“Change is coming,” Cordell City Council President Steve McLaughlin declared at the council’s Jan. 21, 2020, meeting.
McLaughlin, speaking during the time set aside for council remarks, told his fellow council members and other city officials it was time for the city to make changes in operations in order to save taxpayer money and more effectively manage the city.
First, McLaughlin said, the city should look for competitive bids on fuel for city vehicles. Awarding monthly or quarterly contracts based upon competitive bids, he said, could shave a few pennies per gallon off the city’s fuel costs, savings that could become substantial on a monthly or annual basis. During discussion of Mc- Laughlin’s suggestion, city administrator J.C. Moser said it may be difficult to implement such a system due to the limited number of fuel suppliers in town who accept the city’s Fuel Man payment card.
McLaughlin also proposed putting the city’s banking business out for bid. The idea has been discussed internally for several months, but to date no action has been taken by the city. The savings, McLaughlin said, may also seem small, but every dollar saved helps the city deliver more and better services to the residents of Cordell.
McLaughlin’s other two suggestions centered around city operations and personnel management. First, he suggested that city employees should be using a time clock instead of hand-written time sheets. Time clocks, he said, help manage city employees’ time and pay more accurately than the hand-written reports.
Moser countered that it could be difficult, having all city employees gather at city hall and wait in line to clock in before starting their work.
McLaughlin’s final suggestion was to end the city’s practice of allowing city employees, other than police and a few necessary staff, take city vehicles home and use them on personal business. The city currently charges employees roughly $12 per week to be able to take city vehicles home and use them on personal business during off hours.
No action was taken on any of McLaughlin’s suggestions, as they were not on the agenda as potential voting items.