Washington County delays vote on government study

By Eric Seiverling

eseiverling@yourmvi.com

Washington County commissioners postponed today’s special virtual meeting that would have included a vote on a resolution to place the formation of a county government study in the hands of voters.

The special meeting has been moved to 9 a.m. July 29 and will take place in person at the commissioners’ first-floor conference room in Courthouse Square.

According to Commissioner Larry Maggi, all three commissioners had vacations scheduled this week, which forced them to hold the meeting virtually.

County Solicitor Jana Phillis Grimm advised the commissioners that the meeting is too important to hold virtually and not give residents a chance to comment publicly, according to Maggi.

“Our solicitor questioned if it satisfies open meeting rules,” Maggi said. “It’s a pretty important issue, so just to be on the side of caution we’ll do the meeting next week.”

If approved by commissioners, the resolution will be on November’s general election ballot and will ask voters if they would like to see the formation of a citizens committee to study county government and how it operates. Voters will also have the opportunity to vote for the citizens who will make up the committee.

If approved by voters, the 11-person commission will study term limits, salaries, how to save taxpayer money and how to make Washington County government more efficient.

The study could impact how county offices are operated and how officers are appointed.

To read the rest of the story, please see a copy of Friday’s Mon Valley Independent, call 724-314-0035 to subscribe or subscribe to our online edition at http://monvalleyindependent.com.