County continues to show arrogance in county board size issue
The first slap in the face of citizens and to “government of the people, by the people and for the people” came in September when the Winnebago County Board voted to cut itself by a mere two members – an intentional move knowing a citizen action group was circulating petitions to seek a vote by the public to cut the board size by half.
The second slap came when the legislative committee of the county board voted 6-5 to send to the full county board a resolution asking that the state legislature repeal the law allowing citizen groups to reduce the size of county boards through direct-legislation referendums. No vote by the full 38-member board has yet been taken on the resolution, at least as of this writing, though it may be considered by the board this month.
The third slap came today, when the Citizens United to Transform the Winnebago County Board, better known as CUT, presented more than 5,500 signatures on petitions to put a referendum on a future ballot, seeking to reduce the board’s size from 38 to 19 supervisors, but they were rejected by County Clerk Sue Ertmer through a written directive to her staff. According to the Oshkosh Northwestern, Ertmer’s letter said her decision was based on advice she received from legal counsel and the State Elections Board. She said the board has already taken action, therefore, she would not accept the petition.
But according to the same story, CUT had continued their petition drive despite the symbolic two-member board reduction and attempted to file the petitions after seeking advice from a State Legislative Council attorney. A letter from Don Dyke, Senior Staff Attorney at the Wisconsin Legislative Council said that "If a County Board has adopted a resolution to reduce the number of County Board Supervisors, but has yet to enact the revised supervisory district plan to implement the reduction, it appears the board may not enact the plan following the filing of a petition to reduce the County Board Size."
It was that opinion upon which CUT relied when it continued to gather signatures on their petitions. But this afternoon “government of the people, by the people and for the people” it ran into another roadblock when not only were the petitions rejected, but the Corporation Counsel for Winnebago County, John Bodnar, refused to meet with anyone from the group. County executive Mark Harris met with them but is unable to overrule Ertmer’s decision because, like him, she is an elected official in Winnebago County. Ertmer also met with representatives of the group, but only to reiterate her position.
Either the county and State Elections Board are right or the opinion CUT received from the State Legislative Counsel is right but, clearly, both cannot be. And the law itself notwithstanding, the activities of this county board when it comes to the issue of board size reduction reek of arrogance and stonewalling the very public to whom the government belongs. It makes one wonder what this county and its elected officials are so afraid of. I doubt this is the end of the issue. Quite the contrary: it would seem it’s just heating up; as well it should be.
The second slap came when the legislative committee of the county board voted 6-5 to send to the full county board a resolution asking that the state legislature repeal the law allowing citizen groups to reduce the size of county boards through direct-legislation referendums. No vote by the full 38-member board has yet been taken on the resolution, at least as of this writing, though it may be considered by the board this month.
The third slap came today, when the Citizens United to Transform the Winnebago County Board, better known as CUT, presented more than 5,500 signatures on petitions to put a referendum on a future ballot, seeking to reduce the board’s size from 38 to 19 supervisors, but they were rejected by County Clerk Sue Ertmer through a written directive to her staff. According to the Oshkosh Northwestern, Ertmer’s letter said her decision was based on advice she received from legal counsel and the State Elections Board. She said the board has already taken action, therefore, she would not accept the petition.
But according to the same story, CUT had continued their petition drive despite the symbolic two-member board reduction and attempted to file the petitions after seeking advice from a State Legislative Council attorney. A letter from Don Dyke, Senior Staff Attorney at the Wisconsin Legislative Council said that "If a County Board has adopted a resolution to reduce the number of County Board Supervisors, but has yet to enact the revised supervisory district plan to implement the reduction, it appears the board may not enact the plan following the filing of a petition to reduce the County Board Size."
It was that opinion upon which CUT relied when it continued to gather signatures on their petitions. But this afternoon “government of the people, by the people and for the people” it ran into another roadblock when not only were the petitions rejected, but the Corporation Counsel for Winnebago County, John Bodnar, refused to meet with anyone from the group. County executive Mark Harris met with them but is unable to overrule Ertmer’s decision because, like him, she is an elected official in Winnebago County. Ertmer also met with representatives of the group, but only to reiterate her position.
Either the county and State Elections Board are right or the opinion CUT received from the State Legislative Counsel is right but, clearly, both cannot be. And the law itself notwithstanding, the activities of this county board when it comes to the issue of board size reduction reek of arrogance and stonewalling the very public to whom the government belongs. It makes one wonder what this county and its elected officials are so afraid of. I doubt this is the end of the issue. Quite the contrary: it would seem it’s just heating up; as well it should be.
posted by Cheryl Hentz at 11:19 PM
3 Comments:
As one might have expected,a lawsuit has been filed against Winnebago County Clerk Sue Ertmer for her refusal to accept the more than 5,600 signatures on petitions yesterday. You can read more about the lawsuit here.
[we have received the following reply via email with a request by the author, Justin Mitchell, that it be published. We are pleased to publish it for review and comment...]
Cheryl,
I appreciate the sentimental "government of the people, by the people and for the people" in your recent thoughts surrounding the actions of the county board. And you are correct that this is what an elected board and government should be.
But I do not see the actions of the board to be a slap against this idea. Granted, referenda sound nice upon first look - average people are able to vote directly on an issue, thereby granting direct participation in government decisions – and people should be excited at the opportunity to vote on issues in government.
Unfortunately, the referendum often takes the place of real participatory democracy, which consists of active and engaging discussion and evaluation on both sides of an issue, resulting in an informed and knowledgeable electorate.
The reality of referenda is that voters do not always have the capacity or information to make informed decisions about the issue at hand. Instead, voters routinely make ill-informed decisions based on partial knowledge, half-truths, and emotional impulses.
An excellent example of this being the recent constitutional amendment referendum regarding domestic partnership recognitions: the constitutional change had very little, if anything, to do with the marriage of homosexuals, which is and never has been legal in Wisconsin. Yet this is what most voters believed they were voting on.
Please do not mistake this as an all-out assault on direct forms of participation. Referenda are excellent forums for illustrating general opinion on an issue, such as the recent questions in Wisconsin regarding Troop Withdrawal and Death Penalty. These referenda were not binding, but rather advisory, and have potentially invoked further discussion and dialogue regarding these issues.
You can possibly imagine, though, the far-reaching serious issues that would have arisen if either of these two (Troop Withdrawal and Death Penalty) had been binding. Both are passion and value driven and neither takes into consideration financial planning, the logistical realities, and other long-term ramifications if enacted (note I am not opposing or supporting either here).
If the goal is really to produce a stronger, more representative and accountable county government, then we should embark on a long-term, community-oriented, constructive and engaging discussion as to what system and set-up will work best.
Instead of a local newspaper touting their support for one side, maybe they could invite experts to discuss the pros and cons of both.
Instead of local indy journalists marginalizing one side, why not take the opportunity to host a round table discussion of board members, community members, petition gatherers, and other stake-holders, both for and against.
Instead of a county board doing little (if anything) to educate citizens, maybe they can organize regular community discussion and listening sessions surrounding this issue.
Instead of a large campus being all but mute on this issue, maybe they can take an academic lead on the issue, engaging students, parents, faculty, and alumni to think and discuss this issue by coordinating discussions, lectures, presentations, and other educational forums.
Maybe then, we can have a participatory democracy, which will result in a strengthened government every time.
Thank you,
Justin Mitchell
[I have received the following items by email and am pleased to publish them here. The first is a text of the message delivered by County Board supervisor Donna Lohry at the recent county board meeting. The second is a copy of a Letter to the Editor that was submitted to the Oshkosh Northwestern by Ann Frish. I do not know when it is scheduled for publication, but Ann was kind enough to provide me with an advance copy, and I thank her.]
Text of Winnebago County Board Supervisor Donna Lohry's remarks to the Winnebago County Board November 14, 2006, with regard to Resolution 112112006, Support Repeal of Recent Amendments to Section 59.10(2) and (3), Wisconsin Statutes (County Board Redistricting).
"Mr. Chairman, I'd like to say a few words to the viewing audience. This is a contentious issue, but given this law was conceived and birthed in Winnebago County, I feel it is Winnebago County's duty to address the frailties in it, as it now affects the entire state.
"Our friends and neighbors can be commended for their diligent work in gathering signatures calling for referendum. As a life-long advocate, I can appreciate their dedication. However, this is an assault on County Government, our most basic and personal form of democracy. It is County Government to which we turn when ills fall upon us.
"Now to address this particular law and its shortcomings:
"It uses a predetermined arbitrary number that seems to be neatly selected at one half in order to meet the balance of constitutional law requirements of one person-one vote. It is difficult to redistrict mid-census because whole wards in existence at census time cannot be separated when trying to redistrict.
"This is another unfunded mandate which ignores the cost of manpower. Approximately one month's salary for a cartographer plus County Clerk's staff. Referendums can run as high as $4,000.
"The Statute allowing the referendum for a cut in the county boards completely neglects the fact that redistricting will once again occur in 2010 and more redistricting under the new law can occur as early as two years after that in 2012.
"The likely effect of this statute could result in a continuous folding of rural town districts into districts populated by city residents, thus minimizing town input in County Government, despite the fact that County Government provides many services to town residents which are traditionally provided to city residents by their City Government such as zoning, public health, police protection, land and water services.
"But most importantly there is no recourse to correct any error if a Board is reduced and then found to be dysfunctional. There is no safety net until the 2010 census.
"For these reasons I ask passage of this resolution so the entire State can evaluate and decide if this law is worthy to stay on the books. Small sized government boards or councils do not appear to work any better than larger ones that have more voices. Thank you."
The resolution to ask the State to repeal the law is at
http://www.co.winnebago.wi.us/countyclerk/countyboard/Resolution%20No.%20112-112006.pdf
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Letter to the Editor Oshkosh Northwestern:
I thought the nastiness of the election was over, but it seems the CUT (the board) folks are making it a feature of their campaign. To say that the board cares nothing (OshKonversation Nov. 16) and the rage so apparent by CUT members at the County Board meeting Tuesday night is an attempt to cover up the lack of merit in the idea of reducing the county board by half.
A fundamental part of democracy is deliberation, discussing the merits of an idea before proceeding to make changes, discussing it thoughtfully with the
welfare of the community in mind. CUT has chosen to not say what they believe the benefits of cutting the board size would be. Instead they claim that democracy will be served merely by having a vote. That's not democracy, that railroading.
I ask CUT members to state publicly what benefits they think there might be in cutting the board. I want to know what facts they have to support their claims. The community deserves to know why they feel so strongly about this issue. What is the passion and rage that drives them? We also deserve to know who is making statements. Please don't hide in anonymous OshKonversation.
We can discuss this.
Dr. Ann Frisch
Oshkosh, WI
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