As has been discussed previously, there is some debate over the form and structure of Loudoun’s government going on among the Board of Supervisors. Supervisor Waters has proposed reducing the number of Supervisors, converting some to At-large and staggering their Terms. Loudoun Progress has discussed this before.
This week the Board of Supervisors began taking action on these proposals, as reported by Scott York in his regular email to his constituents.
Tim Hemstreet, County Administrator, made a brief presentation regarding Structure and Terms of the Board of Supervisors, Form of Government and Reapportionment. He noted at the January 20, 2010 Business Meeting, an item initiated by Supervisor Waters was discussed regarding the topics of the structure and terms of the Board of Supervisors (including the idea of implementing staggered terms), the appropriate form of government for Loudoun County, and general guidelines for the redistricting process associated with the 2010 census.
Supervisor Delgaudio moved that the Board of Supervisors enter into a Committee of the Whole. (Seconded by Supervisor Waters. The motion FAILED 2-7, Supervisors Delgaudio and Waters voted yes.)
The Board agreed to forward this item to the September 8, 2010 Board Business Meeting for a Committee of the Whole discussion of the issue.
The Board also agreed not to continue further discussion of adding at-large members to the Board. (Emphasis mine – P13) – Board of Supervisors Report
It is gratifying to see that the first of three bad ideas has been dropped. The Board of Supervisors will not be converting some of its membership to At-Large. This means that all Supervisors other than the Chairman will continue to be elected at the District level, thus sustaining the interpersonal, direct relationship between Supervisors and neighborhoods in Loudoun.
Follow below the fold for the interesting report from County Administrator Hemstreet on another of the bad ideas, staggered terms.The Loudoun Times-Mirror reports on the analysis of staggered terms done by County staff.
A report recently released by County Administrator Tim Hemstreet outlining the merits and pitfalls of restructuring Loudoun’s government system says supervisors would focus more on campaigning than work should the board move to staggered election terms.
“Elections and campaigning will not be uncommon for at least a year leading up to an election, and even those members not up for election are likely to be involved in campaigns,” the report said. “As such, and based on past experiences, it is plausible that the board may only achieve one year of effective work before going back into “campaign mode.” – Loudoun Times-Mirror
As things stand, Supervisors generally get three years of work done (for better or for worse) before going back into campaign mode. This allows independence among Supervisors as well as a focus on pragmatic results. Going to staggered terms means that there would always been an election around the corner (think Congress, with elections every 2 years) and encourage a more narrow focus on issues, rather than providing Supervisors with the time to really get into issues and work together as colleagues.
It’s a bad idea.