Approved in a 1989 referendum, the Charter specifically calls for an Independent Budget Office to monitor the city's spending patterns. The plaintiffs are the IBO board and 16 co-plaintiffs, including my organization, the Community Service Society of New York. Lost Past Lawsuits Giuliani has already lost five lawsuits for refusing to release information to the public. He will probably lose this lawsuit, too. But meanwhile he makes getting any data that could possibly reflect unfavorably on him and his administration as tough as possible.
Politicians hate organizations that give the public ammunition on how to evaluate their performance.
The IBO was set up for just that reason. Created by the 1989 Charter Revision Commission to monitor the city's budgets, it didn't begin operations until 1996 because of continuous attempts by elected officials to kill it. I'm more than a casual observer in this fight. I was recently appointed to the IBO Advisory Board by Comptroller Alan Hevesi and Public Advocate Mark Green. I also head the Community Service Society which for years has tracked the progress of people moving into and out of poverty.