Helen Anthony, who represents Ward 2 on the Providence City Council, was recently elected as chairperson of the council’s Committee on Finance. She was first elected in Providence in 2019 but has also served on city councils in Needham, Mass., and Columbia, Mo. She works as a land-use attorney at Handy Law LLC. She spoke with PBN about her new role heading the finance committee.
PBN: How does your experience on the City Council and as a member of the Finance Committee inform your goals as the newly elected chairwoman?
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ANTHONY: I’ve learned so much from my experience serving on the Providence City Council, as well as my service on the City Council in Columbia, Mo., and the Needham Town Meeting in Massachusetts.
Government works if residents can understand what their elected officials do and why. Clear process and open transparency should guide all the work we do as city councilmembers. I’ve seen what works and doesn’t. Too often, important decisions are made away from public view and outside committee or council meetings. Governments cannot build trust if decisions are made without informed participation or public understanding. My goal is to increase transparency and public understanding of the work of the Finance Committee.
PBN: What do you see as the role of the Finance Committee for the council and the city overall? Is that different from how it has operated under prior committee chairs?
ANTHONY: The work of the Finance Committee is critically important and touches nearly every aspect of our city. All city budgets are vetted and amended by the Finance Committee, and the committee ensures that the money allocated is spent as budgeted and is spent with proper oversight. Our city’s Capital Improvement Plan, tax stabilization agreements and other major measures are vetted in the Finance Committee. All of the mayor’s directors, Municipal Court judges and appointees to city committees are vetted by the Finance Committee.
As chair, in addition to that work to keep our city moving, I believe we need to continue to focus on the city’s long-term sustainability. In collaboration with the mayor’s office, I want to focus on the city’s pension liability, investing in our city’s infrastructure and increasing transparency on funding for education.
PBN: Fiscal transparency has been a key mission of the city, yet you and other councilmembers have criticized lack of detail and advanced notice to the council and the public about the city budget process in prior years. How would you like to see that improved? What, if anything, do you as Finance Committee chairperson see as your role in making those changes happen?
ANTHONY: As chair of the Finance Committee, I have already moved to set a regular meeting schedule to make it easier for committee members and the public to participate in our work. The Finance Committee will meet at 5:30 p.m. every Tuesday, unless the committee has no business to discuss. I will also support the city clerk in her work to hold community meetings to explain how the council works and how the public can engage.
With regard to the budget process, I will hold two public hearings instead of one. The first public hearing will be scheduled when the mayor presents the budget so the public has an opportunity to understand the proposals. Then the Finance Committee will meet to outline what amendments they propose to the budget and why. Then the Finance Committee will hold a second public hearing to enable the public to weigh in on those amendments.
Our budget is an extremely complex document, and it also represents the priorities for our future. I believe we can do more to help the public understand and participate in our budgeting process.
PBN: What are three of your top goals or priorities in your new role as chair of the committee?
ANTHONY: Keep the business of the Finance Committee moving while taking every opportunity to educate and engage new councilors and members of the public in the process; add more transparency around the budget process; address the long-term financial challenges our city faces.
PBN: What do you see as the biggest financial challenges facing the city? How would you address those?
ANTHONY: The biggest financial challenge our city faces is the unfunded pension liability. I served on the Pension Working Group that explored the issue in great detail last year. I ultimately supported Mayor [Jorge O.] Elorza’s push for the pension obligation bond, which passed, giving the city the option to pursue the bond if market conditions are financially favorable. We must pursue other plans to address this financial shortfall, and I know my council colleagues and the mayor agree.
Our city’s second challenge is the lack of investment in our infrastructure. Roads and sidewalks are in disrepair and the money necessary to address them is astronomical. Less discussed is our aging sewer system, which requires more investment. If we don’t create a plan to line our sewer lines in the near future, we may be facing a catastrophic failure.
Nancy Lavin is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Lavin@PBN.com.
Great interview with a great Councilwoman👍