Re: optional forms of government

[Kenneth Gallant <gallantk@uidaho.edu>]

Bill's posting raises some of the important issues concerning optional
forms of government.  I still believe a vote to ADOPT is best, by a wide
margin.

Why should elective politics be out of the choice of assessor, sheriff,
and other officers?  Well, I think we remember a former sheriff who was
accused of hiring and firing deputies for political reasons.  I live
outside Viola, and don't want my local police chosen on a partisan basis.
Let's put it this way:  For those of you who live in Moscow, would you
prefer to elect  your police chief in a partisan election?

I would also prefer it if my tax assessor were not chosen in a partisan
way.

Do you think the best possible law enforcement officer or tax assessor
wants to run for office every few years?  On average, I would suggest
probably not.

And I want good officials turned out of office due to term
limits, which I think is scheduled to happen to our current assessor
pretty soon.

 Bill is worried about concentration of power, with two commissioners
shutting out the third.  Unfortunately, that can happen now, and the other
elected officials can do nothing about it.  That's a problem of
democracy--majorities rule.  What the County Manager system does is
provide some insulation from partisanship for the services that the
county actually delivers to the people.

Bill suggests that Commissioners not surrounded by other elected officials
could become corrupt.  This is why the Study Commission kept an elected
Criminal Prosecutor--to act as a check on possible corrupt officials.

Unfortunately, corruption can happen even where there are
other elected officials.  My favorite (or least favorite) example is
Oklahoma in the early
1980's, where about 150 current and former county commissioners were
jailed for corruption.  (On average, I find Idaho government less corrupt
than most places I have lived.)

Where would we get a good county manager?  Probably from the same places
Moscow has gotten good city managers.  Would it cost something?  Yes, but
not much more than the suggestion Tom Idol (the one member of the Study
Commission against this change) made to hire an Administrative Services
Manager to deal with the administrative problems in Latah County.  After a
breaking in period, I suggest the new system will be more efficient than
the old.

Now it will be a bit difficult to vote at all on this issue, and you can't
vote Yes or No.  You have to go way to the back of the ballot, after all
of the state issues, and there you will see a page on Optional Forms of
County Government.  I urge you to vote on the line that says

	"In Favor of Adopting the Commission-Manager form . . . .."


Kenneth S. Gallant
Moscow, Idaho 83844-2322 USA
208-885-6541 (phone)
208-885-4628 (fax)
gallantk@uidaho.edu