But Transparency Is So Expensive!

Another part of another government laments about the costs of keeping its workings transparent:

A bill that would require more rollbacks of property tax rates also would provide residents and business owners with more details about their property taxes.

Getting the additional information may cost St. Louis County nearly $700,000, officials said.

Dear government: please, consider the costs of doing your job transparently as non-negotiable. Pay out this expense and maybe seek to save that money elsewhere, such as doing your job efficiently and maybe not doing stupid things with tax money. There’s a pipe dream for a citizen.

However, I’m not sure I think this is efficiency:

And Eugene Leung, the county’s revenue director, wants the county to hire a company from Dallas to help the assessor. Leung wants to hire the firm without seeking bids or proposals.

You know, it would really suck to have to open things up so the public sees things like no bid contracts and the decision process for that, ainna?

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