https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com

Commentaries


Commentary

Your bond measure passed – now what?

Your bond measure passed – now what?

John Turner, vice president of marketing at Gafcon, highlights three things to consider as municipal leaders prepare to implement new programs.
  • Written by contributor
  • 7th January 2015

We’re about two months removed from Election Day. For many municipalities and government agencies, this meant the passage of much needed bond measures to fund programs for a wide range of initiatives. There was a lot of effort that went into getting the voters to approve the ballot propositions, but the real work is just beginning.

For starters, agencies that are in charge of managing initiatives approved via a bond measure will have far more eyes on their project than on similar ones of years past. Elected and appointed officials will require more reports and assuredness that the allocated funds are being spent as expected. The oversight effort has increased several fold, and it won’t subside anytime soon.

Those in charge of implementing these programs under such auspices will need to think just a little differently about their duties. Bond management will be an increasingly time consuming tasks. Here are three new things to consider moving forward:

Bond allocations are less than before

In California, a lot of attention was placed on the $7.5 billion water bond measures that passed. For the educational programs, though, we saw allocations that smaller; none over $500 million and only two over $400 million. This is far lower than what we’ve seen in recent years and a testament to a new era where agencies are hard pressed to ask voters for what is really needed. The goals of each initiative will remain as lofty, so the only choice will be to minimize overhead (but not oversight) on the program as well as plan for efficient use of contractors. In other words, everyone has to work smarter and with greater effect on the project’s success.

The need for transparency in reporting has never been greater.

This isn’t just by those in charge of independently overseeing the program, but also by those managing the day-to-day activities. These individuals have to oversee multiple projects within the portfolio and need to make good decisions faster and with greater efficacy than ever before as they try to deliver equitable outcomes with a smaller budget than desired. Doing so will involve a revaluation of all business processes as well as the use of technology to speed up decision making time. Furthermore, submitting timely information to the appropriate elected and appointment officials will need to be done with greater automation, keeping staff time where it needs to be – on implementing the project.

The public is watching

The advent of social media and the 24/7 news cycle means reporters are constantly looking for investigative pieces. The Fifth Estate – and by extension the public – will be all over any perception of wrongdoing in bond measure programs. Paying a close eye on timeliness, transparency and accuracy in project reporting will be paramount to its success. Demonstrating efficient management of the program not only ensures public confidence of the work being done, but will lay the groundwork for acceptance of repeat bonds at lower cost.

It’s an old, but still very relevant, adage for sure – municipalities and agencies must continue to do more with less. With bond measures, though, it’s hit an apex. The focus portfolio managers must place on appropriate oversight amidst tighter budgets has never been greater. The key will be to implement proven technology and business processes to manage these programs and hence ensure that they are completed on time, within budget and well within the public’s and oversight authority’s expectations.

John Turner is the vice president of marketing at Gafcon, a program management firm specializing in the program management of large scale education, government and commercial construction projects. He can be reached at [email protected].

_____________

To get connected and stay up-to-date with similar content from American City & County:
Like us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter
Watch us on Youtube

Tags: Administration Commentaries Commentary

Most Recent


  • MSPs
    The MSP downstream cyberthreat paradox: Understanding the city and county connection
    Recently the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) along with the FBI, NSA, and international cyber authorities issued a cybersecurity advisory aimed at protecting managed service providers (MSPs) and their customers. This high-level advisory has been gestating for some time ever since the SolarWinds and Kaseya supply chain cyber-attacks. A software supply chain attack occurs […]
  • Philanthropic group to launch assistance portal for local admins navigating federal bureaucracy
    A joint venture announced Tuesday by a group of philanthropic organizations—in collaboration with the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities (NLC) and Results for America—seeks to help small and mid-sized communities secure their piece of the $550 billion in funding available for local governments navigating federal bureaucracy. The digital portal will launch […]
  • Report: Almost half of public sector retirees don't touch their retirement plans for a decade
    Once retired, nearly half of public sector employees aren’t taking any action with their defined contribution retirement plan funds for at least a decade, according to research from Mission Square Research Institute, which included the analysis of more than 100,000 public service data records. In their first ten years of retirement, researchers found that 48 […]
  • budget
    Four steps to ensure your budget prioritizes equity
    When you think of municipal budgets, the first thing that comes to mind is likely numbers. Many rows and many columns of numbers. But veteran municipal leaders know that successful budgets are about far more than numbers—they’re about quality of life and opportunities for every person in a community. For this reason, the budget process […]

Related Content

  • Lessons from your friendly neighborhood public service employees
  • Harris County deploys next-generation security in 150 public buildings
  • How local governments can get ahead of the infrastructure wave: Strategies to mitigate risk
  • Prioritizing rapid restore leads to stronger ransomware attack recovery

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

The MSP downstream cyberthreat paradox: Understanding the city and county connection dlvr.it/SQYVjs

17th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Philanthropic group to launch assistance portal for local admins navigating federal bureaucracy dlvr.it/SQY16G

17th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Report: Nearly 95 percent of America’s mayors face harassment, threats and violence dlvr.it/SQTn2z

16th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

The PIO’s Ultimate Guide to Social Media dlvr.it/SQTdCK

16th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Gain Greater Visibility Into Your Public Works Fleet dlvr.it/SQSqXG

16th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Report: Almost half of public sector retirees don’t touch their retirement plans for a decade dlvr.it/SQKMjp

13th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Four steps to ensure your budget prioritizes equity dlvr.it/SQJgZz

13th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Victims of Surfside condo collapse settle for nearly $1B in class action lawsuit dlvr.it/SQJffb

13th May 2022

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2022 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X