Following a lengthy discussion on multi-man commissions versus sole commissioners during a Tuesday forum, an informal straw poll showed an overwhelmingly desire for change in Pickens County.
Of those in attendance, 75 people indicated they favored changing to a multi-man commission, 26 expressed a preference to stay with a sole commissioner and six said they were undecided in an informal vote taken at the conclusion of the forum held at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Family on Cove Road.
The educational forum hosted by the local League of Women Voters, North Georgia Progressives, Pickens Democrats and Republican parties featured speakers from the state as well as local opinions.
Prior to the speakers, the crowd was asked, by show of hands, to indicate if they already had an opinion on multi-man versus sole commissioner. More than half indicated they had an opinion.
At the close of the meeting, the crowd was asked if anyone had changed their mind based on what they had heard - six people indicated they had reached a different conclusion during the evening.
While strong opinions were expressed, a vast majority of discussion was technical -- relaying information on how a county can switch; a survey of other counties that have switched; details of different government styles; questions about the ballot process and other steps involved.
Mike Stewart, from the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia led off with ten minutes allotted for an overview of government styles found in Georgia.
In a handout presented, Stewart showed that a wide variety of governing styles are present in Georgia. He said there is no official consensus of which is the best form of government for any county.
“As for pros and cons,” he said. “It’s up to you. Whatever works the best for you.”
John Aldridge, who served as the moderator added, “There is no set pattern.There is a hodge podge [of governing styles in Georgia]. There is no real model that Pickens County can follow. It would be up to our study committee to come up with something and put it in a form that can be put in front of the voters.”
Stewart noted that there are nine sole commissioner counties in Georgia (see sidetable in next week’s print edition), including Pickens.
Murray County uses a sole commissioner government now after switching to a multi-man commission for four years and then voting to return to one man.
Bartow County, one of the larger counties in the state, retains a sole commissioner after voters rejected a change on the non-binding ballot there.
Stewart said there are counties both bigger and smaller than Pickens with sole commissioners. He said size alone isn’t a primary deciding factor.
Stewart said even among multi-man commissions, styles of government and structure vary greatly.
Aside from the number of commission members, there are also differences such as whether one commissioner serves as the chairman and operates as the daily manager or whether the board hires a non-elected county manager.
During time allotted for debate on the pros and cons, panelists from the sponsoring groups presented their views.
Speaking in favor of the sole commissioner, Joe Fore, a retired engineer from Bent Tree, said Pickens County hasn’t grown large enough to justify changing to a multi-man board, which would cause taxes to go up.
Fore said of the nine counties with a sole commissioner in Georgia, seven are in North Georgia and those, including Pickens, have some of the lowest millage rates in the state.
Fore also argued that a sole commissioner is more accessible and able to provide quick response to questions from residents.
Fore argued that a multi-man commission would greatly cause expenses and taxes to increase as each new commission member would get a secretary, car, office and salary.
But this was refuted by several speakers, including a Dawson County Commissioner, saying that even in the largest counties the commission members aren’t given any perks.
One speaker said, in Cobb County, except for the commissioner chairman, the other commission members are given a single meeting room and one secretary for the whole board. They are only paid a token amount, much like the school board members in most counties.
The Dawson County Commissioner in attendance said he isn’t given any car, office, secretary and only a very small stipend for pay.
Fore later admitted he had used “overkill” in claiming the expense increases, but said there is no arguing that there is less direct responsibility when you have board who can play the “Potomac Two-Step.”
Speaking in favor of changing to a multi-man commission, panelists David Robinson, a retired urban planner, and Bill Gibson, a retired military serviceman, both said with growth and the accompanying diversity, voters will demand more political representation than a single person.
Robinson said, “Conversion to a multi-man commission is inevitable.”
He cited the total number of people as well as the density of people per square mile as creating management issues that will overwhelm a sole person charged with operating the government.
He said the growing population brings with it a growing diversity in the people, including wide differences in age, income and work patterns.
These differing lifestyles will create groups seeking more representation, according to the pro-change panelists.
He noted the growing suburban segment of the population will have more expectation of the services than the traditional rural segment of the population.
Gibson said he would reiterate much of what Robinson had argued.
He said he had lived in Cobb County when the change was made from their last sole commissioner, Ernest Barrett. He said Barrett had been a strong and good commissioner, but when the change came he accepted the “checks and balances” that came with the multi-man board.
“Right now in Pickens County we have a good commissioner,” he said. “But it’s always possible to elect a scoundrel. Then what do you do? He has the power.”
Gibson said during rural times it was possible for a commissioner to know everyone in the county and represent them well.
“But that is changing and changing at a rapid pace,” he said. |
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