The annual budget hearing is one of the biggest meetings of the year. It is where the governing body decides how much the city will spend, how much property tax revenue it will collect, whether to exceed the revenue-neutral rate, and what financial priorities will shape the year ahead.⁣
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Because of that, the public should be able to evaluate more than the final vote. We should also be able to evaluate how our elected officials got there.⁣
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Over the next several posts, we’ll be grading each member of the Lenexa governing body based on what they publicly demonstrated during the FY2027 budget hearing. Every member will be scored using the same five categories.⁣
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𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 — Did they understand the underlying fiscal and policy issues beyond surface talking points?⁣
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𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 — Were their questions specific, relevant, and capable of producing useful information?⁣
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𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰-𝐔𝐩 & 𝐓𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 — Did they probe answers, challenge assumptions, or pursue unresolved points?⁣
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𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐲 — Did they demonstrate their own judgment, separate from simply accepting staff’s framing?⁣
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𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 — Did they clearly explain their reasoning and why they supported their vote?⁣
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Each category is worth 10 points, for a total possible score of 50.⁣
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This is not about rewarding opposition or punishing agreement. A councilmember can support the budget and still earn a strong grade. The question is whether they showed their work.⁣
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On a decision this important, residents should be able to see more than the vote. They should be able to see the governing.⁣
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𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐨𝐧.