Proactive vs. Reactive
Rebecca and her opponent have very different approaches: Rebecca is proactive and preventative; Pat Anderson was reactive and punitive.
Proactive
Rebecca gets ahead of problems and saves money
One of the first things Rebecca did when she became State Auditor was to do a lot of outreach with local officials. She let them know that her vision was to be proactive and preventative with them, and she wanted to promote good government throughout the State of Minnesota. She wanted them to get it right in the first place when spending tax dollars rather than just catching them doing the wrong thing. This is the less expensive and more efficient model of government. The response was very positive.
Rebecca has done this through more training and education of local officials, an overhauled website where they can actually find what they are looking for, and the development of new educational materials around areas where local governments had persistent problems. She puts out a weekly electronic newsletter that reminds local officials about reporting deadlines, a feature called “Avoiding Pitfalls” that alert them to problems unidentified entities have run into that they can avoid if they take certain steps, notices about report releases that may be of interest to them, and division newsletters. The readership continues to grow, it is free, and it is making a big difference in getting things right the first time, instead of the more costly model of reacting to them after the fact.
Reactive
A costlier and less efficient approach to government
Pat Anderson says the relationship between state and local governments is "broken," and doesn't realize that it was she herself that helped break it. Anderson was known during her term as employing "gotcha politics." If and when a local official had an issue, she was the first to trumpet it in the paper.
Press conferences were a very regular activity under Anderson. She describes the office as a "bully pulpit" and views this bullying quality as an asset. But others don't see it that way. Consider this notable quote from a local government official:
As an employee of a small city (pop. < 3K) the difference between Auditor Anderson and Auditor Otto has been amazing. Anderson used every chance she could to embarrass local officials when they made what were nearly always honest mistakes. You had city clerks afraid to call the auditor's office to ask questions for fear they would be put under a microscope. With Auditor Otto, the staff works with local governments to ensure they are conducting themselves in accordance with state statutes. They try to stop problems before they arise, not wait in ambush in order to issue a press release later.
It may have given Pat Anderson a political advantage to bully local government officials from her pulpit, but it's not effective government because it's reactive - slamming the barn door shut after the horse is already out of the barn - and it breaks down the relationship at a time when government needs to collaborate to find new efficiencies.
Rebecca has proven it's more efficient and effective to reach out with an open hand instead of a fist, and to be proactive and help local officials to do the right thing the first time, rather than just being reactive and catching them doing the wrong thing.