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~gular ~ aun~il e~ti T~Ionday, l~iay 1, 2007 Page 20 Councilmember Pust advised. that while she was willing to serve on a Finance Committee, she opined that part of her responsibility as an elected official was to monitor the City's finances at all times, and that all five members held the same responsibility and should be in- volved in finance-related discussions. Councilmember Pust further opined that there was nothing more sensitive to the public related on a local government level than where money comes from and where it goes, opined that she was encouraged by the amount of transparency and current subcommittee work being accomplished; and spoke in op- position to the motion, opining that such action would not further that work to-date. Councilmember Ihlan expressed disappointment that the Council ma- j ority was not willing to give the Finance Subcommittee a try; and opined that it was a missed opportunity, and cited the employee rec- ognitinn iss>>e over the years and lack of reColution as an example of the role of a Subcommittee in solving such issues. Councilmember Pust recognized the issue; however, noted that it had been solved now; and was a lesson on leadership responsibilities for the entire Council. Councilmember Roe expressed interest in the recently-adopted legis- lation and its impact on City practices; thanked Councilmember Kough for leading by example in pursuing this matter; and opined the need for individual Councilmembers to take leadership roles in pursu- ing accountability on issues. Al Sands, 2612 Aldine Mr. Sands expressed appreciation that the City Council was getting more involved financial issues, opining that this was a serious lack in past years; and that the Council needed to assure citizens that their as- sets were being protected, and not just left to staff, but through inter- nal control measures fully documented and followed. Mayor Klausing clarified that he had always been interested in the City's financial well-being; however noted that the Attorney Gen- eral's opinion and City Attorney opinions were inconsistent; and staff