Former mayor’s spin is politics as usua

I was extremely disappointed in former Everett Mayor Ed Hansen’s intrusion into the Everett mayor’s race in an ad in Tuesday’s Herald.

His statements were both inaccurate and misleading. He incorrectly takes Mayor Frank Anderson and the Everett City Council to task for spending city “reserves” to balance the 2004 budget. No city reserve funds are proposed to be used for the 2004 budget. Mr. Hansen surely knows this.

The 2004 proposed budget does use some cash carry forward – a practice that Mayor Hansen utilized to balance his 1995 and 1996 proposed budgets. This was appropriate then and is appropriate now, especially when the city’s rainy day reserve is funded to the maximum allowed by state law.

It is ironic to note that in a front page article in the Oct. 9 Herald, Mr. Hansen states that the PUD is dipping into its reserve to balance its 2004 budget. Mr. Hansen criticizes the city for using a small amount of its cash surplus while he proposes to utilize PUD reserves. This lack of consistency demonstrates that the former mayor is playing politics.

President, Everett City Council