July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Some reform proposals hit sour notes (01/08/08)
Editorial
Jay County has had a pretty good track record over the years when it comes to the quality of its elected officials.
Sure, there have been some disappointments and a few bad apples. But they're out-numbered by the competent folks of both parties who have been willing to face the voters.
Maybe that's why we're so skeptical of the "reforms" proposed by the governor's bipartisan commission on local government.
And maybe the county's first-hand experience with school consolidation is behind our skepticism about the commission's proposals on school governance.
At the courthouse level, what the commission has proposed would concentrate power in the hands of a few individuals and transfer large areas of authority from elected officials to appointed officials.
A county executive would have enormous sway over the workings of local government, replacing the elected sheriff, county commissioners, auditor, assessor, treasurer, and surveyor. The clerk's job would be merged into the local court system.
The commission argues that a beefed up county council would act as a counterweight to the executive. But it doesn't take much of an imagination to conjure up images of bossism and machine politics.
Even under the best of circumstances, meanwhile, the proposals would further insulate those in power from the voter.
At the schoolhouse level, the commission has proposed forcing smaller school districts to consolidate so that they'd fit within a state-mandated minimum size.
School consolidation makes sense, of course. That's why we did it here years ago.
But consolidation can't be forced. It's a complicated and often painful process. The debates here raged for decades, and if you raise the topic you can still get a good argument going in some quarters.
What's most striking about the commission's proposals is that they run counter to some of the core principles of the governor's own party.
For a couple of generations, Republicans have championed home rule and have railed against the heavyhandedness of big government. And that message found an audience because it rang true.
As to the "reform" proposals, they simply hit a sour note. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
Sure, there have been some disappointments and a few bad apples. But they're out-numbered by the competent folks of both parties who have been willing to face the voters.
Maybe that's why we're so skeptical of the "reforms" proposed by the governor's bipartisan commission on local government.
And maybe the county's first-hand experience with school consolidation is behind our skepticism about the commission's proposals on school governance.
At the courthouse level, what the commission has proposed would concentrate power in the hands of a few individuals and transfer large areas of authority from elected officials to appointed officials.
A county executive would have enormous sway over the workings of local government, replacing the elected sheriff, county commissioners, auditor, assessor, treasurer, and surveyor. The clerk's job would be merged into the local court system.
The commission argues that a beefed up county council would act as a counterweight to the executive. But it doesn't take much of an imagination to conjure up images of bossism and machine politics.
Even under the best of circumstances, meanwhile, the proposals would further insulate those in power from the voter.
At the schoolhouse level, the commission has proposed forcing smaller school districts to consolidate so that they'd fit within a state-mandated minimum size.
School consolidation makes sense, of course. That's why we did it here years ago.
But consolidation can't be forced. It's a complicated and often painful process. The debates here raged for decades, and if you raise the topic you can still get a good argument going in some quarters.
What's most striking about the commission's proposals is that they run counter to some of the core principles of the governor's own party.
For a couple of generations, Republicans have championed home rule and have railed against the heavyhandedness of big government. And that message found an audience because it rang true.
As to the "reform" proposals, they simply hit a sour note. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
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