President's Message - Fall Issue 2001

District Meetings Highlight Association Activities

This Association has many strengths, but during the last month I have come to realize -- again -- that it is really the people of our Association that make the difference.

Your officers and staff this year traveled from Evergreen and Troy in the south to Moulton and Fort Payne north and from Tuscaloosa in the west to Wedowee in the east. The meetings again gave us the opportunity to get together, renew friendships and prepare for the upcoming 2002 legislative session.

Almost 300 people took part in the district meetings. And even though an important part of the program was devoted to hearing an update on the activities at the Association office, perhaps the most productive aspect was again getting to visit with county officials from throughout our state.

Over the years most of our Association presidents have talked of how quickly their time as president has passed. And it is hard to believe that in less than nine months, my year will be concluded. Already I am thankful for the opportunity to renew friendships and to learn from commissioners throughout the state and for being a part of an organization that will play a large part in our state's future.

During the district meetings we concluded the sessions by asking those in attendance to offer suggestions about the most pressing problems facing counties and how the Association can work in a more productive way to meet those problems. Some results were not surprising -- funding for the operation of county government, home rule authority for county commissions, and finding a way to harness the rising costs of operating the county jail topped the list of biggest problems.

But there were other issues discussed that might surprise someone who thinks county government is little more than motor graders, bulldozers and the occasional appointment to some board or commission. There was widespread concern about the location of cellular towers, the growing battle over land use regulation, cycles for property reappraisal, loss of revenue and the need for additional finances, 911 emergency system funding, disaster planning, loss of jobs in the state, tax abatements, and taxing of internet sales.

I believe this wide range of concerns -- topics that are not traditionally "county commission issues" -- signals not only a change in the way our citizens view county government, but also a change in how we view ourselves. Most of us now realize that the day of the "road commissioner" has come and gone.

The problems we face everyday are administrative problems that are at the very heart of our community's growth and economic stability. A few years ago then-president Sam Jones said during his convention speech that Alabama will not reach its full potential as long as its county governments are weak. His words still ring true today.

I learned again during our travels that the people in county government are certainly not weak. The folks running county government in Alabama are among the best and brightest public servants in our state. However, the authority and power we have been given is the source of weakness in Alabama.

As the case for constitutional reform continues to gather steam, more and more people are realizing that a meaningful revision of our constitution will focus directly on how county government operates. And the debate will focus on whether or not county commissioners are ready for the additional authority that is expected to be a part of constitutional change.

It is hard to argue that government works best when the decisions are made in close proximately to those who are affected by those decisions. That assumption is at the heart of who we are, as Americans, and how our system works.

But somehow that idea was lost when it came time to construct a pattern for county government in Alabama. Somehow those who oppose our efforts find it easier to influence the 140 members of the Alabama legislature than to bring their problems to the 361 county commissioners. It is the voters who suffer because their voices are much stronger on the local level and they can have a much stronger influence is we will only return the decisions to the local level.

Just the other day, one of our colleagues, Eli Henderson of Calhoun County, crafted a column that appeared in The Anniston Star. And although the focus of his column was whether or not the county commission should have the ability to regulate the location of a hog farm, his words are worth repeating:

"If some large corporation wants to establish a hog farm business in Calhoun County there is nothing we as county commissioners can do.

"This also holds true for junk yards and cell towers. Your county commission does not have the authority to make laws, levy taxes or zone property and we certainly cannot stop huge hog farms from locating in our county.

"Alabama has become a target for these huge corporate hog farm operations because, unlike other Southeastern states, our laws do not give local authority to local elected officials…..Please do me and other county commissioners across the state of Alabama a favor and support and demand a new constitution for Alabama."

And Eli is not the only one who believes it is time to empower our county commissions. The Birmingham News recently supported a proposed home rule referendum in Shelby County. That referendum was ratified in October by Shelby County voters and today the county commission is preparing to exercise its authority to improve the quality of life in the unincorporated areas of Shelby County.

Certainly the commissioners in Shelby and Calhoun are not the only ones ready to accept the responsibility that goes along with what we now call "self-governance." This additional authority was on everyone's mind during the district meetings. And it will continue to be the subject of media coverage and local debate in the coming months.

But even so, there are those out there who oppose additional authority for counties; who believe that county commissioners are somehow unprepared to make such decisions; and who think the power to govern should rest inside the capitol rather than the courthouse.

Well, those folks don't know county commissioners like I know them. And if they would just take the time to look around the state at what is going on with county government in the same way that we looked during the district meetings, their attitude would certainly be a whole lot different.