ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- A D.C. suburb is seeking a unique source of advice to help with budget cuts.
Alexandria is paying professional ethicist Michael Gillette to help with moral issues involved with deciding what should say and what should go, the Washington Post reported.
Among the tough choices Gillette's helped the city make are:
- Apartments being built for the mentally ill were temporarily turned into housing for the disabled.
- A parenting counselor for jailed minors with kids was cut while an aid for belligerent preschoolers was kept.
- Drug prevention was cut back, but methadone pills remain available.
The ethical advice has been helpful, City Manager James K. Hartmann said. But some question the decision to pay for ethical advice.
