(September 16) Rod McAuliffe said he is running for the Upland City Council to end a small group of incestuous insiders’ domination of the city.
“It is time to rid City Hall of the ‘you do something for me, and I will do something for you’ politics once and for all.” McAuliffe said. “Only then, will City Hall be able to finally get its fiscal house in order.   I am running for city council because the residents deserve to have someone who will truly represent them, rather than represent the many special interests that have taken over. I am convinced that one of the main reasons Upland finds itself in the financial disaster it is in today is because most of City Hall makes decisions based off what will please and satisfy the special interests, rather than making decisions that are fiscally responsible and best for the city and its residents.”
The City of Gracious Living is on the road to financial ruin, McAuliffe said, and aggressive action is called for.
“There are several major issues facing the city at this time,” McAuliffe said. “The most critical issue is the city’s financial condition. The city is in this condition because many at City Hall are fiscally irresponsible, wasteful, and make deals and contracts that they will benefit from. An example of this could be seen in a multi-million dollar 12 year contract with an outside company that several members of the council voted to approve without allowing it to be put up for bidding. This is just one of numerous examples.”
McAuliffe continued, “Another issue has to do with many of the city executives and department heads receiving astronomical salaries. Some of them receive salaries the same or higher as a person holding the same position in a city twice as big as Upland. Regardless of this excess, many at City Hall felt there was no need to freeze their raises. They had no trouble, however, trying to pass a tax increase on the residents, they said ‘because the city needed money.’ When that failed, they just raised the cost of the water and sewer service.”
He took aim at what he said was the city’s costly retirement plan for its employees.
“Pensions are another major issue facing the city,” McAuliffe said. “The California Public Employee Retirement System has been mismanaged so bad in Sacramento that they continue to increase the contribution amount demands on cities. If not dealt with soon, not only will the city find itself worse off financially than it is now, it could also cause the city to terminate many of its employees and lose other valuable employees to cities that are more fiscally sound. According to the Upland Budget Task Force Report that was completed this year, one of the main reasons Upland finds itself in this situation is because City Hall has continued to conduct poor negotiations. We need to negotiate contracts that will be beneficial and provide long term stability to both the city and its employees.”
Upland’s daunting financial challenges, McAuliffe said, are the result of “the quid pro quo politics at City Hall, and the lack of leadership that is needed to create an environment where people could put their differences aside and work as a team to resolve issues in a way that will be most beneficial to the city and its residents. We need to manage our budget in a way that reflects fiscal responsibility.”
He identified six steps in a plan of action that he said would position the city to turn the corner on the problems facing it.
“We need to, one, eliminate special interests from City Hall; two, eliminate excessive pay; three, eliminate redundant positions; four, operate within the means of the city budget; five, be fiscally responsible; and six, implement the appropriate cost controls to provide the proper checks and balances to the budget,” McAuliffe said.
McAuliffe said he is qualified to serve on the council through “my past experiences and education. I have nearly 20 years’ combined experience in both the public and private sector. While in law-enforcement I held several positions besides patrol. One of the positions I held was an administrative position in scheduling, at the courthouse, where we had over a seven million dollar annual budget. I was one of the people in charge of scheduling for over 100 personnel. I never exceeded the budget, and always knew how to operate within its means. As a corporate loss prevention manager, I was responsible for investigating loss and shortage throughout different parts of the corporation and, after gaining personal insight to how each sector operated, effected controls that played a significant role in the reduction of shortage and future losses for the corporation.
“I have experience both in the public and private sectors,” McAuliffe stated. “Obtaining my Bachelors and Masters degrees in business management has allowed me to become  well-versed in the theory and practice of running an efficient and lean operation. I have no trouble speaking up for or standing up for what I believe in. I realize at the same time that to take action, a consensus is necessary. I will stand up to the special interests. I will be fiscally responsible with the taxpayer money I am entrusted to oversee. I will operate within the means of the city budget. I won’t raise taxes because of the city’s financial mismanagement. I will always be accountable to those who elected me. My intent is to be the “Voice for the Taxpayers,” and ensure their voice is always heard.
McAuliffe graduated from Arcadia High School, served in the Marine Corps and obtained two degrees from Azusa Pacific University. He has lived in Upland for nine years. He is married with one child now attending Upland High School.