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McAdams: County Programs Need to Be Efficient, Effective

Whittney Evans

 

Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams promised a “responsive” government in his annual state of the county address Tuesday morning.

McAdams looked back on the past year, boasting the opening of Jessie Eccles Quinney Ballet Centre, new trails, a balanced budget, retaining a triple-A bond rating and taking steps to improve air quality. He maintained the county is getting smarter at delivering services and programs with measurable results, including the county’s Milestone Transitional Living Program, which helps young adults become self-sufficient, The Mobile Crisis team, and voluntary preschool.

 

“For too long, public funding has been on autopilot, for programs that show sometimes very few results,” McAdams said. “We’re demonstrating right here in Salt Lake County that there is a better way.”

McAdams said tax dollars aren’t the only way to measure the impact of programs and policies on county residents.

“Every time a child or a teenager or a homeless veteran participates in a program that doesn’t work but could, have participated in one that does, that represents a human cost,” he said.

Last month, the county announced a partnership with UTA to give away fare cards to thousands of county residents. McAdams said the program that will continue if it proves effective. The county also more pumped money into helping low-income people repair high-polluting vehicles, with the help of grants. 

Whittney Evans grew up southern Ohio and has worked in public radio since 2005. She has a communications degree from Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky, where she learned the ropes of reporting, producing and hosting. Whittney moved to Utah in 2009 where she became a reporter, producer and morning host at KCPW. Her reporting ranges from the hyper-local issues affecting Salt Lake City residents, to state-wide issues of national interest. Outside of work, she enjoys playing the guitar and getting to know the breathtaking landscape of the Mountain West.
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