Would
changing the organizational structure of the Knox County Board make the body
more effective?
by
Mike Kroll
In
some way reorganizing the Knox County Board is somewhat akin to herding cats,
it's hard to see much payoff compared to the effort expended. Nevertheless that
is exactly what some Knox County Board members want to do. Following decades of
board operation under the so-called Òcommittee systemÓ organization the county
board reorganized itself into a Òcommittee-of-the-whole systemÓ one year ago.
Now a group of board members led by Carolyn Porter and Alan Pickrel want to
return to the former committee system. Other board members including chair Jan
Occhi and Wayne Saline have voiced their preference to continue using the
committee-of-the-whole system for at least one more year. While a few other
county board members have voiced opinions on either side (notably Steve Johnson
(who sides with Occhi and Saline) and, to a somewhat lesser extent, Lowell
Mannhardt (in support of Porter and Pickrel) most have either stayed out of
this public discussion or equivocated. It is expected that the November 28th
County Board meeting agenda will include this as an action item as it was
discussed at the November 9th meeting.
Under
the present committee-of-the-whole organization the Knox County Board meets
twice monthly and all board members hear reports and discussion regarding all
Knox County business. The former committee system saw the board divided into
various committees with responsibilities assigned by the county board chair.
Each of these committees met once per month and discussed in detail all
business within their purview and voted on recommendations to the full county
board. The county board met as a whole once per month and each committee chair
reported back to the full board and committee decisions were voted upon by the
complete county board. Most county board members were formally assigned to a
pair of committees but were free to attend any other committee meeting at their
discretion.
One
obvious structural difference between the two systems was to reduce by one the
number of required county board meetings each board members was expected to
attend each month, three under the committee system and only two under the
committee-of-the-whole system. Another key difference was that as each
committee (excepting the executive committee) had its own chair the committee
system created more opportunities for the most active county board members to
play a leadership role. Once these committees were eliminated the only formally
acknowledged leadership position became that of the board chair elected by
county board members at an organizational meeting in December of even numbered
years.
For
perpetually cash-strapped Knox County one more difference between the two
organizational structures is the cost of board operations. According to
financial figures attained from Knox County Treasurer Robin Davis the county
has saved nearly $10,300 in per diem ($35 per meeting per board member) and
mileage expenses for county board members since changing to the
committee-of-the-whole system. During fiscal year 2004 when they still operated
under the committee system Knox County paid board members a total of $26,652.50
for attending board meetings plus an additional $2,265.20 in mileage reimbursement.
In the past year under the committee-of-the-whole system has cost an estimated
$18,619. It should be noted, according to Davis, that not every county board
member submits a per diem request for every meeting attended nor requests
reimbursement for all county-related mileage accumulated. On the other hand I
must note that historically there have always been county board members who
energetically played the per diem game for their own benefit.
ÒFrom
the viewpoint of my office the committee-of-the-whole organization appears to
support a more fiscally responsible county board,Ó commented Davis. ÒUnder the
committee structure it didn't seem as if each committee really exerted the
necessary degree of financial control but often times became vocal advocates
for increased spending within their own areas of responsibility. And overall
county board oversight was hampered by the comparative lack of detailed
information and understanding by county board members outside of the committee
itself. Committees also became very territorial and actually took offense if
other county board members dared question any recommendation they made. The
effect was to compartmentalize both information and decision-making with a
committee and committee chair that identified more strongly with their own
piece of county business than with the big picture.Ó
Many
county board observers, including some of the county board members themselves
have noted critically the tendency for committees to become cheerleaders for
the parts of county government they were supposed to oversee. One board member
went so far as to tell me that it was comparatively easy for a hired
administrator or elected official to cultivate unconditional loyalty from the
committee and that committee chairs often became unquestioning political
allies. One example of this problem was the steady downward financial spiral of
the Knox County Nursing Home under the committee system. Another example was
the gleam Highway and Landfill committee members got in their eyes every time
they came to the full county board with a request to lease or purchase a shiny
new piece of heavy equipment. The literally looked like kids in the holiday toy
section of the department store telling mom and dad how much they just had to
have the new Tonka bulldozer or Barbi playhouse.
ÒI
think the county board is operating a whole lot better than some people want to
think under the new committee-of-the-whole system,Ó said Saline. ÒEvery county
board member now has much more complete information available before the two
monthly meetings even if some of them don't take full advantage of it. Under
the old committee system people thought they knew more about the operations
covered by their own committees but that wasn't necessarily so and they sure
didn't have anywhere near the currently available information regarding other
areas of county business. Today we have more information over a broader area of
Knox County government and a wider group of board members can have meaningful
input on board issues than ever before. We still have some who contribute much
more than others on the county board but now they can participate in all areas
rather than just one or two.Ó
Alan
Pickrel and Carolyn Porter disagree with Saline here. ÒToo many decisions are
now being made by a small group of 3-5 county board members and more members
are uninvolved than ever before,Ó claimed Pickrel. ÒI fell like I know so much
less about most of the county business than I did before. I always felt that I
had a strong handle on issues pertaining to the committees I was on but now I
don't have the same comfort level. We get this big packet of information but we
have far less interaction with department heads and elected officials than with
the committee system.Ó
ÒI
see the chair doing way more than she should under the current system while
other county board members aren't even engaged in the process,Ó said Porter.
ÒThe committee-of-the-whole reduces the level of responsibility for most county
board members and makes me feel less like a participant and more like an
observer. We have a stronger board now than in the recent past; a less
political board and a more progressively minded one. Under the current system a
lot of county business is handled by only a few in an informal manner rather than
before a formal county board discussion.Ó
Not
surprisingly Occhi, who was instrumental in pushing for the
committee-of-the-whole system sees it as a qualified success that should be
continued. ÒUnder the committee structure we had too much rah-rah and board
members guarding their turf instead of overseeing it. This lead to problems in
a number of county departments and even committee chairs didn't have the level
of understanding that any county board member who does their homework today can
have. I think those who are pushing to return to the committee structure are
more interested in having 'ownership' over some part of Knox County-- being
able to claim that this or that is
'their baby' and that's not an effective way to run the county.Ó
11/17/05