Cell Phone Bills
If you’ve got teenagers, you probably know that cell phone costs can add up. In Fiscal Year 2008 Ada County’s cell phone expenses totaled over a quarter of a million dollars ~ 285 thousand dollars, to be more specific.
As an advocate of zero-based budgeting, I have been looking for specific expenditures to examine in order to cut unnecessary spending. County cell phone plans and expenditures certainly deserve closer scrutiny. I am in the process of doing just that.
posted by Sharon Ullman @ 4:40 PM
6 Comments:
well done on both this and the COMPASS issue.
I also say well done! keep up the pressure on these folks. Cell phone bills are just one small waste, but dang its a good start.
Eric and golden ~ Thank you for your support! It helps to know that my efforts are appreciated!
The only thing I would advise is that cell phones can be an asset for the right employees, both as a perk and a work-related tool. Cell phones can be added to the worker's "compensation package" and make workers happier for pretty cheap.
When I used to work for Ada County, I had my private cell number listed on my county business card. I never asked for any reimbursement for any "county business" I conducted while on my cell phone, nor did I ever ask for a county-issued cell. I suspect that there are a number of current county employees who do the same. Before you begin to hack away at what you think is a waste of taxpayer money, you need to get a handle on the whole picture -- i.e., put a dollar figure on the benefit taxpayers receive from the amount of service provided by employees, from the use of technological devices bought and paid for by those same employees. This runs the whole gamut, from home computers (used to check business emails, and write reports), to personal cell phones (used to keep in contact with the office while out in the field). If you were really all about "equity", the the budget ax must cut both ways. And then, when you have the whole picture, put these costs back into perspective. I suspect that you'll then find that the county is incredibly lucky to have the staff it has managed to hold onto, and lucky that these same employees manage to provide a vast service back to taxpayers for a bare minimum expense.
Thank you for the feedback BoiseGuy and Dean. I understand your perspective. Although I have a County computer at work, I use my personal computer and personal cell phone for County business whenever I am not at the office. Our goal right now is to grasp the need for cell phone use for County employees, at taxpayer expense, and analyze the plans under which service is currently received. Even a ten percent reduction in cost would amount to nearly $30 thousand worth of savings for taxpayers.
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