Who’s paying? What a novel question!
Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008 By James Nesbitt
A rare and uplifting example of concern for some fiscal restraint from Gongwer News (subscription only):
[The Controlling] Board authorized the Department of Administrative Services to spend money that the non-profit Friends of the Ohio Governor’s Residence and Heritage Garden wants to collect [on Monday].
The group hopes to raise $2 million for construction of an educational center as an addition to the existing Carriage House on the three-acre site in Bexley. An additional $1 million would be sought for furnishings, fixtures, and equipment. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, July 17, 2008).
Rep. Ted Celeste (D-Grandview Hts.) described the proposal as commendable, but wondered about the extent of possible financial exposure to state government in the future.
“What potential obligations could there be to the state should the amount of funds not be raised?” Rep. Celeste asked Quentin Potter, the DAS chief financial officer.
While Representative Celeste has sponsored some bills that undermine freedom of contract and other unsavory things, he should be acknowledged for raising a question all too often left unasked in Ohio’s state government.
Tags: fiscal restraint
