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MARATHON CO. BOARD CONSIDERS DOWNSIZING
Wednesday, October 20th, 2010 -- 1:05 pm
Posted by Riley Hebert-News Director
From Matt Lehman:
The largest county board in the state is considering whether to change its size.
The 38-member Marathon County board got the facts Tuesday about how it can change its size. The board’s executive committee will begin formally discussing the issue next month.
County boards can increase or decrease their size when district boundaries are redrawn during the Census apportionment, said Wisconsin Counties Association legislative director John Reinemann. After that, they can only reduce their size once every 10 years between Census counts.
The county board can decide on its own whether to change its size or residents can file a petition seeking a referendum.
Supporters say reducing county board sizes makes sense because it is easier to travel and communicate with residents. They say if state lawmakers and Congressman can cover larger districts, then so can county board members. Reducing board sizes also leads to cost savings in terms of how much supervisors are paid.
But opponents argue that smaller boards mean more work for board members and paid county staff. They also argue that fewer seats equals the potential for less diversity. And they say it is hard to determine whether there is a net cost savings.
“I don't think there's a single right answer to how big a county board should be for any one county,” Reinemann said. “The best board size is a balance between what the people want, what the supervisors need in order to be effective in the job. Available resources have to be looked at as well.”
Eleven counties have decreased their size since Governor Doyle signed a law in 2006 that changed the way boards are resized.
The average county board size in Wisconsin is 25 members. The national average is 6.23, Reinemann said.
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