Good government starts with accountability, and that starts with us.
The recent Civil Grand Jury report on the Stanislaus Council of Governments (StanCOG) was a wake-up call. It found that Stanislaus Council of Governments Executive Director Rosa De León Park spent over $100,000 of taxpayer money on rented luxury cars, including BMWs, Mercedes Benz and Jeep Grand Cherokees, to commute from her Stockton home to her Modesto office over three years.
Upgrades to first-class flights and stays at expensive hotels were also billed to taxpayers — all with seemingly little oversight. A few of the local officials traveling with StanCOG reportedly took part in some the luxurious perks themselves. Fortunately, the policy board that oversees StanCOG has now authorized an independent forensic audit to provide a full accounting of what happened and how such a breakdown in oversight was allowed to occur…