Orange County NC Website
4 <br /> <br /> 1 <br /> 2 <br /> 3 <br />RECOMMENDATION(S): 4 <br />The Manager recommended the Board accept this as an information item for further discussion. 5 <br /> 6 <br /> Commissioner Dorosin said he has expressed his feelings in prior meetings, but he does 7 <br />not understand the value of a Commissioner being present on the ABC Board, without being a 8 <br />voting member. He said Commissioners are excluded from closed sessions, ABC Board items, 9 <br />and other items. He said a Commissioner should have the same permissions and authority as 10 <br />other ABC Board members. 11 <br /> Commissioner Price said she thought it says somewhere in state law that a 12 <br />Commissioner cannot vote on a Board. 13 <br /> John Roberts said he is not aware of anything that prohibits Commissioners from voting. 14 <br />He said he would love to see any information that Commissioners may have. 15 <br /> Commissioner Price said a Commissioner is currently serving, and asked if there is a 16 <br />reason this person does not already have voting authority. She asked if there is a reason the 17 <br />Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) must wait for current ABC Board members to roll off, 18 <br />prior to appointing new members. 19 <br /> John Roberts said he is not familiar with how the ABC Board was originally structured, or 20 <br />why the ABC Board Commissioner representative does not have a vote. He said the BOCC 21 <br />would need to wait to appoint new members as ABC members can only be removed for cause, 22 <br />such as malfeasance. 23 <br /> Commissioner Price asked if there is a reason why the ABC Board Commissioner liaison 24 <br />cannot vote currently. 25 <br /> John Roberts said the board is not set up that way, and is a 5-member board. He said 26 <br />state statute says a 5-member board cannot be increased or decreased, other than by a 27 <br />legislative act. 28 <br /> Commissioner Dorosin said the abstract was very good. He asked if the ABC Board 29 <br />members get paid a salary, and if a Commissioner were a voting member, would he/she also 30 <br />receive a salary. 31 <br /> John Roberts said to his knowledge the ABC Board members receive a stipend. He said 32 <br />an appointed Commissioner would be eligible for that stipend, and thus would not be allowed to 33 <br />vote on issues relating to that stipend, due to his/her position as a County Commissioner. 34 <br /> 35 <br /> Commissioner Greene joined the meeting at 7:10 p.m. 36 <br /> 37 <br />Chair Rich said the GoTriangle board also receives a stipend. 38 <br /> Commissioner Bedford said she was a liaison on the Orange County Partnership for 39 <br />Young Children. She said she is required to recuse herself when this board is voting on the 40 <br />allocation of state dollars that will financially benefit the County. She asked if the ABC Board 41 <br />would have similar restrictions. 42 <br />John Roberts said this may be part of the non-profit’s bylaws, and would not be 43 <br />applicable to a Commissioner individually as he/she is not benefiting personally from the vote. 44 <br /> Chair Rich said the BOCC will choose boards in December, and asked if the 45 <br />Commissioner that chooses the ABC Board would become the voting member when slots 46 <br />become available in 2021. 47 <br /> John Roberts said the liaison position would go away, and a voting member would be 48 <br />installed, but the BOCC could change the Commissioner who fills each role, if it so desires. 49 <br /> Commissioner Dorosin asked John Roberts if he recommends this change be made. 50