Noon would hold city government accountable
City government should be accountable and this year’s mayoral
race is focused on this principle. It is important for Centennial’s
voters to understand that mayoral candidate Cathy Noon has worked
hard over the past decade to ensure that our city government is
accountable to the citizens — years before this latest campaign
season ever began.
I had the privilege of working alongside Cathy as a member of
the Home Rule Charter Commission. Cathy is known as the chair of
the commission, but most people probably aren’t aware of the strong
leadership that she showed throughout the charter-writing process
by insisting that some basic accountability be built into this
document. It is because of Cathy Noon’s collaborative leadership
that we have an election commission, an earlier campaign finance
report, an audit committee, a citizens’ budget committee and a
finance committee.
Most importantly, Cathy insisted that our charter include a
provision requiring a vote of the people before the city could
increase taxes. While others discounted this idea, saying that we
are protected by TABOR, Cathy maintained that as a home rule city
we should have our own protections, just in case the Legislature
ever were to alter, weaken or even rescind TABOR.
Cathy spent countless hours of research throughout our
charter-writing process to ensure that Centennial's charter would
contain these accountability provisions. Thus, those of us who know
Cathy and her fiscal advocacy now find it ironic that another
mayoral candidate is suddenly attempting to advocate for financial
accountability measures.
We know that of any mayoral candidate, it is Cathy Noon who can
point with pride to her decade-long record as a citizen advocate,
long insisting that Centennial's government be held accountable to
the taxpayers. The charter provision that any tax increase must be
approved by Centennial's voters is just one of the latest examples
of Cathy’s fiscal advocacy for the citizens she represents.
We need Cathy Noon as our mayor because she has a proven record
of integrity, openness, collaboration and accountability. That is
why I am voting for Cathy and I hope you will too.
Laura Hoeppner
Centennial
