The overarching goal of bond oversight is for the members of a Committee to report to the public on whether the expenditures from bond funds were “proper” and consistent with what was promised to the voters

Here are some sample questions:

1. 1. Why were outside consultant services used for Project Management when they have an hourly rate of X when in house half-staff has an hourly rate of Y?

       

   2. .Why was sole source or no solicitation of proposals approach used for selection of an architect for this project?

       

   3. How did your district expenditure plan for this fiscal year relate to district priorities for capital projects?

       

   4. What processes does your district have to reduce the amount of change orders in projects?

       
   5. What was the districts process for evaluating the environmental and site-specific conditions of a project that now has problems with soil contamination and settling that has resulted in substantial increase in costs?

       

   6. How was the district policy on Consulting selection followed for this project’s architect?

While knowledge of construction and related services is helpful in providing bond oversight, it is not an absolute requirement.  Common sense and intuition given the circumstances of the bond program are just as important factors in determining questions.