Donna Baringer was not looking to stay in political office after being term-limited out of the Missouri House of Representatives last year.
But during COVID, she read over the budget for the City of St. Louis and audits done by its comptroller, Darlene Green.
鈥淎nd certain things started to bother me,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 was seeing that we had large salary increases in the budget. And with the [American Rescue Plan Act] funds, there was a lot of money coming in, and it was moving over to [the St. Louis Development Corporation], but I couldn鈥檛 quite figure out what was going on over at SLDC.鈥�
Reporting by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch later revealed problems in the way the SLDC, the city鈥檚 development agency, was distributing money for grants to small businesses in north St. Louis, including some that had not paid their taxes or were not located in the city. Green didn鈥檛 have a direct role in distributing those grants but later issued of the program and called for a do-over. But Baringer said the comptroller needed to be more proactive.
Baringer said she would have been more closely watching the flow of the ARPA dollars, and rather than start over and possibly not meet spending deadlines, 鈥淚 would have said, 鈥楲et鈥檚 go back over the funds and see which are city businesses, and maybe we should reallocate.鈥欌��
Baringer鈥檚 review of the budget also triggered questions. While she said she does not believe the city is doing anything nefarious, she said it wasn鈥檛 clear from budget documents whether the city鈥檚 surplus is actually additional revenue or simply funds that have not been distributed to the appropriate accounts.
鈥淚 absolutely don't want people to think that I'm trying to make the city look bad fiscally,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hat I'm trying to say is we need to make sure we're transparent with the voters and the taxpayers.鈥�
Baringer is not an accountant by trade. But she served on the budget committee as an alderwoman from south St. Louis. And in the state House, she became the highest-ranking Democrat on the chamber鈥檚 Fiscal Review Committee. Its members review thousands of bills to determine their financial impact to the state.
鈥淢y talent is, you can hand me financials, and you can think, I'm only going to look at what you put before me,鈥� Baringer said. 鈥淏ut I鈥檓 going to actually drill down, and I'm going to find out if you're not wanting me to know something, or I鈥檓 going to find what you forgot to put in it.鈥�
Electric Mustangs
In addition to doing her homework and reviewing documents, Baringer said she also likes to surround herself with and ask questions of people who have expertise in areas that she does not understand. That helps her avoid blind spots before she votes on policy decisions.
That kind of curiosity, she said, would have helped the city avoid a kerfuffle over the purchase of nine electric Mustangs to reduce the carbon footprint of its vehicle fleet.
First off, she said, the city ignored its own rules that require companies bidding on projects to source materials for their projects from the city, or explain why they cannot.
There are Ford dealers in the city, she said, but the city purchased the cars from Sunset Ford in Sunset Hills 鈥� a business located in St. Louis County. In addition, she said the cars are fully electric, meaning city mechanics may not have the skills to repair them. That means more business goes outside the city if they are brought back to the dealership.
And finally, she said, hybrid cars are better for city driving because the battery recharges every time the car stops.
鈥淚t didn鈥檛 make sense, and nobody questioned it, and I would have,鈥� Baringer said. 鈥淎nd not because it in the grand scheme, that was a big deal, but I find it hypocritical. This is what you expect of others who do business with the city, but you don't do it yourself.鈥�
Facing a longtime incumbent
Green was appointed comptroller in 1995 after her predecessor went to jail for tax fraud. She has won every election since then, facing no or token opposition.
But the election isn鈥檛 a popularity contest, Baringer said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 time for a change,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 time for a fresh set of eyes.鈥�
Baringer is purposely staying out of the mayor鈥檚 race, beyond saying she鈥檚 ready to work with whoever is elected. But she said people need to pay attention to the comptroller election as well.
鈥淚f you're in the camp of, I want change in the mayoral race, if you don't have change in the comptroller's race, then you're still going to be on the same trajectory,鈥� she said.
Editor鈥檚 note: Darlene Green appeared on the podcast earlier this week. An episode with Celeste Metcalf will air later this month.
