Recently our Commissioner of Finance resigned after being accused of financial misdeeds by a not-for-profit organization he served as treasurer.

No one knows if the ex-Commissioner of Finance engaged in any financial wrongdoing pertaining to county funds, but it is known that it will cost tens of thousands of dollars to find out if he did. And it didn't have to be that way.

Since taking office, County Comptroller Gallagher has been unsuccessful in getting the financial information she needed from the ex-Finance Commissioner, information which our ex-County Executive either told him or allowed him to withhold.

While the Comptroller has subpoena power, the Executive controls the budget. When the previous county comptroller ticked off the executive, his budget was significantly reduced.

Last October, Comptroller Gallagher went before the Charter Revision Commission with a list of amendments she wants to add to the Charter which would rectify the situation. Amendments that would ensure that financial transparency goes beyond campaign promises.

Those requests are currently being worked on by the Revision Commission and should be included in a referendum which will be voted on in November.

The County Comptroller is the tax-payer's watch dog. It's imperative that we remove the barriers that prevent her from doing her job.

Thomas Kadgen

Shokan