Minutes 05-14-2013 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Commissioner McKee said he thinks there should be more information on the application, though he is not sure he supports an interview process. He thinks that it is important that applicants and appointees not be picked to align with a certain ideology. Commissioner Rich said that both Carrboro and Chapel Hill interview candidates for OWASA. She does not know why Orange County would not do the same. Commissioner McKee said he is not opposed to an interview process as long as personal ideology is not involved in the decision making process. Commissioner Price said she can see a slightly different process for these particular boards. She said that perhaps this can simply be an extra set of specific questions, along with a commitment that applicants will attend the meetings. She questioned whether the BOCC should be the only one to interview and bring forward the candidates. Chair Jacobs said that there has been discussion on broadening the memberships of the advisory boards. He said there are not enough young people or students. He said he feels that the idea of lowering barriers is an important one. He said there are cases, such as the Nursing Home Advisory Board, where there is specific expertise required to do a focused job. He said that for some of these boards, vetting is important. He said he has always been of the opinion that if there are openings and there are applicants, the position should be filled; however this has backfired on several occasions. Donna Baker said that if the process is lengthy, it will often happen that the candidate is no longer interested or available by the time the Board gets back to them. She said that efforts are made to contact the candidates prior to a decision to check availability. She said that all of the information on the forms comes straight from a database. Chair Jacobs gave an example of a conflict of interest case with an advisory board candidate. He said he sees the value in bringing in candidates to interview. He said that his only concern with vetting is that personal agendas will be pushed. He said that if all of the questions can be agreed on, then he is ok with it. Chair Jacobs does think the issue of cliques is a problem, but his is unsure how to address them. Commissioner Price said she agreed with Commissioner Dorosin. She feels that if a candidate is willing to serve and is willing to attend the meetings there should not be an interview process requirement. Commissioner Dorosin re-iterated his opposition to interviews. Commissioner Pelissier said she is not sold on having to do interviews. Commissioner Price suggested a phone interview. Commissioner Gordon recommended a specific supplemental set of questions for each board. Commissioner Rich said she feels it is important for some of these boards to get to know the candidates better. Commissioner Dorosin said he is opposed to the idea of phone calls, unless phone calls are made to every single person with the same set of questions. Decision Point: • Does the Board want to move forward with a revised application for these particular boards mentioned above, and if so, can the board provide feedback/questions to the County Attorney in order to move the process forward? Does the Board want to stay with the current process?