Soul searching at the height of county government

County executive on the horizon?

By CHARLIE BUTERBAUGH

MONTICELLO, NY — As Sullivan County legislators vet applicants for the highest-ranking spot in county management, a commission will consider whether the appointed position should exist at all.

Management lapses in the departments of Public Works and Auditing and tension that waxed political between former County Manager Dan Briggs, a Republican, and Democratic legislators, have given reason to do some “soul searching,” said Chris Cunningham, the Legislature’s chairman.

“But that’s a good thing,” Cunningham added.

By the end of the month, legislators will assemble a 13-member commission to review the Sullivan County Charter, which established a corporate model for county government in 1995. Just as an elected board of directors selects a chief executive to run a company, the elected board of legislators appoints a manager to run the county’s finances and oversee departments, said Eugene Blabey, chairman of the commission that drafted the original charter.

If board members are unhappy, they can fire the person in charge, which is what the Legislature’s Democrats did last month when they ousted Briggs with their 5-4 majority.

Some residents called the firing undemocratic and appealed for a new system of government that would hand voters the power to elect a county executive.

Cunningham rooted his resolution to replace Briggs in what the charter says, though his success vexed Republican legislators and hastened the appointment of the commission, which Cunningham has supported.

The new commission’s review could culminate in a recommendation to eliminate the appointed county manager position and replace it with an elected county executive, also a measure that Cunningham has supported.

The review will begin early next year, over a period of six months, with assistance from County Attorney Sam Yasgur and his staff.

During their September 8 executive committee meeting, most legislators expressed caution about the governmental shift, though Jonathan Rouis deemed it an “inevitability.” All agreed that the change would take at least a few years. The county would likely hold a referendum to poll voters on the transition, if the commission recommends it.

“At this point the county can’t afford a county executive,” said Legislator Kathy LaBuda.

Legislator Leni Binder agreed, saying, “I don’t think a population of 80,000 residents can support that kind of spending,” adding that the county executive would appoint a financial officer and generate additional costs stemming from attorneys’ fees.

Legislator Ron Hiatt said the county is not diverse enough to present a qualified candidate. “Not until we’re urban anyway,” Hiatt said.

If the top management position were an elected one, the only qualification of candidates would be that they reside in Sullivan County. The original commission that drafted the charter agreed with Hiatt and recommended against the elected executive position mainly because members wanted someone who had experience in public administration.

Blabey said the commission was concerned about the “relatively small” pool of talent available in a smaller county. He said: “Making it an appointed position allows you to recruit,” or advertise in national publications like The Wall Street Journal, something the county is currently doing.

The only way the Legislature can require qualifications from candidates seeking the top management position is to make it an appointed position, Blabey said. Such prerequisites now include a masters degree in public administration and five years of experience working in the field.

Also, counties functioning under the elected executive scenario in 1995, such as Albany and Monroe, were experiencing politically driven feuds, Blabey said. The model, he said, sets the government up in such a way that the Legislature’s majority subscribes to one party and the county executive subscribes to another.

“That’s not good for county government,” Blabey said, adding that the scenario often breeds conflict wherein the majority leader sees himself or herself as the next county executive and become less than willing to assist the person elected for the job.

The result, Blabey said, is a sequence of “divisive battles between two co-equal forces.”

“To my recollection there was no serious support on the commission that wrote [the charter] for an elected county executive position,” Blabey said.

Still, the Legislature will direct the new commission to consider the shift. Members will also consider a departure from the state government model by instituting staggered terms for legislators.

Cunningham stressed that the electors making up the commission would not be micromanaged.

Binder said she’d like to see “a little of the philosopher at work” as the commission begins its review.

“Let’s not lose the idealism,” Binder said. “Be the idealist, but be prepared to be the pragmatist.”

Department of Personnel Commissioner Pamela Rourke said the application deadline for the vacant county manager position is October 31. At that point, an evaluation process, including first- and second-round interviews, will commence, and then the Legislature will select a candidate for the job.

“I would predict that by February or March, we will have someone on board,” Rourke said.