Local Action...National Impact
Standing Up For The Taxpayers:
Dennis Polhill
We all know there’s no shortage of stories about political corruption within the federal government. It’s the corruption among small-town civil servants, however, that often gets overlooked. This is exactly what Dennis Polhill, Brenda Ratkiewicz, and other voters in Golden, Colorado discovered—and they took action.
Hundreds of Golden's finest citizens have worked with the Foothills Fire Protection District Board for decades. Then, in recent years, a series of events alerted voters that the Board was increasingly unaccountable and out-of-touch. The Board raised the mill levy by more than 10 percent in 2004—without voter approval, which is against the law—and hiked administrative costs from $160,000 in 2000 to more than $500,000 in 2006.
When voters discovered more hijinks, including the fact that the Board was operating under an ineligible director (who had moved out of the area in 2003), the Board began to operate clandestinely—and even delayed an election for partisan purposes.
At this point, Polhill, Ratkiewicz, and other citizens decided enough was enough, forming the Committee to Reform Foothills Fire Protection District. Two of his team stepped forward to run for open seats in the May 2006 election. They sent two mailings to all voters in the district, making them aware of the Board’s shenanigans and of the upcoming election that had been little publicized—and the two reform candidates won big.
Now they’re now taking action as members of the new Board. Dennis Polhill and Brenda Ratkiewicz took that first step and had a profound impact on their local government. You can do the same in your town. For more examples of effective local action, sign up for a MySAM account today! It's absolutely free.
Know a modern-day Sam Adams? E-mail us at info@samadamsalliance.org.
