Windsor watchdogs demand probe of city's FOI tab - canada.com network

Windsor watchdogs demand probe of city's FOI tab

Monica Wolfson

The Windsor Star

Friday, September 05, 2008

A city taxpayers' group will ask the province to investigate the City of Windsor after the city demanded 11,000 hours and $354,000 to fulfill an access to information request.

Seven members of WeAct, the Windsor Association of Concerned Taxpayers, gathered outside city hall Friday to denounce the city's  "stonewalling."

The inability to gather in a timely manner information that should be at "its fingertips," demonstrates that the city is poorly managed and needs to be overseen by the province, said Chris Schnurr, president of WeAct.

"The ministry views municipalities as a separate form of government and at the end of the day accountability comes at the ballot box," said Tim Ryall, municipal adviser with the ministry of municipal Affairs and housing. "The group is expressing its concern and council should take it under consideration. But (the ministry) only gets involved in extreme situations where ... the municipality is in serious financial trouble."

 

Full Article: <http://www.canada.com/components/print.aspx?id=2b67231a-e233-4815-b202-30eea76d0a54&sponsor=>