After the arrests of Rizzo and his cronies, the new administration was tasked with picking up the pieces of a broken city and leading it back to a place of stability and public trust. The new Bell leadership has taken this task seriously and has implemented numerous changes which have begun rebuilding the public trust. “Bell’s new leadership deserves credit for changing the culture of city hall by emphasizing transparency and inviting more citizen participation in its decision-making…However, the potential for fiscal mismanagement and budget failure remain high until they address the major gaps found in their accounting, reporting, and other management practices.” (Yoshino, 2013)
One of the biggest changes made was increasing the amount of information available to the public on the City’s website. The website now provides a transparency portal in a very prominent place which clearly lays out how permits are obtained, tax rates established, and assessment districts delineated. It also includes contact information for the various city departments and assessment districts. …show more content…
Links to minutes of past public meetings are also available. The increase in the amount of information available to the public helps ensure that employees and City leaders no longer are able to operate in the shadows, and must now conduct City business in the full light of public scrutiny. It also helps establish a new transparent culture that begins to rebuild the public’s trust. Just 3 years after the scandal broke the City of Bell was awarded the 2013 Sunny Award by the Sunshine Foundation for its dedication to using technology to increase governmental
One of the biggest changes made was increasing the amount of information available to the public on the City’s website. The website now provides a transparency portal in a very prominent place which clearly lays out how permits are obtained, tax rates established, and assessment districts delineated. It also includes contact information for the various city departments and assessment districts. …show more content…
Links to minutes of past public meetings are also available. The increase in the amount of information available to the public helps ensure that employees and City leaders no longer are able to operate in the shadows, and must now conduct City business in the full light of public scrutiny. It also helps establish a new transparent culture that begins to rebuild the public’s trust. Just 3 years after the scandal broke the City of Bell was awarded the 2013 Sunny Award by the Sunshine Foundation for its dedication to using technology to increase governmental