Use of County Vehicles

   On 31 September ESO received an e-mail from "Concerned Citizen" with the e-mail address <againstessex@(omitted)> reporting the possible wrongful personal use of an Essex County Vehicle.  ESO is not part of the County Administration nor does it have law enforcement authority. ESO does oppose waste, fraud, and abuse and believes that all the County Ordinances, Policies, Regulations and other tools of responsible management should be easily accessible (available on the internet and in print at the library) to all the citizens of Essex County. Unfortunately, we didn't find a policy.

 

   The new County Administrator found that there are both an old and a new policy.  The old policy is primarily an administrative document dealing with titles, accidents, tags and insurance, etc. and doesn't seem to prescribe who, when, and how county vehicles may be used.  The new policy is explicit as to who, when, and how county officials and employees may use county vehicles.  It also encompasses the use of all motorized equipment, including construction equipment.  Finally, it incorporates a safe driving program to ensure that vehicle and equipment operators are properly licensed.

 

   This vehicle and equipment policies consolidate and will be coordinated with the new Essex County Personnel Policy Manual which will soon be published.  The final version will be proposed to the Board of Supervisors for Adoption/Readopt ion in the next few months.

 

   Back to the report by "Concerned Citizen."  The best way to initiate an inquiry about a possible waste, fraud, or abuse complaint is to immediately notify the County Administrator. 

 

   Specifically, regarding Essex County owned vehicles, other than those assigned to the Sheriff's Department and the School Board, there are only four county positions who have "Take Home" dedicated vehicles for Official Use.  They are: The Building and Zoning Official, the Maintenance Supervisor, the EMS Chief, and the Emergency Management Supervisor.  There are also occasions where it may be deemed that the use of a county vehicle for travel to meetings, training, conferences, etc. may be more cost effective than paying mileage for the use of a personal vehicle.  If so, the County Administrator may approve such use or may delegate that authority to a Department Supervisor. 

 

   ESO looks forward to the time when all County Ordinances, Policies, Instructions, budgets,etc. will be current and easily accessible an Essex County comprehensive web site and in print at our Public Library

 

John R. Clickener

County Chain of Command Made Clear

   Back on 31 July ESO asked the Board of Supervisors who the Deputy County Administrator worked for and a number of related questions.  We still don't have any answers from the Board or any of the Board Members.  However, the Board, when hiring our Acting County Administrator, made it clear that the Deputy County Administrator worked directly for the County Administrator.

 

   This will be reflected in the organizational chart (chain-of-command diagram) in the new Essex County Personnel Policy Manual which will soon be published.  Presumably the Position Description for the Deputy County Administrator will also be amended to reflect the approved authority line.

 

   There are still a number of questions that SHOULD be answered by the Board of Supervisors!

           

   Open Government and transparency are better served when sunshine illuminates the staffing policies and procedures of the Essex County Government and ALL the questions are answered.

 

John R. Clickener

 

Another Ray of Sunshine

The Board of Supervisors/County Administrator recently directed that the Minutes of the Board of Supervisors' Meetings be posted on the web.  This may sound like a very small accomplishment but it replaces years of darkness.  This little ray of sunshine makes it possible for every citizen of Essex County (and the world) to review the discussions, reports, and decisions of our government at any time and at any location where internet access is available.

Yet to be seen is how the process will work.  The current information appears to be the beginning of archival access to minutes in a manner similar to the access provided on the new Essex Public Schools web site.

There is some thought that the draft minutes could be posted immediately after each meeting.  This is preferable IF IT IS CLEAR that the minutes are in draft form and are subject to corrections, reformatting, and other changes.  Meeting Minutes are not binding until approved by the Board of Supervisors.

John R. Clickener

School Board Ray of Sunshine

The comprehensive and thoughtful presentation by the Essex County Public Schools Bus Transportation Supervisor was a burst of sunshine.  It also was the first public step in developing the FY 2013-2014 School Budget.  It is ESO's hope that this entire budget process will be collaborative and open to the public for the first time.  It's of concern that by mid-October the School Board has not published a comprehensive* Budget Development Calendar.  (* Comprehensive means that all meetings are announced and open to the public, all revenue and expenditure assumptions are disclosed to the public, that the budget fully addresses the NEEDS of the school system as required in the Code of Virginia, that public comments are considered at both the individual school and at the school system level, and the budget at each step is published in the format prescribed by the Code.)

Briefly, the Transportation Supervisor informed the School Board of the present status of the transportation system (busses and other vehicles), identified the need to develop a comprehensive vehicle replacement program, and encouraged the use of a cost benefit analysis in determining the benefits of maintenance parts and labor costs for aged high mileage vehicles, the improved fuel economy and extended service intervals of new vehicles, and the significant safety improvements incorporated in new vehicles.  ESO believes that he provided critical data and a realistic approach for developing the next budget.  His data also provides a sound model to create a plan for vehicle replacement planning. We appreciate his thoughtful solid work, his clear presentation, and his obvious dedication and professionalism.   

John R. Clickener

YOU Only Count if YOU Vote!

I was recently asked  to announce that October 30 is the last day Absentee Ballots can be mailed to voters. 

Thanks.  Larnie Flannagan, General Registrar Essex County

Further Vote 2012 information: 
1.  Absentee Voting (or early voting) is available now.  Contact the Ms. Flannagan's Office at 443-4611 for specific times. 

2.  This Election determines who will be the next President and Vice President of our nation, who  will be our junior Senator representing Virginia, who will be our Representative for the First Congressional District in Virginia, the enactment or failure of two Virginia Constitutional Amendments (one on property rights and one about procedures in the General Assembly), and in the CENTRAL District ONLY who will be elected to the School Board.

3.  A failure to vote is a statement that an individual is indifferent about their rights. responsibilities, and how representative, efficient, and effective government is.

John R. Clickener

Compensation – It Matters

     The single largest expense item in the Essex County Budget, which includes the County Government and Essex County Public Schools, is Personnel.  The personnel cost include direct compensation for salary and hourly wages, various benefits, and the government (the employer) portion of taxes plus some other small items.  An additional but significant cost is the cost related to personnel is recruiting and training our employees.

   The ESO post on 21 September provided information about the personnel turnover within the Public Schools.  The loss of experienced teachers and staff not only has a negative impact on the education of our children, it increases expenses and reduces efficiency and effectiveness.  Clearly, the turnover during the 2011-2012 school year created higher recruiting and training expenses.

   This post continues to bring sunshine to the wages of Essex County employees.  The compensation for the County Administrator and the Superintendent of Schools is reported in the posting of their employment contracts.  Those contracts also describe the additional benefits which are authorized as part of their total compensation and benefits packages.

  Please click on the following link to view a summary of many of the County Positions and the wage bands or ranges approved for those positions:

www.essexsunshine.org/pdflib/county-salary-scale-2012.pdf

The Constitutional Officer's and most of their staff's wages are prescribed by the Commonwealth and are not included in the summary. 

  A future post will contain compensation information for employees of the Public School System.

  Comments, suggestions, and questions are always welcome.

John R. Clickener

New County Administrator Opens the Shutters

   Our new County Administrator, William (Bill) Pennell has identified issues and initiated projects to bring the sunshine into Essex County Government.  ESO has learned that he has made an assessment of the digital communications capabilities of Essex County and is developing plans to enhance the speed and functionality of the system using already existing technology.  He is also committed to providing more information and better content using a greatly improved web presence.  He also, for apparently the first time, posted a County Position Announcement on the County Web Page.

  Other areas being considered include greater transparency and public involvement in the annual budget development, clarification and improvement in the county government organizational structure, updating, codification and improving accessibility of the Essex County Ordinances, policies, position descriptions, and other information that should be in the public domain.

   EssexSunshine.Org recognizes that this will take time and appreciates Mr. Pennell's commitment to open government and transparency.  As a highly successful County Administrator in Lancaster County he understood that openness reduces costs and promotes efficiency.  Please see the August 16 posting by retired Mathews County Administrator Steve Whiteway regarding his view of the benefits of open government.  

  We congratulate the Board of Supervisors on selecting an exceptional seasoned individual to serve Essex County as our Interim County Administrator.

  We wish Bill Pennell the very best in fully opening the shutters, raising the blinds, and pulling back the drapes so that sunshine reaches every corner of our County Government.

John R. Clickener