Wichita, Kansas

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Wichita, Kansas
Budget
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Administrative Officials
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Contents

Wichita is the largest city in Kansas with a population of 361,420. Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County.

[edit] Evaluating transparency of the city's website

[edit] The good

  • The current and past budgets dating to 1960 are available on the city's website.[1]
  • To request records from the City of Wichita, see: A Guide to Open Records and A Guide to Open Records Administrative Regulation 70
  • Council members are listed with contact information. Meeting minutes and agendas available.[2]
  • Administrative officials are listed with contact information.[3]
  • Zoning information[4] and building permits available.[5]
  • Bids for future contracts posted, current contracts not online.[6]
  • Annual financial audits are available.[7]

[edit] The bad

  • Local tax information is not provided.
  • Does not provide information on lobbying.
Working for accountable government now


[edit] City Council

According to the official Wichita, Kansas website, the mission of the city council is to "provide policy direction for the City of Wichita in developing, implementing, and maintaining services to the citizens of Wichita. The Council establishes policy direction for the City by enacting ordinances, laws, policies, adopting the budget, levying taxes, and appointing members to citizen advisory boards and commissions."[8]

The council is made up of 7 members that are elected to four-year terms on a nonpartisan basis with staggered terms of office. Six Council members are elected by district, and the mayor is elected at-large.[8]

In addition to regular meetings, the city council holds monthly public city council workshops where the members have the opportunity to review and discuss important issues, staff projects and future Council meeting agenda items. The City Manager and staff attend to present topics for discussion and to answer Council questions. Citizens may also be asked by the Council to provide input. The City Council does not take official action during workshop sessions; therefore, audience comments on agenda items are made only at the request of the Mayor or Council Members.

The current city council members.[9]

Council member District Term Party
Carl Brewer Mayor - -
Lavonta Williams 1 - -
Sue Schlapp 2 - -
Jim Skelton 3 - -
Paul Gray 4 - -
Jeff Longwell 5 - -
Janet Miller 6 - -

[edit] 2009 Candidates

[edit] Making Records Requests to the City of Wichita

The City of Wichita maintains a page titled A Guide to Open Records which help citizens make records requests. A page titled Records Custodians gives the names and email addresses of records custodians for various departments of the city.

[edit] Citizen Records Requests

Recently Bob Weeks of the Voice For Liberty in Wichita made records requests from quasi-governmental agencies in Wichita that perform governmental functions and are funded wholly or substantially by tax funds. Each of the three agencies (Wichita Downtown Development Corporation, Greater Wichita Economic Development Coalition, and the Go Wichita Conventions and Visitors Bureau) refused to comply with the records requests on the basis that they are not subject to the Kansas Open Records Act.[10][11] Currently the Sedgwick County District Attorney is investigating these cases.

[edit] Housing and Urban Development funds

Wichita will receive slightly more than $2 million in funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.[12] This is in addition to any funds the city will be receiving through the 2009 federal stimulus package.

[edit] Citizen aptitude

The Wichita website offers a "Citizens Academy" for educating citizens on the workings of local government. It is an eight-week interactive program divided by sessions like "Local Government 101". [13]

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ↑ Budget Documents
  2. ↑ City Council
  3. ↑ Contact Us
  4. ↑ Zoning
  5. ↑ Building Permits
  6. ↑ Bids
  7. ↑ Financial audits
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Wichita city council page
  9. ↑ Wichita City Council
  10. ↑ Wichita Downtown Development Corporation and City of Wichita refuse to follow Kansas Open Records Act
  11. ↑ Wichita’s open records policy is contrary to the interests of citizens
  12. ↑ Wichita Receives HUD Homeless Funds , 23 Feb 2009
  13. ↑ City of Wichita - Citizens Academy
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