The City of El Cajon’s investment in a local microbrewery that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy a year after its doors opened has garnered a Metro Golden Fleece award from the San Diego County Taxpayers Association (SDCTA). El Cajon officials earned the unenviable award after losing more than a half-million in taxpayer dollars as part of a gamble in the restaurant business at taxpayer expense, SDCTA said.
Last week, SDCTA, a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to promoting accountable, cost-effective and efficient government and opposing unnecessary taxes and fees, presented its annual Goldens Awards, which offer praise or criticism for smart and not-to-smart government spending decisions over the past year.
Grossmont College’s Life Coach Program (LCP) earned a SDCTA nomination in the public-private partnership category, but the award went to the City of Chula Vista. SDCTA said the college’s program, funded through private donations and guided by an executive advisory board, resulted in college students completing more courses, earning higher grades and more likely to complete their degree. The category recognizes programs that stretched taxpayer dollars through innovative collaborations between public agencies and businesses.
Annually, SDCTA presents Golden Watchdog awards for government programs or services that exemplify efficient use of tax dollars or good government practices, and Golden Fleece awards for government programs, services or expenditures that exemplify wasteful, inefficient – or downright absurd – use of taxpayer dollars. Founded in 1945, SDCTA has spent over six decades saving the region’s taxpayers billions of dollars, as well as generating information to help educate the public.
