Barnstable Manifesto

Dateline: Charter Review Committee Report
to the Assembly of Delegates

Barnstable County undergoes a review of its Charter every five years. It may be easy to miss since it's a fairly archaic exercise. The Review Committee is appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly Tom Bernardo, who over a year ago appointed 11 citizens of various categories to the committee. Since almost all of them are political cronies, it was easy to get to the end game this time around: maintain the Status Quo.

Of all the deficiencies in County goverment the Committee could have addressed, they chose to focus only on minutia allowing them to keep things just as they are. This is an election year after all. No use rocking the boat. Everyone County official is up for re-election, again. They all want to keep their jobs. Assembly and Commissioners alike.

The Speaker recently decided he wants to be a Commissioner too. Any major overhaul of the County at this time would require the full commitment of the Speaker to see them though. Not possible while running for the Commissioner's job. Not that it had anything to do with it.

The Charter Review Committee's first recommendation involves appointing a Standing Committee on County Governance. In other words, a permanent Charter Review Committee, ready to punt at a year's notice when changes are warranted to the Charter.

The second recommendation leaves the current structure of Assembly Delegates and Commissioners alone. Of course. Everyone gets to keep their parking spaces. No reason to make the Assembly more responsive to the electorate. Not having any competitive races last year except one, (out of 15) means the voters must be extremely happy with the Delegates, so they keep voting them in by acclamation. The Reveiw Committee could have devised a better system to make the election of Delegates meaningful.

The next recommendation involves removing the residency requirement for the County Adminstrator. He no longer has to live in Barnstable County. Not that he ever has, going against the County's Charter for the last 4 years. The Review Committee simply removed this little impediment, er embarassment, from the books. The County Adminstrator for the record lives in Attleboro.

Call me old fashioned, but I think that anyone who gets paid by the County tax, should have to pay it. Including the elitests who work at the Commission. More than 1/3 of them don't live on Cape Cod, but they get to tell us how we should.

The Review Committee further recommended that the Adminstrator's job and that of the County Treasurer be seperated, thereby creating 2 full time $100k year jobs in the County. Having the proper check and balance, is important. Let's see if they can find someone who lives on Cape Cod to fill the new position.

Most of the Committee's attention was focused on alleviating any future budget crisis. Like when the Assembly doesn't agree with the Commissioners' budget proposal. The next recommendation sets up a strict review and submit schedule between the two bodies with a reconciliation committee appointed to broker any potential compromise. In effect, it's the system that exists now, but a little friendlier.

Budget surpluses are tricky things. The practice of late has been that the County spends them before they occur. That was supposed to avoid an ugly food fight over who get the leftovers. But that was what the confrontation last spring was about, anyway.

Spend it all the Commissioner Bill Doherty said. Give some more to the Commission. And make sure there is no surplus to send back to the Towns. Speaker Bernardo disagreed, so now he running for the Commissioner's job.

After presentations by the County departments, it was decided that they were all necessary and function well. As a matter of fact, greater services may be needed in the future and that the County should be prepearing to deliver them. The Cape Cod Commission was of particular interest since it is a department of the County but not part of the Charter.

The Review Committee decided better communication betwen the County and Commission was needed and that should be translated that to the public, so as to make sure that people understand that when the Commission screws them, its not the County's fault.

And, oh yes, the Review Committee recommended changing Barnstable County Government to Cape Cod Regional Government. This nominclature would give them a better chance of getting any future enabling legislation passed by the State House. In other words, hide the fact that we are an archaic form of government slated for extinction by the State, so call it something else in hopes that they won't notice.

So there you have it. After a year of review, the Charter Review Committee recommended that we that we keep things just as they are. That if it ain't broke don't fix it. And if it is, don't fix it either. We have an ever expanding County, er Regional government, and let's make it even more obscure to the electorate. But let's enhance and institutionize the bureaucracy.

The Report now goes to the full Assembly and the Commissioners for approval. They will no doubt protect their collective sinecures and vote for the Status Quo.