xcel
11-24-2006, 08:50 PM
It sounds like the administration costs of the Vancouver Housing Authority might be questionable. (http://www.katu.com/news/local/4717851.html)
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2007_Hummer_H3.jpgAnita Kissee - KATU - Nov. 22, 2006
Is an H3 a responsible government purchase?
VANCOUVER, Wash. - The Vancouver Housing Authority's purchase of a Hummer sport utility vehicle for its executive director has raised some eyebrows.
The organization, which aids lower-income families, the elderly and the disabled with housing, bought the 2006 H3 for $37,000 in public money. With a trade-in, the agency only paid $24,000, officials said.
Kurt Creager, the executive director who drives the flashy vehicle, is quick to defend the purchase.
"We have some physical requirements for the job including four-wheel drive, needs to seat five," he said. "And we selected the best deal."
Creager said the vehicle also makes sense in light of Hurricane Katrina.
"It's a good vehicle and in this weather with flooding and potential disasters, I think it's appropriate," he said. "We need to be able to respond the next working day to any sort of emergency, and that's why we have vehicles like this."
Some who rely on rental assistance from the housing authority think the Hummer is a waste of money and gas.
"It sounds like the administration costs of the Vancouver Housing Authority might be questionable," one woman said.
Compared to the vehicles driven by other local housing authority directors, the Hummer stands out.
"I drive a Toyota Prius," said Steve Rudman, of the Portland Housing Authority, which provides a $400 monthly car allowance.
Rudman wouldn't comment on Creager's choice of vehicle but said he believes it's important for the head of every agency to pinch pennies or at least appear to.
"As a public agency when you are using government resources, I think it's very important that we steward those funds to the best of our abilities," Rudman said.
Creager said that technically tax dollars didn't pay for his Hummer. A local housing fund that earns money on investments did. And even though he drives the SUV for personal use, he added that he keeps track of that and pays taxes on it as a benefit.
This is not the first time that Vancouver's housing authority has been scrutinized. A recent Washington state audit claims the agency spends four times what it should, bringing in $7 million in rent and government money but spending $29 million.
The agency disputes that, saying its own audit found $35 million in net assets after everything was paid as well as a debt this year that is more than $5 million less than last year.
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2007_Hummer_H3.jpgAnita Kissee - KATU - Nov. 22, 2006
Is an H3 a responsible government purchase?
VANCOUVER, Wash. - The Vancouver Housing Authority's purchase of a Hummer sport utility vehicle for its executive director has raised some eyebrows.
The organization, which aids lower-income families, the elderly and the disabled with housing, bought the 2006 H3 for $37,000 in public money. With a trade-in, the agency only paid $24,000, officials said.
Kurt Creager, the executive director who drives the flashy vehicle, is quick to defend the purchase.
"We have some physical requirements for the job including four-wheel drive, needs to seat five," he said. "And we selected the best deal."
Creager said the vehicle also makes sense in light of Hurricane Katrina.
"It's a good vehicle and in this weather with flooding and potential disasters, I think it's appropriate," he said. "We need to be able to respond the next working day to any sort of emergency, and that's why we have vehicles like this."
Some who rely on rental assistance from the housing authority think the Hummer is a waste of money and gas.
"It sounds like the administration costs of the Vancouver Housing Authority might be questionable," one woman said.
Compared to the vehicles driven by other local housing authority directors, the Hummer stands out.
"I drive a Toyota Prius," said Steve Rudman, of the Portland Housing Authority, which provides a $400 monthly car allowance.
Rudman wouldn't comment on Creager's choice of vehicle but said he believes it's important for the head of every agency to pinch pennies or at least appear to.
"As a public agency when you are using government resources, I think it's very important that we steward those funds to the best of our abilities," Rudman said.
Creager said that technically tax dollars didn't pay for his Hummer. A local housing fund that earns money on investments did. And even though he drives the SUV for personal use, he added that he keeps track of that and pays taxes on it as a benefit.
This is not the first time that Vancouver's housing authority has been scrutinized. A recent Washington state audit claims the agency spends four times what it should, bringing in $7 million in rent and government money but spending $29 million.
The agency disputes that, saying its own audit found $35 million in net assets after everything was paid as well as a debt this year that is more than $5 million less than last year.