Claremore Daily Progress

Our View

July 4, 2009

<b>BENCH SITTIN' - </b> Economy forces tough cuts by city

July 4, 2009 — A joint effort providing residents of Claremore and Rogers County is the victim of a tight economy.

A partnership in which the two governmental entities have shared an emergency management director has ended.

Claremore slashed its $25,000 contribution to the position for the 2009-10 budget, leaving Rogers County as the sole financial provider for the position.

Claremore will now have its own emergency management director.

Bob Anderson will continue in his role with the county. Despite the decrease in funding from the city, there will be operating capital to sustain Anderson for another year.

Claremore City Manager Troy Powell said the cuts were purely economic and were not a reflection on Anderson’s work.

The two entities will continue to work together. Oklahoma counties are required to have an emergency director. Many municipalities do have a designated director, but are not required by statute to have one.

At the county level, Anderson will still coordinate emergencies and is the person who would request an emergency declaration from the governor in the event of a major disaster. So, Rogers County and Claremore will continue to work together when it a disaster occurs. The only difference will be Claremore will have Fire Chief Mark Dowler running point for the city.

It is about economics. The decisions to pare down personnel in anyway it can is pushing municipalities to give its employees multiple hats of responsibility.

While the city’s decision is understandable, hopefully it is not a sign of things to come. Rogers County and Claremore need to find more ways to work together than apart. In the long run it will be better for everyone.

Text Only
Our View
  • Randy Cowling First looks are just that — first looks

    No one ever gets to make a second first impression.

    February 6, 2012 1 Photo

  • BAILEYDABNEY8-2009.tif COLUMN: Napalming the Internet

    Try to remember the Internet before we had websites that host user generated content. No eBay. No YouTube. No Facebook. No Twitter. No LinkedIn. No Foursquare. No product reviews, blogs or personal websites where users comment and post links.

    January 18, 2012 1 Photo

  • Burrage, sean.tiff Senate review by Sean Burrage

    Hailey Mathis is studying political science and history at the University of Oklahoma. She’s one of a very select group of college students each year who have the opportunity to learn about government and public service through an internship at the State Senate.  

    April 4, 2011 1 Photo

  • Dr. Mosier’s online success

    Dr. Richard Mosier is nothing if not a visionary.  Over 20 years ago he first had the idea of what was then Rogers State College becoming Oklahoma’s first institution of higher education to offer online instruction.

    January 18, 2012

  • New Year

    Looking back on 2011 brings many things to mind.  It was a busy year traveling the state, actively promoting Oklahoma as a competitive state and supporting strong public policy.

    January 18, 2012

  • BAILEYDABNEY8-2009.tif The Veepstakes and unseating an incumbent President

    The Iowa Caucuses are over. Let the Veepstakes begin.

    January 5, 2012 1 Photo

  • Randy Cowling Will Rogers resourcefulness hard to do but necessary

    Finding a resolution to a long-term problem is never easy.  It requires change and adjustment.

    December 18, 2011 1 Photo

  • BAILEYDABNEY8-2009.tif What’s all the GRDA fuss about?

    At the request of Governor Mary Fallin, State Auditor Gary Jones issued a performance audit on December 8 for the Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA),  covering a time period from July 1, 2003 through March 31, 2011.

    December 11, 2011 1 Photo

  • GRDA audit appears to be politically motivated

    When I learned a state audit of the Grand River Dam Authority had been earlier this year, I feared the request was made purely for political reasons.

    December 11, 2011

  • Have a happy holiday season

    It is hard to imagine that we are well into the school year with the Fall term near completion and the Spring term ahead. Claremore School students continue to distinguish themselves on the national and state levels. 

    December 10, 2011