Savings Savings Savings

During the course of the past 13+ years, Chuck Keiper has changed the face of Portage County Government. Those changes were aimed at creating the basic business systems necessary to make such a large business (Portage County government is the third largest business operating in Portage County behind Kent State University and Robinson Memorial Hospital) operate cost effectively and responsively. When Chuck arrived to the Commissioner’s office in 1993, for example, there was no centralized means by which the county could examine the financial impact of any decision. There was no long term budget forecasting ability. There was no means of assessing how much risk the county was being exposed to and what the risk was costing taxpayers in terms of higher premiums on insurance or lost productivity of the county’s workforce.

Chuck Keiper worked to develop the kinds of systems necessary for any large business to operate. A centralized personnel function was developed and offered to all of Portage County’s elected officials. Most of them now use the office regularly. The County created the Office of Budget and Financial Management which assists all of the various county offices and office holders with the examination of the long term impact of policies and programs they may be considering. The list of changes is long but the bottom line is that Portage County tax payers are reaping the benefits of savings each and every day.

One of the most tangible ways the county saves money through these various new programs can be seen through what the County has to pay in interest when it borrows money. A couple of years ago, Portage County received an upgrade to its bond rating. A bond rating is the “score” the county is given that lets potential lenders or bond buyers know how well the county is doing in paying its current bills and how well the county can be expected to pay for the money it is about to borrow. The better the bond rating the less interest the county has to pay for the money it borrows. The bond rating upgrade will save the county tax payers hundreds of thousands of dollars over time. Among the leading reasons for the upgrade were the kind of financial support programs developed with Chuck Keiper’s vision and leadership; real programs saving real dollars for Portage County every day.

Chuck also believes that we have to work smarter in order to identify and capture all of the savings we can. Mass purchasing is a good example. When he first arrived as a commissioner, Chuck was surprised to find that, while Portage County had a centralized purchasing function, purchases were planned as the county ran out of things. Take copy paper for example. The county purchased paper with regularity according to the needs of each department. Chuck thought that we should add up all of the paper bought for the county each year and bid the supply out all at the same time. What resulted was a much better price based on the total volume of county use. Again, our taxpayers save thousands of dollars day in and day out. That’s just plain good business by anyone’s definition.

Chuck is committed to a continuous improvement philosophy and is constantly seeking new ways to identify savings. That is why he has become one of the leading voices for cooperative partnerships. Combining forces with other groups or governments that are doing the same things that we are doing holds our overhead down, reduces overall administrative costs and maximizes the dollars available to bring services directly to our citizens. For Example, Chuck led the way in partnering with the City of Cleveland to bring water from Lake Erie here to Portage County. The savings to water users in Portage County will be dramatic. Instead of spending millions of dollars finding new sources of water and building new water treatment plants, Portage County can provide the water to our citizens for a fraction of the cost. Water rates will remain well below the regional average as a result and we all save.

Partnerships are an important way of saving money. It takes a cooperative nature, a clear vision of what needs to be accomplished, the ability to help others see the opportunity in front of them and a tenacious commitment to work through the obstacle to get the job done. Chuck Keiper has proven that he has what it takes. Portage County now enjoys partnerships with nearly a dozen surrounding counties and communities in areas ranging from emergency services to juvenile justice to workforce development to adult incarceration. Each initiative is helping to hold down the burden shouldered by our taxpayers; each initiative an example of Chuck Keiper’s leadership and vision.

Chuck also serves on the Board of Directors of the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council or NOPEC. The purpose of this council of governments is to make sure that the ordinary energy consumer gets a fair shake with the utility companies through the collective aggregation of power. Chuck spends a great deal of time and effort fighting to get us the best possible price on these commodities and Portage County residents have garnered hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings as a result. Gas and electric costs have been on the rise, but Portage County residents can rest assured that Chuck Keiper will remain a vigilant watchdog for the best possible rates.