Ruth Oosting: What gear is Atwater’s $80,000 buying and from whom?

Open and inclusive you say? Politicians have been claiming it as their mantra from the beginning of time, but you’ll have a hard time finding it in Atwater where some elected officials believe taxpayers are not entitled to know where their money is spent or what is being bought with it.

The Sun-Star reported “Atwater fire truck gear costs remain hidden.” (Page A1, March 7): How some Atwater city officials think that hiding how taxpayer money is spent equates to good governance is beyond me. Secret expenditure of city funds must surely be illegal.

A million dollars ago, Atwater bought a new fire truck without any negotiation as to price. Cal Fire insisted no other truck and no other manufacturer could meet its needs, so Atwater’s checkbook was handed over and the blanks were filled in.

Now the stripped-down fire truck needs to be equipped to the tune of $80,000. But city leaders refuse to disclose what the money will buy or the vendor receiving all that money.

This story was originally published March 9, 2015 at 1:45 PM with the headline "Ruth Oosting: What gear is Atwater’s $80,000 buying and from whom?."