Is Charter Right for Carroll County? - The Tentacle.com by Kevin E. Dayhoff January 23, 2013

Is Charter Right for Carroll County? -  The Tentacle.com by Kevin E. Dayhoff January 23, 2013

http://www.thetentacle.com/ShowArticle.cfm?mydocid=5583

The decision last November by Frederick County voters to go to a Charter form of government has kept local political junkies preoccupied ever since the election results were announced.

The ballot issue last fall was quite contentious in Frederick County and even the preliminary discussions over exploring such a change in Carroll County has already had a polarizing affect with people taking sides quickly.

Ever since the county was formed in 1837 citizens have tinkered with the county’s form of government.

In 1968 Carroll County voters rejected both Charter government and Code Home Rule. In 1984, Code Home Rule was defeated.

In 1992 Charter government was defeated at the ballot box. In 1998 the voters rejected a referendum to increase the Board of Commissioners to five at-large members and rejected a Charter form of government.

I participated, in vain, in the Carroll County Committee for Charter Government, in the effort to bring a Charter to Carroll County – that was defeated at the polls in 1992.

In the late 1960s, 1980s and early 1990s, many of my close friends and colleagues disagreed with my advocacy for Charter government.

Like most former mayors – who have experienced (municipal) charter government, I strongly believe that Charter is a move in the correct direction for a more cost-effective, efficient and citizen-oriented government.

I bristle that currently local Carroll County decisions are made by people in Annapolis, who do not even know where Carroll County is.

I believe in local control and local decisions. And I am convinced that, in the end, Charter is a cheaper form of government than the anachronistic inefficient and ineffective government we currently have in Carroll County.

According to numerous media accounts including that of Ryan Marshall in the Frederick Gazette, “With the results of Tuesday’s election, Frederick joins Baltimore City and Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Dorchester, Harford, Howard, Montgomery, Prince George’s, Talbot and Wicomico counties with charter government…”

And according to a thoughtful opinion written on December 4 by Jackie Jones, of Taneytown, the chair of the Carroll County Democratic Central Committee, “Carroll is now the largest of the remaining six commissioner counties of 24 jurisdictions in the state…”

Although there have been many conspiracy theories put forth over the years as to why other community leaders, who care about the future of Carroll as much as I do, disagreed.

In the end, they were simply concerned that it would cost too much money.

I am well aware of the suggestion that the opposition to Charter was all about those in power “who didn’t want to lose the power that they had…”

In my experience, many of “those in power,” who are accused of selfishly taking care of their personal power base at the expense of the long-range interests of the citizens of Carroll County, are friends of mine. And I sure hope they were being straight with me when they said they were worried that Charter is a step in the direction of expansive and expensive big government.

Moreover, I share their concern… http://www.thetentacle.com/ShowArticle.cfm?mydocid=5583

+++++++++++++++

Kevin Dayhoff is an artist - and a columnist for:

Patuxent Publishing Co., The Carroll Eagle: www.explorecarroll.com: http://www.explorecarroll.com/search/?s=Dayhoff&action=GO
The Tentacle: www.thetentacle.com http://www.thetentacle.com/author.cfm?MyAuthor=41

Westminster Patch: http://westminster.patch.com/search?keywords=Dayhoff

Soundtrack: http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/ = http://www.kevindayhoff.net/
Kevin Dayhoff Art: http://kevindayhoffart.blogspot.com/ or http://kevindayhoffart.com/ = http://www.kevindayhoff.com/
Kevin Dayhoff Westminster: http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/ or http://www.westgov.net/ = www.kevindayhoff.org

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kevindayhoffTwitpic: http://twitpic.com/photos/kevindayhoff
Kevin Dayhoff's The New Bedford Herald: http://kbetrue.livejournal.com/ = www.newbedfordherald.net

Tumblr: Kevin Dayhoff Banana Stems www.kevindayhoff.tumblr.com/
Smurfs: http://babylonfluckjudd.blogspot.com/
Google profile: https://profiles.google.com/kevindayhoff/

E-mail: kevindayhoff(at)gmail.com
My http://www.explorecarroll.com/ columns appear in the copy of the Baltimore Sunday Sun that is distributed in Carroll County: https://subscribe.baltsun.com/Circulation/
+++++++++++++++

*****

Kevin Dayhoff Soundtrack: http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/ = http://www.kevindayhoff.net/ Kevin Dayhoff Art: http://kevindayhoffart.blogspot.com/ or http://kevindayhoffart.com/ = http://www.kevindayhoff.com/ Kevin Dayhoff Westminster: http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/ or http://www.westgov.net/ = www.kevindayhoff.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/kevindayhoff Twitpic: http://twitpic.com/photos/kevindayhoff Kevin Dayhoff's The New Bedford Herald: http://kbetrue.livejournal.com/ = www.newbedfordherald.net Explore Carroll: www.explorecarroll.com The Tentacle: www.thetentacle.com

20061110 Is it time for Charter government in Frederick County?

Is it time for Charter government in Frederick County?

And for that matter, Carroll County too?

November 10th, 2006

In Thursday’s November 9^th, 2006 edition of the Gazette, there is an article by Sherry Greenfield, “Brinkley pushes for alternate form of county government;” which reports that Maryland State Senator David R. Brinkley (R-Dist. 4) of New Market is taking a hard look at the form of government in Frederick County.

This is significant for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that members of elected delegations to Annapolis have been historically reluctant to embrace such changes as it has been perceived in the past that it diminishes their power.

One could argue that position; however, these days there are plenty of pressing statewide issues for which state elected officials to focus their time.

Senator Brinkley however is not known for short-sighted approaches to what is in the best interests of the citizens he serves. For Senator Brinkley it seldom is about himself and it is consistently all about what is in the best interests of Maryland, Frederick County – and Western Maryland.

I served on the Committee for Charter Government in its beginning exploratory stage, in Carroll County in the late 1980s and although that effort may have been, in hindsight, a bit premature, the time will come, and not in the too far distance future, that Charter Government will be what is best for Carroll County also.

I remember well the discussions in 1967 that led to Code Home Rule being put on the ballot in 1968. That effort was defeated and yes - Code Home Rule is not Charter Government, but amazingly, many of the issues that were brought forth in 1967 are still issues today. (Anyway, after a great deal of study, I have determined that Code Home Rule is not the answer. Charter Government is the answer...)

Certainly the time for Charter Government has come for Frederick County - and in Carroll County it would be wise to start taking a hard and intelligent look at Charter Government for future serious consideration..

On the bigger picture, this last election has seen folks get elected to the Maryland General Assembly that will, if you can believe it, take that august body much further to the left.

In the last several sessions there has been a serious erosion for “local courtesy” and the time may be just on the horizon when that august liberal body will be increasingly intolerant of the needs and wants of the counties in the state that need to take local lawmaking to Annapolis.

Numerous examples are available. One awkward moment came in the last session when the Maryland General Assembly played games with a bill brought forward by the Carroll County Delegation to Annapolis over designation of the five districts for which to elect five commissioners. The bill never passed.

Although this delighted Carroll County Democrats and various moderate Republicans - - and gave them wonderful sound bites for the election as to the degree of capability and effectiveness of the delegation; it is a slippery slope that may come back to haunt all of us.

It was very bad precedent for all commissioner forms of government counties throughout the state. It was particularly interesting to see folks who complained in the past of local citizens going to Annapolis to encourage the Maryland General Assembly to not pass certain legislation; do the very same thing with the “five district” legislation…

The Gazette has been consistent as to matter of Charter Government in Frederick County. See here to read the paper’s July 28th, 2004 editorial advocating for a change: “20040728 Time to change Frederick county government gazed.”

Another interesting read is Frederick and Washington County Delegate Richard B. Weldon Jr.’s Tentacle column from October 16, 2006: “The Case for Charter:”

“The debate about the form of governance employed by Frederick County has raged back and forth for decades. Voters have weighed in several times, always voting to retain the current form, the Board of County Commissioners.”

Read the rest here.

Meanwhile Frederick County has changed a great deal in the last 100 years. Just before World War I - in 1900, the county had a population of 51,920. Agriculture was king and Frederick County led the state in the production of wheat and corn. The county economy was good and local jobs plentiful with 353 manufacturing industries, but there was never-the-less, a clamor to attract more local jobs and industry.

In light of today’s computer technology, almost fifty years after a commissioner form of government was established in Frederick County, the first typewriter made it into the Commissioners’ office in 1898. In 1917, the first auto theft was recorded in the county.

Just before World War 1, one of the biggest citizen complaints was the road system. Alright, perhaps some things have not changed… The tax rate in 1903 was 87 cents; however the 1909 to 1911 Board of Commissioners raised the rate to $1.18.

Since World War 1, the form of government in Frederick County has changed several times.

From 1748 to 1851, the form of government was a Levy Court appointed by the governor every year. In 1851, it changed to five commissioners elected every two years. In 1934 the number of commissioners changed to three, only to be changed back to five in 1974, where it has remained to this day.

Considering the increase in population since 1974, not to mention, the increase in the complexity of the challenges facing local government these days, perhaps it is time to change the form of government again to join the other eight counties in Maryland who have Charter government.

Ms. Greenfield begins her Gazette article:

State Sen. David R. Brinkley wants the new Frederick Board of County Commissioners to consider changing the county’s form of government.

Brinkley (R-Dist. 4) of New Market, is interested in changing from the current commissioner form of government to a charter, which calls for local voters to create and approve a document that describes how the government will be run.

‘‘I’m encouraging them to get the ball rolling, so if there is a change that has to take place [the Frederick delegation] can be there to help them do it,” Brinkley said.

The idea that the county should change its form of government has been batted around for some time. The current boom in population has spurred it along further.

In the late 1950s and again in 1991, county residents voted down a charter. In 1991, 67 percent opposed a charter government.

‘‘There has always been discussion of changing our form of government,” Brinkley said. ‘‘...There are those that claim they don’t want to go through the delegation and they want a single person at the top running things.”

Read the rest of her article here.

And stay tuned for the rest of the “Charter Government” story as it continues to unfold, as I have it on good authority that this story is not going to go away anytime soon for either Frederick County or Carroll County.

Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster Maryland USA. E-mail him at: kdayhoff@carr.org www.thetentacle.com Westminster Eagle Opinion and Winchester Report www.thewestminstereagle.com www.kevindayhoff.com has moved to http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/

20040728 Time to change Frederick county government gazed

Time to change Frederick county government

Gazette editorial from July 28, 2004: Time to change Frederick county government

Unfortunately, I do not have the URL for this Gazette editorial available. I will paste the entire editorial in this post for a reference source for future discussion about the future forms of government in both Carroll and Frederick County… Perhaps there has come a time for Charter government in both Carroll and Frederick Counties. Kevin Dayhoff November 8^th, 2006

Time to change our county government

Many questions tend to surface every election.

Among them are these two: Should we give a pay raise to our county commissioners to compensate for the long hours they put in for what is supposed to be a part-time job? Should we change our form of government?

These questions may seem unrelated, but they are not. The form of government we have in Frederick County has a lot to do with the kind of leadership we elect, and what we expect of those leaders, as well as what we are willing to pay them.

These two issues will not go away given that our once rural and small county is growing into a major metropolis. As the population continues its climb, and the demands put on the five board members follow suit, the time has come for a change in the county's form of government.

Under our current form of county government, commissioners receive $30,000 a year for what is supposed to be a part-time job, but all five work at least 40 hours a week, and some put in many more hours. They meet twice a week year-round as a body to debate policy and make budgets, but each member also serves as a liaison to county departments, and they all attend public functions as commissioners and interact with residents every day.

County residents have repeatedly voted against a change in government, most recently in 2002 when residents voted against code home rule, a decision we supported because it was not a form of government suitable to the needs of our population.

But in a 1997 Mason-Dixon survey for The Gazette, 78 percent of the 411 residents polled favored a charter government that included a county executive and council. We believe had the voters been given that option in 2002, they would have chosen it.

Maryland allows three types of government for its counties: commissioner, code home rule and charter. In a nutshell, under the commissioner form of government, board members who are elected at large must present legislation to the county's eight-member delegation to the Maryland General Assembly. The delegation, not our county commissioners, chooses whether to take the bills to the full assembly in Annapolis, which must approve any new laws or taxes.

Under code home rule, commissioners remain, but they have a little more power to propose and enact legislation, and power to levy taxes and borrow money through issuing bonds, although both are regulated by the General Assembly.

In a chartered government, the county has a system that most resembles our national system, with an executive and a legislative body. Under charter, local voters create and approve a document that describes how the government will run, including how many seats would be on the council; whether or not they would be at-large, districts, or a combination; whether or not there would be an executive branch; what checks and balances would exist, and more.

The approval of the charter means the voters agree to be governed by the document.

A wise man once said, "The form of government is only as good as the people we elect to serve us. If we elect idiots, we get idiotic government no matter the form of that government." Whatever our form of government, we need to elect good people who have the interest of the voters at heart.

But with the growth that has come, we do not just need good people, but a better form of government, more suited to the growing demands of county residents.

Our commissioners lead a county of 2,000 employees, with an operating budget of $330 million. We pay a county manager to run the day-to-day part of the government, but rely on five part-time people, making $30,000 a year, to run a county this size.

A $330 million company would pay its executives significantly more, and would expect them to work full time. We realize, of course, that there are some differences between government work and the private sector, so we are not advocating a six-figure salary, but we should recognize that the job of county commissioner is not part time. We should call it what it is, a full-time job, and make the pay equal to that to attract good talent that does not have to work second jobs to make ends meet.

The Frederick County delegation to the General Assembly tells the commissioners to delegate their work if they have too much, but it's not that simple. This commission form of government has existed in Frederick for 153 years, and what was state of the art a century ago is obsolete today.

Frederick County needs to control its own destiny, not be tethered by legislators who are looking out for the state's interest. While state and county interest might coincide most of the time, the two can conflict.

It is time for Frederick to have a charter form of government, where the voters decide how the government operates. Our commission form of government has too much oversight by the General Assembly, and local wishes can be overridden by eight people, the county's delegation to the General Assembly.

And beyond them, laws we want must then be approved in the General Assembly. That's too much control in too few hands and by too many people who do not have a lot to do with our county. We have reached the point of maturity, and should govern ourselves.

According to "Home Rule Options in Maryland" by Victor K. Tervala, the state has two procedures to adopt a charter. Neither is easy, and both can take years. Of the nine charter governments in the state, most have used the original method, and that would be our preference.

The process is thus: county voters request the creation of a charter board via petition (with 10,000 of the county's registered voters, or 20 percent); commissioners nominate five people to draft the charter, or petitions would have to be circulated to nominate the board; at the next general or congressional election, people vote whether or not to create a charter board with the members presented; if the charter board is approved, it has 18 months to draft a charter and present it to the commissioners; people would then vote on it during the next general or congressional election.

The process is long and complicated, but good government is the result of thoughtful and deliberate movements.

We call on Frederick County residents to bring a petition to change the nature of our government.

To do so this fall would take a monumental, grassroots effort. The county commissioners would need to nominate a charter board by Sept. 22, no fewer than 40 days before the Nov. 2 election. Alternatively, five people could be nominated via petition (signed by no fewer than 2,000 registered county voters, or 5 percent of the voters) by Oct. 13, no fewer than 20 days before the election.

Even if we are not successful this fall, we call on the residents to continue the process until we have the kind of government that reflects the needs of our county.

####