In principle, we wholeheartedly agree with those on the City Council who are supporting a charter amendment to change the structure of the Board of Estimates. That city spending watchdog is a toothless one in that the mayor, who holds one of the five seats and has the ability to hire and fire the occupants of two others, always gets his or her way. The other two members, the City Council president and comptroller, can raise a ruckus when they disagree with a matter that comes before the board, but they can't do anything about it. In the realm of procurement in particular, that makes the board a much less effective tool than it could be, and certainly less useful than its counterpart on the state level, the Board of Public Works.