Modica says that his office is independent in order to insulate budget decisions from political pressure.
“We’re independent, which means that we don’t report to any single person. We’re given a little bit more leeway to be a little bit more objective,” he said. “We don’t have a political objective. So we are really guided by just what the facts are. This is what I see. Here are pros and cons to something that’s being presented to you, council. You get to make that decision.”
That independence is particularly critical when looking at the organizational structure of the city, Modica added.
“Of the 10,000-plus employees in the city, almost all of them actually report eventually to the mayor. The mayor is an elected political position — quite rightly is an elected political position. As a consequence, he has his own objectives that he would like to proceed with and achieve. The City Council is a separate elected body. It’s important that they have, one, the information they need to make decisions, but also that that information isn’t colored by a political objective.”
