Meeting less a shoddy idea for commissioners

Lacy Thompson speaks during a September 2013 tribute. (Deuce Niven photo)

Lacy Thompson speaks during a September 2013 tribute. (Deuce Niven photo)

It was barely over two years ago the Warren County Commission voted to change its meeting schedule from once every three months to once every month.

It was an appropriate move and one applauded by many, including the Standard, because it was a step toward making local government operate with greater efficiency. The thinking was that meeting only four times a year led to painfully slow decision making – and what an astute observation that was.

If commissioners needed more time to clarify a point, no matter how minuscule it was, it would automatically push back action three more months until the next meeting. That’s certainly no way to do business.

So it came as a relief when a majority of commissioners realized that meeting just four times a year was simply not enough. In January of 2002 they voted to increase their meetings to once every month. That’s a schedule which was promptly enacted in February 2002 and was working well by all accounts.

That’s why the decision reached by commissioners earlier this week is as puzzling as it is ill-advised. They cut their number of full county commission meetings in half by voting to meet once every other month, for a total of six meetings a year. If commissioners were in agreement that four meetings a year was not enough, it’s hard to imagine how the new schedule is much of an improvement.

Commissioners who opposed the every other month meeting schedule voiced concerns about possible time delays for important county business. They correctly asserted that, with the upcoming closing of Carrier, now is a time when Warren County government must operate at full strength, not reduce the level of activity.

The Carrier situation certainly displays the county’s need to recruit new jobs. The question that’s being asked repeatedly is where are 1,300 Carrier employees going to work when the plant shuts down in 2005?

State employment figures indicate 715 of those 1,300 Carrier workers are Warren County residents. Where are 715 people going to find jobs paying in the $40,000 to $50,000 range around these parts?

That’s a good question and one the Warren County Commission will apparently have plenty of free time to ponder since it’s only meeting once every two months.

Granted, recruiting industry and finding local jobs is the primary responsibility of the Industrial Development Board, but the county commission does play a vital role. And since Warren County has failed to land a major industry in the last 15 years, it’s difficult to believe we don’t have some room for improvement in the job-recruiting department.

The bottom line is decreasing the number of county commission meetings will only serve to place the wheels of government closer to quicksand than solid ground. This can’t be viewed as a positive step for Warren County, that is unless you believe procrastination is better than results.