Bill Christiansen (incumbent)



Q&A

  1. A recent presentation by a city councilor showed Tulsa's overall police and fire budget has grown more than three times above the rate of inflation over the last 40 years without adding manpower in at least the last decade. It has been described as "unsustainable growth" with the city's current level of revenue. How would you propose to address this situation?
  2. I believe the best thing to do is open the city books to the Fraternal Order of Police and the firefighters union during negotiations for the contract year and from next year's income estimates to come to an agreement that is good for public safety but also is reasonable based on income projections for the next fiscal year. Police and fire budgets are very critical to public safety, but all departments need to live within the city’s revenue expectations.
  3. Over the last several years, controversy between the City Council and mayor's administration has triggered discussions about changing from the current strong mayor- council form of government to a city manager-council form of government and about having Tulsa's elected offices be non-partisan. Would you support either of these ideas? Why or why not?
  4. I would support investigating the pros and cons of changing the form of government to a city manager/council form of government. It has become apparent to me for the last 7 years as a city councilor that the present form may not be in the best interest of the citizens of Tulsa. Gather the facts and let the voters of Tulsa decide in the form of a charter amendment. I would also support nonpartisan elections for Mayor and Council. I believe it would increase citizen participation city wide if there were nonpartisan elections.
  5. Improving mass transit (i.e. additional bus service, rail lines, etc.) has been a major topic of discussion through the city's ongoing PlaniTulsa comprehensive planning process. Do you believe Tulsa's public transportation system needs improvement? Please explain.
  6. I do believe public transportation needs to be improved. As the suburbs grow the City of Tulsa needs to find more ways to attract people into town that live on the outskirts of Tulsa. This will help increase our sales tax base which we all know pays for our city services. Light rail to Tulsa from Jenks, Broken Arrow and Owasso would be great for increasing activity in downtown Tulsa and other entertainment areas of Tulsa.
  7. What would be your top three priorities if you are elected?
  8. Public Safety. Hiring more police officers. Lead the city back into prosperity with increased recruitment and retention of small businesses. Maintain the great quality of life Tulsans experience today.