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Resident criticizes county spending and strategic‑planning consultant at subcommittee meeting
Summary
During public comment, Virginia Romano criticized county budget increases, use of reserves and consultants, and questioned the need for taxpayer‑funded programs she views as redundant with private charities.
During the public‑comment portion of the Sept. 24 meeting, Virginia Romano addressed the subcommittee for three minutes to raise concerns about county spending, staffing growth, and the strategic‑planning effort.
“King County government's increased, kinda doubled their staff and programs in the last probably 4 to 5 years,” Romano said, questioning whether Kane County was following a similar pattern and asking “why is no one trying to reduce the budget?” She accused the county of using creative accounting and dipping into reserves to promote a spending agenda “without regard of the public elect people / electors that put you in office to be good stewards of our hard earned income.”
Romano said that private charities and civic clubs already provide much assistance for the small share of residents who need help and that taxpayer‑funded interventions can be redundant. She criticized the strategic‑planning questionnaire as out of touch with most residents’ needs and suggested that fiscal responsibility and increased taxes were not popular priorities with voters.
Her remarks focused on broad fiscal stewardship and the county’s role in providing services; she did not propose a specific alternative budget or program cuts. Romano concluded her comments by urging caution about spending and thanking the committee for the opportunity to speak.
