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Show County-Wide Committee Continues Government Study special 16-member committee com-mittee continues its study this week of alternate forms of government for Summit County. The group, which represents repre-sents a broad cross section of county residents has met each Wednesday throughout most of the summer and hopes to have a firm proposal before Summit County Commissioners Com-missioners by September 14. The 16 members are in agreement on many areas ot a proposed new county government but according to committeeman Matt Alvarez there are still several important impor-tant differences to be worked out. All agree a new form of administration is necessary to better serve the needs of the residents of the growing county. The group also mostly agrees the new governing body should comprise com-prise an expanded county commission and a county administrator or manager. According to a recent proposal the commission would be expanded from three to five members, four of whom would be elected by district. The Park City area or West Summit County would elect two commission ers, Coalville area one, and Kamas area another. The fifth would be elected at large throughout the county. The principal dispute now facing the committee is whether the county administrator admini-strator should be appointed by the expanded Board of County Commissioners or elected at large by county voters. Apparently the Park City representatives to the committee com-mittee feel the administrator or manager should be appointed but other members mem-bers insist it be an elected position. Alvarez said he personally favors the appointed position because it would give Commissioners Com-missioners the opportunity to hire a professional with experience and expertise in county management. Others, however, feel the manager should be responsible to the public not the commissioners and thereby an elected representative. Also, since most other county department depart-ment heads are presently elected officials, an appointed appoint-ed manager may have problems effectively administering admini-stering policy to his subordinates. subordi-nates. Alverez feels a working compromise would be to elect a manager, but then give him or her the opportunity opportu-nity to hire a professional administrator. In that situation situat-ion there still remains debate whether the hired administrator admini-strator would answer to the elected manager or the Commissioners. Once a final proposal is approved by the Summit County Board of Commissioners, Commis-sioners, an election will be held, (mostly likely in December) De-cember) to give voters the chance to change their own government. If the public votes to alter the present . government form in Summit county, there will be an eventual election to choose the expanded Board of Commissioners and maybe a county manager as well. |