CFO Tries to Clarify the Record on City’s Finances
We just received a letter written by Atlanta Chief Financial Officer Jim Glass that is circulating to members of the Atlanta City Council and all the Atlanta mayoral candidates.
The four-page letter, dated Sept. 18, appears to be an attempt on the part of Glass to clear up what he feels are misleading or inaccurate statements about the city’s finances and the budget process.
“Recent statements in the context of the mayoral campaign and in the media require me to respond with facts since I am very concerned not only with what is being stated (or misstated), but also the promises that are being made to the public,” Glass wrote.
Glass, referring to Councilmember Mary Norwood’s characterization of the city’s accounting practices as “Enron-like,” called such a characterization “inexcusable and unsupported.”
He went on to get some other things off his chest:
- In his “professional opinion,” the council and Mayor Shirley Franklin had “more than enough information” to make the right financial decisions for 2010.
- Furthermore, information on quarterly revenues, spending, and cash balances has been “timely, accurate, and complete” since January and that information is getting out now on a monthly basis.
- “Every resident in Atlanta should have comfort that we are completely managing the city’s financial resources.”
- “While we are not even close to perfect and have much work to do, my team is making tremendous progress in fixing long-standing issues with the city’s financial systems, practices, and policies.”
Looking at current models, Glass warned officials that “in the current economic climate, the city will be doing well just to continue its current level of operations.”
“You should be extremely skeptical of any claims that the city can significantly increase spending over the next few years,” he warned, adding that his department will present a Five Year Plan to officials “shortly” explaining why.
Glass goes on to expand on some of the above bullet points and touted some improvements his department has made since February based on recommendations made by the consulting firm Deloitte.
When Franklin leaves office January, Glass will follow but said he “will do everything I can” to help the next mayor make the transition.