Past growth in the scope and cost of County government absolutely requires every effort to insure that services are appropriate and efficient. Through governments, society undertakes activities that serve common purposes, such as building bridges, enforcing standards of behavior, meeting basic human needs, and educating young people. Government services, within reason, must be available to all. It is therefore difficult to exclude, as private firms may, those for whom providing services costs more. For example, those who live in areas outside commercially feasible cable television service must still receive public services like mail, road maintenance, and police protection.
Some government services can be expensive, difficult to quantify and yet easy to take for granted.
In providing for the common good, government must anticipate or deal with dysfunction, as when regulating pollution, upholding public health standards, and controlling criminal behavior. The costs and resource requirements of these types of services are extremely difficult to anticipate. Effectiveness is not enough. Accountability is essential if government is to retain the public trust. There is a great deal of concern by the public that public resources be used appropriately.