necessary to determine the best opportunities for cost savings.
Updated 07-16-2010
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