Glen Ellyn president pushes for finance committee

Although it has met with some resistance, a plan to form a citizens finance committee in Glen Ellyn will come for a vote at the next village board meeting.

It's one the biggest items Mark Pfefferman pushed for while campaigning for village president, and he's been working hard to get it done as quickly as possible since being elected in April.

He said committee members "would help advise us on policy."

Pfefferman likened it to the plan commission or zoning board, which already offer recommendations to the village board.

"I see this as being consistent with that; we're just seeking resident input and advice on our finances," he said.

There have been concerns from the village board about how the committee would work and what its charge would be.

Dave Zager, assistant superintendent for finance in Naperville Unit District 203, said that's a big question to work out before creating such a group.

Zager oversees a citizens finance panel that District 203 put into place more than a year ago.

"It's worked out fairly well for us," he said. "We do get a more thorough discussion of financial topics than you would at a board meeting."

Zager said the committee in District 203 has a very strict purpose: it's advisory only and looks at the tax levy, budget, audit and consumer price index.

Just last year, the group recommended against collecting additional taxes to start projects because the CPI was bringing in more revenue.

Zager said that would likely have come up anyway, but the committee was able to flesh out the CPI debate in ways that might not have happened at a school board meeting.

However, he said the group's function in District 203 isn't necessarily to save money, which is part of the goal in Glen Ellyn.

Pfefferman has said he wants to look at repealing the sales tax increase the board implemented earlier this year to balance the budget.

"We're not in a crisis, but we have some very important and serious decisions to make with our finances," he said.

Pfefferman cited the village of Westmont and the state of Indiana, which both had success in budgeting because of advisory finance committees.

In Indiana, Pfefferman said, the state went from a budget deficit to a surplus.

The board will vote on Pfefferman's vision for an advisory committee June 13. If that falls through, Pfefferman said he will push for a committee of the whole of the village board to work on financial matters.

"I'm excited about it either way," he said. "I think that it'll be good for the village and our village management team."