Although this month’s thoughts may be a bit off of the beaten public health track, they do relate to the way we develop and modify ordinances that authorize and direct programs on a local level. We do this through the legislative process.
In St. Charles County, many things must be presented to the County Council. Of course, new ordinances and ordinance amendments require legislative approval. Less known is that many contracts are required by our local constitution, the County Charter, to be approved by both the legislative and the executive branch of county government. Because of this, I have attended almost all of the bi-monthly meetings of the County Council in 2008 and many more in previous years.
I am not going to discuss the process of determining that a new ordinance or an ordinance amendment is needed and how that proposed legislation is developed and works its way through the executive and legislative branches, usually with departmental input. Rather I want to talk about something that I have observed since I attended my first County Council meeting 12 ½ years ago when an item appearing on the consent agenda was confirming the county executive’s appointment of me as the director of the Department of Community Health and the Environment.
Obviously, that particular item was important to me personally and I also had the opportunity to introduce myself to the council and to answer a few questions, all of which was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. But what followed was my introduction to how deeply citizens cared and how actively they participated in the political process in St. Charles County.
I stayed for the entire two hour council meeting because I wanted to see how government worked in the county to which I would soon be relocating with my family. The agenda has a set order of business and one of the early items was “Public Comment.” This was an orderly process and a number of residents spoke on several different topics. One issue was taken up at a time and then those citizens for and those against the issue took turns. I remember a particularly passionate discussion about preserving the rural nature of the southwest and west portion of the county. Although the discussion was passionate, it was also very respectful and orderly. This was the time for citizen’s input so the council members did not interrupt or speak but listened. Once the various topics brought up by those desiring to make public comment were finished the meeting moved on.
Next was the report from the county executive, during which I was introduced to the council. After that came the reading of bills for introduction. Sometimes that was a quick process, and other times there was discussion by the council members about the proposed legislation. Often one or another department director was called on to answer questions from the council about the bills and sometimes a council member would introduce a person they had asked to speak briefly about the bill.
All in all, it was a very instructive and enjoyable evening. As I left the historic St. Charles County Courthouse, where the executive offices and council chamber are located, it was a beautiful April evening. Since we had not yet relocated to the county, I had a 40-minute drive home to South St. Louis City to think about the council meeting. I remember being impressed that so many citizens had participated on such a variety of topics and it made me feel good about relocating my family to St. Charles County and taking on the new responsibilities I had been hired to carry out.
In the 12 ½ years that have passed since that evening, nothing has changed. Citizens still attend council sessions, provide comment, and their views are always respectfully heard. It is usually interesting and often exciting. If you have never attended a meeting of your local legislative body, wherever you live, I would highly recommend it. I can’t promise that it will be as interesting and instructive as those here in St. Charles County tend to be, but the only way to find out is to go to a few!