Something New?

So the Department of Revenue Report is in.  There are 34 recommendations.  Some of which are procedural, many of which are "structural" and a fair amount of which will be met with some controversy.  One way or another many will also involve some expenditure of funds to implement.

As noted in the report, our Town's government has a linear structure.  It should be changed.  It in fact should be.  As has been stated before, Fairhaven lack's a proper chain of command.  The report recommends a strong town administrator.  

I am not sure how much controversy should in fact meet.  I would hope very little.  When the present executive secretary leaves, as is noted in the report, " Professional administrators will not be drawn to an executive secretary title or to the lack of authority assigned to the position."

As the report notes, Fairhaven is the only town in the Commonwealth of its size and budget with an executive secretary format.

The strong town administrator recommendation is the building block for the majority of the report.  Indeed it is something that would be essential to any serious review and reform of town government.  I don't think most people need to read the report to understand the need for a position akin to a strong town administrator.  If the town doesn't go that route however, you can pretty much throw out about 50% of the report, or any serious attempt at reform in my opinion

Fin Com did not go unscathed.   First, it was noted there are too many members (13).  the committee size should be reduced (7).  It was also recommended that the method of appointment be changed from appointments made by precinct chairs to all appointments being made by the town moderator. Despite popular opinion to the contrary, it appears there have been instances where fin com has been a bit loose with the purse strings in allowing reserve fund transfers and the methods for requesting such transfers.

By way of mitigation I would note, and as actually noted in the report, ultimately when making some decisions, "Common should prevail". 

What should be the least controversial: abolishing the personnel board.  The last serious redo of this particular board was in the mid 1990s.  In the roughly twenty years since, the biggest complaint in recent years I have received from those under its jurisdiction is its lack of action.  I bet many of you didn't even realize we had such a board.

The most controversial recommendation: abolish the Board of Public Works.  The superintendent would report to the town administrator. There is a strong internal conflict on this one.  

The pro argument is the fact that many recent major projects have by necessity, either as a result of legal requirements or as a result of snafus, dovetailed into competing jurisdictional issues,  board battles involving the selectmen or duplication of effort.

BPW with its combined divisions is the second largest department in Town.  Budgets and projects run in the tens of millions of dollars.  Government in Town is a combined $50,000,000.00 + enterprise.  It is fractured and overseen by three separate board of directors (Schools Committee, BPW and Selectmen). It is a three headed monster.  Legally there is nothing you ca do about one of those heads (schools), but from a managerial point of view, one can certainly argue the benefits of dealing with a two vs. three headed monster.

Just from a union contract stand point, you would now consolidate all union contract negotiations under one jurisdiction (excepting the School Dept. of course).  No more passing the buck or finger pointing.

But it works only if you implement a strong town manager with a clearly delineated chain of command.

The con argument:  my natural distrust for anything that does away the power of the vote.  But this is more a preference than an solid argument.  You would also loose a layer of constituent service.  Something that is important, but only to a point.  

In all there are some 34 recommendations.  Nothing in the report is shocking.  Nothing is contained that does not merit serious consideration. Most has been discussed, argued, and internally bandied about for years.

The key component, the only thing that is going to work, in my cluttered mind anyway, is going to be a move to a strong town administrator.  The Town, financially, i.e. in dollars, is int good shape.  The course we have been on has worked, however, as I have said before, and as the report confirms for me, we are soon going to run out of road on which to continue to travel that course.  

In my mind the Town literally has about five years before everything implodes.  We continually put band-aid on gashes.  We don't deal with problems head on.  

We just as clearly are comprised of differing ideas as to what being proactive rather than reactive is.  

The solution to the vast majority of problems and issues in this town involves more than simply throwing money at those problems, or worse yet, ignoring them in the hopes they go away.