TRAVIS QUIPS QUALIFICATIONS, OUTLINES SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE NEEDED FOR OFFICE

Sophia Travis, Monroe County Council candidate, today outlined the skills and experience necessary for the office.

"You can't budget in a vacuum," said Travis. "You can't budget when you have little or no experience with the subject matter. What is the subject matter? In a nutshell, it's social services."

Travis pointed out that the largest component of the county's budget is comprised of expenditures on social services. "Social services are the biggest thing that Monroe County government does. The second largest is the administration of justice. A candidate's qualifications in these two areas are critical."

Travis noted that some candidates for Monroe Country council are framing the qualification issue in overly narrow terms. Citing an unproductive discussion on tax issues, she noted that local taxes are already effectively frozen by state statute and comprise only half of the county's revenues. "Counting on getting blood from a turnip is not sustainable and sound financial planning," she said. She also took aim at what she termed a myopic obsession with the accounting phase, the last phase, of the budgeting process.

"Oscar Wilde said a cynic is someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing" said Travis.

"A budget isn't a spreadsheet, it's not a payroll, it's not business expenses. You can't make tough decisions without knowing your subject material. Unfortunately, as demonstrated at the Shalom forum, some of our candidates know absolutely nothing about county government's biggest and most important duty. They can't evaluate the worth of our largest programs because they know nothing about them. How then, can they budget them?"

Travis cited her decades-long involvement in area social services as evidence of her qualifications. Among others, these include her annual fundraiser for Project Safe Place, her membership in The Friday Musicale philanthropic association, and her annual charity performances at the Monroe County jail.

She concluded: "As a local radio commentator recently said, my work gives me an 'aerial' view of our community and, especially, how our social services are allocated and managed. Understanding the subject matter is crucial if you're going to make sound decisions on how to allocate, and spend, over a quarter of the county's annual budget. Anyone can know price, but only experience can determine value. I have that experience."