Friday, May 1, 2009

League of Women Voters election survey: Brint Ryan, candidate for Dallas City Council, District 13

By Staff of League of Women Voters

The League of Women Voters of Dallas sent a questionnaire to every candidate running for public office in Dallas County. The election on May 9 features a number of city council races.

The responses of Brint Ryan, who is running for the District 13 seat on the Dallas City Council, appear below. Ryan is running against Ann Margolin.

Brint Ryan

LWV: What are your qualifications for this office?

Ryan: As Founder and CEO of North America's largest tax advisory firm, I am the only tax expert in the race for District 13. I have spent 20 years serving as a fiscal watchdog for corporate clients, and I will to put those skills to work for Dallas taxpayers and families.

LWV: The City of Dallas has a potential $100M shortfall in the next city budget. How would you close the gap? If you would cut services, which ones would you cut?

Ryan: When it comes to cutting services, nothing is off limits except public safety. At Ryan, my job is to find inefficiencies in companies' budgets. The same thing can be done for the city. I will make sure citizens benefit from every dollar spent. I will make increasing our City's revenue stream a priority by improving our collection efforts because every dollar we collect in fines is one less tax dollar we need from homeowners.

LWV: Are you in favor of a convention center hotel? If yes, do you support the current plan to finance its construction with revenue bonds and have the city own the hotel?

Ryan: I'm in favor of supporting the convention center investment and revitalizing downtown, but I do not believe that taxpayers should bear a risk that developers are unwilling to bear, and I am fundamentally against the city owning the hotel. One solution I have proposed is to have the city sell the hotel to a private entity for a profit once it is up and running.

LWV: What is your response to recent reports (e.g., Corps of Engineers, North Texas Tollway Authority) regarding the Trinity River tollroad/levee issues?

Ryan: I support the Trinity River Project wholeheartedly. I think it can be a turning point for our city, but in order to do it right, we must take our time, listen to feedback and recommendations from experts, and work through the details carefully.

LWV: Do you think the City of Dallas Ethics Code needs to be strengthened? If yes, in what way(s)?

Ryan: Our leaders are here to serve taxpayers, not themselves. As a Councilmember, I will work to strengthen the Ethics code and eliminate discretionary funds that allow Councilmember's to fund pet projects or use taxpayer dollars to pay for campaign trinkets. As a CPA, I've followed a strict code of ethics my entire career. As a Councilmember, I will fight for more transparency in government.

Pegasus News content partner - League of Women Voters

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